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Eugene is President/CEO of Bread for the World, a Christian advocacy organization urging U.S. decision makers to do all they can to pursue a world without hunger.
Eugene co-chairs the U.S. Nutrition CEO Council, the body of leaders from international NGOs encouraging the U.S. government, civil society, corporations, and other stakeholders to make global nutrition expertise into law and policy.
He serves on the board of Interaction; on the Coordinating Committee for the Circle of Protection; and as visionary for One Day’s Wages.
Prior to becoming President/CEO of Bread for the World, Eugene pastored a local church for nearly thirty years.
Cindy S. Lee is a spiritual director, urban explorer, and author (Our Unforming: De-Westernizing Spiritual Formation). She has a PhD in practical theology in the area of spiritual formation from Claremont School of Theology and a DMin in transformational leadership from Bakke Graduate University.
Lee lived in Beijing and Taipei for six years and currently resides in Los Angeles. She is an adjunct professor at Fuller Theological Seminary. Lee also leads formation retreats and workshops and mentors new spiritual directors.
Learn MoreLisa Sharon Harper is a prolific speaker, author, and activist and the founder and president of FreedomRoad.us. Ms. Harper is the author of several books, including The Very Good Gospel: How Everything Wrong can be Made Right (2016) and Fortune: How Race Broke My Family and the World (2022).
A columnist at Sojourners Magazine and an Auburn Theological Seminary Senior Fellow, Ms.Harper has appeared on TVOne, FoxNews Online, NPR, and Al Jazeera America. Her writing has been featured in CNN Belief Blog, The National Civic Review, Sojourners, The Huffington Post, Relevant Magazine, and Essence Magazine. She writes extensively on shalom and governance, immigration reform, health care reform, poverty, racial and gender justice, climate change, and transformational civic engagement.
Learn MoreShane Claiborne is a prominent speaker, activist, and best-selling author. Shane worked with Mother Teresa in Calcutta, and founded The Simple Way in Philadelphia. He heads up Red Letter Christians, a movement of folks who are committed to living “as if Jesus meant the things he said.” Shane is a champion for grace which has led him to jail advocating for the homeless, and to places like Iraq and Afghanistan to stand against war. Now grace fuels his passion to end the death penalty and help stop gun violence.
Shane’s books include Jesus for President, Red Letter Revolution, Common Prayer, Follow Me to Freedom, Jesus, Bombs and Ice Cream, Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers, Executing Grace, his classic The Irresistible Revolution, Beating Guns, and his newest book, Rethinking Life.
Learn MoreLinda Royster, LCMHC, is the Strategic Alliances Manager and a Lead Instructor with the Allender Center. Linda has been called to traumatized populations since 1997 and is deeply committed to the recovery, healing, and well-being of her people. She has worked with latency age children, adolescents, and adults in hospital, academic, and non-profit milieus, respectively.
Linda holds a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology Graduate School and is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor who works therapeutically with a diverse clientele. Also, she authored the addendum of the 25th-anniversary re-release of Healing the Wounded Heart by Dr. Dan Allender. Her addendum addresses issues that African-American women survivors of childhood abuse might face. Dr. Dan Allender is a pioneer of a unique and innovative approach to trauma and abuse therapy, The Allender Theory, which bridges the story of the gospel and the stories of trauma and abuse that mark so many. Dan continues to serve as Professor of Counseling Psychology at The Seattle School. Dan is the author of The Wounded Heart, The Healing Path, To Be Told, and God Loves Sex, and he has co-authored several books with Dr. Tremper Longman, including Intimate Allies, The Cry of the Soul, Bold Love, Bold Purpose. Most recently, he co-authored Redeeming Heartache: How Past Suffering Reveals True Calling with Cathy Loerzel. Dan also co-hosts The Allender Center’s weekly podcast with Rachael Clinton Chen. About the Allender Center: At the Allender Center, everything we do is rooted in the belief that true, lasting healing of even our deepest wounds is possible. This is central to our understanding of the gospel story. Our mission is to foster redemption and healing in individuals, couples, and communities by helping them tell their stories with awareness and integrity while also training leaders and professionals to engage the stories of others with courage, artistry, and care. Learn more about our courses, workshops, and trainings, including the Effective Trauma Care training hosted by The Center for Formation, Justice and Peace at Journey Church on October 27-28, 2023, at theallendercenter.org/events.
