- J.J. Thiessen Lectures
- John & Margaret Friesen Lectures
- Winter Lectures
- Special Apologetics Lectures
The J.J. Thiessen Lectures
Founded in 1978 by Canadian Mennonite
Bible College, the J. J. Thiessen Lectures are named in honour
of a founder and long-time chairperson of the CMBC Board.
The lectures seek to bring to the Canadian Mennonite University
community something of his breadth of vision for the church.
October 19-20, 2010: Dr. Belden Lane, Saint Louis University
From Desert Christians to Mountain Refugees: Fierce Landscapes and Counter-Cultural Spirituality
In the history of Christian spirituality, desert and mountain terrain has often been the source (and refuge) of counter-cultural movements. The Desert Christians in the fourth century went into the desert beyond the Nile, reacting after Constantine to the church’s support of a prosperity theology, gospel of success, and militarism. In sixteenth-century Switzerland, Anabaptists hid in barns and fled to caves in the Jura Mountains, questioning the magisterial Reformation in similar ways. The appeal of fierce landscapes in the Christian life is closely related to its prophetic witness to the dynamism of faith on the margins.
1. Places on the Edge: The Power of Desert/Mountain Terrain in Christian Thought
2. The Counter-Cultural Spirituality of the Desert Fathers for Today
3. Fire in the Desert: Learning from the Desert Mothers
Previous Lectures
Topic: The Free Church and Israel’s Covenant.
2008: Dr. Mark Noll, Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame. Topic: A Yankee Looks North: Toward An Appreciation And Assessment Of The History Of Christianity In Canada. Oct. 21-22.
2007: Oct, 15-16, 2007: Ellen Davis,
Professor of Bible and Practical Theology, Duke Divinity
School. Topic: Live Long on the Land: Food and Farming
from a Biblical Perspective.
2006: Joel J. Shuman, King's College,
Wilkes-Barre, PA. Topic: To Live is to Worship: Bioethics and the Body of
Christ. Oct. 17-18. Published by CMU Press.
2005: Dr. Paul J. Griffiths,
Schmitt Professor of Catholic Studies at University of Illinois
at Chicago. Topic: Curiosity: Towards a Theology of Intellectual
Appetite. Oct. 18-19. Published by CMU Press.
Past annual JJ Thiessen Lectures published by CMU Press.
The John and Margaret Friesen Lectures
The John and Margaret Friesen Lectures in Anabaptist/Mennonite Studies are
co-sponsored by Canadian Mennonite University, the Mennonite Heritage Centre and
the Centre for Mennonite Brethren Studies. The inaugural lectures in November
2002 were delivered by Dr. Abraham Friesen, the generous donor who initiated the
lecture series. He is Professor of History in the History Department of the
University of California, Santa Barbara.
2010: There will be no Friesen Lectures this year.
Previous Lectures
2009:
Mennonite Women in Canadian History: Birth, Food, and War.Lecturer: Marlene Epp
of Conrad Grebel University College.
2007: Mennonite Identity in the 21st Century. Lecturer: John D. Roth.
2006: Sacred Spaces, Sacred Places: Mennonite Architecture in Russia and Canada. Presenters: Rudy Friesen, Harold Funk, Roland Sawatsky.
2005: Peter Klassen, Professor Emeritus of History, California State University, Fresno—Recovering A Heritage: The Mennonite Experience in Poland and Prussia.
The CMU Winter Lectures is an annual public lecture series
that seeks to highlight the arts, science, humanities, and
interdisciplinary studies at CMU and to foster dialogue
between these disciplines and the Christian faith.
January 25-26 Winter Lectures - Romand Coles, McAllister Chair in Community, Culture, & Environment at Northern Arizona University.
Previous Lectures
2010: January 26-27: Vern Redekop, Associate Professor of Conflict Studies at Saint Paul University in Ottawa. Paradoxes of Reconciliation
2009: January 26-27: Dr. Norman Wirzba, Research Professor of Theology, Ecology and Rural Life, Duke Divinity School. Topic: Placing Our Faith in a Placeless World?
2008: January 29-30: Erica Grimm Vance,
Assistant Professor and Visual Arts Coordinator, Trinity
Western University. Topic: Art, Beauty and Christian
Theology.
2007: Robert Russell, Professor of Theology and Science, Graduate Theological Union, and Director for the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences. Topic: Cosmology, Evolution and Resurrection Hope.
2006: Jan. 30-31. Alvin Dueck, Evelyn and Frank Freed Professor of the Integration of Psychology and Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary—Topic: Psychology and Theology.
2010: March 15 – 16: CMU’s “Proclaiming the Unique Claims of Christ; Negotiating the Christian-Muslim Interface,” public lecture series with speaker Emmanuel Ali El-Shariff.
MP3s are now available for download.
To download mp3s:
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Right-click on the "Download" option, select the "Save Target As" option (Internet Explorer) or "Save Link As" (Firefox), and specify the filename/directory where you want the file stored.
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Control-click on the "mp3 download" option, select "Save this link as", and specify where you want the file stored.
March 15, 11:30 am - 12:10 pm: Session 1 - Is Jesus only for Christians?
CMU Chapel, South Campus, 600 Shaftesbury Blvd.
[Download mp3 file] 45 MB (large file)
March 16, 11:30 am - 12:10 pm: Session 2 - Do the Unique Claims of Jesus Make a Difference?
CMU Chapel, South Campus, 600 Shaftesbury Blvd.
[Download mp3 file] 40 MB (large file)
2009: March 16-17. Radio broadcaster and media commentator Michael Coren will speak being a Christian in the public media.
2008: March 17-19. John Stackhouse, Regent
College. Topic: Proclaiming Christ in a Post-Christian
World.
2007: Joe Boot, evangelist, apologist, author and the executive director of Ravi Zacharias Ministries in Canada.
