Archives: Christianity

By E. Russ Bermejo, MSW, Lecturer 

This is Part 3 of a 4-part blog post.

Read Part 1: An Invitation to CBU Faculty and Students

Read Part 2: Designed for Courage: Me & Myself

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The Second Relationship: Teacher & Student  

Once we transform the relationship with ourselves, we can move towards transforming our classrooms and lecture halls.     

I am currently re-reading Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, a book I first encountered as an undergraduate sociology student at UCLA and frequently cited in numerous papers during my MSW graduate program. As a new educator, I am reading this book in renewed ways.   

In the Pedagogy of Oppressed, Freire takes a critical look at the “banking method concept” of education, which sees students as passive learners who are containers and receptacles to be filled by the teacher. It is perhaps one of the prime examples of human disconnection and it happens on some level every day in our (my) classrooms. Freire asserts that this type of education is dehumanizing since it sees students as merely in the world, not with the world or with others. Students are spectators, not recreators and are given no scope for creative freedom or critical thinking. In other words, this type of education shares an ideology of oppression.   

Freire proposes a problem-posing pedagogy which aims to raise critical consciousness. To liberate students into this critical consciousness, we must help them engage in active learning. Active learners take new information and apply it, rather than merely taking note of it. Firsthand use of new material develops personal ownership. When subject matter connects directly with students’ experiences and contexts, they care more about the material they are learning and will act on it. So as educators, we must work to stimulate critical thinking and awareness in our students so they can transform reality.   

Taking active learning seriously means re-thinking the traditional classroom and even turning it inside out or upside down. One pedological strategy that has drawn increasing attention in higher educational settings is “flipping” in which the classroom format is turned completely around.   In the flipped-classroom, the students view and listen to lectures on their own time freeing up class time for experiential exercises, group discussion and question and answer sessions. The classroom now becomes a space to work through problems, advance concepts and engage in collaborative learning, active interaction and dialogue. The professor serves as a mentor, coach, facilitator and tour guide of learning opportunities rather than just a lecturer or grader (Gerstein, 2012) 

Freire challenges us to re-examine the teacher-student relationship so both are simultaneously teachers and students. Essentially, we teach each other. This is only possible if I recognize that knowledge is inherently about power. But when teaching and learning is a mutual and relational endeavor, power is shared and relationships are restored. Co-creation replaces our need for control and reclaims our capacity for connectedness which good teaching depends on. It’s pretty awesome that we get to create environments in which students can be active creators of knowledge that can transform the world.⁴ 

Reflect and Discuss: 

1. What is your reaction to the idea that teaching as a mutual endeavor in which you and the students teach each other? Why is this paradigm shift particularly challenging for us in higher education?   

2. How are you nurturing critical thinking and awareness in your classroom and instruction? What changes do you need to make to ensure you are developing this essential skill for your students?   

Coming Next: Part 3: Designed for Action: Researcher and Participants 

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⁴ In the revised Blooms Taxonomy framework (2001), creating, designing, constructing, assembling, developing, formulating, authoring, is considered to be the highest level of thinking. See https://www.bloomstaxonomy.net/

References: 

Freire, Paulo (2018). The Pedagogy of the Oppressed: 50^th Anniversary Edition. 4^th Edition. Bloomsbury Academic.  

Gerstein, J. May 15, 2012.  Flipped Classroom: The Full Picture for Higher Education.  www.usergeneratededucation.wordpress.com 

By E. Russ Bermejo, MSW, Lecturer 

This is Part 2 of a 4-part blog post.   

Read Part 1: An Invitation to CBU Faculty and Students

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The First Relationship: Myself and I 

If we are to live connected lives, the first relationship to be re-examined is our relationship with our selves.   

In his book, “The Courage to Teach – Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher’s Life” Parker J. Palmer states that “we teach who we are.”  Parker adds “Teaching, like any truly human activity emerges from one’s inwardness, for better or worse. As I teach, I project the condition of my soul onto my students, my subject, and our way of being together.”  Consequently, knowing ourselves is as crucial to good teaching as knowing our students and respective subjects.   

So how are we to do this? We can start by first examining our fears. Fear is primal and also universal. Palmer says we as educators, in particular, swim in fear. I’m a terrible swimmer, but I’m pretty good at swimming in these types of waters. And I can identify at least my three big oceans:   

• Fear of failure² 
• Fear of not being good enough 
• Fear of disappointing others 

Since our cognitions are connected to our emotions and actions, one of the easiest things to do when we have fearful thoughts is to disconnect emotionally and relationally.  When we retreat, the deep waters become even more difficult to tread as we struggle with unhealthy egos, despair, and isolation.   

But here is the good news:  Although this deep inner work starts with us, it doesn’t have to end with us. The antidote is community and connection. Palmer adds:  

“If we want to grow as teachers – we must do something alien to academic culture; we must talk to each other about our inner lives – risky stuff in a profession that fears the personal and seeks safety in the technical, the distant, the abstract.”  