Learn MoreDr. Jemar Tisby is the author of the New York Times bestselling book, The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the Church’s Complicity in Racism, How to Fight Racism, and How to Fight Racism: Young Reader’s Edition. He is also a Professor of History at Simmons College of Kentucky in Louisville. Jemar has been a co-host of the “Pass the Mic” podcast since its inception seven years ago.
His writing has been featured in the Washington Post, The Atlantic, and the New York Times among others. He is a frequent commentator on outlets such as NPR and CNN’s New Day program. He speaks nationwide on the topics of racial justice, U.S. history and Christianity. Jemar earned his PhD in history and he studies race, religion, and social movements in the 20th century. You can follow his work through his newsletter, Footnotes, and on social media at @JemarTisby.
Learn MoreDr. Tory Baucum, Director of the Center for Family Life at Benedictine College, served for 30 years as an Anglican Pastor, seminary and university professor. In this past decade he and Elizabeth, his wife, worked ecumenically and closely with the Catholic Church, especially with the Italian movement Mistero Grande and its founder Don Renzo Bonetti. The Baucums spoke at the Vatican’s 2015 World Meeting of the Family in Philadelphia.
Beginning in 2018, Tory’s friends, Fr. Paul Scalia and Fr. Dominic Legge O.P., prepared Tory and his wife for acceptance into the Catholic Church. Archbishop Naumann received them into the Church Easter of 2020. Since then, Tory has served in the Archdiocese of Kansas City-Kansas. On Feb 19, 2003, Professor Baucum was inducted into the Copernican Academy in Torun, Poland in recognition of his life’s work in peace building.
Learn MoreKatelyn Beaty is author of Celebrities for Jesus: How Personas, Platforms and Profits Are Hurting the Church and the editorial director of Brazos Press. She has written on faith and culture for several mainstream and Christian media outlets and co-hosts the podcast Saved by the City. A native of Ohio and graduate of Calvin University, she lives in Brooklyn, NY.
Learn MoreCharles Robinson, along with his wife Siouxsan, founded The Red Road, an organization dedicated to serving and celebrating Native Americans and ministering the love of Jesus through practical support. He is also the Founder of Atsiniki, a cigar company that seeks to honor Native American culture and the stories of indigenous people everywhere.
He, Siouxsan, and their 11 children work together to demonstrate how following Jesus and following the red road leads to deeper peace for all.
Learn MoreWe’re delighted to welcome both Kristy Wallace and Bill Haley on Peace Talks to talk about The Repentance Project. Kristy Wallace is the director of The Repentance Project. As an undergraduate student, she studied Afro-American Studies and Public Policy at the University of Maryland (UMCP).
Kristy attended graduate school at Moody Graduate School (MGS) in Chicago, IL. At MGS she was introduced to God as a God of justice. Kristy’s training in trauma-informed Intentional Listening administered by Wellspring Counseling has allowed her to walk with families living in poverty as they journey toward healing. The Rev. Bill Haley is the Executive Director of Coracle. A graduate of Bethel College (1991) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (magna cum laude, 1994), he is an Anglican priest and spiritual director, having completed his training with the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation (2007). With his wife Tara and four kids, Bill currently lives at Corhaven in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
Learn MoreWe’re delighted to welcome pastor and author Rich Villodas to join us for a brave conversation about formation, justice, and peace! Rich Villodas is the Brooklyn-born lead pastor of New Life Fellowship, a large multiracial church with more than seventy-five countries represented in Elmhurst, Queens. Rich holds a Master of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
He enjoys reading widely, preaching and writing on contemplative spirituality, justice-related matters, and the art of preaching. He’s been married to Rosie since 2006 and they have two beautiful children, Karis and Nathan. He is also the author of The Deeply Formed Life and Good and Beautiful and Kind.
Learn MoreWe’re delighted to welcome teacher, spiritual director and podcaster Lisa Colón DeLay to join us for a brave conversation about formation, justice and peace! Originally from Puerto Rico and now based in Philadelphia, Lisa has an MA in spiritual formation and a passion for leading others in formational practices.
When she’s not interviewing guests like Krista Tippett, Parker J. Palmer and Seth Godin on her podcast, Spark My Muse, she’s teaching in many settings from graduate schools to workshops, writing for anthologies and print publications, and offering spiritual companioning and retreats. On this episode, she talks about her own spiritual formation journey and the rhythms of justice that shape her actions.
