SAET Blog

Conference Posts

  • January 29, 2011 by Jason Hood

    The Longer Version

    News this week of the SAET spring symposium with Kevin Vanzhoozer (Second Fellowship) reminded me of how nice smaller get-togethers and conferences can be. To be sure, you miss some of the more characteristic characteristics of bigger events, as spelled out by Michael Bérubé (HT: Alan Jacobs):

    One of these days I want to put together an academic conference that addresses the phenomenon of academic conferences.  It will be called “The Longer Version,” and will be distinguished by three features:  one, every paper will have a respondent who, instead of waiting for the paper to end, will simply snort, harrumph, and blurt “I think not!” at random moments during the paper.  Two, questioners will be required to begin all questions by saying, “this is really more of a comment than a question– I wonder if you could say more about X,” on the condition that X was either unmentioned in or tangential to the paper itself.  (Questions must be at least three minutes long.) And three, every speaker will be required to answer these questions by saying, “I actually address this question in the longer version of this paper,” regardless of whether there is a longer version or not.  (If the conference proceedings are published, they will consist only of sections of papers that were cut for time during the actual conference.)

    Categories: Conference | General | Second Fellowship | Symposium

    6 Comments

  • November 22, 2010 by Jason Hood

    ETS and SBL (1): Connections and Questions

    ETS and SBL were simply a blast this year.  It’s truly a blast to see so many friends and meet a few new ones, even if the lack of sleep and over-stimulation sometimes blows my circuits and leaves me winded.

    As has been pointed out by others, the papers (and even the book discounts) aren’t the main point—it’s connecting with others.

    More than once while hanging out in a group someone would throw out a question that would become an hour-long conversation:  “What’s the difference between preaching and teaching?”  “What are the implications (or lack thereof) of redemptive history for women in ministry and marriage?”  “What needs to be written right now?”  And (asked of the principal of an Asian theological college) “What are the goals for your students?”

    Many other great personal, pedagogical, and pastoral questions popped up as well, everything from dealing with a friend’s adultery to using the lament Psalms in liturgy to shortcuts for indexing a book to the significance of food for Jesus’ ministry and so much more.  Not often you can engage all of those conversations and more in a span of three days.

    Categories: Conference | ETS | Jason Hood | SBL

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  • September 9, 2009 by Gerald Hiestand

    The Gospel Growth Conference

    My good friend Owen Strachan (and fellow SAET board member) is the managing director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding, and he tells me that the Henry Center, along with the Gospel Coalition and a number of other organizations, is hosting the Gospel Growth Conference for pastors and ministry leaders.

    The conference will take place October 14-16  in Chicago, and the plenary speaker line-up includes Carson, Jennings, Dever, Payne, and Helm.  Looks like a great event.

    Categories: Conference

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