Recently, I read one of his scholarly papers published in Ex Auditu, the annual journal of North Park Symposium on Theological Interpretation of Scripture, titled "James, Sirach, and the Poor" (Vol. 22, 2006, pp. 113-132).

The essay begins in a highly technical manner, but closes with surprising reflections about faith and the pursuit of justice. I intend to post some of the essay over the next several days.

Here's the first of it:

"...Clearly, James is convinced that genuine religion requires social concern and that one's social involvement in the present is just as vital as one's personal religious beliefs and practices.... The matter of justice for the poor, once a lively classroom topic, has now taken on new and vital meaning. This opportunity to reinvent myself professionally also became the opportunity for self-redefinition personally, very much along the lines James presents....

"Over the past three years significant involvement in African villages and slums introduced me to societal systems and structural injustice to the poor and became a stimulus as well to reassess Christianity in this light. Matters now occupy my attention which formerly were left to others.

"Corrupt governments, tribal conflicts, unequal distribution of wealth, suppression of intellectual and political freedom, and militarism are but a few of the many societal systems reflecting injustice with which I work daily in Africa. Structural injustice takes other forms.

"Perhaps one in four people in the world lack sufficient resources (land, funds, and education) to participate in the global economy, resulting in a growing inequality between rich and poor and unhealthy materialism and consumerism. Industrialized nations impose trade barriers on goods from lesser developed countries that help create poverty.

"Huge loans to developing countries have resulted in a severe debt crisis. Health care and education are often curtailed in order to repay such debts.... Such matters cannot but affect self-redefinition, and they certainly bring new questions to one's textual world."