Speaking Info
Thomas Jay Oord explores the most perplexing issues of today, adding insight and proposing real solutions to some of life’s biggest questions. He has lectured on six continents to scholars at the most prestigious institutions, to students in colleges, universities, and seminaries, and to grassroots audiences and churches in out of the way places. Whether exploring love, science and theology, the problem of evil, open and relational theology, holiness, freedom, or creation and evolution, Oord stimulates the mind and prompts the heart.
What Others are Saying…
Kimberly Ervin Alexander, Regent University School of Divinity:
“Tom can theologize with the best of them, but he is really addressing the most critical questions asked today by people of faith.”
Paul Allen, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada:
“We invited Tom to speak at an event in Alberta, Canada where he captivated 700 college students with a fulsome, rigorous yet accessible talk on the love of God in an evolutionary universe. Highly recommended!”
M. Kathryn Armistead, Publisher, The United Methodist Church:
“Tom is a masterful speaker. He has a gift for illustrating complex ideas so that they can be clearly and easily understood. I highly recommend him.”
Gregory Boyd, Pastor of Woodland Hills Church, St. Paul, Minnesota
“Thomas Jay Oord is one of those rare speakers who are as effective at engaging his audiences’ hearts as he is their minds.”
James Bradley, Calvin College:
“Tom is an engaging speaker with a lot to say – and it’s worth hearing.”
Philip Clayton, Claremont School of Theology:
“Whether at conservative or progressive colleges and seminaries, whether the audience consists of church members or philosophers, whether reading a paper or speaking from the heart, Tom challenges and affects his listeners… including me!”
John B. Cobb, Jr., Co-director of the Center for Process Studies:
“Tom communicates big ideas in easily digestible bite-size portions that are fun to hear.”
Ron Cole-Turner, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary:
“A theologian who seeks to know the heart of God for this troubled world, Tom Oord speaks with poetic grace about life and love and loss and all the other things that matter most.”
T. Scott Daniels, College Church of the Nazarene:
“I know few people who can so passionately, imaginatively and insightfully reflect on the intersection of faith and science, the life of faith and the life of the mind, like Tom Oord.”
Karl Giberson, Stonehill College:
“Tom Oord is an exceptionally engaging speaker: he engages his ideas, he engages his critics, and he engages his audience–and all with grace and humility.”
Nancy R. Howell, Saint Paul School of Theology:
“Dr. Oord has established himself as a recognized authority on the meaning of love, and he serves both the Christian community and the scholarly community well by blending the depth of the Christian tradition with insights from science to interpret divine love, as well as the bond of love in Christian life.”
Allen Knight, Spring Arbor University
“Dr. Oord’s genuine and sincere ability to present his thesis and communicate with students and faculty encouraged a genuine discussion in new ideas in the great university tradition.”
Mark A. Maddix, Point Loma Nazarene University:
“Dr. Oord is a thoughtful, innovative, and provocative speaker who makes complex theological concepts engaging and accessible to his audience.”
Kevin Mannoia, President of the International Council for Higher Education:
“In a day when thoughtful engagement that makes a difference is the heart-cry of a new generation, Tom Oord’s probing mind invites you into exploring tough questions with Christ-like passion that points you to God.”
Brian D. McLaren, Author and Activist:
“Thomas Oord brings together theological depth with both pastoral warmth and wide accessibility – a rare combination; in addition, he addresses subjects that are, very literally, of life and death importance in today’s world.”
Jon Middendorf, Pastor of Oklahoma City First Church of the Nazarene:
“While Dr. Thomas Oord has long been an innovative and trusted voice in the Academy, his care and compassion comes shining through when he’s communicating with believers (and/or non-believers) who don’t yet know or believe what Dr. Oord stands up to say.”
Liam Miller, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia:
“After interviewing Thomas for a young adult event, the audience was buzzing – filled with the excitement of having heard something new but yearned for – the follow up discussions lasted for weeks.”
