Join Candler School of Theology for a slate of public events this fall featuring a range of speakers and topics relevant to theology and the world today.

Please note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, event details are subject to change and new events may be added to the calendar after the original publication date. Registrants will be notified of any changes to an event and this page will be updated with the latest information as it is confirmed.

The McDonald Lecture with Luke Timothy Johnson: “Imitation of Christ: The Disputed Understanding of Christian Discipleship”
September 15 • 11:30 a.m.–12:45 p.m. EDT
In person and online • Free; registration required for in-person attendance

Luke Timothy Johnson, the 2021-2022 distinguished visiting professor in the Alonzo L. McDonald Family Chair on the Life and Teachings of Jesus and Their Impact on Culture, is Robert W. Woodruff Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Christian Origins at Candler. The event will also be livestreamed on Candler’s Facebook page.

Course in the Community: “‘We Have Seen the Lord!’: The Resurrection and Its Audience in Each Gospel”
Wednesdays, September 15–October 20 • 6:00–7:15 p.m. EDT
In person • Free; registration required

Taught by Candler Foundry postdoctoral fellow Elizabeth Arnold and hosted by Sandy Springs United Methodist Church, this Candler Foundry short course will investigate and compare the resurrection stories from all four gospels and explore how the gospel writers use the resurrection appearances of Jesus in creating portraits of Jesus for a variety of audiences in the early Christian community. Sandy Springs United Methodist Church is located at 86 Mount Vernon Highway, Atlanta, Georgia, 30328.

Lecture: “La Teología de mi Abuela: Learning from Women in our Latino Community”
September 30 • 7:30–9:00 p.m. EDT
Online • Free; registration required

Candler’s Aquinas Center of Theology, in partnership with Commonweal Magazine, presents a lecture by Sister Teresa Maya, a member of the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio.

Course in the Community: “Faith and Finance”
Mondays, October 4 and 18, November 1 and 15 • 5:30–6:50 p.m. ET
Online • $40.00 fee (financial aid available); registration required

Taught by Associate Professor in the Practice of Practical Theology and Methodist Studies Thomas W. Elliott, Jr., with guest facilitators Olu Brown, Bryan Ellrod, and Mandy McDow, this Candler Foundry short course seeks to develop a theology of “Right-Side-Up Giving” premised on the life and teachings of Jesus.

Lecture: “At Least Germans Are Honest? Martin Luther’s Appeals to Ethnic Identity and Implications for Social Justice”
October 6 • 12:00–1:00 p.m. EDT
Online • Free; registration required 

Candler’s Pitts Theology Library presents guest speaker Anthony Bateza, assistant professor of religion at St. Olaf College. This lecture is part of Pitts’ Kessler Conversations, a series of online interviews with leading church historians and theologians addressing the relevance of the Protestant Reformation for contemporary communities. Panel Discussion: “Migration and the Making of Global Christianity”
October 20 • 11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. ET
Online • Free; registration required 

Candler’s World Christianity Program presents a panel discussion focused on D.W. and Ruth Brooks Professor of World Christianity JehuHanciles’ most recent book of the same title. Panelists will be Barakatullo Ashurov (Harvard Divinity School), Arun Jones (Candler), Chloë Starr (Yale Divinity School), and Scott W. Sunquist (Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary). Associate Professor of History of Religions and Interfaith Studies Deanna F. Womack will moderate, and Hanciles will respond.

Lecture: “Luther and Islam”
October 20 • 12:00–1:00 p.m. ET
Online • Free; registration required 

Candler’s Pitts Theology Library presents guest speaker David Grafton, academic dean and professor of Islamic studies and Christian-Muslim relations at Hartford Theological Seminary. This lecture is part of Pitts’ Kessler Conversations, a series of online interviews with leading church historians and theologians addressing the relevance of the Protestant Reformation for contemporary communities.

