The Journal of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America January-March 2018 - 4

sTorIes oF Peacemakers

A Report from the 2017 Summer
Institute of Theologies of Life
by Christina Asheervadam

L

ast spring, a group of peacemakers met in Shamshabad,
India, to hold a 10-day Summer Institute of Theologies
of life (SITl). The meeting was hosted by the center for
Peacebuilding and Conflict Resolutions Studies (CPCRS) of
the Mennonite Brethren centenary Bible college (MBcBc)
in Shamshabad.
The collective of dalit ecumenical christian Scholars
(CODECS) coordinated with the CPCRS in organizing the
event, which was partially funded by the Gavel Memorial
World Peace Fund, a BPFNA ~ Bautistas por la Paz program.
The program on (Re)-thinking Theologies of Life brought
participants from different corners of India, including people
from nine Indian states, and from the neighboring countries
of Myanmar and nepal. participants were from rajasthan,
punjab, Assam, Andhra pradesh, Telangana, Bangalore,
kerala, Madhya pradesh and kolkata. They represented the
theological and secular communities as well as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

A total of 28 people from a variety of confessional backgrounds- Syrian orthodox, Anglican, Baptists, free church,
lutheran, Mennonite, presbyterian and reformed-were
actively engaged in this year's program.
The institute was organized to:
* create informal spaces of learning through conversations
and mutual mentoring,
* foster theological commitment among younger theologians to make justice and peace as central themes of
their scholarly and ministerial pursuits,
* provide opportunities of continued education to the
practitioners of christian ministry,
* nurture an Indian ecumenical theology of peace,
* encourage young people to be theologically informed,
and
* foster sound theological literacy among lay people.
The faculty came from various confessional backgrounds,
each one bringing a wealth of wisdom from their fields of
expertise and faith backgrounds. The organizers developed
broad clusters of courses: Social Analysis and Movements for
Peace and Justice, (Re)-thinking Christianity, (Re)-thinking
Theology, Feminist Theory and Practice, (Re)-thinking History:
Dalit and Subaltern Historiographies (Re)-reading the Bible,
(Re)-thinking Mission and Ministry, and Best Practices in the
pursuit of Justice and peace.
While the faculty from within the country were physically
present for teaching, those from outside the country lectured
on Skype. each presentation was followed by intense and
enriching conversations, with students actively participating.
each day began with a Bible Studies led by young biblical scholars. participants were encouraged to be grounded in
social theory so that our theological and ministerial practices
are informed social engagements. We were invited to learn
from various theological discourses that emerge from different
contexts and be critical constructors of relevant theology. In the

Participants this year's Summer Institute of
Theologies of Life (SITL) in Shamshabad, India.
The institute was funded in part by the
BPFNA ~ Bautistas por la Paz.
Photo courtesy of Christina Asheervadam.

4

Baptist Peacemaker

JAN-MAR 2018



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Journal of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America January-March 2018

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http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/38-1
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/37-4
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/37-3
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/37-2
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/37-1
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/36-3
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/36-2
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/36-1
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/35-4
http://www.brightcopy.net/allen/peacemaker/35-3
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/peacemaker/35-2
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/peacemaker/35-1
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/peacemaker/34-4
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/peacemaker/34-3
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/peacemaker/34-2
https://www.nxtbook.com/allen/peacemaker/34-1
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com