Journal of Faith and the Academy Conference February 7, 2014

I attended the Journal of Faith and the Academy Conference at Faulkner University on February 7, 2014. It was the fourth Journal of Faith and the Academy conference I have attended. I always come away from the conference inspired and stimulated to think on the relationship of faith and learning. The main speaker was Gary Selby, Director of the Center for Faith and Learning at Pepperdine University. In his first talk he introduced how he came to be involved with faith and learning. The second talk concentrated on how we can relate our faith to our learning, especially how teachers can do this in the classroom.

The second talk was entitled: "Practical Matters: Identity, content, & Pedagogy." The point of this lecture was to look for points of connection between faith and learning. The first stage is at the pre-disciplinary stage. This has to do with the particular presuppositions of the particular discipline. For example, what are the "epistemology--and limits of historical research" ? The second stage is "mid-stream." At this stage you are looking for things that you are teaching and how they connect to the faith. For example, how does leadership connect with the Christian faith? The third stage is "post-discipline." How does our faith help us to live our commitments? How does my faith influence the way I practice my discipline?

Selby gave a list of books that can help us integrate our faith with our discipline.

Astin, Alexander W., Helen S. Astin, and Jennifer A. Lindholm. Cultivating the Spirit: How College Can Enhance Students' Inner Lives. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2011. Print.

B., Van Duzer Jeffrey. Why Business Matters to God: (and What Still Needs to Be Fixed). Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2010. Print.

Hughes, Richard T., and Richard T. Hughes. The Vocation of the Christian Scholar: How Christian Faith Can Sustain the Life of the Mind. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub., 2005. Print.

Jacobsen, Douglas G., Rhonda Hustedt. Jacobsen, and Rodney Sawatsky. Scholarship and Christian Faith: Enlarging the Conversation. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2004. Print.

Marsden, George M. The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship. New York: Oxford UP, 1997. Print.

Noll, Mark A. Jesus Christ and the Life of the Mind. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Pub., 2011. Print.

Palmer, Parker J. The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life. San Francisco, Calif: Jossey-Bass, 2007. Print.

Ream, Todd C., Jerry A. Pattengale, and David L. Riggs. Beyond Integration: Inter/disciplinary Possibilities for the Future of Christian Higher Education. Abilene, TX: Abilene Christian UP, 2012. Print.

Smith, David, and James K. A. Smith. Teaching and Christian Practices: Reshaping Faith and Learning. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub., 2011. Print.

Smith, James K. A. Desiring the Kingdom Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation. Grand Rapids: Baker Group, 2009. Print.

Tippens, Darryl L., Jeanne Murray. Walker, and Stephen Weathers. Shadow & LIght: Literature and the Life of Faith, 2013.