Learn MoreWe’re celebrating one year of brave conversations about formation, justice and peace! In this special Anniversary episode of Peace Talks, Director of Content and Community Katie Haseltine interviews hosts Vanessa Sadler and Bishop Todd Hunter!
Vanessa is a trauma-informed, certified spiritual director and Todd is an author, speaker and teacher who founded the Center and The Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others [C4SO]. They discuss their favorite Peace Talks guests, why formation is always central to justice, what catalyzes their own pursuit of justice and more. Bonus: Find out what makes Vanessa and Todd’s friendship so sweet!
Learn MoreEnd Slavery Tennessee’s (ESTN) mission is to promote healing of survivors and strategically combat human trafficking in Tennessee. ESTN began as a grassroots nonprofit but was quickly elevated to a state expert on local human trafficking and survivor aftercare.
ESTN provides specialized case management and comprehensive aftercare for human trafficking survivors and tactically addresses the problem through advocacy, prevention and training of front-line professionals.
Opening in 2022, ESTN is creating a Survivor Restoration Campus that will offer a 2-year Residential Program that begins and ends with safe and stable housing; an oasis where survivors will build community for healing, housing and hope. Research and experience indicate that survivors require two years of stabilization, resources and care to truly address their trafficking-related trauma. Learn MoreCurtis Zackery Curtis Zackery (CZ) joins PEACE TALKS to discuss what it means to truly rest, how Jesus embodied rest, and how the need for rest is deeply embedded in our human DNA. In this interview, he reveals how our misaligned view of rest has its roots in an identity that is out of rhythm with God, and how practicing Sabbath guides us toward a purposeful and sustainable life with Jesus.
CZ is a pastor and author of Soul Rest: Reclaim Your Life. Return to Sabbath. CZ also helms an organization called Find Rest that seeks to help spiritually depleted Christian leaders find rest.
Learn MoreSoong-Chan Rah is Robert Munger Professor of Evangelism at Fuller Theological Seminary and the author of The Next Evangelicalism (IVP Books, 2009); Many Colors (Moody, 2010); Prophetic Lament (IVP Books, 2015); co-author of Forgive Us (Zondervan, 2014); Return to Justice (Brazos, 2016); and Unsettling Truths (IVP Books, 2019). Soong-Chan received his B.A. from Columbia University; his M.Div. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary; his Th.M. from Harvard University; his D.Min. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and his Th.D. from Duke University.
Rah is formerly the founding Senior Pastor of Cambridge Community Fellowship Church (CCFC), a multi-ethnic church living out the values of racial reconciliation and social justice in the urban context. He has previously served on the boards of World Vision, Sojourners and the Christian Community Development Association.
He has extensive experience in cross-cultural preaching as well as on numerous college campuses. Soong-Chan has been a main stage speaker at the Urbana Student Missions Conference, the Congress on Urban Ministry, the Urban Youth Workers Institute Conference, the CCDA National Conference, the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary National Preaching Conference, the Fuller Missiology Conference, the Justice Conference, and Verge, Catalyst, and Calvin Worship Conferences. Learn MoreKat Armas Kat Armas is a Cuban American writer and podcaster from Miami, FL. She holds a dual MDiv and MAT from Fuller Theological Seminary where she was awarded the Frederick Buechner Award for Excellence in Writing, and is currently pursuing a ThM at Vanderbilt Divinity School. Russell was President of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention from 2013 to 2021. Prior to that role, Moore served as provost and dean of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, where he also taught theology and ethics.
Her first book, Abuelita Faith: What Women on the Margins Teach Us About Wisdom, Persistence and Strength, sits at the intersection of women, decolonialism, the Bible, and Cuban identity. She also explores these topics and more on her podcast, The Protagonistas, which centers the voices of Black, Indigenous, and other women of color in theological spaces. Kat is currently living in Nashville with her spouse and new baby while working on her second book, Sacred Belonging: A 40-day Devotional on the Liberating Heart of Scripture.
Learn MoreRussell Moore is Public Theologian at Christianity Today and Director of Christianity Today’s Public Theology Project. Russell was President of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention from 2013 to 2021. Prior to that role, Moore served as provost and dean of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, where he also taught theology and ethics.
