Gordon in the News: last updated 04/20/2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 15, 2009
MEDIA CONTACT
Jo Kadlecek
Office of College Communications
978.867.4752
[email protected]
WENHAM, MA–At 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 21, in the Ken Olsen Science Center at Gordon College, honor students will wrestle with the effects of postmodernism on religion in the fifth annual Jerusalem and Athens Forum debate. This year’s proposition states that the movement commonly designated as the “emergent church” or “emerging church” bears witness to the positive flourishing of Christianity during our time.
“Even if you don’t know about the emergent church, there are changes taking place in the Christian church that it is a huge part of,” says Kirk Vanacore, a junior history major on the affirmative side of the debate. “Our side of the debate represents a new perspective on liberal Christianity that is different from the liberal Christianity found in mainline churches today.”
The Jerusalem and Athens Forum, a year-long interdisciplinary honors program at Gordon College, involves sophomores, juniors and seniors who are interested in discussing major thought topics of both contemporary and ancient society. Each year the program culminates in a formal debate between classmates. The topic usually involves a traditionally theological topic such as just war or pacifism, but this year JAF leadership has decided to go with a contemporary issue.
The “emergent” movement is a trend within Christianity to reexamine faith in the context of a new era. “Our generation is faced with new questions due to developments in science and technology or perhaps simply due to the flow of history,” says Vanacore. “This discussion presents different approaches to dealing with these questions.”
Students have been preparing for the debate since the beginning of the semester in January and are now forming final arguments to be presented on the 21st. For more information about the Jerusalem and Athens Forum, visit www.gordon.edu/JAF.
