Poetry Reading Part 3: from “Poems of the Heart”

https://youtu.be/xD3UMCnKdLo?si=wVknTKFfYxVLmDX9

a.co/d/fuzJYu8

You can preorder your copy now on amazon. You’ll get it before Christmas.

Update: Jean Price-Mars Biography

I heard from Vanderbilt University Press two days ago that “the faculty board unanimously approved your project for publication,” that is, my forthcoming intellectual biography on Jean Price-Mars, entitled “For the Sake of Black People and the Common Good: A Biography of Jean Price-Mars.” We are looking tentatively to a late 2026 publication date.

I have until January 15, 2026 to send a fully- revised and clean manuscript to my editor. Honestly, I don’t have a lot of work to do; I’ve been asked to do some minor changes.

Translation: Doctor Lou will not have a Winter break this year because he will be focusing on this manuscript. I am soooooo ready to get done with Price-Mars after working on this “dead man” for more than a decade. lol 😂 😂

In this short talk, I discuss the forthcoming of my second poetry book, which I entitled “Poems from the Heart: Journey through love, longing, and soul’s memory.”

“Christian Faith and African Diasporic Religions in Dialogue: Theology Across the Atlantic”

I am pleased to inform you that I just signed a new book contract with Bloomsbury Academic. The title of the new book is “Christian Faith and African Diasporic Religions in Dialogue: Theology Across the Atlantic.” Here’s a summary of what I hope to do through this project:

“This book project critically examines the African diasporic religions of Vodou, Rastafarianism, Candomblé, and Santería (Regla de Ocha), exploring their theological dimensions through the lens of selected Christian theological concepts and ideas. It aims to clarify seemingly conflicting beliefs between these traditions and Christianity, which are practiced worldwide and within the African Diaspora. Contemporary studies on these religions often emphasize their anthropological, cultural, performative-aesthetic, literary, and sociological aspects, neglecting their theological vision and worldview. Theology across the Atlantic provides a pioneering theological exploration of these African diasporic faiths, comparing them to the core doctrines of Christianity.

The primary aim of this book is to bridge beliefs through the theory of cross-cultural connections and intersections, emphasizing theological inquiry. This text delves into the contextualization of faith and sheds light on the theological visions of Vodou, Rastafarianism, Candomblé, and Santería—crucial yet often neglected aspects of these religious systems in both contemporary Christian and African diasporic religious scholarship. The book aims to dispel misconceptions that these traditions lack coherent theological beliefs and ethical guidelines. Instead, it illustrates their strong theological foundations and moral principles, which influence their worldviews, practices, and rituals. Additionally, the book explores the theological possibility of coexistence in terms of piety and dedication for both Christians and practitioners of these African diasporic religions.”

I have previously published a book with this remarkable press. It was a joy working with this incredible team!

I just signed a book contract with Bloomsbury Academic. The title of the book is “Christian Faith and African Diasporic Religions in Dialogue: Theology Across the Atlantic.” I have previously published a book with this remarkable press. https://t.co/Yg8FIF9BQD

— Celucien L. Joseph, PhD (@doctorlou1978) November 14, 2025

Pursuing God: Reflection on my Spiritual Journey (Part 1)

“Let your passion be single” by John Piper

I first listened to this sermon twenty-five years ago. I was a 22 year-old College student. My old College friend Nathan, who was completely sold out for God, gave me a Piper cassette tape that had the recording. It was this sermon that radically transformed my spiritual journey with God in three various ways:

1. The sermon reoriented my life from a human-centered existence to a God-centered (theocentric) vision about life and self-existence. God has then become my utmost treasure and the precious stone since this epoch-making moment. The central argument articulated in the message of the sermon was both intellectually compelling and emotionally sensitive to both my intellect and my heart.
2. The sermon helped me discover my deep spiritual longings for the divine—that I didn’t know was missing in my life—and the ultimate Being who can satisfy the human soul; it also helped me realize that the value of the soul is in its connection with God himself. God is the only one who makes the human soul and heart worthy of life and worthy of divine delight.
3. Finally, the sermon helped build new theological infrastructures in my life toward a much-better biblical and theological understanding of God, and the message of this sermon also provided me with rich resources and magnificent insights into the life and pleasures of God.

