Summer 2012: EPS President’s Update
Hello, fellow EPS members.
Last week I made my hotel reservations for our annual EPS meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Yes, I’m looking forward to being back at my old stomping grounds during my Ph.D. studies in philosophy—Marquette University. But much more than this, I am eager to gather with you all at what is the highlight of my academic year—the EPS annual meeting and EPS apologetics conference. Truly, we have much to look forward to!
EPS annual meeting (November 14-16—Wednesday through Friday): Hearty thanks to the philosophy department at Bethel College in Mishawaka, Indiana, for putting together a marvelous program this year. We’ll have familiar presenters—Bill Craig, J.P. Moreland, Gary Habermas, Angus Menuge, Greg Ganssle, Scott Smith—and newer ones like Jonathan Loose, Paul Gould, and Matt Flannagan. We’re pleased to have as our plenary speaker the noted philosopher of religion Charles Taliaferro, professor of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. And please join us on Wednesday evening of our gathering for our EPS reception; J.P. Moreland will offer a word of challenge and encouragement.
EPS apologetics conference (November 15-17—Thursday and Friday evenings and Saturday morning): This will take place at Spring Creek Church in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. In addition to our excellent seminar speakers, the plenary lineup is stellar indeed: Lee Strobel, Mark Mittelberg, William Lane Craig, Gary Habermas, and Greg Koukl.
EPS session at AAR/SBL (November 18, Sunday—7:00 PM): This event will take place in Chicago at the Hilton Chicago (Continental Ballroom A). The panel will discuss the book, The Persistence of the Sacred in Modern Thought (University of Notre Dame Press, 2012). In this book, Chris L. Firestone, Nathan A. Jacobs, and thirteen other contributors examine the role of God in the thought of major European philosophers from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century. This symposium addresses two questions that emerge out of this collection: What elements of the sacred persist in certain key figures of Modernity? And how might contemporary thinkers capitalize on these elements? The panelists include Chris L. Firestone (Trinity International University), Nathan Jacobs (John Brown University, Philip Clayton (Claremont School of Theology), and others. Stay tuned at the EPS website for a forthcoming author interview with Firestone and Jacobs.
Many other good things are happening within the EPS. This past week the EPS co-sponsored a conference in Pasadena, CA, entitled “Brave New World,” which deals with genetic engineering and human dignity. I was privileged to be the plenary speaker for our EPS Southeastern regional meeting this past spring—one of several regional EPS gatherings. Various EPS members continue to participate in apologetics conferences around the country, including a recent “On Guard” conference in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which was attended by 1,000 people, including atheists and agnostics, two of whom made commitments to Christ.
We rejoice that the EPS is not only a philosophical society, but a missional organization that seeks to equip the church and make an impact not only in North America, but across the globe. In addition to what we are presently doing, we hope to launch new initiatives in international outreach. So please consider supporting the work of the EPS through your financial gifts and your prayers.
One final note: this November will mark the end of my six-year term as EPS President. It has been a privilege to serve and work together with you as fellow philosophers and as laborers together in God’s kingdom.
God’s blessings to you all!
