Dialogues in Asian American Theology and Ministry Podcast

This workshop is from the 2024 Mental Health Conference "Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans: Integrative Approaches to Christian Spiritual and Mental Health Formation." “Pursuing Soul Care: A Calendar for Spiritual Health” by Sharon Wada and Carrie Myers, recorded on January 13, 2024. Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/. Abstract: Given the complexities and competing demands of AAPI life and ministry, spiritual health requires intention and planning. This workshop will explore the challenges of cultivating a culture of regular soul care and offer considerations for structuring daily life to make space for healthy spiritual practices.

This workshop is from the 2024 Mental Health Conference "Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans: Integrative Approaches to Christian Spiritual and Mental Health Formation." Discipleship 3.0: Parenting, Schooling, and Holistic Discipleship by Jen Blue, recorded on January 13, 2024. Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/. Abstract: In my experience and from what I’ve seen in others, learning how to personally follow Jesus in tangible and real ways is often the first phase of discipleship. Learning how to live in Christian community, whether that be through marriage or intentional community, is a common second phase of discipleship. And for those of us called to be parents, whether of our own biological children or through foster care or adoption, parenting is the fertile field of opportunity for discipleship 3.0. In other words, it is really hard!! Nothing has driven me to the need for deeper personal healing than becoming a parent. I’d love to share my story with you of how my husband and I have tried to cooperate with the Lord and the ways he has used parenting and specifically, decisions about where to send our kids for school in South Los Angeles, to push us to go deeper and further in our faith. It’s one thing to have chosen for ourselves that the call of Jesus and the upside kingdom are the path to life and abundant joy. It’s another thing to make that choice again for our children. One additional note: my husband is African American, so inherent in my story are race and the blessings and challenges of cross-cultural dynamics. I’ll weave those themes into my workshop as well.

This workshop is from the 2024 Mental Health Conference "Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans: Integrative Approaches to Christian Spiritual and Mental Health Formation." My Journey with Best Practices for a Mentally Healthy Church Staff by Alex Chang, recorded on January 13, 2024. Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/. Abstract: This workshop will provide leaders with practical tools in order to elevate the importance of mental health for church staff. It will also weave in personal stories of how a young-ish Asian-American pastor learned to prioritize mental health for a staff that includes both ethnic and age diversity. Some of those stories will discuss seeing mental health professionals (both for personal and marital reasons), leading from the second chair, utilizing one’s own Asian-American background to connect with others, and sharing a template for best practices.

This workshop is from the 2024 Mental Health Conference "Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans: Integrative Approaches to Christian Spiritual and Mental Health Formation." Alternatives to Asian American Achievement? by Greg Lee, recorded on January 13, 2024. Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/.

Abstract: Many Asian Americans immigrated to the United States for educational and professional opportunities, whether for themselves or their children. Many have achieved success in these areas. This workshop questions the compatibility of Christian faith with these material pursuits, concentrating on four areas Asian American Christians have not generally treated as matters for discipleship: academic achievement, wealth and poverty, residential location, and race. Each of these areas raises potential tensions between Christian discipleship and the desire to honor family sacrifices. By investigating these areas, this workshop encourages Asian American Christians to expand their conception of discipleship from individual faithfulness to faithful engagement with their social and political contexts.

This workshop is from the 2024 Mental Health Conference "Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans: Integrative Approaches to Christian Spiritual and Mental Health Formation." Welcome to My World: Wholistic Spiritual Formation by Sharon Wada and Carrie Myers, recorded on January 13, 2024. Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/. Abstract: Wholistic spiritual formation is grounded in knowing your personality particularities and your communal contexts. Using a tri-focal lens to explore context, this workshop will consider the AAPI experience in family, society and God’s economy. This workshop offers a framework for increasing one’s awareness of God’s movements and guidance in all spheres of life and fosters mindful listening and reflective question asking in the AAPI context.

This workshop is from the 2024 Mental Health Conference "Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans: Integrative Approaches to Christian Spiritual and Mental Health Formation." Leadership Formation Through Understanding Leadership Anxiety by Dave Lee, recorded on January 13, 2024. Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/.

Abstract: This interactive workshop will guide participants through empathetic reflection on pressures faced by the previous generation that produced leadership anxiety. Participants will consider how the previous generation’s responses to their anxiety impacted leadership development in the next generation. By considering the pressures that shaped the previous generation’s response to leadership anxiety and exploring what would have constituted the most effective responses, participants will begin formulating strategies to better cope with their own leadership anxiety.

This is a session in the series Dialogues in Asian American Theology and Ministry, recorded on March 27, 2024.

Description: While the dominant narratives in many Western seminaries are narratives of decline, Chloe Sun offers a counter-narrative from the Chinese diaspora, with Logos Evangelical Seminary as a case study. She invites a broader vision and conversation in theological education that includes voices from the majority world in diverse contexts.

This is a session in the series Dialogues in Asian American Theology and Ministry, recorded on November 7, 2023.

Description: Two authors of the Asian American discipleship book Learning Our Names further develop the themes of their chapters as they’ve engaged with readers and furthered their studies. Being Asian American for most of us means there is no return to our pre-immigration stories, lands, or even pre-colonial identities. Resisting our Racialization and engaging with racial and ethnic justice takes on greater importance as we consider what we want to pass on to future generations. Join us as we bring together our studies, our stories, and our ministry contexts in conversation with each other.

This is a session in the series Dialogues in Asian American Theology and Ministry.

Description: Christ Among the Classes (Orbis Books) paints a picture of Jesus among the rich and the poor of his day and calls the church to imitate Christ among the rich and the poor of our day by the power of the Spirit. In light of Asian and Asian-American cultures, where success is defined and pursued in particular ways, what might this call look like?

This lecture was part of the 2024 Asian American Mental Health Conference “Intergenerational Wholeness for Asian Americans.” Find out more about the conference here: https://caac.ptsem.edu/events/2024-mental-health-conference/.

Abstract: After the new-found excitement of coming to faith, we eventually encounter the limits of what we can achieve on our own in our spiritual journeys. We encounter a spiritual wall. This spiritual wall is a sign for a renewed encounter with God’s grace in forms that perhaps we have not yet received. As Asian American Christians, our intergenerational family history along with our social history as Asians in the US and in God’s divine economy factor into our experience of both spiritual walls and God’s grace. Come to this plenary talk that introduces a framework for Asian American spiritual formation that emphasizes how God longs to meet us in all our spheres of life.