This sermon remains my favorite of all time.

The most important relational emotion that Jesus demonstrates toward the people he meets is compassion, and the message of Jesus is a message of compassion toward the poor and the marginalized in society.

All the four Gospel writers highlight the compassion of Jesus as a key characteristic of the good news he announces, especially to desperate women and children, the economically-poor, the hungry, the sick, and the spiritually-blind individuals.

Compassion is a central virtue of biblical discipleship and serves as a model for all who follow Jesus and call him Lord and Savior.

To call Jesus one’s “Lord” is to pledge an uncompromising allegiance that transcends the spiritual realm and encompasses all political and powerful spheres in the modern world. The title itself is a bold rejection of all ethnocentric nationalisms, cultural idols, and all contemporary (political) “Caesars.”

“On the Theological Significance of Earthly Marriage and the Eternal Spiritual Union with God”

Part A

Marriage in Time and the Eternal Union with God

Recently, I have been reflecting on the temporality and theological significance of the marital covenant between two individuals in contrast with the permanence of our eternal union with God and the people of God in the age to come, what might be called “the eschatological heaven.” Specifically, I have been trying to make sense of Jesus’s teaching in response to the Sadducees’ question concerning marriage after the resurrection (Matthew 22:23–33; cf. Mark 12:18–27; Luke 20:27–40).

Based on Jesus’s response to the theological teachers, the Sadducees, it appears to me that Jesus assigns primacy to humans’ ultimate longing: the (eschatological) spiritual union with God in the time to come, as compared to the marital union between two individuals—a temporary bond. For Jesus, the spiritual union with God in the post-resurrection time is an eternal, unbreakable bond, and this relational fusion between humans and the divine carries more weight and exceeds in significance the earthly marriage itself—a temporary union between two individuals.

By inference, in Jesus’s teaching, the post-resurrection experience will inaugurate a new category of reality or change the nature of reality drastically. For example, the human marriage is set in sharp contrast to the spiritual union between humans and God, and that marriage will no longer be operative, but union will God will replace the reality of the earthly marriage since God will be the ultimate reality and fulfill all human needs, desires, and quests.

These observations raise important theological questions:

1. Does Jesus’s teaching on the absence of marriage in the eschaton undermine the true meaning or significance of earthly marriage?
2. Does this teaching challenge the elevated status often granted to married individuals in Christian communities over against single persons?
3. Given the temporary nature of marriage, should the church reconsider the centrality it has historically placed upon marital status as a measure of spiritual maturity or social legitimacy?
4. If spiritual union with God is the superior and ultimate bond, should marriage be viewed with appropriate humility as a provisional gift rather than a final spiritual destination?
5. Since eternal life will be defined by direct union with God, should Christians invest greater effort in cultivating their connection with God in the present as preparation for that ultimate and everlasting communion?

Part B

Sex, Procreation, and Post-Resurrection Existence

Christian tradition has asserted that both sexual intimacy and procreation belong within the marital covenant, and that sexual activity outside of marriage falls outside divine intent , and correspondingly, the church has also taught that childbearing outside of marriage is a deviation of the divine will.

This question concerning the purpose of sex and biological reproduction invites a reconsideration of how certain sins are understood within the framework of the divine will and the resurrected life. If both sex and procreation will cease to function in the post-resurrection existence, then by implication, these two realities, when experienced outside the marital covenant, do not possess eternal consequences. The resurrection life introduces a transformed mode of existence—that is, a new and distinct form of reality—and a distinct eschatological dispensation within future human history, which reshapes how such matters should be evaluated. To put this succinctly, the post-resurrection experience will change the nature and temporality of sin, and how we should think about sin both theologically and ethically in the present.

Furthermore, based on Jesus’s reasoning in the above passages, since human beings will be like the angels in heaven in the post-resurrection existence suggests that marriage, sexual activity, and childbirth will no longer characterize human existence in the life to come.

