Midrash Nyc

Yá’ át’ ééh. Mark Charles yinishyé. Tsin bikee dine’é nishłí. Dóó tó’aheedlíinii bá shíshchíín. Tsin bikee’ dine’é dashicheii. Dóó tódích’ íi’ nii dashinálí. In the Navajo culture, that is how Mark Charles - pastor, author, 2020 Presidential candidate - would introduce himself to you. Mark grew up believing the same narrative that we all believed: that America and the Church stood for justice and equality. But after moving his family from Denver, CO to a Navajo reservation and learning more about the history of his people and his culture, he began to break down the myth of a just America and an affirming Church when the two have been so intertwined throughout the centuries of genocide committed against indigenous peoples. In this episode, Mark discusses the journey that led him to co-author "Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery" and what it truly means for a country and a religion to lament and work towards racial conciliation. ABOUT MARK Mark is a dual citizen

Love and dignify your neighbor. Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins inspires us to consider how we can embrace others, regardless of differences, and how scripture speaks to this through the passage of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37). Happy National Coming Out Day!

Our discontent with the challenges of life can be channeled into productive actions which can help us find contentment and freedom. Watch Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins in this third sermon in our "This Far, By Faith" series.

Guest Preacher, Emmy Brett talks about change, about a new dawn rising. Emmy takes the recent changes at Forefront as inspiration for the continued journey to usher in the next 500 years of Christianity. We remain the change, and forge ahead. Though the church may not always have welcomed change, Jesus was a catalyst for change. How do we respond to his example and how do we adapt to the changes we see in our church and in our lives? In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, an entire globe has found itself faced with unprecedented change. Socially, new changes are making us re-consider how we define Christianity and whether or not America is the true center of expanding Christian practice.

“There is no such thing as a woke white person. That is a specimen of human that doesn’t exist. We will always be waking up.” These might be hard words for white allies to hear, but as the white pastor of a multiracial congregation on the South Side of Chicago, David Swanson knows a thing or two about it. In this episode, David talks about his history in the problematic worlds of mission work and church planting and how that informed his approach of servitude and equity when he was asked to be the lead pastor of New Community Covenant Church. We dig deep into his book, "Rediscipling the White Church: From Cheap Diversity to True Discipleship," and discuss the tangible approaches that white churches and white churchgoers can take to truly integrate diversity, equity, and multicultural respect into churches in ways that go way beyond just the simple aesthetics of a congregational makeup. ABOUT DAVID David is the founding pastor of New Community Covenant Church, a multiracial congregation on the South Side of

Why do you attend church? In our new series, "This Far, By Faith", we explore the underpinnings of faith. Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins starts us off with the basic question, "why church?" The church can be a beacon of hope promoting equity and working to end all forms of oppression. We've been through quite some change at Forefront these past months, but some things never change, especially when it comes to the Spirit.

This past Sunday Guest Preacher, Pastor Josh Lee (he/him/his), shined his bright light on the Forefront congregation! Thank you, Josh! In this sermon, Josh Lee speaks about community. Many of us feel like spiritual refugees, fleeing, or being chased out of our communities of faith because we weren’t in a safe place anymore, or left because of oppressive doctrine. Our community at Forefront is made up of spiritual refugees and we can be an example of a community that doesn’t require uniformity to have unity. Josh is the Teaching Pastor at Imago Dei Church in Peoria, Illinois, and has a rich theological background.

We're excited to welcome Forefront's Deacon Jim Rohner to deliver the message. Jim explores the story of Job. It's not a story that can be broken down into simplistic, easily conveyed morals. Instead, it's a complicated and nuanced look at a culture trying to find meaning amongst uncertainty, which in turn gives us permission to question the easy lessons that have been told we should believe. In fact, the story of Job has great relevance to what we're facing today with so many crises at our doorstep. With an ongoing COVID pandemic, climate change, an economic roller coaster, and social unrest, accepting uncertainty about the future has never been so difficult, especially when powerful forces seek to advance a narrative of certainty that keeps them in power.

We're excited to welcome Forefront's Deacon Jim Rohner to deliver the message. Jim explores the story of Job. It's not a story that can be broken down into simplistic, easily conveyed morals. Instead, it's a complicated and nuanced look at a culture trying to find meaning amongst uncertainty, which in turn gives us permission to question the easy lessons that have been told we should believe. In fact, the story of Job has great relevance to what we're facing today with so many crises at our doorstep. With an ongoing COVID pandemic, climate change, an economic roller coaster, and social unrest, accepting uncertainty about the future has never been so difficult, especially when powerful forces seek to advance a narrative of certainty that keeps them in power.

