Cesar Lopez
California, USA
Cesar Lopez serves on the ministry staff in The Valley Church in Los Angeles. He and Jennifer have served as a missionary in Asia for twenty years, developing leadership teams in churches, hospitals, corporations, and schools. Married for thirty years, they have three adult children and a daughter-in-law who all love God - Brianna, CJ, Destiny, and Daniel. Cesar graduated from the University of San Francisco Bachelor of Science in Hospitality, co-founder of the Asia Pacific Leadership Academy, Certified ACSTH Executive Coach, and recently earned a master’s degree in Missional Leadership from Rochester University. He enjoys weekly Sabbaths with Jennifer, hiking, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
ABOUT THE CLASS:
Multicultural Considerations in Reading the Text
Reading the Bible with a multicultural lens matters. Globalization and migration have made our world smaller. It is a small world, after all. Considering the text through a cultural lens allows you to connect to the people who are different from you in our time and space. It cultivates empathy. Reading the Bible through this lens, can also help you see your cultural blind spots, which may distort the way we read the Bible. Often, we are anxious to form conclusions too early out of fear or wanting control and not leaving space and letting the Spirit of God appear on their own terms. Hermeneutics is not only about interpreting scripture, but it also interprets the moment and what God might be up to through “the other” – someone different than you.
Thursday, February 24th
3:30 PM - 4:45 PM
AVAILABLE IN-PERSON AND ONLINE.
RECOMMENDED READING:
Genesis 18:1-15
Luke 10:25-37
Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission by David J Bosch
Beyond Christendom: Globalization, African Migration, and the Transformation of the West
by Jehu J. Hanciles
Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Removing Cultural Blinders to Better Understand the Bible by E. Randolph Richards, Brandon J. O'Brien
Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition by Christine D. Pohl
