God Still Speaks: Listening to the Voice of God in the University

You will have new resources to help you learn to hear God’s voice, God’s wisdom, and God’s will as you work in the university.
About this Event

Lead Facilitator/Presenter: Robert Woods, Executive Director, Christianity and Communication Studies Network; Visiting Scholar, Trinity Western University

Additional Presenters: Geri Forsberg, Western Washington University; Stan Wallace, CEO, Global Scholars; Peter Schuurman, Executive Director, Global Scholars, Canada

Description: In 1972, Francis Schaeffer wrote the book , which discusses how the Triune God models communication. The eternal living Triune God who spoke the world into existence continues to speak to us today. In 1980, Robert Webber provided a biblical view of Christian communication in his book . We know that God speaks and that His voice can be heard around the world. But how do we as professors, students, and scholars hear His voice as we work within the university? What is God saying about the university today given the current crises in higher education? How do we as followers of Christ live out our lives in the university—a university that is often filled with knowledge contrary to God—while listening to the voice of God? And how do make knowledge about the living God accessible to our students and colleagues and those within the communities that surround our work?

This Cru/Common Call workshop co-sponsored with the Christianity and Communication Studies Network (CCSN) will help you think more about the role of the Triune God in the Academy, in your scholarship, and in your personal life. What is God doing in the Academy not just in the United States but around the world? How are professors and students hearing His voice today? How are professors doing faith-learning integration in their teaching, research, and administration? How are professors and students coming to faith in Christ? How are they growing in their faith? And how are they going about making their faith known?

When you leave this workshop, you will have new resources to help you learn to hear God’s voice, God’s wisdom, and God’s will as you work in the university.

Geri E. Forsberg (PhD, New York University) has served with Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ) since 1975. Currently, Geri is a faculty fellow with Faculty Commons (Cru) and serves on the English Department faculty at Western Washington University. She serves on the board of directors for the International Jacques Ellul Society, the editorial board of New Explorations: Studies in Culture and Communication (NExJ) and Second Nature, an online journal for critical thinking about technology and new media in light of the Christian tradition. Her more recent writings have focused on the relationship between the faith of our communication founders and communication studies. Connect with Geri here: https://chss.wwu.edu/english/forsbeg

Stan Wallace (DMin, Talbot School of Theology) is the , an academic ministry equipping Christian professors to be the “aroma of Christ” (2 Cor 2:15) in higher education worldwide. He is also a Co-Catalyst for the Lausanne Movement’s Academic Ministry and Educators Network and is on the board of Apologetics on Mission. Stan has done doctoral studies in philosophy at Marquette University and holds a Doctor of Ministry from Talbot School of Theology. He has published in academic and ministry journals, contributed to several books, edited several others, produces two monthly podcasts: College Faith and Thinking Christianly, and is the author of Have We Lost Our Minds? Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing (forthcoming). Connect with Stan here: https://stanwallace.org/

Peter Schuurman (PhD, University of Waterloo) is the Executive Director of Global Scholars Canada, an organization dedicated to equipping, sending, resourcing and networking Christian scholars for cross-cultural work in public universities worldwide. He has studied at the graduate level in the areas of sociology, media and technology, theology, world religions, and ethnography. His PhD (U Waterloo) was in a program entitled “Religious Diversity in North America” and his dissertation focused on megachurches, evangelicalism, and charisma and was published as The Subversive Evangelical (McGill-Queens 2019). He is also contributing editor to Christian Courier, and has written a journalistic summary of the work of James K. A. Smith. His forthcoming book (2024) is on the topic of faith deconstruction in Canada entitled Faith on Thin Ice. He has been adjunct faculty at Redeemer University since 2008 and lives in Guelph with his wife and three children. Connect with Derek here: http://www.peterschuurman.ca/

Robert H. Woods Jr. (PhD, Regent University) served as Professor of Communication and Media at Spring Arbor University for 20 years. He currently serves as the Executive Director of the Christianity and Communication Studies Network (CCSN) (www.theccsn.com), a non-profit network providing resources and training on faith-learning integration in the field of communication studies. He is the editor-in-chief of the CCSN’s imprint, Integratio Press. Dr. Woods has served as the President of the Religious Communication Association (RCA) and was named Scholar of the Year by RCA. He is the recipient of multiple research and scholarship awards and the editor/author of over a dozen books. Most recently, Dr. Woods is the co-author with Paul Patton on and . His book co-authored with Kevin Healey (University of New Hampshire), titled received the Book of the Year Award from RCA. Connect with Robert: www.roberthwoodsjr.com.