Kingdom Conference: To Reflect on the Fuller Vision of God’s Kingdom
Since the fall of 1989, Kingdom Conference has played a significant role in the formative life of Asbury Theological Seminary. As Christine Pohl notes, the vision for Kingdom Conference is “to focus on concerns about mission, mercy, and justice in the world today.” The Conference week is designed around a specific theme that embodies “mission, mercy and justice” to challenge our “community to a deeper and fuller vision of God’s Kingdom.” This is done through various events, such as chapel services, talkback sessions, panel discussions, seminars, worship night, and the international potluck dinner. As Asbury Seminary expands its global online presence, Kingdom Conference likewise envisions a continued commitment to the residential Asbury community, while also serving as a bridge, engaging with Asbury alumni and the online student community.
The ESJ school of World Mission and Evangelism prepares men and women to engage in missions throughout the world. The Kingdom Conference emerged from the ESJ school’s heart for missions and the multicultural vibrancy of the biblical vision of the kingdom of God. The ESJ school continues to lead the Kingdom Conference, no longer as faculty-led, but student-led in collaboration with faculty members and the wider Asbury community. This too is a picture of multigenerational diversity and community formation. Over the years, Kingdom Conference themes have included World Christianity, Integral Mission, Public Missiology with guest speakers including Samuel Escobar, Sam Kamaleson, Jackie Pullinger, C. Rene Padilla, Ajith Fernando, Todd Johnson and Ruth Padilla DeBorst. Consequently, thus far, to use Christine Pohl’s words, the Conference “has been an important part of the formation process of Asbury students and has been …an important co-curricular dimension of the seminary’s Christian formation programs.”
We want to invite you to think of some of your memories of the Kingdom Conference. What are some of the highlights? We’d love to hear from you! Please email us at alumni@asburyseminary.edu. We hope and pray that this exercise of remembering will be a cherishing and formative experience, reflecting on your past to move forward in what God has for you.
(See above for an interview with Dr. Christine Pohl.)
I remember celebrating the mission of God during ATS kingdom Conference during my hears of study at ATS in 1999-2005. It was always a moment for Asburians to reflect their classroom discussions, celebrate in Chapel and the dining hall at the International Potluck.
Congratulations for holding yet another KC this year. Long Live ATS and its Alumni globally.
Greetings dear brother Bauta!