December 2013 Issue Index

Editor's Introduction

James Kenneth Echols
Immigration reform continues to be a major issue confronting the United States of America. This issue of the Journal of Lutheran Ethics provides information on comprehensive immigration reform thanks to the ministry of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. In addition, the authors of the two articles explore and suggest what the church needs to do given the significant presence of immigrants in this country.

Immigration Reform

Comprehensive Immigr​​ation Reform
   by Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
Are you curious about what is going on in Congress regarding immigration reform?  Check out this helpful piece from Lutheran Immigration and Refuge Service to find out about the state of immigration reform on the Hill and what you can do to help. 

Exploring the Role of Unconscious Bias in the Immigration Debate and the Transformative Power of the Church?   
    by Carmelo Santos
What images come to mind when you hear the phrase “undocumented immigrant”?  Santos argues that the negative stereotypes surrounding undocumented immigrants contribute to the lack of immigration reform and calls upon the church to be a source of more positive images and actions to help encourage just immigration reform. 

Beyond Hospitality
   by Wayne Miller                   
Bishop Miller of the Metro-Chicago Synod asks what the concept of “welcoming the stranger” signifies when talking about immigration in the United States.   He argues that because of the power of the cross, Christians are called to assist immigrants in pursuing their vocations in the United States and to work against conditions that prevent people from building homes here.

Book Reviews

Review: Volker Küster, A Protestant Theology of Passion: Korean Minjung Theology Revisited.
   Review by Kevin Considine
In this book, Küster analyzes the context in which minjung theology rose, along with the break that its theologians made with Western theology. Even though the vast majority of Korean Christians and theologians have dismissed minjung theology, Küster sees an opportunity for continued Christian theological reflection within this tradition that could speak meaningfully to the local and global context.  

To Tell or Not to Tell?: Autobiography and its Role in Theology in Theologians In Their Own Words, edited by Derek R. Nelson, Joshua M Moritz, and Ted Peters.
   Review by Jacqueline Bussie
Theologians in Their Own Words is a compilation of theological autobiographies written by brilliant theologians who are challenged by the innovative editors Derek Nelson, Joshua Moritz, and Ted Peters to take the first risk and move beyond the merely academic into the autobiographical. The book manifests the very real possibility that theological discourse is not diluted by reflection on personal experience, but instead can be profoundly enriched by it.