The current practice literature on leadership has raised our awareness of the importance of emotional intelligence and vulnerability in strong leaders. Brené Brown is a social work professor and researcher who studies about shame and connection, states “Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of courage.” Her TED Talk on the Power of Vulnerability is one of the top five most-viewed TED talks in the world, with over 50 million views.³ Henri Nouwen similarly writes in “In the Name of Jesus – Reflections on Christian Leadership” 

“Somehow we have come to believe that good leadership requires a safe distance from those we are called to lead. Medicine, psychiatry, and social work all offer us models in which ‘service’ takes place in a one-way direction. Someone serves, someone else is being served, and be sure not to mix up the roles! But how can we lay down our life for those with whom we are not even allowed to enter a deep personal relationship? Laying down your life means making your own faith and doubt, hope and despair, joy and sadness, courage and fear available to others as ways of getting in touch with the Lord of life.”  

If we are to show more fully in our relationships, we must first show up fully to ourselves.   

And when we show up as our most honest and authentic selves, we can call forth the same in our students.   

As CBSS faculty, we have the opportunity to lead by example to create this type of environment here at CBU. Who else is better equipped than Christian behavioral scientists, anthropologists, psychologists, sociologists, and social workers to set a new culture and do the “risky stuff” that Palmer encourages us to do if we want to flourish as a university? If not us, who?   

Reflect and Discuss: 

1. What are your fears as a professor or educator? In what ways are those fears played out in your interactions and relationships in the classroom? 

2. What can we do individually, as a department, college, and university to do the “risky stuff” of talking about our inner lives with others as Palmer describes?   

Coming Next: Part 3: Designed for Co-Creation: Teacher and Student 

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² Read Dr. Sophia Mun’s CSHB blog post from November 2021 where she shares two big ideas about the “right way” to fail.

³ Brown’s latest book “Atlas of the Heart -Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience” identifies 87 emotions and experiences that define what it means to be human and provides vocabulary to talk about it.

References: 

Kondrat, Mary E. (2013). Person-in-Environment. Encyclopedia of Social Work. Oxford University Press.  

Nouwen, Henri (1989).  In the Name of Jesus – Reflections on Christian Leadership. New York: Crossroad Publishing Company. 

Palmer, Parker J. (2017).  The Courage to Teach – Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher’s Life.  20^th Anniversary Edition. Wiley. 

By E. Russ Bermejo, MSW, Lecturer 

This is Part 1 of a 4-part blog post.   

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We are designed for connection.   

During the 2021-2022 academic year, our University Provost chose connection as the theme. I loved how Dr. Charles Sands continually reminded us to connect with others throughout the year.   

This intention has forced me to think more deeply about how we are connected. I have a collection of Japanese kokeshi and Russian matryoshka dolls, which are wooden stacking or nesting dolls kept at each of my desks at home and campus. These heirloom pieces remind me how we are connected. They are a 3-D representation of “person-in-environment” (also known as PIE) a theoretical framework that underpins the social work profession. PIE is a practice-guiding principle that highlights the importance of understanding individuals and their behavior in light of the environmental contexts in which they exist (Kondrat, 2013).  

It is quite easy to compartmentalize our lives or partition our thinking into artificially-created domains or silos. Where my mind wants to isolate or separate, and provide easy explanations to complex issues, these wooden dolls remind me to do otherwise. We are not mere objects, instead we have meaning defined by our interactions with our environment. We cannot see ourselves or anyone else outside of the world they exist in; or as essayist, Anaïs Nin wrote “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.” Context always matters.   

Seeing our world connected doesn’t sound earth-shattering, until you try to live it out intentionally. In practice, living connected is not easy.   

How do we stay connected in a fragmented world? This was a question that I explored in my earlier blog post where I looked towards Japanese arts forms to show us the way towards meaningful integration. In these upcoming series of blog posts, I want to explore three questions:   

• Blog #2: How do I live a life that is connected?  
• Blog #3: How can my teaching be connected?  
• Blog #4: How can our research be connected?   

In each blog post, I will explore a key relationship to answer each of these questions, which, unsurprisingly, are all connected.   

If you are faculty, I hope you find these blogs as invitations for brief and ongoing reflection and introspection, knowing that we show up more fully to our students when we show up fully to ourselves.   

And if you are a student, I hope you will also accept the invitation to live a self-examined life¹ (see Socrates) so you can discover life that is truly worth living (see Jesus). Although these posts were written primarily with faculty in mind, you are also on a journey here at CBU to discover a connected life of faith and scholarship. Together, we can live out our purpose, living a life of connection, courage, co-creation, and action. So, thank you for reading.  

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¹ The unexamined life is not worth living.”-Socrates

 

The real root of sex addiction is found in the essence of sin. Sin by nature is the failure to be dependent on God, and it comes from the corrupted hearts of human beings. After Adam rebelled against God, this natural human desire turned into evil. This was based upon man’s self-centeredness. People choose to worship substitute gods by suppressing the truth of God. In the same way, sex addicts are tempted by their own desire and are led astray by individual choice; thus, they should take responsibility for their sinful behaviors. James explains the consequences of man’s evil desire as such: “But each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death” (James 1:14-15). 

