Yesterday I wrote a little bit about The Justice Conference (see Pt. 1). Today I want to write about my time at this year’s conference. Tomorrow I aim to say a few things about the future of the conference.

I heard some fabulous speakers at the main sessions. Miroslav Volf addressed treating all people with respect and honor. This is something I need to hear because there are many with whom I disagree on matters that I struggle to respect. Often I merge their worldview with their ontology. This isn’t to say that people’s views on matters do not reflect something about they are as a person, but sometimes people are ignorant. Also, as hard as this is to admit, sometimes they are right and I am wrong.

I met the great Walter Brueggemann who has been my favorite Old Testament/Hebrew Bible scholars for a while now. He gave a talk as well, examining the fidelity of God to Israel and the justice related terminology found in Hosea 2. It was interview style and he did not fail to captivate. He had some tough questions tossed his way, like economic redistribution, and he handled them well.

John Perkins was interviewed as well. He was amazing. He challenged us to continue the push for civil and human rights. He tied these causes into the proclamation of the Gospel. One of the most powerful things he said is that while he understands the designations “white church” and “black church” because of the “current distress” he told us that it is time we reconsider these designations.

Maddy Delone of the Innocence Project told us about how DNA testing was being used to reverse rulings that were inaccurate freeing people from prison who did not deserve to serve time. I imagine the other speakers were great as well. Sadly, I had a near migraine most of the second day so I stopped attending sessions to take some Tylenol, drink some espresso, and catch a few moments here and there to close my eyes until the pain went away. So I heard about four of the main speakers.

As good as the main sessions were the pre-conference sessions. If you plan on going next year please aim to go to the pre-conference. This is where the data is given!

I attended a great panel moderated by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang, authors of Welcoming the Stranger. The panelist were so informative giving us a better understanding of how immigration laws work and don’t work in this country. I knew that immigration law needed to be changed, but now I know it needs to be changed sooner. There are so many injustices caused by these laws that haven’t been update since at least 1990! I purchased the book so you can expect me to say a little here and there about it.

I was able to catch a little bit of a panel on community development and the dangers of gentrification. Perkins was on this panel as well. Sadly, I didn’t hear enough to take many notes. I did catch more of the reflective, testimonial side than the data, here is what to do next side.

One of the most challenging sessions was a talk given by Mimi Haddad who is President of Christians for Biblical Equality. I am an egalitarian already, but her talk convicted me. Often I don’t fight for women’s rights in the church and society as I should because I am not impacted directly. This is no excuse. I aim to join CBE and continue to press the church to reconsider their views of women and to encourage those who are empowering women to continue to do so.

These sessions moved my heart. They made me want to live the Gospel in all spheres of life. They reminded me that I’ve been invited into a tradition that includes the Hebrew prophets, John the Baptist, Jesus Christ, and the early church. This is sobering.

One final note: I’ve never heard of Micah Bournes until this conference, but his gift for spoken word is captivating. I recommend you listen to him. His website is www.micahbournes.com.