Join us for the Duke Divinity School African-American Alumni Day and our annual Gardner C. Taylor Lecture Series with guest lecturer and preacher Rev. Martha Simmons, founder of The African American Lectionary.

This will be a reunion not to miss as we journey with the university-wide 50th anniversary commemoration of the first black students to attend Duke. The Divinity School reunion will be an opportunity for networking, community building, and celebrating the mission and vision of the Office of Black Church Studies under the new directorship of Rev. Dr. Eboni Marshall Turman. There will be a morning plenary session focusing on the historical, present, and future direction of the Office of Black Church Studies and the legacy of African-American church leaders and theologians.

Tuesday evening will feature a dinner for alumni, students, faculty, and staff at the Hilton Durham. Come enjoy food, fellowship, and a joyful time as the Spirit moves us from memory to hope. Rev. Dr. William Barber II, M.Div. 89, president of the NC NAACP and pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church, will offer an inspirational message. During the dinner, we will honor select alumni and memorialize those who have passed from labor to reward.

At the same time as the reunion, well also be hosting the annual Gardner C. Taylor Lecture Series. Since 1975, the Gardner C. Taylor Lecture Series has brought outstanding black preachers to Duke University. The lectures are named in honor of the Rev. Dr. Gardner C. Taylor, pastor emeritus of the Concord Baptist Church of Christ in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Registration is required for all events.

Rev. Martha Simmons

Rev. Martha Simmons is an associate minister at Rush Memorial United Church of Christ in Atlanta, Ga. She currently resides in Atlanta and is a native of Tchula, Miss. For more than 25 years, Simmons has preached throughout the U.S. and in Africa and has served in a variety of ministerial capacities. For the past 18 years, she has served as the preaching scribe for the Black Church through the codification, preservation, and elevation of African-American preaching for present and future generations. In this work, she is providing homiletical models and approaches to ministry that promote excellence in African-American preaching and ministry.

Simmons is often called upon to talk about the current state of black preaching and black faith, and was quoted by the religious press on the use of faith in the 2011 and 2012 State of the Union addresses. She can be heard regularly on programs such as the Operation PUSH broadcast. Simmons has also developed a reputation for being a mentor to young clergy (having assisted more than 20 young clergy in becoming pastors), and she is a life coach to numerous senior pastors.

Rev. Dr. William Barber II

Rev. Dr. William Barber is president of the North Carolina chapter of the NAACP. He serves as pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church Disciples of Christ in Goldsboro, N.C., a 120-year-old congregation with more than 400 members and 30 active ministries. He is chairperson of the Rebuilding Broken Places Community Development Corporation, a non-profit organization involved with building affordable single family homes and senior citizen housing and providing job training, affordable child care, and inner city revitalization in Goldsboro.

Go here to read the rest:
Rev. Martha Simmons to Deliver the Gardner Taylor Lectures This Week at Divinity