Past Programmes

2020-


2023-4


October 13th               Was Schleiermacher’s Pneumatology Unitarian?

 

The Rev’d Robin Hanford

 

Minister Hinckley Unitarians / Hinckley Great Meeting Chapel

 

 

 

November 10th                Women in the Early Church

 

Dr Sarah Parvis

 

Senior Lecturer in Patristics, University of Edinburgh

 

 

 

December 8th                    Made Perfect through Suffering: the Sacrifice of Christ the High Priest (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)

 

Fr Richard Ounsworth

 

Prior of Holy Cross, Leicester and Tutor in Scripture at Blackfriars, Oxford 

 

 

 

January 12th                       Detecting God: Dorothy L Sayers and Theology

 

Peter Kilty 

 

President of the Society

 

 

February 9th                       Kindling a flame? The development of confirmation liturgies in the Methodist Church

 

The Rev’d Mark Rowland

 

Secretary of the Faith and Order Committee of the Methodist Church

 

 

 

March 8th                              Images of God (Montgomery Trust Lecture)

 

The Rev’d Canon Prof Vernon White

 

Visiting Professor in Theology at King’s College London

2022-2023

President James `Blackhall


Oct 14th I will give you all this land”: Exploring the Biblical Land Promise 

(Montgomery Trust Lecture)


Dr Meg Warner Tutor in Old Testament and Biblical Hebrew at Northern College teaching in Manchester’s Luther King Centre


Nov 11th Reading the Janam Sakhis as a Christian

The Revd Dr Tom Wilson

Director, The St Philip’s Centre, Leicester



Dec 9th  Even the dogs.... reading scripture from a place of exclusion

  James Blackhall President of the Society


Jan 13th  Thomas a Kempis' Imitation of Christ : a spiritual classic for the modern age ?

Peter Kilty


Feb 10th  The Moravian Church: past and present challenges

 The Rt Revd Joachim Kreusel 

Minister for Ockbrook and Leicester Moravian Church

Mar 10th  Mapping theology in the 21st century

 Prof Rachael Muers Chair of Divinity, University of Edinburgh


2021-2022

President   Michael Sweeney

Prof. Richard Bauckham Professor emeritus, University of St Andrews
Why is John's gospel different?

Members' evening
God and the pandemic

Revd Canon Dr Johannes Arens Priest in Charge of St Andrew, Jarrom Street, Leicester
Music and Revelation (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)

Revd Andrew Quigley Vicar, St James the Greater, Leicester
God and Gollum: Tolkien's theology

Michael Sweeney President of the Society
A Medieval Mystical Tour with the Seraphic Doctor, St Bonaventure

Dr Elaine Storkey Experienced writer and speaker in relating the Christian gospel to contemporary culture
Is Christianity dying in the West? The secularisation thesis revisited (Montgomery Trust Lecture)

2020-2021

President: Ian Dutton

Who holds the child? An explorative of Devotional Christology
Rt Revd Dr Martin Warner Bishop of Chichester

It’s on the wall: lifelong lay learning and medieval murals
Dr Miriam Gill University of Leicester and Vaughan College

Mary - ideal woman, impossible saint or feminine divine? (Montgomery Trust Lecture)
Prof. Nicola Slee Director of Research at the Queen's Foundation; Professor of Feminist Practical Theology, VU Amsterdam

Architecture and Theology: the Shard, the Tower of Babel, and more
Ian Dutton President of the Society

Male and Female He Created Them: An investigation of the pedagogy of gender rigidity in faith and secular schools
Dr Claire Jenkins Senior Fellow, Margaret Beaufort Institute

Newman and Science (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Prof. Patrick Boylan Professor Emeritus, City, University of London

2010-2020

2019-2020

President: Fr Matthew Jarvis OP

Interreligious theology: pipe dream or emerging reality?
Revd Dr Alan Race Chair of World Congress of Faiths and Editor of ‘Interreligious Insight’

Mark … a classical tragedy?
Revd Canon Dr Stephen Foster Canon Emeritus, Leicester Cathedral

Can you see an angel? (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Revd Dr Oliver James Keenan OP Dominican Friar

Holy Cross: our only hope?
Fr Matthew Jarvis OP President of the Society

Inclusive Religious Education in the publicly funded schools of democratic societies
Professor Robert Jackson Founding Director, Warwick Religions and Education Research Unit, University of Warwick