Even though sexual addicts take responsibility for their actions, their sinful conditions cannot be solved by personal willpower. Sin and sexual addiction are both uncontrollable and unmanageable. In Roman 7:21-25, Apostle Paul describes the despair of powerlessness and unmanageability as characteristics of sin. Sex addicts report that they cannot control their behaviors even though they desire to do so. By nature, they feel powerless, helpless, and worthless because of repeated uncontrollability and unmanageability.  

Christians must believe the believer has already been freed from sin because all Christians have died with Christ. In Rom 6:2, Apostle Paul maintains that Christians cannot live in sin any longer because they have already died to sin. Their death to sin is not the present or future tense but the past tense. Death to sin is not something hoped for or resolved upon by the believer. This process has already taken place.  

In Rom 6:11, Apostle Paul maintains that Christians must consider themselves dead to sin. What Paul presents is not Christians’ immunity to temptation but rather the fact that they are no longer slaves to sin. After Christians are crucified with Christ, buried with Him, and raised with Him, the old disappears, and Christians become new creations. However, their old nature still remains and seeks to dominate them. In Rom 6:11, considering oneself dead to sin is expressed through daily conduct, indicating a conscious effort to maintain the process of considering oneself dead to sin. Because of habituation to sin, the believer should not let sin reign over his thinking but should instead live with the help of the Holy Spirit. 

Apostle Paul emphasizes that the believer should make a choice for righteousness by stating, “do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin” (Rom 6:13). This is used as a present imperative, and it refers to an ongoing action to do right. On the contrary, he uses the phrase “presenting yourselves to God” in the aorist-imperative. To offer oneself to God as an instrument of righteousness means to make a one-time deliberate choice in that direction. Thus, freedom from sin is not automatic, but a conscious decision is needed as to whether or not the body will be allowed to become an instrument of service to God. There needs to be active and continuous obedience to God in order to live life in accordance with a new identity and status. By refusing obedience to sin’s power and authority, the believer can experience freedom from sin; therefore, sin cannot dominate the believer any longer.  

However, not all human beings who have a sinful nature have a sexual addiction. Sexual sin is not equal to sexual addiction. Those who commit sexual sin do not necessarily become sex addicts. The effect given to the body also must be considered very important in order to understand sex addiction because humans consist of both body and spirit or soul. The Bible does not see body and soul as separate from one another. Humans are unified beings. The neurological perspective considers sex addiction to be a method used to satisfy a neurological need. Repeated experiences of association between sexual behaviors and pleasure or relief from pain form a type of learning known as conditioning. This learning is so deep and automatic at the physical level, and it forms a stronghold that is difficult to break down.  

According to the psychological perspective, the root of sexually addictive behaviors is found in the dysfunctional family system. The addict desires to escape the helplessness and powerlessness that he experienced in the past. The addict seeks temporary and immediate relief by sexually acting out as a way to escape from emotional discomfort. In other words, sexual addiction is a destructive solution to regain control over helplessness and powerlessness. From a psychological perspective, the main root of sexual addiction is an abusive environment that provides the sex addict with emotional pain.  

One single perspective does not fully identify complicated issues of sex addiction. The root of sex addiction has multiple aspects. Thus, a holistic approach to sex addiction is necessary for a Christian counselor to help sex addicts to recover. Mind, spirit, and body are not undifferentiated. At the same time, these properties are interconnected and linked to each other as parts of a larger network. Any attempt to deal with a single condition apart from other conditions will not be successful in recovering from sex addiction. It is essential for Christian counselors to discern how these three properties work in each individual sex addict. The understanding of sex addiction as a human’s fall must be a fundamental foundation for dealing with sex addiction. Sinners cannot be freed from the power of sin without Christ. Regarding the biblical foundation, Christian counselors’ approach to sex addiction should consider how psychological and neurological aspects reinforce sex addiction within a world that is vulnerable to sin. 

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Did you enjoy this blog? We think you’ll like the other blogs in this series, too! Be sure you check out what Dr. Lee has to say about the psychological and neurological perspectives on sexual addiction in his other posts.

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References 

Anderson, N. T., Quarles, M., & Quarles, J. (1996). Freedom from addiction: breaking the bondage of addiction and finding freedom in Christ. Ventura, Calif.: Regal Books. 

Harrison, E. F. a. o. (1984). Romans through Galatians. In F. E. Gabelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan. 

Witherington, B., & Hyatt, D. (2004). Paul’s letter to the Romans: a socio-rhetorical commentary. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans. 

A few months back I recall a presentation I did about the different functions of validation. I also remember the summer of 2020 and witnessing ongoing debates by clinical professionals over the idea that “all lives matter” versus “Black lives matter”. One particular comment stands out clearly; it was shared that both statements are true as both hold up valid points. Still, I also understand the hurt that one may perceive when they hear that their specific ethnic group, age group, religion, gender “does not matter”- because “they all matter”.     

The power of validation rang clear to me. In these conversations I saw both sides of the dialectic. Perhaps each end of the spectrum was feeling the tension that comes along with experiencing invalidation. Each polar end of the debate sought justice and goodness, yet perhaps their delivery could have used a little more validation.   

