A Voice for Justice

In the decade after 9/11, Rev. Seth Kaper-Dale did what preachers were doing all across America–he entered the pulpit and tried to claim Jesus Christ as the risen one who is ushering in a renewed and restored kingdom, even as it seemed that so many nations and special interest groups were claiming power and authority. Over the course of a decade many of the sermons directly addressed the great issues through reflection on the biblical narrative. Sometimes that interaction resulted in the congregation being moved by faith to enter the fray and to address issues such as war, natural disasters, sexual orientation, economic disparity, immigration reform, interfaith matters, and ecological disaster. In short, when the Bible met the big issues in congregational space and time, the church was transformed in Spirit and made ready for real action. In thirty-four sermons that go from pre-emptive war to the Arab Spring, Seth insists that nothing that happens in real history lies outside the realm of theological reflection, and that there is nothing a congregation cannot delve into once it has seen why the particular kingdom message of Jesus Christ is stronger than any other power.