The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
United Methodist Church
Providence United Methodist Church, Charlotte, NC
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter is pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, NC.
Ken's congregation is involved in a range of ministries, from hosting homeless families, to the initiation of an HIV/Aids ministry and the establishment of a school in Haiti, to a significant outreach with young families in the community. The clergy staff of his church includes three men and three women.
Ken is the author of six books and a contributor to twelve others, and he maintains a blog entitled “Bear Witness To The Love of God in This World”. Most recently he contributed to The Wesley Study Bible, The Abingdon Preaching Annual, and the Feasting On The Word commentary series. Ken has spoken to groups across the country, and has preached in congregations ranging in size from very small mountain churches to congregations of more than five thousand members.
He and his wife Pam have two daughters and their family also includes a young man from Haiti who is a student at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama. Ken’s hobbies are exercise, listening to music, writing and reading. He and his wife have enjoyed traveling to England, Ireland, Israel, Guatemala, Haiti, Canada and China, and supporting the pursuits of their daughters.
Latest Content by The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(
UMC)
At the heart of the biblical story is a meal. Israel tells its story at the Passover meal, one of deliverance from slavery and entrance to the promised land (Exodus 12). Jesus shares this Passover meal with his own disciples (John 13), and commands them to eat this meal in remembrance of him (Matthew 26). Jesus feeds the multitudes (John 6), eats with sinners (Luke 15), and shares a mysterious meal with two of the disciples on the way to Emmaus (Luke 24). The first Christians break bread together with glad and generous hearts (Acts 2). Later, there are abuses in the practice of the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 11). One of the most misunderstood concepts in Christian faith and practice, the reference to eating the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner, referred to the experiences of gluttony and poverty at the common meal. The Christian hope was also shaped by the expectation of a Messiah who would preside over a great banquet (Luke 14).
Read full article...
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(
UMC)
I knew I would want to see Crazy Heart when I learned of T Bone Burnett's association with the music. The idea of a country musician as the main character was also intriguing, and the presence of Robert Duvall in the film took me back to the classic Tender Mercies. I watched Jeff Bridges receive the best actor award from the Screen Actor's Guild, and I had a growing sense that this would be a special movie.
It is.
One does not have to appreciate roots music to enjoy Crazy Heart, but it helps. Bad Blake has hit bottom, personally and professionally, but the music is a constant, and in T Bone Burnett's hands the sound is pitch perfect. Performing in a bowling alley to a gathering of fans who know the words to every lyric, Bad (Bridges) makes it through the set, but one has the sense that life cannot continue in this way. It gets better--he reconnects with a performer, now a star, whom he had earlier mentored---their relationship personifies the gulf between commercially viable and artistically credible country music, and both sides understand the unfairness of it all.
Bad's relationship with a younger woman, a journalist at work on a story about him, is a motivation for his mostly successful attempt at rehabilitation. Without giving away too much of the plot, I loved the ambiguity of their friendship/romance; in this respect Crazy Heart is both like and unlike Tender Mercies. The latter was also about a musician who hits bottom and meets a woman whose influence is redemptive. The outcome, however, is slightly different, and I will allow you to watch the film and reflect on that for yourself. In each film, the ending was appropriate, holding in tension the realities of wounding and healing, loss and love, falling and flying.
It is also true that in each film the music not only serves as background music, but carries the narrative thread of the movie. In Crazy Heart, "Hold On You" conveys Bad's inability to grasp what he is most in need of; "Falling and Flying" reflects on our temptation toward self-destruction; and the theme expresses the world weariness of Bad's pilgrimage through the desert. It is a hard life, from beginning to end, and what helps us through to the other side is the music, which voices the longings of a crazy heart. For this reason and many others, I love this movie.
Read full article...
Other Recent Content by The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
February 19, 2010
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
parallels between a great movie and a current television obsession
February 15, 2010
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
when we have stood in the light, we have a deep desire to see the light in other people.
January 26, 2010
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
the assumptions we make about haiti lead to particular outcomes: some good, some not so good
January 16, 2010
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
in an already challenged country, recent developments call for our engagement, collaboration and prayers.
January 14, 2010
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
random thoughts about the last 48 hours in haiti
December 19, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
the question becomes: is any of this real?
December 07, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
what does it mean to light the advent candle of peace, year after year? is peace possible?
November 21, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
why those most critical of the faith are in good company!
November 08, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
making a virtue out of necessity by stopping by a small mountain town
October 24, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
October 24 is the International Day of Climate Action; should Christians care?
October 05, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
watching the ken burns series on our national parks reminded me of a spiritual truth
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter, United Methodist pastor and author, shares practical insights for church leaders on dealing with money and stewardship in the midst of an economic crisis.
September 27, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Ken Carter examines the spiritual practices mentioned in James 5--confession, intercession, and healing--and helps us understand how to practice them in the 21st century.
September 08, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
In a culture that is saturated with religious communication and obsessed with the topic of health care, why are we not talking about the parable of the good samaritan?
August 30, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
a holy moment at the graveside service for ted kennedy
August 21, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
what a mainline pastor learned, again, from african brothers and sisters
July 31, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
It's not that the government needs to get out of health care; it's that Christians need to get into it.
July 21, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
we often need help, and yet we resist the very help that we need.
June 27, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
A reflection on a difficult week in our popular and political culture.
June 19, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
An unnoticed film reveals important truths about relationships and tradition.
June 05, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The murder of a physician in a Lutheran sanctuary calls for renewed reflection on non-violence and the importance of conscience.
May 19, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
I reflect on a basic question: why do we need the church?
May 15, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
I am reflecting on the varied issues that divide the church and yet call for consistency and, yes, integrity.
May 07, 2009
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
Ken Carter reflects on the importance of words, words that define who we are and words that send us forth into the world, in the context of a rainy graduation ceremony.
December 07, 2008
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter is pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, NC.
November 30, 2008
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter is pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, NC.
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
In this Day 1 Podcast Extra The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter, pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, NC., shares his personal insights and experiences.
October 07, 2007
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter reminds us that Jesus is with us wherever there is even the faith the size of a mustard seed and calls us to put our faith into action.
September 30, 2007
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter firmly reminds us, as did Jesus, that how we are to be judged by God is based on how we treat the poor.
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
In this podcast extra, the Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter, pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, shares his personal insights and experiences of preaching.
September 03, 2006
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter, pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, reminds us of the beauty of God's creation in the world around us.
August 27, 2006
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter Jr. is pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, NC. He reminds us of the solace available to us in God's house.
November 20, 2005
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth Carter
(UMC)
The Rev. Dr. Kenneth H. Carter Jr., pastor of Providence United Methodist Church in Charlotte, N.C., gives a thought-provoking sermon about judgment and the last day.