Seminary Faculty Updates
Tyndale Seminary faculty members are researching and teaching across a diverse range of academic disciplines. The following are some recent contributions that faculty members have made to their fields of research:
Dr. James Beverley, Professor of Christian Thought and Ethics, had his book Getting Jesus Right: How Muslims Get Jesus and Islam Wrong (Castle Quay 2015) published in June 2015. In November, Professor Beverley lectured at the Evangelical Theological Society event in Atlanta, Georgia. His lecture was titled “The Exploitation of Antony Flew, Gary Habermas, and Roy Varghese: A Response to The New York Times.” An article in the New York Times supposedly proved that two Christian authors really penned Antony Flew's famous book There Is a God. Professor Beverley examined the evidence that showed Flew was not duped about his own book.
Dr. John Kessler, Professor of Old Testament, lectured at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting on November 23, in Atlanta, Georgia. His lecture was titled “The Theology of the Book of Haggai”. The lecture explored the theology of the Book of Haggai in light of a recent commentary by Professor Martin Leuenberger of Tübingen, Germany.
Dr. Barbara Leung Lai, Professor of Old Testament, had her article "Isaiah 21:11-12 The Silent Question and Answer" published in the book Devotion on the Hebrew Bible (Zondervan 2015). On October 3, Dr. Leung Lai spoke at the Global Evangelical Theology Conference, sponsored by Tyndale University College & Seminary and the Canadian Evangelical Theological Association, held at Tyndale. Her lecture was titled "Toward a Version of Narratival Hermeneutics— Reading Ecclesiastes Ethno-Culturally with a Chinese Lens: Selfhood, Diaspora Experience, and the Search for Meaning." She also taught "Approaching the OT" for the In-Ministry Pastors in the "Pastoral and Theological Diploma" in Kiev, Ukraine. These classes were held at the Kiev Theological Seminary as part of a SEND-HTC joint ministry for Chinese in Diaspora.
Dr. Dennis Ngien, Professor of Systematic Theology, spoke at the New Millennium Church in Manila, Philippines from October 8-11. He also spoke at a leadership retreat held at the Asian Chinese Christian Fellowship (ACCF) in Cebu City on October 12.
Dr. James Pedlar, Assistant Professor of Wesley Studies and Theology, had his book Division, Diversity, and Unity: A Theology of Ecclesial Charisms (Peter Lang 2015) published. Dr. Pedlar's first book asks how the Pauline concept of "charisms" (spiritual gifts) can be applied to corporate bodies in the church, and how such application can inform our understanding of unity and diversity in the church. He uses the Paulist Fathers and the Salvation Army as test cases and argues that the theology of charisms should not be used as a justification for the permanent separation of ecclesial bodies. William Portier from the University of Dayton says the book "is sure to provoke ecumenical discussion," and Ephraim Radner from Wycliffe College calls it "a stellar and important contribution." Dr. Pedlar also lectured at the Global Evangelical Theology Conference. He presented his paper "Why Should Evangelicals Care for the Globe?" with Dr. Doug Hayhoe, Associate Professor of Education at the University College. After introducing climate change as the greatest environmental challenge facing the globe, the paper outlined four theological reasons why globally-minded evangelicals should be concerned.
Dr. David Sherbino, Professor of Pastoral Ministries and Spiritual Formation, had his book Renew (Castle Quay, 2015) published this fall. He also spoke at the Pre/Enrich event on October 26, in Toronto. This event was aimed at teaching the diagnostic tool “Prepare Enrich” to couples in marriage counselling. In December, Dr. Sherbino will engage in mission to prisoners in Blantyre, Malawi. Dr. Sherbino has been appointed the preaching pastor at Paris Presbyterian Church in Paris, Ontario.