Language is life. Storytellers have great influence. Who gets to tell or interpret stories has a lot to do with privilege and power. Often times we find storytellers may not tell the most truthful or Just version. They may contort a story to fit their beliefs, or worse. This sermon touches on how storytelling through the lens of oppressive systems shape our lives and how we need to take control of the narrative. The sermon, broadly speaking, touches on poverty, immigration, and the myriad of oppressed identities. What if we're supposed to not only think about those whose lived experiences are being ignored or diminished but make sure those stories are told in the places and spaces where they’ve historically been left out? Keli Young, who took part in our Preaching Bootcamp, takes to the stage as we continue the series "What in the ....?". Keli is a Black Christian lawyer, community organizer, and Brooklyn native working towards Black liberation. After graduating from NYU Law, she worked in local and nat

A full house at the Roulette for this powerful, emotional and uplifting experience. We celebrate change and disruption, we reaffirm Vision and Mission, we give thanks and gratitude for the William's family for nurturing Forefront Church to a strong, solid community; for setting the foundation for a new Christianity. We continue the work to usher in the next 500 years of Christianity. In Jonathan Williams' final Sermon for Forefront, the Church he co-founded a decade ago, he talks about miracles and asks us to reclaim our imaginations. We shouldn't care whether or not miracles happen. Instead we should ask, "What can be accomplished when you imagine miracles happening?" Read our announcement about Jonathan at: www.forefrontnyc.com/blog

In this joint sermon with outgoing co-founder of Forefront Church, Jonathan Williams, and new Teaching Pastor, Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins, Jonathan inspires us with the Vision and Mission of Forefront and Venida speaks women in the Church. Why are people so opposed to women leading in ministry when the first preacher of the Gospel was Mary? Read our announcement about Jonathan and welcoming of Venida at: www.forefrontnyc.com/blog

We did it again, y'all - another pastor who never had any intentions of being a pastor has been hired at Forefront! Venida has been recently hired as Forefront's Teaching Pastor, filling the role left vacant with the recent announcement of the stepping down of longtime pastor and church co-founder, Jonathan Williams. This is a disruptive and transitionary period for the church for sure, but we're excited to have Venida on board to help us usher in the next 500 years of Christianity and we want to help you get excited too! So, Deacon Jim Rohner and Executive Producer Makenzie Gomez sat down to hear Venida's story of the long road that led her to Forefront and just what's in store for the future. ABOUT VENIDA Rev. Venida C. Rodman Jenkins is Forefront's Teaching Pastor who hails from Teaneck, N.J.. Venida's mission is to provide visibility, encouragement and spaces of belonging to underrepresented groups. She carries this out as a minister, educator, and advocate. Venida is the Director of the Speicher-Rubin W

In this sermon, Jonathan Williams explores how disruption is a place where God is perhaps most present. Disruptions mess with our lives and what we know. They take away our comfort. And worst of all, they make us grow. We hate growing. But these are the times when the divine is really up to something. On theme, Jonathan used this sermon to announce that he is leaving Forefront to pursue new challenges. He is choosing disruption in order to grow and learn. Read our announcement about Jonathan at: www.forefrontnyc.com/blog

In this second sermon of our “What in the…?” series, Joel Field, a “graduate” of our Preaching Bootcamp, tackles one of the strangest scriptures and uncovers how Jesus shows his love through the miracle involving a fish.

It's one thing to be a Christian in a public space, but it's quite another thing to bear the mantle of being a "Christian band" when you're in your early 20s and playing music for millions of people around the world. Chris Dudley is a devout Christian and his band, Underoath, started out with the label of being a "Christian band" releasing their two most popular albums under the Tooth & Nail record label. But what does it mean to be a "Christian band?" What are the expectations thrust upon you? How do you answer questions that you're not equipped to answer as an inexperienced youth? How does the label shift and change as individual philosophies change and priorities shift? Chris talks through his experiences answering all these questions through Underoath's rise in popularity to their breakup to their reunion and redefining themselves as a group that has moved away from, as they say in their own words, "the realm of seemingly impenetrable polemics." ABOUT CHRIS Chris has played keyboards and synthesizer

We welcome our second Forefront Guest Speaker, Emmy Brett. Emmy takes us on a fascinating journey into the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah isn't just about fire and brimstone, but about choosing holy resistance against evil and refusing to be a voyeur to systems of oppression.

Venida Rodman Jenkins joins us again as Guest Preacher and closes our "Sex Positive" series. Many of us have been taught that our "flesh is a mess" which can lead to body shaming. Let's unpack this message and more as we seek to reclaim our bodies.

We're excited to welcome the first Guest Speaker from our "Forefront Preaching Bootcamp". Frank M. Espinal, a long time Forefronter, took to the stage and opened our new series "What in the...??" Frank explores the difference between forgiveness and redemption.

Can you be Pro-Choice and still be a Christian? Jonathan Williams tackles the church and their role in politicizing women's bodies. We're talking about abortion, which has become a Christian rallying point in the past 30 years. Our Pro-Life theology is actually way more political than Godly.