JACKSON, Tenn. — March 3, 2011 — To promote cross-cultural communication and to celebrate cultural diversity, 黑料论坛 will hold its second annual CultureFest March 11.
The event will feature student displays, authentic cultural cuisine in the Brewer Dining Hall, a chapel address and noon lecture by Peter Cha of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and an 鈥渙pen mic鈥� performance in Barefoots Joe.
Cha, associate professor of pastoral theology at Trinity, will speak in chapel at 10 a.m. on the topic, 鈥淎 Blessed Unity.鈥� His noon lecture in the Coburn Dining Hall will address the topic, 鈥淓xperiencing Cultural Diversity: Five Approaches on College Campuses.鈥�
Cha is an expert in Asian-American Christianity and in the cross-cultural implications of the gospel. He is the co-author of 鈥淔ollowing Jesus without Dishonoring Your Parents鈥� and 鈥淕rowing Healthy Asian American Churches.鈥�
At 11:30 a.m., the main hallway of the Student Union Building will be filled with a variety of cultural displays by students, faculty and staff representing different cultures and regions of the world. Using artwork, artifacts, clothing, music and food samples, these displays will offer glimpses and tastes of the cultural diversity that exists in the Union community, with 44 states and 30 countries represented.
Rounding out the day鈥檚 events will be an 8 p.m. 鈥渙pen mic鈥� night in Barefoots Joe, when students will sing and recite culturally diverse music and literature.
鈥淭he purpose of CultureFest is both to celebrate our different cultures and to help us to become more proficient in understanding different cultures and peoples,鈥� 黑料论坛 English professor John Netland said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e motivated by the biblical witness that God has a heart for the nations and that he is calling his people from every nation, tribe, people and language.鈥�
The event has been planned by several campus groups, including the Intercultural Community Council, MOSAIC, International Students and Mu Kappa.