Dr. Moore is the author of several books, including The Courage to Stand: Facing Your Fear Without Losing Your SoulOnward: Engaging the Culture without Losing the Gospel and The Storm-Tossed Family: How the Cross Reshapes the Home. A native Mississippian, he and his wife Maria are the parents of five sons.
Learn MoreAnthony Hendricks is the co-founder and director of The Public in Franklin, TN. Hendricks’ drive, passion, love for humanity, and analytical mind has helped him serve high-paced, innovative, strategically positioned ministries over the past 25 years.
Following his career in the corporate space, he entered full-time ministry as the Assistant Pastor at a local Church in Franklin, TN where he helped build a thriving multi-ethnic body. He has helped other multi-ethnic ministries grow and thrive in other cities. The world of racial reconciliation became his calling, and he’s been engaging Christ-followers and non-Christ followers in honest conversation and action around the issue of biblical unity. Anthony holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biblical Studies from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL, where he graduated with honors, and a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership (summa cum laude), from Williamson College.
Learn MoreGabrielle Beam is the Pastor of Mary of Bethany Anglican Mission and works with many pastors and ministry leaders on the forefront of revival breaking out in Connecticut and the Northeast. In addition, she is the founder of Bridgeport Arise – a work focused on building unity in the body of Christ, Rise to Read – a work focused on eliminating early childhood illiteracy, and most recently RESPONSE, a global prayer movement that was launched as a local movement on May 14, 2020.
Gabrielle holds a Master of Divinity and a Master of Sacred Theology from Yale Divinity School, and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from California Polytechnic State University. Beyond growing up in the church, being a former student-leader in InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and working as a missionary in India, Gabrielle’s background includes corporate management, contract negotiation, membership in the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG/AFTRA), and training at the National Academy of Dramatic Arts in Washington, D.C.
Learn MoreJustin Giboney is an attorney, political strategist and ordained minister in Atlanta, GA. He is also the Co-Founder and President of the AND Campaign, which is a coalition of urban Christians who are determined to address the sociopolitical arena with the compassion and conviction of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Mr. Giboney has managed successful campaigns for elected officials in the state and referendums relating to the city’s transportation and water infrastructure.
In 2012 and 2016, Georgia’s 5th congressional district elected him as a delegate for the Democratic National Convention. A former Vanderbilt University football player and law student, Justin served on the Urban League of Greater Atlanta Board of Directors. He’s the co-author of Compassion (&) Conviction – The AND Campaign’s Guide to Faithful Civic Engagement and has written op-eds for publications such as Christianity Today and The Hill.
Learn MoreSheila Wise Rowe is a truth-teller who writes passionately about matters of faith and emotional healing. She advocates for the dignity, rights, and healing of abuse survivors, those carrying racial trauma, and racial conciliation. Sheila holds a Master’s degree in Counseling and has lived in the USA, Paris, France and Johannesburg, South Africa.
For over twenty-five years Sheila has been a counselor, educator, writer, spiritual director, and speaker. She is a member of the Community Ethics Committee of Harvard Medical School, a policy-review resource for its teaching hospitals. She is a member of the Redbud Writers Guild and writes essays for several publications including; The Redbud Post, Mudroomblog.com, The Art of Taleh, and The Boston Sunday Globe. Sheila’s book; Healing Racial Trauma: The Road to Resilience released by InterVarsity Press (IVP) in 2020 was awarded the 2021 best book in Christian Living/ Discipleship by Christianity Today. When Sheila is not writing or counseling she creates art, and crafts or searches for treasures in local antique and thrift shops.
Learn MoreGregory Thompson is a scholar, writer, and artist of diverse creative background whose work focuses on race, religion, hospitality, and democracy in the United States. He serves as Executive Director of Voices Underground, an initiative to build a national memorial to the Underground Railroad outside of Philadelphia; Research Fellow in African American Heritage at Lincoln University (HBCU); and as Creative Director of Star & Lantern, a new Cocktail Bar in Kennett Square, PA whose story centers in the African American freedom struggle and the Underground Railroad (Opening June 2021). He is the Co-Creator of Union: The Musical, a soul and hip-hop based musical about the 1968 Sanitation Workers’ Strike, Co-Author (with Reverend Duke Kwon) of Reparations: A Christian Call to Repentance and Repair and is currently writing a work that explores the role of love in the work of Martin Luther King. He holds an M.A. and PhD from the University of Virginia.