A study by Shenk and Fruzzetti (2011) found that controlling for personal skilled ability to regulate one’s emotions, individuals who experienced invalidation endorsed significantly greater levels of negative affect and heart rate compared to those who did not experience invalidation. It is no surprise to have read such passionate discourse about the statements, given the physiological and emotional responses to feeling invalidated.   

With this in mind, I think that one way we can seek to advance social justice is by the effective use of validation. Perhaps we may not always agree with each other politics or ideologies, however, maybe by adopting a validating communication style, we may more effectively land on agreeing to disagree. This in itself is better than split relationships due to opposing viewpoints. In another study between parent and child dyads, children who received validation from their parents were found to endorse significantly stronger/positive emotion regulation, less problem behaviors and relationship satisfaction compared to invalidating dyads (Shenk & Fruzzetti, 2014). Why then can’t we strive to adopt the same? I encourage us (speaking to myself as well), to explore the use of validation in conversations- especially around social just and social-political matters. At the end of the day, we are called to “love your neighbor as yourself”, Matthew 22:39. And personally, feeling validated as opposed to invalidated and unseen is something I would never want to experience.  

According to Dr. Marsha Linehan, the founder of dialectical behavior therapy (1993; 2014) there are six levels of validation: a) eye contact and paying attention, b) accurate reflection, c) stating the unarticulated, d) validating others using their past history, e) normalizing and looking for the kernel of truth, and level six, f) radical genuineness. Although upon first glance level one, providing eye contact and paying attention may seem trivial, we must not discount that in the midst of a heated conversation in which we may feel invalidating, it may be very difficult to give eye contact and basic respectful attention. As we move up the levels of validation towards the highest level, in radical genuineness we are asked to treat the other person as our equal (Linehan 1993; Koerner, 2011). This reminds me of the golden rule. Again, in Matthew 22:39, we are admonished to “love your neighbor as yourself”, which again, may be difficult if we are emotionally charged!  

On a different note, perhaps you asking yourself, “what if there is nothing to validate?” or “what if I cannot figure out what to validate?” Kelly Koerner (2011) reminds us that it is important to actively search for what is valid. Further, it may be helpful to assume that there is always something valid. Koerner (2011) describes how one can validate the other’s experience. For example, “If I were you, I would also feel upset” or “It makes sense to me that you disagree and if I were you, I likely feel similar.” Again, these are easiest said than done- especially in difficult conversations.      

So, in times of heated conversations and disagreements around social justice issues, I challenge us to see each other’s points of view and adopt a validating stance. Let’s love our neighbor as ourselves and choose humility. Let’s see each other!  

Many sexual addicts feel lonely, abandoned, and angry. They desperately long for love, intimacy, affirmation, and nurture. But they notice that their needs aren’t being met. Consequently, in many cases, the behavior of sexual addicts becomes a substitute for true intimacy and love. Emotional discomfort such as helplessness, powerlessness, loneliness, and hopelessness are one of the primary catalysts in bringing about sexual addiction. These feelings may begin in an unhealthy and dysfunctional family with illness and wounds during childhood. The sex addict has difficulties expressing emotions appropriately or solving emotional discomfort in their family of origin. Thus, the addict has immature skills in identifying emotional feelings. The addict yearns to escape the emotional pain they have experienced in the past. A sense of helplessness or powerlessness drives them to have a strong desire to repair these emotional discomforts and becomes an uncontrollable force to the addict. 

Many researchers posit that abusive family backgrounds, including abandonment, abuse, and neglect, can cause children to develop painful emotions and problematic behavioral patterns, leading to sexual addiction. Abandonment is experienced primarily in the family-of-origin when both parents do not fulfill children’s needs. Children learn how to have an intimate relationship with others through parental love and acceptance, such as appropriate physical touching and verbal encouragement. Lack of parental love and nurture obstructs the fulfillment of a child’s natural desires. Children whose emotional needs have not been met feel powerless and insecure in such an environment. The consequences of emotional pain drive them to find other methods of satisfying their desires. 

Abuse is another aspect that can lead to sexual addiction. To be abused by a parent or family member leads to feelings of anxiety, fear, anger, and confusion. Children who are abused question their self-worth and safety. Shame, one of the contributing factors of sexual addiction, can overwhelm an individual and be internalized in one’s heart. The message shame gives abused children is that they are a mistake and worthless. Abused children do not know how to cope with abuse and make an effort to bury horrifying memories. It is very difficult for the abused to confront past pain because it is painful to recollect these emotions. An adult who has been abused during childhood seeks to escape the painful feelings. 

Neglect is also recognized as a root cause of sexual addiction. Neglect indicates a parent’s irresponsibility towards the child’s spiritual, physical, emotional, or sexual development. Spiritual neglect often stems from the absence of parents’ necessary education and information about God and Christian life. Physical neglect is a lack of appropriate physical health care. A child whose emotional needs are not met can create a propensity for emotional numbness. Children need approval, praise, and encouragement. A lack of these experiences causes children to become emotionally numb. Children who are emotionally neglected may desire to please themselves with false intimacy. Sexual neglect comes from the absence of appropriate and healthy sex education in the family. Children who are sexually neglected in the family receive an unhealthy and distorted message from the current culture and mass media. Early sexualization, without proper cognitive ability or development to accept sexual stimuli and feelings, influences children to lose control of future sexual encounters because of their early dealings with the subject. 

