We at CreatureKind are thrilled to partner with our friends at the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) Faith Outreach Program to present “Incarnating a CreatureKind Church” at this year’s Summer Institute for Reconciliation at Duke Divinity School. The seminar will be co-taught by Dr. Christopher Carter, Christine Gutleben, and Sarah Withrow King. The Institute will take place from Monday, June 5, 2017 at 3:00 pm to Friday, June 9, 2017 at 9:00 pm.
This intersectional seminar explores the theology and praxis of being human in relation to other creatures, of expanding our view of our place in the world towards being creature-kind. What does our faith tell us about God’s view of animals and our responsibilities towards them? What are we doing to animals now? How does our relationship with animals affect our relationships with ourselves, our neighbors, and with the creator? And what can we do, individually and collectively, to help realize a world “on earth, as it is in heaven”?
Our invitational dialogue is grounded in Scripture and supported by stories of creaturely cooperation from church history and modern Christian life. Participants will be able to engage with the course content in a way that is meaningful and relevant to their particular context. Rural church pastors, urban post-evangelicals, mission- and social-justice-minded followers of Christ can all gather together to explore what it means to be made in the image of God, how we can reflect that to all God’s creatures, and how doing so will strengthen and grow the whole church.
