Tour of the Boyhood Home of Martin Luther King, Jr. — Family-Friendly Option (open to all!)
See where it all began – the home where the King children, steeped in the stories of the struggle and warm in the bosom of a loving extended family, learned to question the realities of segregation and discrimination and to dream a new dream. Tickets are free but advance registration is required -- you must register by Friday, June 30 to reserve a spot or spots.

King and the Theology of Nonviolence — Bob Hunter
In this seminar we will be visiting the King museum and exploring the theology and role of nonviolence in the Civil Rights movement as expounded and practiced by Martin Luther King, Jr. Our goal is to be inspired by the past and to identify strategies for the future. Spaces are limited and advance registration is required.

Tour of the New Sanctuary of Ebenezer Baptist Church — Shirley Barnhardt
Led by church member Shirley Barnhardt, this tour is your behind-the-scenes look at the magnificent new sanctuary of this historic church. Every detail of the space has meaning – from the overall design meant to represent an African hut to the selection and placement of each individual cross. See it through the loving eyes of someone who watched it come to life. Without a doubt, the tour will deepen your appreciation of worship in this great space. No registration required.

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 12 (on-campus)

The Church and Sexuality: Creating the Beloved Community — Tim McDonald
The workshop will focus on relevant, contemporary issues used by the Radical Religious Right to divide the Religious community. We will employ historical Biblical analysis focusing on Abortion, Homosexuality, Gay Marriage, Fornication, and Adultery. We will examine the moral as well as political ramifications of these issues.

Core Values in a Polarized World — Jimmy Reader
Why are we so polarized now in the church and in our nations? And what can we do about it? How can we respond to people whose values seem opposite to our own by speaking and acting out of our own values rather than reacting to theirs? Core values of compassion, grace, and generosity balance the tension between authority-based values and nurturant based-values and offer the possibility of reducing the polarization we experience today, drawing people back from the militant rhetoric and violent actions that polarization often produces.

King's Dream and Atlanta's Homeless Poor — Tony Sinkfield
Atlanta, the birth city of Martin Luther King, Jr. remains a place of oppression for the homeless poor and people on the margins. The city has recently passed a Panhandling Ordinance that has resegregated parts of downtown Atlanta. Even the King Center is included in this "Tourist Triangle." There are also "quality of life" ordinances which discriminate against the poor, particularly African-American men. How do we establish the Beloved Community of King's dream?

Making Peace with the Planet — Sam Collier and Katy Hinman
Protecting our life support systems for future generations can bring joy and transformation as we get in touch with our deep longing to connect with creation and respond to the challenge to protect it through cooperation rather than conflict. In this workshop, will explore our personal and congregational motivations to do this work, briefly discuss ecological trends in the world and more fully explore the many responses that faith communities, businesses, governments and individuals are developing to rise to this global challenge, including ecological footprints, and how to live responsibly as we eat, work, play, sleep, shop, vote and travel.

My Church is Stranger than Your Church: Inclusivity Training — Rev. Elise Elrod
Based on her own experience as a transgender person and drawing on the experiences of many other marginalized persons, Elise says, “Don’t just tell everyone they are welcome. Becoming a beloved community means communicating, I like you like you are (IYQYQR)”. Elise offers humorous, insightful wisdom as she teaches the Affinity Code, four steps (BOK, UBU, ICU, IYQ) to being truly inclusive. She will share insight from her book, IYQYQR: Discovering Greatness in the People You Already Know.

Addressing Torture through Healing and Activism: A Political Theatre Workshop — Hector Aristizábal
We will start the workshop with a 35-minute performance piece by Hector that deals with his personal experience with torture. "Nightwind" is an exploration of performance which invites each spect-actor to respond individually - as an aesthetic experience, an act of political witnessing, and/or as an invitation to healing. The performance, will offer images that serve as windows through which witnesses can enter the story imaginatively. Invisible threads connect the performer to the witnesses, and they may find opportunities-directly or indirectly-to process some of their own wounds.

Following the performance segment of the workshop, we will use dynamic meditation techniques to process some of the feelings that may arise. We will then invite the group participants (or spect-actors) through the use of image-theater to create a personal response to the existence of torture.

Finally, as a group we will explore the possibility of creating an action project to be used in different scenarios to denounce the current use of torture by the US government in places like Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo, Afganistan and many other places. During the workshop, we will together enact questions of agency and witnessing, providing opportunities for each individual to reflect on his or her stance towards the new US parameters with regard to the treatment of prisoners.

Please wear comfortable clothing.

Seeking Peace with Justice in Palestine/Israel — Convened by Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb
A panel of attendees who have visited, lived, and/or worked in Israel/Palestine will offer perspectives on the work of community building and peacemaking in this troubled land.

