Awe and Wonder, Here and Now Issue 13 – Speaking Engagements

In our last Awe and Wonder I noted that I have the privilege of being invited to Second Church in St. Louis, Missouri for a weekend exploration of “Imagination, Empathy and Action: Being Christian in a Fragmented Age.” I will also preach on Sunday morning. I also have the privilege of being the third speaker for the Marcus Borg Memorial Conference sponsored by Progressive Christian Network Britain at St. Mark’s  Church in Broomhill, Sheffield. I will be part of a day long conference speaking about “Days of Awe and Wonder: How we see makes all the difference.”   And I will preach on Sunday. To quote from the announcement for my visit to Sheffield: Eighteen years ago in St. Marks Church Sheffield, Marcus Borg first addressed a UK conference in a parish church.  The influence of his writing and speaking has been enormous and we continue to acknowledge this by holding this conference at St. Marks and welcoming Marianne Borg. In wishing to continue her husband’s work through the Marcus J. Borg Foundation, Marianne invites us to explore a meaningful articulation of Christianity and will seek to explore with us what it means to be Christian today. We shall be sharing difficult questions:

• Is it possible to re-tell the Jesus story afresh and with relevance for our contemporary world?
• Does ‘awe and wonder’ point us to a new kind of spirituality?
• Can religion make a difference for the good.

Adrian Alker is my host.  I met Adrian at a Progressive Christian Network conference “Common Dreams” in Brisbane in 2016 sponsored by Progressive Christian Network Australia/New Zealand. Marcus was a speaker at the Common Dreams conference in Canberra in 2013.  Common Dreams meets every three years. The next conference will be July 2019 in Sydney. A little about Adrian, also from the PCN Britain brochure In 1988 Adrian was appointed vicar of St Marks Broomhill, Sheffield, where he served that remarkable congregation for twenty years. Always of a liberal, questioning frame of mind, Adrian was greatly inspired by the writings of Marcus Borg and the work of the Jesus Seminar in the USA. Borg’s acceptance of an invitation to come to St Mark’s led to the founding of the St Mark’s Centre for Radical Christianity. [I suggested to Adrian they consider renaming it the St. Marc’s Centre for Radical Christianity.  Apparently that consideration is still pending.] Adrian comments “The great joy of my work as a priest at St Marks was to see how radical, open hearted Christianity can be a real force for good and for growth in a parish context.” In 2008, Adrian became Director of Mission Resourcing in the Anglican Diocese of West Yorkshire and the Dales, supporting parishes to engage with contemporary issues of faith and life. Having retired from that post, Adrian and his wife Christine now live again in Sheffield. Adrian has been a trustee of PCN Britain since its inception in 2003 and was a founding member. Adrian has written various articles and in 2016 published his book ‘Is a Radical Church Possible?‘ He is often invited to speak at PCN groups and conferences. I am honored to be asked to continue the conversation with PCN Britain and literally follow in Marc’s footsteps Second Church and St. Marks.  Two very different places, very different communities.  Both recognize the importance and urgency of reimagining Christianity and giving its liberating wisdom a fresh and authentic voice for the living of our days. I look forward to bringing to our conversation here and on our website my experiences in St. Louis and in Sheffield.