I am regretting not having another week with you all—and these readings! I hope that you keep these in your files for future engagement.

What I hope you keep in your minds as you read this week, and in preparation for class, is the question posed in the Nelson essay, “Who is Christ for us today?” What is a Christology for April 2024, in the midst of war and genocide overseas, in an election year, when inflation is high, when the earth is on fire, and so on?

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I debated having you skip this first piece, but it’s just too good!! Instead, please consider skimming it, at least, to get the gist of her argument. Margit Ernst-Habib provides a feminist and womanist reimagining of predestination that I find to be so compelling. Drawing on Augustine, Calvin, and Barth, she argues for what is ultimately a universalist, liberationist predestination—huzzah! I read this piece in Dr. Chelle Stearns’s theology class many moons ago, and I never forgot about it; it took some effort to track it down for you all, and I’m glad to have the opportunity to return to it. 😏

The next chapter you may choose to skip: it is by Letty Russell (a feminist theologian) on Christ’s presence in the world. It’s rich, just quite long though already excerpted. I would rather you read others this week. 

The next chapter is from Jon Sobrino’s Jesus the Liberator. For those of you who are interested in Liberation Theology (capital L, capital T), I encourage you to keep this one on hand if you don’t get a chance to read it deeply. He makes an excellent case for a Christological ecclesiology (!!). 

Next, Barter’s essay is a great example of how Christology shapes policy decisions. I think you all will appreciate this essay in light of Emily P. and Danielle’s cultural Jesus presentations. 

Finally, read this sermon by James B. Nelson on that question I posed on the top of this blog post: “Who is Christ for us today?” Nelson is a very early queer theologian whose work is centered on eroticism and “body theology.” You get glimpses of that here. But even more, I think this piece rounds out our term so beautifully.