How can sex addicts who experienced these wounds as children be treated? Sexual addicts who have experienced abuse or neglect in a relationship can be cured through healthy relationships. Sexual addiction is difficult to treat on its own. Since emotional needs have not been met, it is necessary to understand those feelings and express them appropriately. Since they use sex to deal with their emotional pain, they need to learn more appropriate and healthy ways to deal with more negative emotions. In particular, sex addicts need to accept that God has made them beautiful creatures and value their existence in God’s love in dealing with shame for themselves. Sexual addicts tend to demean themselves and view themselves pessimistically due to the wounds they have received, so they have difficulty finding the value and meaning of their lives. Therefore, sexual addicts should believe that God can use their difficult life experiences meaningfully. It is also essential to accept the loss of sufficient love and care in the lives of sex addicts. Sexual addicts are poor at establishing healthy relationships because they have not experienced caring and nurturing in past relationships. It is important to experience care and acceptance through healthy relationships through sharing their pain in a healthy community. By experiencing acceptance when they show their faults and weaknesses to others, they can be honest in front of others and trust others. The love and acceptance experienced through a positive relationship with God and others play a vital role in recovering sex addicts suffering from inappropriateness and shame. 

Reference 

Carnes, P., & Carnes, P. (2001). Out of the shadows : understanding sexual addiction (3rd ed.). Center City, MN: Hazelden Information & Edu. 

Laaser, M. R. (2004). Healing the wounds of sexual addiction: Zondervan. 

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Did you enjoy this blog? We think you’ll like the other blogs in this series, too! Be sure you check out what Dr. Lee has to say about the neurological and spiritual perspectives on sexual addiction in his other posts.

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In a recent blog series, Dr. Smith explored some ideas and tools for writing well (you can find an overview of the series here). An important resource available to you as a CBU student is the University Writing Center (UWC). Read on to hear from the Director of the UWC and two of the UWC’s Writing Coaches to learn how they may help shape the development of your writing skills! 

From Dr. Tae Sung, Director of the University Writing Center  

I don’t know about you. But I never thought I would ever go back to school after college. I remember completing my last final exam and thanking God I would never have to take another class. After all, Jesus gathered a bunch of fishermen—not degrees—to be his disciples, right?  

It is true… But after several years of serving God in full-time ministry, I also began to see that fishing wasn’t the only skill God needed. There’s Paul, for example, who lists his many accomplishments in his letter to the Philippians, which must have equaled at least to a master’s degree. Sure, he considered it all a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Jesus. But there’s still a reason why he wrote almost half the New Testament. Peter, one of the fishermen, barely wrote six pages in my Bible. 

Once I realized that God calls different people to serve as different parts of one body—some like Peter without higher education and others like Paul with a lot of it—I had this fishy suspicion that God was calling me to the very thing I thought I would never have to do. I still serve the church. But no one including myself would have guessed I would go on from a master’s to a doctoral degree and become a university professor.  

That transition from a youth pastor to a university professor, however, was far from easy. When I first began my graduate studies in an M.A. program, I was lost in at least two ways and unsure if I would ever be found again. The first challenge was realizing that graduate studies was less about getting a degree and more about becoming a professional in my field of study. It wasn’t just about doing literary criticism; it was about becoming a literary critic. Likewise, for you, it’s no longer just about doing this or that assignment; it’s now about becoming a scholar in your discourse community.  

Related to the first was a second challenge that had to do with my writing and communication. A big part of my problem was that over the years I began to rely on some bad habits and cheap tricks that no longer worked. I was so worried about my grammar and vocabulary that I failed to persuade anybody of what I was saying. It was not possible anymore to be satisfied with being a bad or mediocre writer. And it wasn’t just because I was in an English program. Effective writing and communication, in case you haven’t realized already, are essential to every profession out there. And a lot of times, they are the reasons why some people keep moving up and others don’t.  

The University Writing Center exists to remind you that the two challenges above are related. Becoming a professional means being an effective writer and communicator in the profession. This is not an easy task. But with the proper foundation, the mystery of writing will begin to dissipate and you’ll see more clearly how you can improve with some hard work. One key principle that you’ll need to remember is that writing is not just about correct grammar or number of paragraphs but, more importantly, about greater awareness of your credibility, audience, and purpose.  

Below, you’ll read from two of our writing coaches. Allison will share what she’s learned from the Writing Center and Sammy will share how the Writing Center can help you.  

What I Learned from My First Appointment and Since Becoming a Writing Coach 

By Allison Weaver, Writing Coach 

I realized I needed help when I received the grade for my first college writing assignment. I had always thought of myself as a decent writer, but it became clear that even good writing could always become better. And what I have learned since my first appointment with the Writing Center is that becoming a better writer had less to do with checking off a list of requirements and fixing my grammar and more to do with learning how to engage in an academic conversation.  

