The Holy Spirit and Christian Formation
March 20-21, 2015
2015 Annual Conference in Renewal Theology
Regent Center for Renewal Studies (Regent University, Virginia Beach, VA)
A renewal of interest in Christian formation has blossomed within the church and the Christian academy. What is readily apparent is that the Christian life is integrated and holistic in nature, fostered by the Holy Spirit, yet requiring human cooperation. The Regent Center for Renewal Studies, with the co-sponsorship of Regent University’s School of Divinity, School of Psychology and Counseling, and the College of Arts and Sciences, invites scholars, ministry and marketplace professionals, students, and the general public to dialogue on how the Spirit influences Christian formation in various life dimensions. Keynote speakers include Stanley Hauerwas, M. Elizabeth Lewis Hall, Stephen G. Post, and James Bryan Smith.
We invite papers on the following areas related to the conference theme:
1. Spiritual formation: how the Holy Spirit fashions believers into the image of Jesus, the process of spiritual formation, the role of Scripture and spiritual practices in spiritual formation, and how godly love influences spiritual formation.
2. Christian ethical formation: how the Holy Spirit affects ethical development, the role of Christian virtues in framing godly character, and how to maintain Christian ethical integrity within a morally compromising world.
3. Emotional formation: the role of the emotions and psychological well-being in overall Christian formation and how to gain emotional freedom from emotional wounds that stymie overall development.
4. Relational formation: the role of the Holy Spirit in family, friendship, the body of Christ, and other relationships, as well as the shaping influence of conflict and culture on Christian formation.
5. Intellectual formation: the processes of cognitive development, the Holy Spirit and the mind, how the mind learns, and the interactive relationship between faith and learning.
6. Vocational formation: the discovery and identification of life calling, the purpose of spiritual gifting, how vocation connects with discipleship, and the impact of vocation on one’s identity.
7. Physical health and wellness formation: the importance of embodiment for personal stewardship, care of the body to honor God, and maximizing health to fulfill one’s calling in the areas of nutrition, physical exercise, sleep, rest/renewal, and sexual purity.
8. Any other theme broadly related to the Holy Spirit and Christian formation that addresses, among other topics, fresh perspectives on the imago Dei (Lat. image of God, as well as integration of any of the above formational dimensions.
Proposals should be 250 words in length in Word or RTF formats and must be accompanied by a short CV no later than Nov. 30, 2014.
Proposals and CV can be submitted directly online or by email: renewal [dot] conference [at] mail [dot] regent [dot] edu.
Information on the conference is available online. Or visit the website of the Regent Center for Renewal Studies.
The deadline for submitting proposals is November 30, 2014.
We hope that you will consider submitting a paper proposal and/or attending next year’s conference,
With kind regards,
Wolfgang Vondey, Ph.D. (Director, Regent Center for Renewal Studies)