Navajo Christian leader to speak at Northwestern College

Mark Charles, a Christian leader who works for reconciliation on behalf of Native Americans, will speak at Northwestern College Nov. 13 and 14.

Charles will speak on “Worldly Power and Spiritual Authority” in chapel on Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 11:05 a.m. That evening at 7, he will give a lecture on “A Native Perspective on American History: The Doctrine of Discovery” in the Vogel Community Room of DeWitt Learning Commons. At 10:05 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 14, he will speak in the Vogel Community Room about “The Challenges of ‘We the People’ … A Vision for ‘All the People.’” The events are free and open to the public.

A speaker, writer and consultant whose father is a Navajo man and mother is of Dutch-American heritage, Charles communicates the complexities of American history regarding race, culture and faith in order to help forge a path of healing for the nation. Mark serves as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Native News Online and blogs at “Reflections From the Hogan.” He served on the boards of the Christian Community Development Association and the Christian Reformed Church of North America. A former pastor of the Christian Indian Center in Denver, Charles is the author of a book on the Doctrine of Discovery, “Truth be Told,” that will be published by InterVarsity Press next year.

“Mark Charles offers a fresh, prophetic, native perspective on how worldly power and spiritual authority often aren’t hand and glove,” says Mark DeYounge, Northwestern’s dean of Christian formation. “He will help us discover dimensions of the gospel that have, in some sense, been lost in translation at times in the history of our nation and even western Christianity. In many ways, we need fresh eyes to see Christ and his glorious gospel as we honestly consider our history and consider the hope to which we’ve been called as we step forward into the future for the glory of God’s kingdom.”