Black Church Studies Worship Service
October 21 • 11:30 a.m. EDT
Online • Free

This service is presented by Candler’s Black Church Studies program. Kenyatta Gilbert, professor of homiletics at Howard University School of Divinity, will preach. Watch live on Facebook, YouTube, or the Candler website.

The González Lectures: “Latinx Contributions to Theological Education”
October 22-23
In-person and Online • Fees range from $15 to $50; registration required

Candler School of Theology, in partnership with the Asociación para la Educación Teológica Hispana (AETH), host the Justo and Catherine González Lectures, featuring multiple presentations and keynote addresses by Elizabeth Conde-Frazier, network coordinator of theological entities for AETH, and Hosffman Ospino, chair and associate professor of theology and religious education in the School of Theology and Ministry at Boston College and president of The Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States.

Lecture: “After Dostoevsky: What is Catholic and Orthodox Literature in the Age of the Nones?”
October 26 • 7:30–9:00 p.m. EDT
Online • Free; registration required

Candler’s Aquinas Center of Theology presents a lecture by Katherine Kelaidis, professor in the department of Classical Studies at Loyola University Chicago.

Reformation Day Worship Service
October 28 • 11:30 a.m. EDT
In-person and online • Free

This service is presented by Candler’s Pitts Theology Library as part of the 34th Annual Reformation Day at Emory. Jonathan Hemphill, assistant to the bishop for congregational life for the ELCA Southeastern Synod, will preach. Watch live on Facebook, YouTube, or the Candler website.

Course in the Community: “How the Bible Came to Be”
Sundays, Oct. 31, Nov. 14, Dec. 5, 12 and 19 • 10:00–11:00 a.m. ET
In-person, All Saints Episcopal Church • Free; registration required

Taught by Assistant Professor in the Practice of Old Testament Ryan Bonfiglio, this Candler Foundry short course aims to tell the story of how the Bible can to be, from the earliest texts and traditions to modern translations and versions.

Panel Discussion: “Masquerade: Scripturalizing Modernities Through Black Flesh”
November 3 • 1:00–4:00 p.m.
November 4 • 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Online • Free; registration required

Candler’s Pitts Theology Library, in partnership with the Institute for Signifying Scriptures (ISS), presents a two-day panel discussion based on its fall online exhibition “Masquerade: Scripturalizing Modernities Through Black Flesh,” curated by Vincent Wimbush, director of ISS.

Annual Women’s Forum: “Spiritualities of Joy in the Midst of Persistent Pandemics”
November 4 • 7:00–8:30 p.m. EDT
Online • Free; registration required

Candler’s Women, Theology, and Ministry program presents author and speaker Sarah Bessey and author Chanequa Walker-Barnes, professor of practical theology and pastoral counseling at Columbia Theological Seminary. The respondent will be Amy Valdez Barker, visiting associate professor of religious education and mission innovation at Candler. Lahronda Little, interim director of Candler’s Women, Theology, and Ministry program, will facilitate.

Lecture: “Luther, Jews, and Judaism: Possibilities for Rethinking Interreligious Engagement”
November 10 • 12:00–1:00 p.m. EST
Online • Free; registration required 

Candler’s Pitts Theology Library presents guest speaker Dean Bell, president and CEO of Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership. This lecture is part of Pitts’ Kessler Conversations, a series of online interviews with leading church historians and theologians addressing the relevance of the Protestant Reformation for contemporary communities.

The McDonald Lecture with Luke Timothy Johnson: “Imitation of Christ: Is a Unified Vision of Christian Discipleship Possible?”
November 10 • 4:00–6:00 p.m. EST
In person and online • Free; registration required for in-person attendance

Luke Timothy Johnson, the 2021-2022 distinguished visiting professor in the Alonzo L. McDonald Family Chair on the Life and Teachings of Jesus and Their Impact on Culture, is Robert W. Woodruff Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Christian Origins at Candler. The event will also be livestreamed on Candler’s Facebook page.

Photo: Janelle Hiroshige 21T