Now that I am a writing coach, I have gained a better understanding of what a purpose-driven writer should look like. The leading element to purpose-driven writing is writing clearly and persuasively. That’s the secret to a well written paper! This is something most students aspire for their writing to be once they leave a writing center appointment. It is most important as writers that we provide all the information upfront then guide our readers step-by-step to how we got our conclusion. By doing this, readers are able to see the well-developed format of your paper, leaving no room for confusion. Once you have mastered this element of your paper, it is now onto articulating your words in such a way that persuades your reader you know the material well. As writing center coaches, credibility is crucial. Stating your ethos will allow for your argument (logos) to better compliment your academic tone which is achieved through your pathos. 

How the Writing Center Can Help You 

By Sammy Carter, Writing Coach 

To accommodate each student’s availability, the Writing Center offers three types of appointments: on-campus, online, and email.  Each type is also designed with different stages of writing in mind. So, online appointments are usually best for the prewriting or outlining stage, while email appointments are usually better for complete drafts. On-campus appointments can go both ways with the added benefit of being able to talk with your writing coach in person.  

Even if a writing coach is unfamiliar with your particular subject, we are all trained to offer a general academic reader’s feedback to help with the clarity of your structure and the persuasiveness of your argument. If you need help with your sentences and grammar, we provide additional support through Grammarly, which you can sign up for at our website free of charge.  

Also, on our website, you can find other great resources like our video tutorials, as well as opportunities like our yearly Distinguished Public Lecture series, where we invite influential writers to share their work with the CBU community. Our first lecture last year was given by Nancy Duarte, CEO of one of the largest communication firms in Silicon Valley. We are hoping to release a study guide soon for you to dive deeper into DataStory and incorporate her insights into your own writing, just as we are getting ready to announce our next exciting speaker.  

Viola W Lindsey, MSW, PhD

Surely, he shall never be shaken. The righteous man will be remembered forever, Psalm 112:6

My mind is in a concentrical circle, at the core of which is wonderment; wondering how might it be possible to condense 400 years and 146,000 days of Black History into one-twelfth of a year and 28 days. The answer came in the form of a question from the inquisitive mind of a 10-year-old who had the audacity to ask, Grammy, how come every year during Black History month we only talk about Dr Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks; weren’t there any other people involved in the cause?

While the question felt almost blasphemous, it was a reminder to consider remembering the names of some of the lesser known and lesser talked about individuals. There are many individuals who not only participated in but gave their lives in the struggle for Black rights and freedoms. Sometimes we forget to remember. Our forgetfulness does not make them any less a necessary part of history. There will be others who will ask the same question: weren’t their others whose names are never mentioned? The very thought of such a question should arouse the collective consciousness of our dereliction in failing to remember, and hence its collective neglect of preserving deserved stories. As practitioners and social scientists, research has shown us the power of storytelling in teaching, forging relationships, and, arguably above all, inspiring people to make change.

Tangential as they may seem compared to the role of an individual like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., there are individuals whose contributions to the Civil Rights Movement are just as noteworthy. Take for example, Claudette Colvin. At age 15 in 1955, Claudette preceded Rosa Parks in her refusal to give up her bus seat to a white woman. She was arrested and charged with being a juvenile delinquent. That charge made Claudette Colvin unsuitable to be the face of the Civil Rights Movement. Nine months later, Rosa Parks was arrested for the same ‘crime’ as Ms. Colvin. At this point the Montgomery bus boycott is now in full swing. The story of Rosa Parks remains etched in our storytelling today. But we also remember Claudette Colvin. In 2021, at the age of 82, Ms. Colvin’s record was expunged, and she is no longer considered a juvenile delinquent.

We remember the “Little Rock Nine” during Black History Month. But little is said about Autherine Lucy. Under protest, riots, and civil unrest, Autherine Lucy enrolled in the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa in 1955. Within three days she was expelled ‘for her own safety’. Her dismissal would later be annulled. Re-enrolling in the University of Alabama in the 1980’s along with her daughter, Lucy earned a master’s degree in elementary education and an honorary doctorate degree from both the University of Alabama and her alumnus, Miles College, A Historical Black University (HBCU). A historical marker now hangs at the University of Alabama in honor of Lucy’s courage. Vivian Malone and James Hood would later enroll in the University of Alabama in 1963 as the then Governor of Alabama, George Wallace, stood in the door to block their entrance. Malone became the first African American to graduate from the university.

We remember the 16^th Street church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama where four young girls ages 11 and 14 were killed. I want to remember James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, both Jewish, and Andrew Goodman, an African American, who were murdered in Philadelphia, Mississippi in the midst of offering art classes, and curriculum on Black History while participating in a Black voters’ registration drive.

Who can forget Viola Liuzzo, a White civil rights activist from Detroit, Michigan was horrified by the images she saw of ‘Bloody Sunday’ on television? Leaving her husband and children in the care of others, she drove to Marion, Alabama where she took part in the three-day march from Selma to Montgomery. While transporting marchers from Montgomery to Selma, Viola Liuzzo was shot and killed by four Klansmen.

Sometimes during remembering, we forget. Perhaps it is the time to begin again to acknowledge and shine the light on ‘weren’t their others’?

