Published on October 17, 2011 by Mary Wimberley  

Samford University’s Beeson Divinity School will present a Reformation Spirituality Conference Nov. 1 and 2.

According to Beeson dean Dr. Timothy George, the theme of the event brings together the life of the mind and the practice of faith. Topics will focus on themes of 16th Century Reformation spirituality: prayer, worship, spiritual formation, preaching, Bible reading, death and dying, and new developments of hymnody and congregational singing introduced by the reformers.

Guest presenters include Refo500 director Dr. Herman Selderhuis, who will speak on “A New Way of Dying.”  Refo500 is a global project to direct attention to 2017 and the quincentenary of the beginning of the Reformation. Selderhuis is also professor of church history and church polity at Theological University Apeldoorn in The Netherlands.

Other lecturers are Beeson professors Dr. Carl Beckwith on The Sacraments and Reformation Spirituality; Dr. Gisela Kreglinger on Grace Hunting: Paul Gerhard’s Lutheran Spiritual Theology Today and Yesterday; and Dr. Gerald Bray on Conflict and Consensus: The Reformers Teaching About Prayer.

Breakout session topics are Learning from Calvin and Bucer about Ministry and Spiritual Growth, led by Refo500 project manager Karla Apperloo-Boersma; Bible Reading and Hearing Through Work and Ministry of Cranmer, led by Beeson professor Dr. Graham Cole; Reformation and Personhood, led by Beeson professor Dr. Piotr Malysz; and Praying the Psalter with the Reformers, led by Selderhuis.

A 7 p.m. vespers service on Tuesday, Nov. 1, will feature a Samford School of the Arts ensemble presentation of J.S. Bach’s Cantata “Ein Feste Burg,” based on the hymn “A Mighty Fortress.”

 

 

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.