After 10 days of global attention and national mourning of the death of the 95 year old anti-apartheid revolutionary and first Black President of South Africa, I am still in awe of this royal champion, this Lion-King of a man with mythic dimensions, magical powers, mystical depths of spirit, and feet of clay. I remember how his prophetic witness raised my global consciousness growing up in the 1970’s, and how supporting his call for divestment in the 1980’s added to the controversial issues that got me in trouble with my denomination. I remember where I was and who I was cheering with on February 11, 1990, when he was finally released from prison after 27 years (it was the same day I decided to leave the church of my birth and become a United Methodist). I want to remember and give thanks for Nelson Mandela and honor the Source of his Fire and Flame at Christmas time. Mandela's coffin covered with lion s...
Project Updates and Reflections by Michael J. Christensen, Director