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Want to read more in our 2022 Black History Month Blog series? Check out all the posts below!

Why Black History Month? by Dr. Charles Lee-Johnson

Why I can’t wait to get my Ida B. Wells Barbie by Dr. Krystal Hays

Not Black History Just History by Dr. Stephen Brown

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Check out the Student Contributions to this series here:

Paving the Way to Worship: Black Christian Leaders You Should Know by Hozell Francis II

Rev. George Liele: Church Planter, Missionary, and Servant of God by Hozell Francis II

Andrew Bryan: Pastor Church Planter, and Servant of God by Armon Patrick

Dr. E. W. McCall: Innovator, Educator, Trendsetter by Hozell Francis II

Lisa Fields: Apologist and Servant of God by Armon Patrick

A few weeks ago, I was browsing LinkedIn and getting caught up on the latest professional news. While scrolling, a post appeared that amazed me: Mattel was advertising their newest doll of Ida B. Wells! I couldn’t believe it and immediately went to the website to try and order my own Wells doll. I desperately wanted my 10-year-old daughter to see this doll. She needs to know who Ida B. Wells is and how she contributed to the fight for justice for Black Americans.  

As you read this, you might be wondering why Mattel would create a doll of Ida B. Wells. Who is Ida B. Wells anyway? Why was this doll so important to me? Why does my daughter need to know about her? Although this blog post is not intended to provide a detailed history lesson, it’s important to take this moment during Black Heritage Month to shine a light on sheroes like Mrs. Wells and how they paved the way for Black women like me.  

Doll diversity 

In January 2022, the Mattel company released their newest Barbie doll in their Inspiring Women series: Ida B. Wells. The new Wells barbie joins Rosa Parks, Maya Angelou, Helen Keller, and others in this series. According to Mattel, “The Barbie Inspiring Women Series pays tribute to incredible heroines of their time; courageous women who took risks, changed rules, and paved the way for generations of girls to dream bigger than ever before.” Mattel has been making Barbie dolls since 1959 and has continued to transform their popular toy over time to reflect the culture. The first African American Barbie hit the market in 1968, but it wasn’t until 2016 that the Mattel company embarked on an intentional effort to diversity its doll line. In 2018 the Inspiring Women series launched featuring Amelia Earhart, Frida Kahlo, and Katherine Johnson.  

Now Ida B. Wells has joined the collection.  

Ida B. Wells 

Ida B. Wells-Barnett was born in 1862 in Holly Springs, Mississippi. She was a journalist who led a social movement against the lynching of African Americans across the South. She was born into slavery but was freed and given the opportunity to receive a college education. She used her education and the advantages it provided her to advocate for other African Americans through teaching, speaking, and writing. Mrs. Wells was an activist, a champion for justice, and unapologetic in her demands. She serves as a symbol of strength and grace and inspires me to use my gifts and talents to pursue justice with zeal.  

Why this Matters 

You’ve likely heard the saying “representation matters” in the last several years. Well…it does. That’s why I’m so excited about this new doll and want to introduce it to my daughter. It is essential that little girls, like my daughter, know who she is and what she did for this country. I want my daughter to see her Ida B. Wells Barbie doll and remember that justice is possible but not easy. It takes a commitment to education and service to others. As a social work educator, I am deeply committed to these things. I seek to use my privileges to do as Proverbs 31:8-9 says and “Speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of all who are vulnerable. Speak out in order to judge with righteousness and to defend the needy and the poor.” That’s what Ida B. Wells did throughout her life. I am thankful that someone at the Mattel corporation recognized her contribution and deemed her worthy of being represented in the Inspiring Series collection. She has certainly inspired me, and I hope she will be an inspiration to my daughter as well.  

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Want to read more in our 2022 Black History Month Blog series? Check out all the posts below!

Why Black History Month by Dr. Charles Lee-Johnson

Remembering to Forget, to Begin Again by Dr. Viola Lindsey

Not Black History Just History by Dr. Stephen Brown

______________________________

Check out the Student Contributions to this series here:

Paving the Way to Worship: Black Christian Leaders You Should Know by Hozell Francis II

Rev. George Liele: Church Planter, Missionary, and Servant of God by Hozell Francis II

Andrew Bryan: Pastor Church Planter, and Servant of God by Armon Patrick

Dr. E. W. McCall: Innovator, Educator, Trendsetter by Hozell Francis II

Lisa Fields: Apologist and Servant of God by Armon Patrick

Since 1976, February has been recognized as Black History Month to commemorate and celebrate the struggles, contributions, and achievements of Black people in America and throughout the African Diaspora.  While myths circulate the internet suggesting that February was assigned for Black History Month because it is the shortest month of the year, the truth is that February was selected by the Father of Negro History, Carter G. Woodson, because of the births of two notable figures who were born in February: Abraham Lincoln and Fredrick Douglass.  Carter G. Woodson initially established “Negro History Week” in 1926, showcasing the numerous contributions of African Americans, which eventually grew into Black History Month. Woodson, who was often barred from attending American Historical Association conferences despite being a dues-paying member, believed that “African American contributions were overlooked, ignored, and even suppressed by the writers of history textbooks and the teachers who use them.”  Woodson made it his life’s work to ensure that people of all races could celebrate the incredible history and achievements of African and African American people, thereby leading to racial healing, reconciliation, and equality. 