In other words marriage, sex, and children should be regarded as temporary gifts for the present age, and they should not be elevated to the transcendent human (spiritual) connection with God. When all these realities pass away, God is, will be, and will always be.

This perspective invites further inquiry:

1. How might we think more responsibly, practically, and meaningfully about the value of sex and procreation in the present, given their temporary and ephemeral nature?
2. If post-resurrection life no longer includes the pleasures of sex, the social structure of marriage, or the joy of raising children, what will be the nature of human relationships and embodied interaction?
3. If spiritual union with God surpasses all other forms of intimacy, how should Christians understand the relationship between physical desire and spiritual longing in this life?

***Although the body may desire sexual intimacy and the soul may long for spiritual intimacy with the divine, how can these two dimensions of human experience, the physical and the spiritual, be reconciled?

4. What does humanity become in the absence of biological procreation in eternity?
5. How should we imagine a future without childbirth—given the idea that humans will be like the angels in heaven and won’t be able to reproduce—especially since this has been a central source of social continuity, emotional fulfillment, and family identity?
6. More broadly, how do we conceptualize eternal life without marriage, sexual intimacy, reproduction, and the physical mode of interpersonal bonding that shapes human experience today?

C. Partial Conclusion

The resurrected life will inaugurate a new mode of existence (“a new way of being in the world”) within the future world and will redefine what it means to be human within an entirely transformed reality and dispensation. Interestingly, within the Christian vision of the future world, the experience of resurrection life will exceed all present expectations and take humanity by surprise. This future world remains unknowable, and all forthcoming realities and human experiences will have to be encountered and understood only as they unfold.

“On Being a Good Writer and Reader”

A student asked me the following question, “How do I become a better reader and understand what I read and be able to apply it to logical questions?”

Here’s my response to the student’s question:

Below, I provide osome basic ideas to help you become a stronger writer:

1. Read great writers and pay attention to how they formulate their questions, structure their thoughts, and express complex ideas clearly.
2. Read widely—especially fiction, novels, and short stories. Exposure to different voices and styles expands your own.
3. Imitate good writing. Try to model your writing after authors whose work you admire; imitation helps develop your own unique voice.
4. Recommended writers: Toni Morrison, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Edwidge Danticat, C.S. Lewis, James Baldwin, Myriam Chancy, Virginia Woolf, John Steinbeck, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce, Ernest Hemingway, Maya Angelou, among others.
5. Read with an open mind. Ask critical questions about what you’re reading—the ideas presented, the assumptions behind them, and their implications.
6. Consider multiple perspectives. Strive to understand ideas from different viewpoints and cultural contexts.
7. Write regularly. Start a blog or personal journal to develop consistency. Aim for two to three posts per week or 30–60 minutes of writing time weekly. Start small, but stay consistent.
8. Read book reviews. Pay close attention to how reviewers discuss and analyze the books, including their tone, structure, and argumentation.
9. Study books on writing. Read works that explore writing craft, style, and creativity. Here are some recommendations:

“How to Read a Book”

https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Book-Classic-Intelligent/dp/0671212095?fbclid=IwdGRjcANjQURleHRuA2FlbQExAAEeYrHhgwtFp7QDOVLZChQuO3dlzZ2mJQzWHLeUe3XZ1etZsQ4-PdsRuoLxK5U_aem_-qX4F2kBXujO-QIquEiSCQ

“On Writing Well”

“Writing with Power”

https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Power-Techniques-Mastering-Process/dp/0195120183es

“When Love Returns”

When love returns…
it won’t rush in.
it won’t make you feel small.
It’ll walk quietly,
like peace that’s been waiting for you.

It won’t remind you of what broke you,
of your mistakes.
love will show you why it had to happen.

This love won’t compete with your past.
It will honor it.
It will energize your soul.
The new love will understand that your scars
aren’t signs of weakness,
of your brokenness.
they’re proof you have been renewed,
& healed.

When love returns,
you won’t question its worth,
its permanence.
You’ll just recognize its calm,
its comfort
its connection,
and you’ll whisper to yourself,
“I’m ready now.”
“I want to love again.”