Religion

Understanding the Book of Revelation
Theme of presentations can fit needs of audience. Topics might include:

  •  A Common Sense Approach to Understanding Revelation’s Imagery
  • A Pacifist Reading of Revelation’s Violent Imagery
  • Revelation’s Message for Today
  • Revelation as Atonement Image

J. Denny Weaver

Violence and Theology
This topic can deal with a variety of themes and issues, selected in consultation with hosts. Topics can include:
  •  A Pacifist Reading of War in the Old Testament
  • Atonement Images and Violence
  • A Nonviolent Atonement
  • Why a Nonviolent God
  • What About the Classic Creeds and Violence?
  • Is There An Anabaptist Theology?
  • Two versus One Kingdom Theology

The Amish and America
Explores the enigmatic relationship between American and Amish culture in light of Amish history and American consumerism.
Gerald J. Mast

Mennonites and war
Describes evolving Mennonite pacifist responses to war, including the transition from two-kingdom theology to a view that stresses Christ’s lordship over the whole creation.
Gerald J. Mast

The Gifts of the Martyrs
Drawing on the stories, letters, confessions, debates, hymns, poetry and images found in the classic Anabaptist text Martyrs Mirror this presentation considers what Christians today can learn from the witness of those who offered their lives as a gift to God, even unto death, particularly during the 16th century Reformation era.
Gerald J. Mast
 
True Evangelical Faith and the Gospel of Peace
more info...

Swimming with the Web: Then Internet and congregations
Explore the Internet as an opportunity to unfold a congregation's identity in ways that both proclaim the Good News in a new idiom to new peoples and help congregants better understand themselves and their community. Ways that congregations can grow by beginning to swim with (rather than against) this current of culture change will be illustrated and demonstrated.
Trevor Bechtel

Understanding the Book of Ezekiel
Ezekiel is among the most fascinating, awful, hopeful, imaginative, faithful and applicable book of the Old Testament. This presentation looks at the aspects of the book and attempts to probe their significance for Christians today.
Trevor Bechtel

The arts in life and worship
What does art show us about who we are as individuals and as a community? What does it show us about who God is? Are there ways we can discern what a faithful approach to a broad variety of artistic endeavors would look like?
Trevor Bechtel

Digital culture
This presentation introduces several cutting edge technologies that exist now or are in development and explores questions about what kind of culture we are shaping with these tools. This presentation can include tutorials and introductions to Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, podcasts, etc.
Trevor Bechtel

Christian approaches to time
What do the terms Modernity and Postmodernity mean? What happened before Modernity? How do the church and the state fit in? What about God, Jesus, Creation and the End Times? This presentation suggests one way of thinking about these questions; timeline included!
Trevor Bechtel

Creation
Creation is an increasingly controversial topic. This presentation explores ways to think about creation and ecology without abandoning faith or science.
Trevor Bechtel

The Sacred Circle: A symbol of transformation through art history
more info

The last dance at Drigung Dundro: The Tibetan Sky Burial
This 30-minute slide talk introduces the audience to the traditional Tibetan sky burial rite from the first prayers in the courtyard of the monastery to the final mantras and cracking of the skull.  Copies of an article by the same title, written by Philip and published in The Explorers Journal, will be made available to members of the audience.
Philip Sugden

God as a Peace Issue
One or more presentations will consider violence attributed to God in the Bible and in theology generally, and show how these violent images contribute to the practice of violence today. Counter to these violent images, the presentation will show that the God of the Bible, when understood in the light of the story of Jesus, is a nonviolent God. The discussion can thus include significant material how to interpret the Bible. Presentations can be shape to fit the needs of the audience.
J. Denny Weaver

For more information or to schedule a speaker, contact the public relations office at news@bluffton.edu at least two weeks prior to your meeting.