Stephen G. Post, President of the Institute for Research on Unlimited Love:
Dr. Tom Oord is certainly among the top several best thinkers worldwide on the topic of love – the kind of love that finds meaning in the well-being and security of others as well as of self. Dr. Oord delivers a dynamic, uplifting, and transformative presentation. Tom is simply the finest speaker of his generation on this topic, and he could not be easier to work with.
Joerg Rieger, Vanderbilt University:
“I’ve gotten to know Tom Oord as an engaging speaker who makes people think outside the boxes in which they find themselves.”
Jeren Rowell, Superintendent of the Kansas City District Church of the Nazarene:
“We enjoyed having Tom Oord as the speaker in our District Pastoral Team Retreat. His presentations were engaging, substantive, and pastoral.”
Lea Schweitz, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
“I have heard Dr. Oord speak on an amazingly wide range of topics. No matter the theme, several characteristics are always present: humor, scholarly insight, and deep, respectful – often interdisciplinary – conversation. He is both a theologian and photographer, and in his art and his lectures, he pulls the listener into the creative collaboration in which new meaning and new ideas emerge.
Ignacio Silva, University Professor, Argentina:
“Tom Oord is an engaging, sincere, and thought provoking speaker, reaching his audiences with profound theological ideas in simple and accessible ways.”
Susie C. Stanley, Messiah College:
“Tom Oord is a stimulating speaker who effectively challenges his hearers to rethink important topics such as the nature of God and relational holiness.”
Bryan Stone, Boston University School of Theology:
“Oord is one of the leading Christian thinkers of our time, with an ability to address challenging questions in ways that provoke thoughtful conversation and reflection. He is an engaging speaker, a vivid painter of words, and is equally at home whether addressing more conservative or more progressive audiences.”
Brad D. Strawn, Professor of Psychology, Fuller Theological Seminary:
“Tom can adapt his work to a particular audience, which makes his ideas ‘usable’ in specific settings. He is sensitive to his listeners and responds hospitably. Thanks Tom for challenging my students!”
Josh Sweeden, Dean of Nazarene Theological Seminary
“Tom is incredibly gifted at engaging complex issues with grace, humility, and concern for the other. With courage and nuance, he invites his listeners to embrace the vital task of ‘holy wrestling’.”
Kevin Timpe, Calvin College:
“Tom is a gifted and engaging speaker across a wide range of audiences—academic, ecclesial, public.”
Ekaputra Tupamahu, Vanderbilt University:
“Tom Oord is an innovative theologian incredibly gifted with an ability to communicate his complex ideas in a simple and engaging way.”
Donald Wayne Viney, Pittsburg State University:
“Tom Oord has a gift for translating difficult ideas in theology and philosophy into simpler terms without making them simplistic, never flinching from the conundrums and contradictions that serious theological reflection reveals.”
Keith Ward, University of Oxford:
“Tom is one of the most exciting and innovative theologians at work today!”
Paul Wason, Vice President, Life Sciences & Genetics, John Templeton Foundation:
“In our troubled world, it may seem odd to build a view of reality on the idea that love is the most important of God’s characteristics, but having heard Tom, I now suspect that neither Paul nor John have would have found this as surprising and weird as I did.”
Jim Waters, Loma Linda University
“Oord’s illustrated, extemporaneous presentation on limited free will at my institution was amazingly clear and engaging , without sacrificing significant content.”
Karen Strand Winslow, Azusa Pacific Seminary:
“Tom Oord communicates his deep and wide reflections on God, the world–in all its nuances, and God’s ways in the world kindly, clearly, and with humor. He thus explores new theological territory with his audiences, inviting their insights and help in adventures that matter.”
Amos Yong, Fuller Theological Seminary:
“Most of us can’t see into tomorrow, but Tom Oord is at the forefront of discussions bridging into the next quarter of the 21st century: hear him!”
Schedule Thomas Jay Oord…
Oord’s speaking fees vary depending on the engagement. To contact Oord or his assistant, send an email to tjoord (at) nnu.edu or connect to him through twitter @thomasjayoord
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