Today, as we continue the fight against institutional, intergenerational, internalized, and interpersonal racism, taking time to spotlight the history, biographies, achievements, and events of the Black experience in America and beyond, can provide us with what author, Dr. Eric Mason, author of Woke Church: An Urgent Call for Christians in America to Confront Racism and Injustice, outlines as the steps necessary to fight racism: Awareness, Acknowledgement, Accountability, and Action.  For this blog, I’d like to use this paradigm as the framework for answering the question: Why do we need Black History Month?

In Awareness, Black History Month calls everyone to collective knowledge of the Black experience within America.   Institutional racism has erased the numerous contributions, stories, voices, persons, and events from educational textbooks, making Black people invisible within the American historical narrative. This erasure has been damaging not only to African Americans but to all Americans, as it prevents us from understanding one another and thereby being able to live in harmony with one another. Intentionality in learning the history and experiences of African Americans demonstrates our commitment to understand, appreciate, and support one another, in a way that honors the unique contributions through which God has expressed himself in the Black experience in America. There are strong lessons of resilience, forgiveness, love, sacrifice, humility, strength, faith, hope, success, and more that God has spoken to the world through the struggles and successes of African Americans, that are completely missed when we are unaware of Black History.  We rob our kids and ourselves of a better tomorrow when fail to be aware of our collective history. 

In Acknowledgment, Black History Month provides our nation with the opportunity to acknowledge historical injustice, inequality, and inequity, and how historical trauma contributes to modern-day oppression. Following the protests surrounding the recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, there have been numerous attacks on cultural awareness training, critical race theory, and even banning teachings about racism in classrooms across America. A few major church denominations and religious leaders have joined in these campaigns, leaving Black Christians, wondering of their white brothers and sisters in Christ “Do we know the same Jesus?” The fear amongst some groups is that acknowledging the past may lead to hate, bitterness, resentment, and retaliation. However, it’s negating, dismissing, and discrediting the experiences of marginalized people that lead to negative outcomes, not the other way around. In acknowledging racism, painful and difficult histories, and the experiences of marginalized groups, we are “loving our neighbor” and acknowledging how God can work through any situation.  Black History Month is an opportunity to “be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger”(James 1:19), where we can acknowledge the experiences of others, and collectively seek God to lead us into a place of greater appreciation, affection, and understanding. 

In Accountability, Black History Month provides us an opportunity to take ownership for areas in which we can individually and collectively address past and present injustices. This accountability is not meant to project guilt, but rather to call everyone to a commitment to do our part, to ensure peace and harmony in the future. Like the Good Samaritan of scripture, when we see someone on the side of Jericho’s road in life, while we may not have directly caused the situation, we take it upon ourselves to get involved and help our fellow brother/sister reach a place of wellness and restoration. The resolution to racism and oppression cannot be the work solely of the oppressed, nor can it be the work of the oppressor only. Both the oppressed and the oppressor must own their respective parts, and work collaboratively to close the chasm between them. Black History Month provides an intentional time of year to explore the areas in which we can all participate and possibly lead in our collective liberation and betterment. 

In Action, Black History Month is a call to move from bystander to participant in transforming the mess of the past, into a new message for the future. History must be more than just an understanding of the past, it must at the same time be the foundational data that is used to inform decisions for the future. Black History Month gives us the opportunity to boldly declare that the pain of our past does not have to dictate our future. Strategic and corrective action in our present-day concerning past trauma can go a long way in launching society into a more humane future. 

As Christian behavioral and social scientists, Black History Month is important and necessary, as we seek to study and understand the human experience, and aid individuals and institutions in engaging in behaviors that honor God and honor one another. Black History Month calls us to Awareness, Acknowledgement, Accountability, and Action, spotlighting the experiences of African Americans, and uncovering and embracing the divine revelations for humanity that God has uniquely spoken to the world, through Black people. Celebrating Black History helps moves us closer to God and equips us with the ability to love as God loves us. 

I invite you to come back to this blog throughout the month of February, to lean in, listen, learn, and join the conversation. There is much to say and much to celebrate. Happy Black History Month!!!

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Want to read more in our 2022 Black History Month Blog series? Check out all the posts below!

Why I can’t wait to get my Ida B. Wells Barbie by Dr. Krystal Hays

Remembering to Forget, to Begin Again by Dr. Viola Lindsey

Not Black History Just History by Dr. Stephen Brown

______________________________

Check out the Student Contributions to this series here:

Paving the Way to Worship: Black Christian Leaders You Should Know by Hozell Francis II

Rev. George Liele: Church Planter, Missionary, and Servant of God by Hozell Francis II

Andrew Bryan: Pastor Church Planter, and Servant of God by Armon Patrick

Dr. E. W. McCall: Innovator, Educator, Trendsetter by Hozell Francis II

Lisa Fields: Apologist and Servant of God by Armon Patrick