Friday, April 9th An Evening of Inspiration: Breaking Down Barriers
Location: Emmanuel Temple Church
Drs. Perkins and Metzger will speak in this introductory event for the Saturday New Wine New Wineskins conference.
Link: Go here for more information

Saturday, April 10th New Wine New Wineskins Conference – Owning the Pond Together: Developing Communities through Entrepreneurship
Location: Eastside Foursquare Church
The New Wine spring conference will feature keynote addresses from Dr. John M. Perkins, Dr. Paul Louis Metzger and Pastor Eric Bahme and and idea party hosted by Tony Kriz. Drs. Perkins and Metzger and Pastor Eric Bahme will assist us in understanding the key role of entrepreneurship and micro-enterprise as it relates to community development.
Link: For more information and to register, click here

Sunday, April 11th An Evening of Prayerful Repentance and Reconciliation
Location: Allen Temple CME Church
As a part of their Drum Majors for Love, Truth and Justice partnership, Drs. Perkins and Metzger will join Dr. Leroy Haynes Jr. to lead a focused time of seeking God’s transformation of the broken relational structures that have erected barriers between the white church and African-American church.
Link: Invitation from Dr. Metzger

The Duke Summer Institute is not a conference for the many but a learning space limited to 200 Christian leaders to go deep. Over five days of renewal and learning with Christian leaders from across the U.S. and world – through worship, shared meals, plenary sessions, and in-depth cohorts – you will be led by world-class theologians and practitioners of reconciliation and justice ministry. In 2009 there were participants from 23 states and 7 countries. Your fellow participants this summer will include a cohort from east Africa, senior leadership teams from national organizations, several groups from cities and Christian colleges and universities, and leaders from the grassroots to churches to national and international organizations as well as lay Christians concerned about their families, communities and places of worship, work, and life. Scholarships are available through April 9th. Applications will be accepted online through May 7th. Click here for more information and to apply.

At ORM I counsel Christians and non-Christians alike on issues of conflict, disputes and broken relationships in general. We have 27 chapters in 5 countries – the U.S., Canada, Ireland, England and Scotland. Our work has extended into Africa and the Philippines as well. Our Vision is: ‘To put the teachings of Jesus Christ into action by advancing relationships between people of different beliefs and points of view.” Our Mission: “To respond to situations of racial or ethnic tension and to help build lasting, harmonious and accepting relationships.

Our Core Values are guided by Scripture:

1. Reconciliation as a ministry given to us by God (II Corinthians 5:18-19)

2. All humans made from one blood (Acts 17:26)

3. The inclusive mission/vision of Jesus (Luke 4:18)

4. Neither Jew, Greek, male nor female, but all one in Christ (Galatians 3:28)

5. Practical demonstrations of love and faith, including literature resources such as our book, Mending Broken Relationships (James 2:16)

In fulfilling our mission we conduct workshops, seminars and give presentations on the topics of reconciliation and conflict resolution throughout the United States and occasionally overseas. We see the need to stand in the gaps that divide people.

ORM has worked with police departments, city halls, schools and other organizations to participate in the mandate of Jesus “that they may be one” (John 17:20-23). We specifically emphasize this message of oneness as we work among churches in the spirit of interdenominationalism. As Dr. Paul Metzger points out so poignantly in his book Consuming Jesus, the church has a huge problem of race, class and consumerism.

We have received a number of awards and certificates for our work, including the key to the city of Memphis. (Please see “Awards” on our website at www.ATimeToReconcile.org.) We also work in inter-faith settings with Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Ba’hai.

What do you think about the difference in the sort of communities created around the coffee bar or the Lord’s Table?

Do you have any thoughts or ideas on how we use space to represent the values of our communities?  Share your ideas in the comments here.

Consuming Jesus Study Guide