Scripture and the University

  Sponsor: Jonathan Arnold
While theology used to be considered the ‘queen of the sciences’ and theology was inextricably tied to the explication of Scripture, the role of the study of Scripture and theology in the university is in a very different place today. Given that the university has been traditionally committed to the reality and acquisition and passing on of knowledge and wisdom, and given that Scripture is likewise committed to the twin realities of knowledge and wisdom, the study of the relationship of Scripture and the university is fitting and holds great promise. This study group will consider both ‘meta’ or foundational issues concerning the relationship of Scripture and the university, as well as more specialized studies which focus on particular academic disciplines and their relationship to the reality and truth of Scripture. The goal of these sessions is to produce thoughtful and insightful essays which meaningfully explore and explicate the relationship between Scripture and the university. SAUS is part of the Kirby Laing Centre Scripture Collective (https://kirbylaingcentre.co.uk/scripture-collective).

Sat Nov 23
9:00 - 11:30 AM
Indigo 202A (Second Level) - Hilton Bayfront

Place, Placemaking, and the University

The Scripture and the University Seminar begins a three-year study of Scripture as place in the 21st century university. The very concepts of place and placemaking have experienced something of a popular-level resurgence during the first quarter of the 21st century; however, the scholarly conversation surrounding the idea has a long and rich history. Scholars from a variety of specialties have considered the idea of "place" and the importance of placemaking to the human experience. While many of those discussions have focused on the physical, others have broadened the field to consider the more nebulous, including the emotional, relational, and spiritual. This long-term study aims to develop an appropriate inter-disciplinary lexicon that presses into the development of “Scripture Producing Place” in a university setting where Christians and the spiritually-interested can find a home. The 2024 meeting aims to begin the conversation, with theologians, philosophers, and biblical scholars providing unique insights. The questions arising from the 2024 seminar will then be used to focus the meetings for the following two years (2025, 2026).

Welcome
Jonathan Arnold, Chair of Scripture and University Seminar, Associate Dean and Associate Professor of Theological Studies, Cedarville University (5 min)

Opening Liturgy
William Olhausen, Trustee/KLC, Presiding (5 min)

Presentations
David Larsen (PhD, St Mary’s University, Twickenham), Director of The Scripture Collective, The Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology in Cambridge
Futurespace and the University (20 min)

Cindy Parker (PhD, University of Gloucestershire), Director of Education and Conversation, Resurrection Philadelphia
Belonging Together: The Communal and Individual Responsibility for Place (20 min)

Dru Johnson (PhD, University of St Andrews), Visiting Professor of Religion, Hope College; Director of The Center for Hebraic Thought
The Audible Word as a Place: Recovering the Natural Habitat of Scripture (20 min)

Break (10 min)

Trevor Yoakum (PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary), Professor of Theology at ESBTAO Seminary Lome, Togo; Theological Education Consultant with International Mission Board
Theodramatic Critical Realism: A Canonical-Linguistic Philosophy of Science (20 min)

Discussion
Jonathan Arnold, Chair of Scripture and University Seminar (45 min)

Closing Liturgy
William Olhausen, Trustee/KLC, Presiding (5 min)