A Consultation of African American Christian Scholars in Higher Education July 15-19, 2002 Funds provided by the Calvin Center for Christian Scholarship and the Provost’s Office at Calvin College.
Barbara Omolade Professor of Sociology City College of New York, Center for Worker Education	Willie Jennings Associate Dean of Theology Divinity School, Duke University
In 2002, the second of five successive annual consultations was held at Calvin College. These consultations discuss the intersections of Christian faith with the scholarly disciplines from an African American perspective. The Consultation is now co-directed by Professor Barbara Omolade from the Sociology Department at City College of New York, Center for Worker Education and Professor Willie Jennings, Associate Dean of Theology at the Divinity School at Duke University. Professor Omolade co-directed the initial 2001 consultation with Susan Felch, Professor of English, and Director of the Seminars in Christian Scholarship, at Calvin College. The 2002 Consultation included ten participants including faculty from seven institutions, representing eight disciplines. The 2002 Consultation revisited five primary themes that emerged from the discussion of the 2001 Consultation, which were viewed as critical to the current task of African American Christian Scholarship. These themes were 1) the recognition of the unique burdens and responsibilities faced by African American Christian scholars in relationship to the church and to various communities; 2) the concern of African American Christian scholars to retrieve their scholarly legacy; 3) the integral relationship between African Americans and the African diaspora; 4) the need for institutional support and social networks for producing research and published scholarship; and 5) the challenge of African American scholars to link their work to African American institutions. As an outgrowth of the 2002 Consultation, three successive week-long workshops in 2003, 2004, and 2005 have been planned, which will culminate in a conference on worship in 2005. This series, In Spirit and In Truth: Race, Christian Worship, and Public Witness, is funded by the Lilly Endowment and co-sponsored by the Seminars in Christian Scholarship and the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. The 2003 workshop is entitled "Health and Transformation in Afro-Christian Worship." The 2004 workshop is entitled "Prayerful Journey: Africans in Worship." The proposed final workshop and conference in 2005 is "Worshipping Toward the Beloved Community: Afro-Christian Worship, Media and Capitalism." The Consultation of African American Christian Scholars in Higher Education is a by invitation only workshop. Consultation Index In Spirit and In Truth Index

Contact seminars@calvin.edu. Last revised on 5 January 2004 by A.B. Chadderdon.