Understanding Whiteness — Carol Hunter
This workshop will give a historical perspective of the concept of "whiteness" -- early color associations and their affects on history, whiteness as a requirement for citizenship, contested whiteness (Irish, Jews, Italians etc.), changing configurations of whiteness in the 19th and 20th century, and "white by law." We will include some attempts to talk about what it means to live in, through and with these powerful social constructions.

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THURSDAY, JULY 13 (off-campus)

Tour of the Boyhood Home of Martin Luther King, Jr. — Family-Friendly Option (open to all!)
See description above. Tickets are free but advance registration is required -- you must register by Friday, June 30 to reserve a spot or spots.

King and the Theology of Nonviolence — Bob Hunter
See description above. Spaces are limited and advance registration is required.

A Brief History of Ebenezer Baptist Church — Shirley Barnhardt
We all know SOME of the history of this amazing congregation because of the place in history held by its pastors. Led by church member Shirley Barnhardt, this session will introduce you to more of the rich history of a congregation which has changed (and keeps changing) the world. No registration required.

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FRIDAY, JULY 14 (on-campus)

Activism X: Young People's Activism — Convened by Daniel Hunter
An informal session of youth and young people discussing their involvements and commitments in the work of peace and justice.

African American Biblical Interpretation and the Biblical Texts of Terror — Margaret Aymer
The workshop will examine the history of African American hermeneutics and the ways in which African Americans have always had a canon within the canon. It will consider the impact of the very recent advent of the cult of biblical illiteracy and "prosperity" in the black church, particularly in terms of race, gender, class, and sexual orientation. Finally, it will suggest a womanist African American hermeneutic of the Bible in response to the realities of today's context.

Am I a Conscientious Objector? A Look into Military Recruitment and our Peaceful Response — Vernon Shertz, Sharon Rensberger, and Kathleen Jones (members of the Atlanta Mennonite Fellowship)
In this workshop, young people and those who care about them (parents, youth workers, pastors, etc.) will learn about the history of both conscientious objection and military recruitment in the United States. We will explore the techniques of military recruitment and seek to enable ourselves to resist them. Participants who want to establish themselves as conscientious objectors in the midst of the Iraq war will be given tools and advice for how to build a convincing portfolio in anticipation of a possible future draft.

Baptist Responses to the Iraq War — Peter Carman, Jimmy Reader, and Sam Collier
Hear the stories of what Baptists are doing around North America to address concerns about and opposition to the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Come and share your own story. Learn about specific actions you and your church can take to call for an end to the war. The workshop will include training in how to lobby U.S. congresspersons to urge them to help end the war. Peter Carman and Jimmy Reader represent the Iraq War Task Force of BPFNA as co-facilitators. Sam Collier will lead the lobbying training session.

Building Community Through Song: Sacred Harp — Atlanta Area Sacred Harp Singers
Come experience this storied musical tradition through a mix of history, instruction, and singing. Open to experienced singers – first-timers – and everyone in between.

Creating a Peace-Centered Youth Group — Thomas Conner and youth from Glendale Baptist
Join Thomas and members of the Glendale Baptist youth group to explore ways that your church youth group can turn youth onto peacemaking and sustain them in that work. Specific topics will include the PeaceJam curriculum and peace project (involving Nobel Peace laureates) and work with Baptist Youth Camp.

Civil Rights Leader Ella Baker — Carol Hunter
Ella Baker's life and work offer those in the BPFNA who work in grass roots organizing many important models and insights. She was in "for the long haul" and excelled at being able to create strong indigenous leadership for the civil rights movement. Baker is not nearly as well known as she should be! We will put emphasis on what she has to teach us about successful organizing today -- looking at her decentralized, participatory democracy, willingness to let people learn from mistakes, and her belief that strong people don't need strong leaders.

The Role of Spirituality in Peacemaking — Joy Bergfalk
We want to change the world, but where do we begin? Is it possible to run in front of God or with good intention run where God is not calling us to go? How do we know? Why do so many peacemakers and peace groups have inner conflict? Could it have something to do with the connection (or lack thereof) of spirituality and peacemaking? How our faith is connected to our practice, how we discern, these and more questions will be addressed in this workshop.

The Whole Gospel Through Reconciliation and Community Renewal — Mike Broadway
Gustavo Gutierrez writes about the "irruption of the Spirit" in unexpected and unauthorized places where the gospel bears fruit, often in basic Christian communities. This workshop will report on such movements in the "abandoned places of empire," as churches, church ministries, intentional communities, and urban leadership councils respond to the call of community, race reconciliation, poverty reduction, community organizing, and community development. These oases of radical Christian practice parallel and embody trends of theological reflection on liberation, discipleship, and practices.
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questions? e-mail LeDayne Polaski
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