Dear Friends of the Office of the University Chaplain and Religious Life:

Every year the OUCRL comes away from a few “mountain top experiences” that bestow vision—for the call of justice, equity, inclusion and peace that we seek to promote—and vitality, of heart and spirit, that give us the requisite courage and hope to believe that this perennial charge can, and will, be faithfully kept and passed along to the next generation of student leaders who are learning and serving in our midst.

Without a doubt, this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. Weekend of Service and Day of Commemoration was a summit from which the Vanderbilt and Nashville communities were enlightened and challenged to affirm that MLK’s “Dream” does not constitute a nostalgic catchphrase somehow stuck in the past and remembered only out of respect. Our keynote speaker, the Rev. James Lawson—a legendary civil rights leader who prophetically engaged Vanderbilt and the city of Nashville in the early 1960s, a figure who MLK said was “the leading nonviolence theorist in the world”—spoke with great poignancy and power because his message, and his continuing work among us, is just as relevant and urgent as it was 55 years ago. (See below for a full report on MLK Day.)

The OUCRL may be coming down from this mountain even as we plan to ascend to other related challenges that call for solidarity. On Feb. 14, the OUCRL’s Project Dialogue will co-sponsor two events deserving of your attention and attendance:

First, at 6 p.m., we will take part in the launching of the [Im]Perfection Project, featuring a talk by vulnerability researcher Dr. Brené Brown at Ingram Hall. At 7 p.m., in the SLC Ballroom, Project Dialogue will join with the Muslim Student Association and the Wesley Fellowship for a talk by a Christian clergyperson and author on Islamophobia. This will be part of VU’s Islamic Awareness Week.

Last, while striving for diversity, equity and inclusion may be one of the most difficult ideals for any community to realize, we are convinced that the peril of not striving toward this ideal is outright unacceptable and dangerous. We will persist with the courage and wisdom of Rev. King and Rev. Lawson showing us the way!

Faithfully,

Rev. Mark Forrester
University Chaplain and Director of Religious Life

	2016 MLK Commemoration Students, staff, faculty and the Nashville community came together at events from Friday, Jan. 15 through the Monday MLK holiday. See the recap here.
	More Brave, Less Perfect: A Talk by Dr. Brené Brown Author of one of the top 5 viewed TED Talks of all time, Dr. Brené Brown will address Vanderbilt to begin the new campus-wide initiative called the Vanderbilt [IM]Perfection Project. Read more.
	Islamic Awareness Week: Islamophobia in the West Todd Green (Luther College) and Jonathan Brown (Georgetown University) will address issues regarding the misconceptions about Islam. Namely, the focus of the event will be Islamophobia in the West. Read more.
	Veritas Forum at Vanderbilt: “Race and Justice: Does God Make a Difference?” John Inazu (Washington University in St. Louis) and Sabrine Rhodes (Washington University in St. Louis) will address the place of faith in social justice for the Veritas Forum in Benton Chapel. Read more.