The harvest of belonging
Gwendolyn Brooks writes, “We are each other’s harvest.” To be each other’s harvest requires us to also help each other in the planting, the cultivating, the weeding and the nurturing, adds Marcella Auld Glass.
What does belonging look like? Feel like? Sound like? This special issue of the Outlook examines the concept of belonging from a variety of perspectives to help us address what some are calling an “epidemic” of isolation in today’s society. How can people and communities of faith respond to this need? This issue of the Outlook will inspire readers to ask and answer this question.
Gwendolyn Brooks writes, “We are each other’s harvest.” To be each other’s harvest requires us to also help each other in the planting, the cultivating, the weeding and the nurturing, adds Marcella Auld Glass.
Dispelling long-held myths about the experiences and expectations of ancient women, Hylen provides ample evidence that women were impactful, vocal and a powerful social force in the time of Jesus.
"While I was seeking the words to describe what I longed for, Katherine May wrote them all in this book. I will return to Enchantment again and again."
Amy Pagliarella reviews Shannan Martin's latest book.
"By letting chaplains tell their stories, Cadge allows readers to understand their motivations, individual approaches and perceptions of the significance of their service."
"I belonged to her. She belonged to me. Over the years, she belonged to others: students, her poetry pals, our family. But we remained a constellation of two stars."
A poem by Kathryn Lester-Bacon.
Grief has a way of pushing everyone away, writes Angela Williams Gorrell. But it’s when you are grieving that you need belonging the most.
In the Korean Presbyterian church of her childhood, Mihee Kim-Kort learned the necessity of belonging.
Dustin Benac explores Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s question that haunts us all: where do I belong?
To be welcomed, says Mieke Vandersall, is not the same as to experience belonging.
Patrick B. Reyes’ grandmother bound the sands of his broken soul into a stained-glass windowpane of the future.
How do we move toward one another, asks Erin Weber-Johnson, after times of isolation and fear?
In each issue of the Outlook, we include a discussion guide to further reflect on the issue. We recommend using this guide in your Bible study, small group or book club. It's our invitation into a faithful conversation.
What does belonging feel like? Teri McDowell Ott ponders this as she introduces the April issue of Presbyterian Outlook.
Eric Barreto interviews Willie James Jennings on what it means to belong.
As he walks through the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Master of Divinity student Tatum Miller considers what it means to belong.
"I'm making you go through this because I went through it." What if we left this way of thinking behind to follow Jesus, Eric Barreto and Willie James Jennings ask?
How do we reckon with the systems that formed us? How do we move forward? Eric D. Barreto and Willie James Jennings discuss.
Why Eric Barreto tells his Greek students to never say, "In the Greek, it says..." while preaching.
How can we imagine theological education beyond the false goals of possession, mastery and control? Eric D. Barreto and Willie James Jennings offer their thoughts.
Eric Barretto and Willie James Jennings discuss how our knowledge of belonging resides in our bodies.
Kristen Guest reflects on how her community cultivates belonging. Both online and in-person, their doors are always open to everyone — even after worship begins!
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