Out of the Fog, Into the Sun
My Journey from Hinduism to Christ
by Jo Kinnard
Imprint: Resource Publications
Jo Kinnard is an ordained pastor on the clergy roster of LCMC (Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ), and is the pastor at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Inwood, Iowa. She also teaches a graduate course titled Theology and World Religions in the MDiv program at the Institute of Lutheran Theology in Brookings, South Dakota. Kinnard offers a workshop titled Christian Engagement with Hinduism for pastors and congregations interested or engaged in doing mission in India.
She is the author of Out of the Fog, Into the Sun: My Journey from Hinduism to Christ. (Wipf and Stock, 2010). In addition, she has previously written and published: From Crayons to Cyberspace: Creating a Professional Teaching Portfolio (2007). Her educational background includes a doctorate in Indian Philosophy from the University of Madras, India, a MS in Computer and Information Sciences from Temple University, Philadelphia, an MDiv from Wartburg Seminary, Dubuque, and two other graduate degrees.
Before becoming a pastor, she worked as a university professor and a software technology professional. She has taught religion, philosophy, logic, computer science, and management courses at undergraduate and graduate levels at four US universities, and has worked in the corporate sphere as an analyst, developer, and as project manager developing software for manufacturing and higher education.
Her hobbies are painting (acrylics on canvas) and writing. She is married to Mike Kinnard, a senior database administrator, who passionately supports Jo's calling to pastoral ministry. Mike and Jo live in Inwood, Iowa, with their dogs Java and Hershey.
"In Out of the Fog, Into the Sun, Jo Nageswaran Kinnard presents a clear, inviting, and compelling theological biography of her journey from Hinduism into faith in Jesus Christ, who is uniquely God-among-us. The reader cannot but notice the existential character of this timely, nuanced theological exposition of the heart of the Christian faith. This is a 'must-read' apologetic of faith in Christ--balanced, fair, and unequivocal!"
--Winston D. Persaud
Professor of Systematic Theology
Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa
"For those interested in bearing effective witness to Jesus Christ, it is important to respect the religious traditions of others and to understand what attracts them to Christ. Jo Kinnard is well positioned to contribute to that question. Deeply immersed in the Hindu philosophical tradition of Advaita (non-dualism), she articulately describes her personal journey from Hinduism to Christian faith. She speaks about what hindered that journey as well as what ultimately drew her to Christ."
--Duane A. Priebe
Kent S. Knutson Professor of Systematic Theology
Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa