SVS 2015 Registration Now Open (+ a massive program update)

Filed in Announcements, General by on January 7, 2015 3 comments

Registration is now open at http://svs2015.eventbrite.com for the Sixth Annual Society of Vineyard Scholars Conference, to be held in Media, Pennsylvania — fifteen minutes from Philadelphia International Airport.

The theme of this year’s conference is “Thinking With the Church, Thinking With The Vineyard.” It will be largely focused around scholarly and pastoral reflection on four applications of Vineyard Core Values:

  • Compassionate Ministry: Preaching and Teaching Troubling Texts
  • Experiencing God and the Kingdom in Educational Practices
  • Leadership for Culturally Relevant Mission
  • Partnering with the Holy Spirit: Toward a Vineyard Ecclesiology.

In taking this approach, we hope that the work done at SVS 2015 will be concretely helpful to developing a rich, practical, and powerful understanding of the things to which God has called our movement.

SVS 2015 is overflowing with fantastic speakers, panels, and events. (Register today!)

One of our plenary talks will be given by Dr. Stanley Hauerwas, Professor Emeritus of Divinity and Law at Duke Divinity School and (more importantly) one of the most faithful, prophetic, and productive theologians of our time, will speak to us on a topic yet to be determined. This is guaranteed to be one of the most provocative and searching talks we have ever heard at SVS.

Another plenary session will be led by Dr. Mark Gornik, Dr. Maria Liu Wong, and Dr. Carrie Myers from City Seminary of New York, a pioneering institution devoted to forming Christian leaders for ministry in urban contexts.They will speak to us on the subject of theological education, spiritual formation, and ministry in urban centers, a hugely relevant topic for the Vineyard today. For a taste of what to expect, check out this recent article by Gornik and Myers in Faith and Leadership journal. (Notably, Carrie, along with her husband Ryan and their three kids, are currently planting a Vineyard church with an international focus in Astoria, Queens, NYC.)

For the third plenary session, we will hear from Dr. Rose Madrid-Swetman, who will speak on the irreducible role of love in faithful theological speech. Rose is Regional Leader of the Northwest Region of VineyardUSA, where she pastors Vineyard Community Church in Shoreline, WA. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the Seattle School of Theology and Psychology, where she teaches leadership. (Rose has graciously agreed to replace Eleanor Mumford on the program, who has, with deep regret, had to withdraw from the program.)

Schedule, of course, is TBD.

We are planning a handful of participatory panel conversations on specific topics. One highlight will be a  panel on Vineyard hermeneutics with participation from Dr. Peter Enns, along with SVS regulars Dr. Beth Stovell, Dr. Matt Croasmun, and one other person TBA. Another highlight will be a discussion of the intersection of visual art and liturgical practices in Vineyard contexts, featuring discussion from three heralded visual artists in the Vineyard: Eóin BurkeTracie Cheng, and Andrew HendrixsonAlongside this discussion, each artist will be exhibiting their work throughout the conference in an impromptu gallery space.

We will also hear several long-form talks, with respondents and interaction on recent major work by SVS members. Mary-Catherine Brown (Ph.D cand.) will present elements of her dissertation on developing a biblical worldview of ethnicity. Matt Croasmun will discuss his dissertation, “The Body of Sin: An Emergent Account of Sin as a Cosmic Power in Romans 5-8,” bringing out the relevance of his arguments for a theology of Vineyard practices. James Mumford will present on his recent book, Ethics at the Beginning of Life: A Phenomenological Critique (Oxford University Press, 2013). A couple of additional talks are in the works, and will be announced as soon as they are finalized.

Beyond this embarrassment of riches, there will be numerous panel sessions featuring presentations of and responses to papers written by SVS participantsspread over Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning. This interaction forms the heart of what we do at SVS.

As always, we will make significant time for prayer, worship, and prophetic ministry.  We highly value the essential relationship between worship, the presence of God, and the life of the mind, and we will bear that value out in our time together. Many people have found that God speaks to them with profundity and power during worship and ministry times at SVS.

Worship in song and liturgy will be led throughout the conference by David Ruis and Sarah Elmer. All conference attendees are invited to attend a special night of worship with David Ruis on Wednesday night (before the conference) at 7pm, hosted by Blue Route Vineyard at the VUSA Eastern Regional Worship Taskforce.

Prayer ministry at the conference will be facilitated by Mike Turrigiano and Robin Morrison, two beloved and trusted ministers and friends of SVS who have a long track record of empowering and encouraging ministry.

Finally, we will allow plenty of time at this conference for people to hang out and form relationships. There will be a reception on Thursday night, lunchtime breakouts for people with particular shared interests, and so on.

Across the board, our goal is to develop and nurture a community of theological discourse in the Vineyard, and we are committed to allowing the time and space that it takes to do so.


Paper Proposal Deadline Extended to 2/15/2015

THE CALL FOR PAPERS CLOSED ON FEBRUARY 15th. THE PROGRAM COMMITTEE IS CURRENTLY HARD AT WORK DESIGNING THE PROGRAM, WHICH WILL BE AVAILABLE HERE SHORTLY.

Register for the conference today at http://svs2015.eventbrite.com

 


Conference Hotel Booking Details

We have negotiated a specially discounted rate for SVS 2015 attendees at a nicely appointed, brand new Marriott Courtyard in Springfield, PA, ten minutes from the conference site.
The rate is $169/night and can be reserved online here, or by calling the hotel at 610-543-1080 and reserving under the block “Society of Vineyard Scholars.” To secure the discounted rate, you MUST book by March 16, 2014. Please show your friendly conference organizers some love and book early — not at the last minute. 

If you are looking for a roommate with whom to split the cost of the hotel room, please email ?subject=Roommate!" target="_blank">societyofvineyardscholars@gmail.com by March 1st. We will try to connect you with someone.


Airport and Conference Hotel Shuttle Details

Transportation between Philadelphia International Airport and the conference site will be provided at select times throughout the day on Wednesday afternoon, Thursdaymorning, and Saturday afternoon. If you want to take advantage of this complimentary service, provided by Blue Route Vineyard, you MUST fill out the form linked below. 

Shuttle transportation between the conference hotel and the conference site will also be provided. If you want to take advantage of this complimentary service, provided by Blue Route Vineyard, you MUST fill out the form linked below.

SVS 2015 TRANSPORTATION REGISTRATION FORM


Thanks so much for reading this far! We at SVS HQ are honored to have the opportunity to continue to serve the Vineyard by using SVS to foster and sustain a community of theological discourse in our movement. As always, if you have any further questions, please email the SVS at" target="_blank">societyofvineyardscholars@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

Caleb J. D. Maskell
Steering Committee
Society of Vineyard Scholars
http://www.vineyardscholars.org

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Comments

Jon Stovell · January 07, 2015, 10:25 AM

Excellent! SVS conferences are getting better and better every year. I'm looking forward to this one.

Matte Downey · January 07, 2015, 11:23 AM

Wow! Now I have to come!

Michael Palandro · February 07, 2015, 01:34 PM

Looking forward to the 2015 conference in Media, PA