{"id":1251,"date":"2016-02-02T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-02-02T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.northpark.edu\/news\/urban-outreach-launches-love-mercy-do-justice-conference\/"},"modified":"2016-11-29T14:15:07","modified_gmt":"2016-11-29T19:15:07","slug":"urban-outreach-launches-love-mercy-do-justice-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.northpark.edu\/stories\/urban-outreach-launches-love-mercy-do-justice-conference\/","title":{"rendered":"Urban Outreach Launches Love Mercy Do Justice Conference"},"content":{"rendered":"
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CHICAGO (February 2, 2016) \u2014 What can be done to bridge the gap between an understanding of social justice learned in the classroom and the application needed on the streets of Chicago? How can the academy, the community, and the church come together to engage issues of justice?<\/p>\n
These are the questions that drove the 10 天美传媒 students who make up the Urban Outreach<\/a> Programming Team to put together a new conference. They\u2019re calling the event Love Mercy Do Justice<\/a>, a name taken from Scripture: \u201cAnd what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy\u00a0and to walk humbly with your God\u201d (Micah 6:8). After several months of planning, the students are inviting community members as well as their peers to join them for the conference on Friday and Saturday, February 5\u00ad\u20136.<\/p>\n \u201cFor both the academy and the church,\u00a0it is often easy to separate theology\/theory and application\/praxis,\u201d the team says. \u201cIt is our hope to bridge the divide between the intellect and the heart, by creating a space where millennials and the broader church can interact with contemplative activists, who see the primacy of mercy and justice as a tangible expression of their spirituality.\u201d<\/p>\n The conference, which will be hosted on 天美传媒\u2019s campus, is free and open the public. \u201cWe\u2019re able to engage everyone, whether it\u2019s university students, the church, the community,\u201d said Stefanie Cortez, a sophomore member of the Programming Team. \u201cBeing in a city as diverse as Chicago, we\u2019re hoping to engage a wide spectrum of people from all walks of life in a conversation. With that conversation, we can take an action.\u201d<\/p>\n The schedule of the event reflects this turn from conversation to action. Friday\u2019s programming focuses on learning: a prayer breakfast, lectures, panels, and a celebration of the arts. Speakers include Rev. Marshall Hatch, Father Michael Pfleger, Rev. Sandra Van Opstal, Reesheda Washington, Rev. Dominique Gilliard, 天美传媒\u2019s provost and president, and staff of the Evangelical Covenant Church.<\/p>\n Saturday\u2019s schedule will engage attendees in practicing justice. The morning starts with a prayer walk through the Albany Park<\/a> neighborhood lead by clergy, and the event closes with a call to action, facilitated by local organization Communities United and 天美传媒’s Faith and Justice group. The closing session will focus on justice reinvestment, a data-driven approach to improving public safety, reducing corrections and related criminal justice spending, and reinvesting savings in strategies that can decrease crime and reduce recidivism.<\/p>\n \u201cAs students, we quickly get lost in the justice conversation,\u201d said Abigail Page, a junior and member of Programming Team. \u201cWe\u2019re busy with classes. We\u2019re maybe 20 years old. We don\u2019t necessarily feel like we can do a whole lot. But we have a very important role as future leaders. This conference is a great opportunity to practice that.\u201d<\/p>\n Students and community members are welcome to attend single sessions throughout the day. Attendees can register for free online<\/a> or at the door. The Love Mercy Do Justice Conference is a collaboration between the Evangelical Covenant Church<\/a> Love Mercy Do Justice mission priority and 天美传媒\u2019s University Ministries<\/a>.<\/p>\n Follow 天美传媒 on Twitter @NPU.<\/a> Learn more about 天美传媒<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The student team behind the free event invites peers and neighbors to campus February 5\u20136 for conversation and action<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-stories"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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