In February 2024, we were blessed to have Mano Emmanuel as our guest speaker on Langham Live. Mano is Head of Academic Advancement and former Academic Dean at Colombo Theological Seminary in Sri Lanka. She is also a Langham Author, having authored Interpersonal Reconciliation between Christians in a Shame-Oriented Culture available to purchase on LanghamLiterature.org. Mano has a PhD in Peace Studies from the Asia Graduate School of Theology, Manila, Philippines, and has written extensively on the topic of reconciliation.
Please use the prayer points at the bottom of the page to guide your prayers for the work in Sri Lanka.
It was wonderful to be part of our February 2024 Langham Live call again this evening and to hear more of Langham’s work around the world. These calls are a great encouragement and a ‘little taste of heaven’ as we join in prayer with Langham supporters from many different countries.
Tonight’s guest was Mano Emmanuel, a Sri Lankan, published author, who currently works as Head of Academic Advancement at Colombo Seminary.
With the help of Langham, Mano has published, ‘Interpersonal Reconciliation between Christians in a Shame-Oriented Culture’. She is following this up with a practical book on the application of these theories – also being published by Langham next year. Watch this space!
Mano gave us helpful insight into the anthropological understanding of there generally being two orientations in the world in the way cultures respond to transgressions. Cultures tend to be either guilt-oriented or shame-oriented. Shame-oriented cultures place more emphasis on the relational and the influence of family and kin and ‘what people think’. Guilt-oriented cultures place more emphasis on the individual conscience. Mano’s doctorate in Peace Studies means she has a great interest in reconciliation and her book shares how this can be achieved between cultures that have these different orientations.
As countries, and indeed teams and churches throughout the world, become more multi-cultural, having the availability of Christian literature to provide guidance on these topics of conflict resolution and reconciliation, taking into account different cultural perspectives, is critical.
Mano expressed her enthusiasm and desire to write but explained the challenge of getting works published especially due to the cost. It is wonderful that Langham has enabled these important works to be brought to life.
Mano encouraged us all to pray for her new book; the work of the Colombo Seminary particularly as it puts on more online courses to reach diaspora communities across the world; and indeed her home country of Sri Lanka with the challenges it faces.
You can find ‘Interpersonal Reconciliation between Christians in a Shame-Oriented Culture’ by Mano Emmanuel on Langham’s online store.
Prayer Points
Please use Mano’s prayer points below and subscribe to our monthly prayer email to uplift the global Langham family:
- Writing: as I complete a text book based on my thesis for Langham, and an article on women in ministry for our journal; for funding for more writing projects.
- Teaching and preaching: for freshness and relevance in teaching and preaching; for a new course on justice in the Bible to be prepared for September.
- For the country: the political situation, economic crisis, exodus of youth and professionals, alarming new laws like Prevention of Terrorism Bill and Online Safety Bill.
- The church: sound teaching in the face of false teachers and self-styled prophets; biblical leadership.
- The Seminary – as we plan to offer more online courses and go “global” for our diaspora and others; for more faculty.
Please join us for the next Langham Live call by registering online.
