Cross & Culture Series

As All Saints seeks to “live and to love as the body of Christ in Austin for the world” we are continually asking how we are called to engage with the culture of which we find ourselves a part. The Cross & Culture series is a launching pad for thoughtful discourse on the dynamic and complex parts of our culture in which we participate daily, including everything from music and literature to movies and politics.

Political divisions. Racial tensions. Moral fragmentation. Our world and culture seem increasingly divided, leaving many Christians feeling disoriented and demoralized. We long to know how we can embody hope and lovingly engage others amidst these growing tensions. In this timely talk, Faithfully Navigating a Fractured World: Lessons from Babylon, pastor, writer, and speaker, Rev. Dr. David Kim, draws on the biblical theme of exile to frame the calling of the Christian today within the larger context of God’s people throughout Scripture as spiritual exiles living in an inhospitable culture. This often overlooked lineage provides a rich context for equipping Christians to respond faithfully in a fractured world. David will demonstrate how the exilic perspective cultivates a vibrant spiritual imagination that shapes our vision of the future and offers a new paradigm for loving our neighbors well as we journey toward Home.

David’s passion is to help people and organizations see the unseen realities of a hopeful future breaking into the present. The Rev. Dr. David Kim is the CEO and co-founder of Goldenwood, a non-profit whose mission is to cultivate a new vision of work. Over the past several decades, David has trained, consulted, and coached hundreds of leaders and organizations in developing a robust, meaningful integration of faith and work. David’s past experiences as VP of Faith and Work, Executive Director of Redeemer's Center for Faith & Work (NYC), Director of the Gotham Fellowship, and editor of the NIV Faith and Work Bible have given him a breadth of exposure to the challenges of integrating faith and work. His expertise as a key thought leader in the faith and work space has been well-established, having taught classes and addressed prominent institutions and churches worldwide. In his work with churches, David has had a particular focus on helping churches develop an exilic approach to ministry and cultural engagement.  

Dr. Justin Dyer is Dean of the School of Civic Leadership, founding director of the Civitas Institute, professor of government, and Jack G. Taylor Regents Professor at The University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Dyer specializes in American political thought, jurisprudence, and constitutionalism, with a focus on natural law philosophy. He has authored or edited eight books and numerous articles, essays, and book reviews. His latest book, co-authored with Kody Cooper, is The Classical and Christian Origins of American Politics: Political Theology, Natural Law, and the American Founding (2022, Cambridge University Press). Previous publications include C.S. Lewis on Politics and the Natural Law (2016), Slavery, Abortion, and the Politics of Constitutional Meaning (2013), and Natural Law and the Antislavery Constitutional Tradition (2012), all published by Cambridge University Press. Dyer is also a co-editor of the two-volume constitutional law casebook American Constitutional Law (4th edition, West Academic), widely used in universities across the country. Prior to his current position, he was a professor of political science at the University of Missouri and the founding director of the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy. Dyer earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in Government from The University of Texas at Austin after attending the University of Oklahoma on a wrestling scholarship.

Phaedra Taylor is an artist and illustrator based in Austin Texas with her husband, theologian Rev. Dr. W. David O. Taylor, and their two children. She primarily works in encaustic (wax) and watercolor, exploring themes of place, memory, and story. She’s the illustrator of the recently released Open and Unafraid Prayer Cards, a companion card set to her husbands book “Open and Unafraid, The Psalms as a Guild to Life”; The Light Has Come,  an illustrated card set for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany;  Prayers for Life, embellished collect prayers for the in-between times; and the upcoming book Prayers for the Pilgrimage (2024, IVP), which contains 300 plus original collect prayers accompanied by watercolor paintings.  Phaedra loves walking in wild places, a strong pot of tea, time to putter in her garden, and making good things to eat. You can see more of her work, and snap shots from her studio on instagram @phaedrajeanartmachine, or at www.phaedrataylor.com.

Inquiries and requests: phaedrajean@gmail.com.