Learn MoreDennae Pierre is co-Director for the Crete Collective and leads the Surge Network in Arizona. She also serves as one of the Co-Directors for City to City North America. She has her MA from Covenant Theological Seminary and DMin from Western Theological Seminary (Holland, Michigan) and is the author of Healing Prayers to Resist a Violent World. Dennae is married to Vermon, the lead pastor at Roosevelt Community Church, a multi-ethnic church in downtown Phoenix and they have five children.
Learn MoreKristin Kobes Du Mez is a New York Times bestselling author and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Calvin University. She holds a PhD from the University of Notre Dame and her research focuses on the intersection of gender, religion, and politics. She has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, NBC News, Religion News Service, and Christianity Today, and has been interviewed on NPR, CBS, and the BBC, among other outlets. Her most recent book is Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation.
Learn MoreMichelle Ami Reyes, PhD, is the Vice President of the AACC and Co-Executive Director of Pax. She is the Scholar in Residence at Hope Community Church and author of Becoming All Things: How Small Changes Lead to Lasting Connections Across Cultures and Becoming All Things Study Guide and Conversation Cards. Michelle lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and two amazing kids.
Learn MoreSheila Wise Rowe is a truth-teller who writes passionately about matters of faith and emotional healing. She advocates for the dignity, rights, and healing of abuse survivors, those carrying racial trauma, and racial conciliation. Sheila holds a Master’s degree in Counseling and has lived in the USA, Paris, France and Johannesburg, South Africa.
For over twenty-five years Sheila has been a counselor, educator, writer, spiritual director, and speaker. She is a member of the Community Ethics Committee of Harvard Medical School, a policy-review resource for its teaching hospitals. She is a member of the Redbud Writers Guild and writes essays for several publications including; The Redbud Post, Mudroomblog.com, The Art of Taleh, and The Boston Sunday Globe. Sheila’s book; Healing Racial Trauma: The Road to Resilience released by InterVarsity Press (IVP) in 2020 was awarded the 2021 best book in Christian Living/ Discipleship by Christianity Today. When Sheila is not writing or counseling she creates art, and crafts or searches for treasures in local antique and thrift shops.
Learn MoreGregory Thompson is a scholar, writer, and artist of diverse creative background whose work focuses on race, religion, hospitality, and democracy in the United States. He serves as Executive Director of Voices Underground, an initiative to build a national memorial to the Underground Railroad outside of Philadelphia; Research Fellow in African American Heritage at Lincoln University (HBCU); and as Creative Director of Star & Lantern, a new Cocktail Bar in Kennett Square, PA whose story centers in the African American freedom struggle and the Underground Railroad (Opening June 2021). He is the Co-Creator of Union: The Musical, a soul and hip-hop based musical about the 1968 Sanitation Workers’ Strike, Co-Author (with Reverend Duke Kwon) of Reparations: A Christian Call to Repentance and Repair and is currently writing a work that explores the role of love in the work of Martin Luther King. He holds an M.A. and PhD from the University of Virginia.
Learn MoreDennae Pierre is co-Director for the Crete Collective and leads the Surge Network in Arizona. She also serves as one of the Co-Directors for City to City North America. She has her MA from Covenant Theological Seminary and DMin from Western Theological Seminary (Holland, Michigan) and is the author of Healing Prayers to Resist a Violent World. Dennae is married to Vermon, the lead pastor at Roosevelt Community Church, a multi-ethnic church in downtown Phoenix and they have five children.
Learn MoreKristin Kobes Du Mez is a New York Times bestselling author and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Calvin University. She holds a PhD from the University of Notre Dame and her research focuses on the intersection of gender, religion, and politics. She has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, NBC News, Religion News Service, and Christianity Today, and has been interviewed on NPR, CBS, and the BBC, among other outlets. Her most recent book is Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation.
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Michelle Ami Reyes, PhD, is the Vice President of the AACC and Co-Executive Director of Pax. She is the Scholar in Residence at Hope Community Church and author of Becoming All Things: How Small Changes Lead to Lasting Connections Across Cultures and Becoming All Things Study Guide and Conversation Cards. Michelle lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and two amazing kids.
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