Evolutions of Christian Faith
Professor Teresa Morgan Professor of Graeco-Roman History, University of Oxford


2018-2019

President: Revd Alan Hawker

Reclaiming Doctrines
Revd David Paterson Retired Anglican Priest 

Christian Approaches to Judaism
Dr Angela Jagger Former President of the Society

Kidnapped by the Vatican? Edgardo Mortara and the Meaning of Baptism (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Fr Matthew Jarvis OP Dominican Friar and Chaplain to Leicester Catholic Students

The mind of William Wilberforce: Religion, Politics and Historical Progress
Professor John Coffey Professor of Early Modern History, University of Leicester

Women in Christianity and Islam: a reflection
Bishop Guli Francis-Dehqani Bishop of Loughborough

The sound of Heaven is laughter
Revd Alan Hawker President of the Society


2017-2018

President: Revd William F Myers

Some theological reflections on the ad limina visit by the Bishops of England and Wales to Rome in 2018 (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Rt Revd Patrick McKinney Bishop of Nottingham

Women and Men after Christendom
Dr Fran Porter Research Fellow at The Queen's Foundation for Ecumenical Theological Education

A journey through ecumenism to the wider ecumenism and from Theology to Religious Studies
Peggy Morgan Lecturer in the Study of Religions, Mansfield College, Oxford

The Gospel according to Mark: editor and eye witness
Revd William F Myers President of the Society

Divine Violence and Salvation
Dr Martyn J Smith Teacher of Philosophy, Ethics and RE

What is Christian mission?
Rt Revd Martyn Snow Bishop of Leicester


2016-2017

President: Dr Thomas Bartsch

God In-Action - does God act?
Canon David Jennings Canon Theologian Leicester Cathedral

Clergywomen: The cost of a calling? Reflections on ministry as a professional job
Prof Anne-marie Greene Professor of Employment Relations, De Montfort University

Do angels push the planets? And does it matter to modern science?
Dr Thomas Bartsch Lecturer in Applied Mathematics, Loughborough University & President of the Society

'The Call to Holiness': A Methodist-Catholic Dialogue (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
The Right Reverend John Sherrington Auxilliary Bishop of Westminster

Christian Inculturation in India
Dr Laura Johnson Independent Interfaith Consultant

Time to burn Santa in effigy? What Christians should make of the phenomenon of interpassive believing
Revd Dr Peter Green Dean of Chapel and Chaplain, Bishop Grosseteste University


2015-2016

President: Dr Angela Jagger

Richard III: theological issues
The Very Revd David Monteith The Dean of Leicester

Good, Happy and Free: Aquinas and Newman (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Revd William F Myers Author of 'The Thoughtful Heart: The Metaphysics of John Henry Newman'

Theology and the Media: Evil communications and corrupt good manners
Dr John Florance Faith Advisor, Radio Leicester

Radical Orthodoxy - 14th century style: Piers Plowman
Dr John Young Trustee, St Philip's Centre

Why is religion controversial?
Dr Angela Jagger President of the Society 

Moses and the life of prayer
Dr Ann Conway-Jones Honorary Research Fellow, Department of Theology and Religion, University of Birmingham

Their eyes were opened: Christology in St Luke's Gospel
Revd Fr Simon Gillespie Parish Priest St Mary and St Augustine, Stamford


2014-2015

President: Richard Gill

Mark, the Controlling Gospel
Fr Neil Ferguson OP Lecturer in Scripture at Blackfriars Hall, Oxford

God's Mission in a land of many faiths
Rt Revd Dr Michael Ipgrave Bishop of Woolwich

Art, History and Faith - Learning to look Teaching Art with a Religious Dimension
Dr Miriam Gill Lecturer in the History of Art, University of Leicester

Radical Orthodoxy - 14th Century Style - Piers Plowman
Dr John Young Trustee, St Philip's Centre 

Parables
Richard Gill President of the Society

Theresa of Avila and Thomas Merton: two anniversaries
The Rt Rev and Rt Hon Dr Rowan Williams The Lord Williams of Oystermounth, Former Archbishop of Canterbury


2013-2014

President: Rev Michael C King

Hebrew and Greek and English Translation (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Ian Robinson Literary critic and publisher - author of "Who killed the Bible?"

