NEWS & EVENTS

Calvinism for the 21st Century

John Calvin

Dordt College, April 8-10, 2010

In the context of the 500th anniversary of John Calvin's birth, there has been much reflection upon the historical, cultural, and theological significance of Calvinism. With this reflection as a backdrop, Dordt College held a conference in April 2010 that addressed some of the pressing issues facing the Christian community living in the 21st century and how Calvinism provides an important paradigm for a Christian engagement of such issues.

Speakers

Dr. Vincent Bacote

Dr. Vincent Bacote, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Theology and the Director of the Center for Applied Christian Ethics at Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL. He has also been President of the Christian Theological Research Fellowship, and is a member of the Evangelical Theological Society, the Society of Christian Ethics and the American Academy of Religion. Bacote has authored many books in theology, his most recent book being The Spirit in Public Theology: Appropriating the Legacy of Abraham Kuyper (Baker Academic: 2005). Vincent Bacote lives in Glen Ellyn, IL with his wife Shelley and daughters Laurel and Juliana.

David S. Caudill

Dr. David S. Caudill, J.D., Ph.D., is the Arthur M. Goldberg Family Chair in Law at Villanova University, where he teaches expert evidence, legal ethics, and property law. Prior to joining the law faculty at Villanova, he clerked for a federal judge, practiced with law firms in San Diego and Austin, and taught for 16 years at Washington and Lee University School of Law. He has published extensively in the fields of law and science, law and literature, and legal ethics, and his recent book is No Magic Wand: The Idealization of Science in Law. His dissertation in philosophy at the Free University Amsterdam entitled Disclosing Tilt: Law, Belief, and Criticism, was published in 1989.

Dr. Roelf Haan

Dr. Roelf Haan is a native of The Netherlands and has his Ph.D. in economic sciences. He has worked for the Ministry of Finance in The Hague and he was also the technical assistant to the Dutch member of the Executive Board of the IMF in Washington D.C. After this, he became a Professor of Economics at the Free University in Amsterdam. Haan has written extensively on the issue of economics and many of his books have been translated into other languages. Currently, Haan is Chairman of the Board of Solidaridad (Dutch ecumenical development organization for fair trade and a sustainable society), and Chairman of the Board of the Dom Hélder Câmara Chair, Free University, Amsterdam.

Dr. Jim Skillen

Dr. Jim Skillen has directed the Center for Public Justice from July 1981 through September 2009 (serving as president since January 2000). As Senior Fellow, he carries forward his research, writing, and mentoring on political thought, statecraft, and public policy. His major writing project for the next number of years will focus on the biblical story as foundation for the human responsibility of governance in God's world, the challenge that story presents to the ways Christians have exercised political responsibility, and the profound resources of that story for the continuing work of governance, citizenship, and statecraft in our day. Skillen received his B.A. from Wheaton College in philosophy and a B.D. from Westminster Theological Seminary. After graduate study in philosophy at the Free University of Amsterdam, he completed his M.A. and Ph.D. from Duke University, both in political science.

James K.A. Smith

James K.A. Smith is Professor of Philosophy at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan having previously taught at colleges and seminaries in Philadelphia and Los Angeles. Born and raised in Embro, Ontario, he is the author of several books, including most recently, Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview and Cultural Formation. His new book, Letters to a Young Calvinist will appear in Fall 2010. He is also the editor of the “Church and Postmodern Culture” Series for Baker Academic. His more “popular” writing has appeared in Christianity Today, The Banner, First Things, Books & Culture, and the Christian Century, and he has been featured on Krista Tippett’s NPR program, “Speaking of Faith.” He and his wife, Deanna, have four children and are committed inner-city dwellers concerned with urban renewal.

Julia Stronks

Julia Stronks is a professor at Whitworth University in Washington and teaches American government courses with an emphasis on the role of law in society. Her research focuses on the relationship between faith and public policy and she has authored several books with her mother, Gloria Stronks, as well as writing a number of her own. Stronks is a graduate of Dordt College, and earned her J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law and her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland. In 2003, she was honored with Dordt College's Distinguished Alumni Award.