Open2013: Open Theology for the Church
As I travel the U.S. and overseas, I’m amazed at and encouraged by the large number of people I meet attracted to open theology. Perhaps more amazing is that, until now, no official conference has discussed the implications of open theology for the church!
The Conference
I say, “until now,” because Open2013 is coming April 4-6 in St. Paul, MN. The subtitle of the Open2013 conference, “Open Theology and the Church,” describes both the overarching theme of the event and the intended participants: with wider church community.
To date, most organized events exploring open theology have been designed for scholars operating in the academy. The wider church perspective explored at Open2013, by contrast, will include many more people attracted to open theology, including pastors, worship leaders, teachers, ministry entrepreneurs, youth ministers, and more.
I’m working with my conference co-directors, Tom Belt and TC Moore, and cosponsor, ReKnew, to design a conference that makes a difference. We’ve chosen as plenary speakers Greg Boyd, John Sanders, and me, because we know these folks are pushing the open theology conversation in new and interesting directions. We expect the conference room to be energized!
The Issues
I’m probably most excited about the conversations planned for Open2013. Here is a list of questions participants will explore:
What does practical ministry look like from an open view?
How should we think about science and culture as open theists?
What biblical insights have open theists to date either underemphasized or not noticed?
How should open theists think about pain and suffering?
Can the open view help us think better about prayer and pray with greater conviction?
What voices at the margins need to be heard for open theology to be expanded and/or embraced by others?
What might missions and missional theology look like from an open view?
Does the open view suggest any new insights into Christology, pneumatology, or Trinity?
Where should the open theology conversation go in the future?
How might the insights of open theology be more widely disseminated?
Instead of presentation after presentation with no interaction, this conference emphasizes participation. These questions will be explored in table discussions during Open2013.
The Details
As of February 15, registration for the conference is $69. But the costs increase in the coming months. Here’s a link with more information about costs, accommodations, schedule, speakers, and more. The conference will be hosted by ReKnew and held at Woodland Hills Church, in St. Paul.
I hope you can attend the first official conference designed for the growing number of people attracted to open theology!
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Comments
I won’t be able to attend, but would really like to hear these sessions! Will they be recorded or streamed?
Any plans for a web cast of the event? Would like to hear what you come up with concerning the question, “What might missions and missional theology look like from an open view?”
David and John,
As of now, I know of no plans for recording the conference. But I’ll look into it.
As for missional theology from an Open perspective, you might look at Vaughn Baker’s new book, Evangelism and the Openness of God: The Implications of Relational Theism for Evangelism and Mission.
Tom, the conference sounds great & I wish I vould be there. If it isn’t webcast or recorded, a published proceedings would be great.
Would love to attend, but I live in another country. Add my vote to the others for recording it or streaming it.
On another note, I was reading in Luke last night and the phrase “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” kept sticking in my head. The parallelism between not being led into X but delivered from x is striking. It also doesn’t make any sense for God to lead and deliver into/from the same thing (contrary to James). Any ideas on this?
Yes, please see about recording the sessions. I won’t be able to attend but would be very interested in buying a DVD or CD of the conference. Thanks for putting this forward.
Ben,
You’ve got me thinking about that passage of our Lord’s prayer! When I pray this, I typically make it a declarative statement instead of a request. I say, “You do not lead us into temptation, but you deliver us from evil.”
At the very least, your comment should remind us that God is not the cause of all that occurs. If we are tempted, and if God is not the source of our temptation, something other than God exerts causal influence. I like James’s explanation: “No one, when tempted, should say, “I am being tempted by God;” for God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one. But one is tempted by one’s own desire….”
You can add me to the list of people hoping for either mp3’s or video of the conference to be made available. However, I’m not asking for them to be free.