by Becca Risley | Sep 12, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
For millions of the world’s poorest people, violence is an urgent and everyday threat. For the International Justice Mission (IJM), it is the reason hundreds of lawyers, investigators, social workers, community activists and other professionals gather in nearly 20 developing communities worldwide. IJM partnered with Lipscomb University, HumanDocs and Different Drummer to bring the third annual Justice Film Festival to Nashville Sept. 11-12. The festival featured films from well-known and emerging filmmakers who move to inspire the community and live out justice in a broken world. Offices for IJM are located in Africa, Latin America, South and Southeast Asia. The poor in these communities are particularly vulnerable because their justice systems – the police, the courts and the laws – don’t protect them from violence. “Four billion people worldwide live outside the law,” IJM director of mobilization Wayne Barnard said. “That is, 4 billion people live in a context where there is no 911. And if there were a 911 and you dialed it, no one would answer.” IJM operates under four main goals: rescuing victims, restoring survivors, bringing criminals to justice and strengthening the justice systems. “For poor people in the developing world, violence is relentless so we’re committed to being even more relentless,” Barnard said. “We rescue individuals one by one. That’s where our work starts, but that’s not where it ends.” The mission was born as an idea in 1995 when founder Gary Haugen returned from leading an investigation of the Rwanda Genocide. “Gary was working at that time with the U.S. Department of Justice and he was challenged by the reality of injustice in the...
by Becca Risley | Sep 10, 2015 | News Slider
In remembrance of the 70th Anniversary of World War II, several gathered Thursday evening in Lipscomb’s Stowe Hall to dedicate a forgotten chapter of Tennessee’s history. Almost 400 letters written by German prisoners of war to their Tennessee second family were translated and are now archived at Beaman Library. “These letters are not a story of war,” history professor Dr. Tim Johnson said. “This is the story of amazing reconciliation — a story where if you take away the hate and the politics of war, you find a story of human beings talking and conversing with one another, finding relationships.” Speakers at the “From Foe to Friend” event included Johnson, German professor Dr. Charlie McVey, sophomore German exchange student Ines Konschewitz and Curtis Peters, the man who donated the letters. Late in the 1980s, Peters’ sister-in-law, Lynn Pettus, discovered the letters stuffed away in an old Corn Flakes box in a closet of their family home. “I first thought they were love letters,” Pettus said, remembering her great aunt’s love affair from years prior. “Low and behold, they were in a different language and we later discovered they were from the German prisoners who were here during the war.” Many of the POWs worked on property owned by the James Henry Stribling and Brock families. The men cut timber and plowed fields, growing closer with the Brocks as they shared cold milk together in the heat of several afternoons. Each letter sent after the war detailed the lives of the former prisoners. The men would write to the Brocks, thanking them for their hospitality and sharing stories of life in...
by Becca Risley | Sep 5, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Set during the Civil War, the Nashville Shakespeare Festival’s production of “Henry V” spins the classic historical drama in a new way. At the top of the show, the stage is set with a burned down farmhouse occupied by soldiers, nurses and owners of the farm. One returning Union soldier joins his Confederate brother on stage while the owner of the house and a slave woman sit to the side with a copy of “Henry V.” “The owner of the house and the slave begin to read from the book and those of us in the camp have to decide when we play along and why,” senior acting major Brooke Ferguson said. “It’s such a cool idea.” The director of the show, Nat McIntyre, felt that the state of Tennessee during the Civil War was split down the middle between the Confederate soldiers and the Union. His artistic decision to tell this story as part of the Civil War era was his way of bringing a divided family, and thus a divided state, together. “I love the direction that Nat took the play by setting it in the Civil War, while not having the actual events of the play happen during the War,” senior acting/directing major Jonah Jackson said. “I think it is a great way to frame this story that is ultimately about the hope for peace and reconciliation.” Lipscomb students involved with the show include Ferguson, Jackson and senior acting major Scout Pittman. Jackson plays John Bates, an English soldier and The French Duke of Bourbon. Pittman portrays Katherine, the French princess and Ferguson plays Bishop No....
by Becca Risley | Sep 2, 2015 | News Slider
Blankets spread under the stars Monday night as several girls came together for this year’s first installment of Zion, a girls’ Bible study on campus. Zion is a weekly conversation of faith held for all interested freshman girls hosted by upperclassmen girls. The weekly Bible study began last fall when alumni Rachel Alexander, Hannah Clark and Lauren King launched an idea they had been dreaming about for years. “It was something we wished we had when we were freshman,” Clark said. “We can honestly say Zion became so much more than we ever dreamed. These girls are going to do some pretty amazing things to advance the Kingdom, not only on Lipscomb’s campus, but around the world.” Last fall, the first night of Zion brought 40 girls to the quad for a welcoming discussion of faith and the future. Over the next few weeks, the number in attendance dwindled down to 12, including the six that decided to continue Zion for it’s second year. “This devotional group is focused on providing intentional Christian community during the stress and joy of the school year,” sophomore Madeline McPherson said. “We are carrying on this group because we believe the Lord made us to be in community with each other and to share in our praises and our pain.” In addition to McPherson, the upperclassmen leading the discussions each week are sophomores Rachael Clark, Lauren King, Kristin Monahan, Savannah Turpin and McKamie Walker. The group is open to all freshman girls looking for a place to plug in on campus and find community. Zion meets each Monday night at 8 p.m. on the quad unless otherwise specified. “Please...
by Becca Risley | Aug 30, 2015 | Galleries
Duck Dynasty’s Sadie Robertson hosted the first ‘Live Original LIVE’ at Lipscomb University’s Allen Arena on Saturday Aug. 29, 2015. The event showcased how to “Live Original” in relationships, trials and communities. The conference also featured Christian pop duo for KING & COUNTRY. Photos by Becca Risley « ‹ of 2 ›...
