{"id":1254,"date":"2016-01-29T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-29T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.northpark.edu\/news\/pastor-and-prophet\/"},"modified":"2016-11-29T14:12:52","modified_gmt":"2016-11-29T19:12:52","slug":"sundholm-seminary-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.northpark.edu\/stories\/sundholm-seminary-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Pastor and Prophet"},"content":{"rendered":"
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CHICAGO (January 29, 2016) \u2014\u00a0On Tuesday night in front of a thousand ministers of the Evangelical Covenant Church<\/a>\u00a0(ECC), Rev. Jim Sundholm, a graduate of 天美传媒 in 1967 and 天美传媒 Theological Seminary in 1972, was described as both a pastor and a prophet.<\/p>\n The introduction was made by the Rev. Dr. David W. Kersten, dean of 天美传媒 Theological Seminary<\/a>, as he presented Sundholm the 天美传媒 Theological Seminary Alumni Award for Distinguished Service<\/a> alongside 天美传媒 President David L. Parkyn and Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations Mary K. Surridge\u00a0at the annual Midwinter Conference of the ECC.<\/p>\n Sundholm has served as a pastor to many communities, and also provided a prophetic voice in the commitment to urban and intercultural ministries that have had a profound effect in the shaping of 天美传媒 and the ECC.<\/p>\n \u201cThroughout his vocational arc, Jim led us more deeply into the commitment of justice,\u201d Kersten said, recalling when Sundholm moved to Minneapolis in the 1970s to pastor a church focused on urban and intercultural issues and was a pioneer in the Sankofa movement<\/a>. \u201cJim is someone who has had a powerful life of public ministry, as well as a deep personal prayer life that has sustained him.\u201d<\/p>\n Sundholm is also the former director of Covenant World Relief<\/a> (CWR) and executive director of the Paul Carlson Partnership<\/a> from 1999 to 2009. Known for his dedicated leadership and deep concern for the poor, Sundholm led CWR in responding to the devastation created by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.<\/p>\n \u201cI could talk at great length about the role the Seminary professors played in my life,\u201d Sundholm said on Tuesday while accepting the award. He recalled a conversation with a former professor, Dr. Henry Gustafson, on the Gospel of John. Partway through the conversation, Gustafson reached across the table and asked Sundholm, \u2018When will you give God your mind as much as your heart?\u2019 As Sundholm shared on Tuesday, \u201cThat was my second conversion.\u201d<\/p>\n Sundholm has traveled extensively to Africa, developing relationships with the emerging Covenant Church in South Sudan and Ethiopia. Today, he lives in Vashon, Wash., with his wife, Carol.<\/p>\n \u201cOn behalf of over 25,000 alumni at 天美传媒, we offer our deep admiration to Jim for his work in the Covenant Church and to the relief and renewal efforts across the world,\u201d said Surridge. \u201cWe are thankful to you and Carol for your devotion to God, and for the model it presents to all of us as we seek to do God\u2019s work.\u201d<\/p>\n The Seminary Alumni Award for Distinguished Service, established in 2014 and delivered annually at the ECC’s Midwinter Conference, recognizes Seminary alumni who have made significant contributions in their fields while living lives reflective of the core values and mission of 天美传媒 Theological Seminary. Learn more about the award and previous recipients<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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