By Rev. Dr. Keith Russell

Letter from the Editor reflecting on the life of E. Lee Hancock.

By Thomas H. Troeger

We are healed by God’s identification with our suffering.

By Rev. Dr. Keith Russell

God’s promise of a new social order is promised through healing.

By Rev. Dr. Keith Russell

Quotations from scripture that reference healing and wholeness.

By Rev. Dr. Marvin A. McMickle

The phenomenal growth of Pentecostal movements within African American communities has been one of the most significant developments in Christianity in the United States. It is safe to say that the history of African American Christianity can be divided into three phases of denominational influence: the Methodists in the nineteenth century, the Baptists in the twentieth century, and Pentecostal groups in the twenty-first century.

By Demetra Velisarios Jaquet

The Feast of Pentecost is not simply the celebration of an event which took place centuries ago. It is the constant renewal of relationship as sacrament in Church and community. We all have died and risen with the Messiah, and we all have received His Most Holy Spirit.

By Dr. Harold Dean Trulear

Pentecost must be set free. First, Pentecost must be set free from the silence of the church concerning its importance. Second, Pentecost must be wrest- ed from its association solely with denominational designation. Third, Pentecost must be delivered from denominational caricatures that identify it primarily with glossolalia as the badge of fidelity.

By Rev. Dr. Judy Yates Siker

The story of Pentecost is indeed the story of how unsettling the in-breaking of the Spirit can be. But it is the story of spiritual transformation, as all the people in the crowd were empowered as they heard the Gospel in a way they understood. Perhaps we ought to pray again that God send that unsettling Spirit among us to con- fuse us and shake us loose from our safe places. As we learn to speak and hear “in other tongues,” it may bring new light to shine on familiar matters.

A Message from the Editor on Pentecost

By Rev. Dr. Ronald J. Allen

Part of a minister’s calling is to try to find points at which the Year and the table of readings bring preacher and congregation into real conversation regarding our deepest beliefs concerning God and the world, as well as to critique points at which the Christian Year and the lectionary obfuscate theological reflection. At just this point, of course, we encounter one of the continuing evidences of Pentecost: whether through Christian Year and lectionary or some other means, the Spirit persistently seeks to lure us to deeper recognition of the divine presence and purposes.