Catalyst Publications
Publications by Category
A Little History
It was three decades ago that I began teaching Asian Christianity to Asians in Asia. I had not even finished my PhD, I knew nothing about the local churches in Southeast Asia, and I was struggling to help the family adjust…
Dec/13/2017
The Spirit and the Trinity
At a popular level, the role of the Holy Spirit in the church is often thought of in the idiom of today as “empowering,” “renewing,” apportioning particular gifts, or representing the realm of “the supernatural.”…
Nov/15/2017
Seminary preparation for a preaching ministry hopefully includes an over-stuffed file of classroom-delivered and critiqued sermons. But in a real-life setting of the church, the file folder is quickly depleted. What next? For many people in…
Oct/25/2017
The Christian movement that has grown to more than 2.3 billion adherents was birthed in martyrdom. Martyrdom is sometimes viewed as a terrible, if not foolish, way to die. Yet many who have chosen this path had been persuaded that their fre…
Sep/25/2017
The man had a way with words. About that, there can be no doubt. In my view, he was a master of putting such a sharp edge on things that one could hardly read what he said without one of two reactions — simply dismiss them as meaningless hy…
Sep/25/2017
Why bring together mainstream science with mere Christianity?
Not too many Sundays ago, I was preaching to a congregation of mainly emerging adults (by which I mean age 18-30), and in the midst of a message about God’s will and direction…
Sep/20/2017
Lately my computer has been running slowly. And by slowly, I mean it takes an extra few seconds for programs to start running. It’s annoying. In those short few seconds I think of all the things I could be doing (responding to emails, check…
Sep/18/2017
When getting to know someone we often start by asking questions like: What kind of work do you do? Where do you live? What was your major in college? What’s your hometown? It’s normal to start with these kinds of questions that can give us …
Sep/11/2017
As we engage Scripture we must constantly be on guard against the subtle temptation to reduce the Bible to an object of study. The iconic temptation scene in the Garden illustrates this danger. In Gen 3:1, the serpent begins by asking, “Did…
Aug/21/2017
Whatever side one is on, or wherever one’s sympathy lies in the United Methodist debate over homosexuality, all of us grieve our seeming inability to reason about our ecclesial life together and its witness to the gospel. At Annual Conferen…
Aug/14/2017
I would like to explore in my next few essays the challenge and promise that the Baptismal Renunciations provide to a culturally accommodated church. The questions to be asked include the following:
What liturgical and theological func…
Aug/07/2017
Jesus has a habit of making disciples of unlikely people. He sees diamonds in the rough. He crosses boundaries to find followers and those who would follow him have to be willing to cross some boundaries themselves. The story of the Samarit…
Jul/03/2017
Getting Involved
News & Events
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A Foundation for Theological Education (AFTE) John Wesley Fellowships have been awarded to three doctoral stud…
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Announcing that 2026 John Wesley Fellowship Scholarship Applications are now being accepted. Please see the at…
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JWF and Friends of AFTE, we look forward to you joining us Thursday-Sunday, January 15-18, 2026, for the AFTE …
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Twenty John Wesley Fellows, spouses, and friends were able to experience a trip of a lifetime. The travel itin…
"The John Wesley Fellowship provides not only financial support, it is an extraordinary community of Christian scholars — and friends."