Antitheism, Atheism and Reflexive Secularisation
Roland Robertson Sociologist (specialising in sociology of religion)

Sacred Art - expressions of the Faith - illustrations in the Catholic Compendium
David Lamb Theologian and Reader at St Mary de Castro

Is RE in schools a theological quest?
Latimer Blaylock Editor of "RE Today" 

From Hell to Hollywood - the trivilaisation of religion
Jim Green Author and broadcsater

Is God green? - theology and the environment
The Rt Rev Tom Butler Formerly Bishop of Leicester and Bishop of Southwark


2012-2013

President: Rev Fr Fabian Radcliffe OP

A Liberal Church in a Liberal Society
Revd Canon David Jennings Canon Theologian, Diocese of Leicester & Rector of Burbage with Aston Flamville

An evening with the Swedish Poet Tomas Tranströmer
Brigitta Sall

Is Spirituality replacing Religion?
Mary Warrener Past President of the Society

"Common as Muck" - the value of Tradition in Christian Worship and Ecclesiology
Professor Alison Milbank Professor of Theology, University of Nottingham 

Is the Bible the Word of God? - Discuss
Revd Canon David Jennings Canon Theologian, Diocese of Leicester & Rector of Burbage with Aston Flamville

What is a Catholic?
Father Greg Murphy OP Author of "The hope of New Life", "Staying the Course" and "Blowing in the wind"


2011-2012

President: Rev Canon F David Jennings

Discipleship in troubled times
Ann Morisy Freelance community theologian & Author of "Beyond the Good Samaritan"

Jung and Christianity
Revd Dr Joe Dawson Deacon at St Thomas More, Knighton & Scholar in psychology and theology

Is the New Testament a reliable guide for moral conduct today?
Dr Anthony Harvey Formerly Lecturer in Theology, University of Oxford; Sub Dean of Westminster Abbey;
Author of "Something Overheard - Introduction to the New Testament" 

Christ and Evolution - A Drama of Wisdom
Professor Celia Deane-Drummond Professor of Theology, University of Chester 

Swords into Ploughshares - is lasting peace a possibility in the North of Ireland? (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Revd Canon David Jennings President of the Society; Canon Theologian, Diocese of Leicester; Rector of Burbage with Aston Flamville

Religious Experience, a Comparative Approach
Professor Paul Badham Emeritus Professor of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Wales, Trinity Saint David


2010-2011

President: Elizabeth Wayne

Saint Matthew's Gospel for Today (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Father Nicholas King SJ Theologian, Author and Translator of Scripture; Tutor in Biblical Studies, University of Oxford

Islam, citizenship and the nation state
Dilwar Hussain Head of the Policy Research Centre, The Islamic Foundation, Markfield, Leicestershire; Senior Adviser to the Institute of Community Cohesion

Education about Religions and Beliefs: European Policy Recommendations and Young People's Views
Professor Robert Jackson Professor of Religions and Education, University of Warwick; Director of the Warwick Religions and Education Research Unit 

President's Evening: Let all the world in every corner sing - Reflections on Hymns
Elizabeth Wayne with Richard Gill and Neil Crutchley

You may as well throw your money into the sea: William Law, John Wesley and the Theology of Money
Revd Dr Ralph Waller Principal Harris Manchester College, Oxford; Director of the Farmington Institute of Christian Studies

Young Peoples' Religious and Spiritual Nurture in a Diverse Society
Professor Eleanor Nesbitt Professor of Religions and Education, Institute of Education, University of Warwick


2009-2010

President: Dan McEwan

The Dalit Issue in Hindu-Christian Dialogue: Promise for the Future of Religions
Professor Sathianathan Clarke Bishop Sundo Kim Professor in World Christianity, Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington DC

I believe in God - the case for a Transcendental Atheism
Professor John Hoffman Emeritus Professor of Political Theory, University of Leicester

Entering into God's Rest (Newman Ecumenical Lecture)
Fr Richard Ounsworth OP Lecturer in Scripture, Blackfriars, Oxford

Young Peoples' Religious and Spiritual Nature in a Diverse Society
Professor Eleanor Nesbitt Professor in Religions and Education, Institute of Education, University of Warwick

President's Evening: Woman Bishops, Gay Bishops and Cultural Anxiety
Dan McEwan President of the Society; Retired Teacher - studied Theology in Louvain and Oxford, Cultural Studies in Birmingham

The Polyphonic Self and the Inter-religious Encounter
Dr David Cheetham Senior Lecturer in Theology and Inter-religious Relations, University of Birmingham