Wednesday & Thursday, October 19 – 20, 2022
Billy Graham Hall | 501 College Ave., Wheaton, IL 60187
To commemorate the naming of the A. Duane Litfin School of Mission, Ministry, and Leadership in honor of our seventh president, Wheaton College is excited to host the Liftin Symposium. Throughout his career, Dr. Litfin embodied the Wheaton College mission of engaging our world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Captured succinctly in the words “For Christ and His Kingdom,” this mission continues to animate the Wheaton community as we strive to witness to a rapidly shifting culture. Recently, Dr. Litfin exhorted Christians to consider the depth of this challenge and respond with a renewed effort of mind, body, and soul:
“No superficial assessment of America’s current struggles will do. Evangelical Christians need to think deeply about what they’re facing… Crafting a godly response to this reality must begin with
the recognition that our society’s illness is not a temporary ailment; it is now a chronic condition, one which is likely to demand of America’s 21st-century evangelicals a much more costly Christ-like response than many of us have yet contemplated.”
The Litfin Symposium is an answer to this exhortation.
Symposium Audience and Outcomes
Our objective is to gather thoughtful pastors and church leaders to engage leading scholars on evolving shape of Christian witness in our new post-Christian culture.
Our hope is that the symposium offers a chance for leaders to step back from our cultural polarization and politicization to reflect anew on the central questions of Christian witness within our society in transition.
$39 Litfin Symposium event only
$20 with Amplify Outreach ticket purchase
Wednesday, October 19
Coray Alumni Gym, Wheaton College
5:00 – 6:00 PM | Check-In & Registration | Coray Alumni Gym Lobby
6:00 – 8:30 PM | Opening Dinner
Keynote: “Contending for Gospel Witness in a Disillusioned Culture”
Dr. James Davison Hunter is LaBrosse-Levinson Distinguished Professor of Religion, Culture, and Social Theory, founder of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture, University of Virginia, and author of To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late-Modern World and Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America.
Thursday, October 20
Lectures will take place in Barrows Auditorium,
Billy Graham Hall
9:00 – 10:30 AM | Litfin Session 1
“Contending for the Gospel Truth in an Age of Radical Subjectivism”
Dr. Sam Chan & Dr. John Dickson
10:45 AM – 12:15 PM | Litfin Session 2
”Contending for Gospel Mission in Christian Leadership”
Dr. Gavin Ortlund & K.A. Ellis
12:15 – 1:30 PM | LUNCH | Anderson Commons (included in ticket price)
1:30 – 3:00 PM|Litfin Session 3
“Contending for Gospel Imagination in the Public Square”
Dr. Esau McCaulley & Dr. Karen Swallow Prior
3:30 – 5:00 PM | Session 4
“Contending for the Gospel Mission in this Generation”
Dr. Charlie Dates & Dr. Alan Noble
Dinner Break | On your own
7:00 – 8:15 PM | Inaugural Address
President Dr. Duane Litfin
Blanchard Hall, Room 339
Open to the campus community and public
Guest Speakers
Dr. James Davison Hunter
Executive Director of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture and the LaBrosse-Levinson Distinguished Professor of Religion, Culture and Social Theory at the University of Virginia. Dr. Hunter has written nine books, edited four, and is widely published concerning the problem of meaning and moral order in a time of political and cultural change in American life. His two most recent books, Science and the Good and To Change the World, have shaped debates across communities and academic disciplines. Through appearances on National Public Radio and C-Span, at the National Endowment for the Arts, and at colleges and universities, Dr. Hunter continues to lead the conversation on the intersections of faith, politics, and culture.
Dr. Sam Chan
Dr. Chan is a public evangelist with City Bible Forum in Sydney, Australia, where he regularly shares the gospel with high school students, city workers, doctors, and lawyers. He is also the author of several publications, including Evangelism in a Skeptical World and How to Talk About Jesus (Without Being That Guy). He speaks at conferences around the world on the topics of ethics, storytelling, apologetics, and the practice of evangelism in a post-Christian culture.
Dr. John Dickson
The former Distinguished Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Public Christianity at Ridley College, Dr. Dickson is the newly appointed Jean Kvamme Distinguished Professor of Biblical Evangelism and Distinguished Scholar in Public Christianity at Wheaton College. He has published across a range of mediums and platforms, including Simply Christianity: Beyond Religion, and is also the founder and continuing director of Undeceptions, an organization that seeks to promote truth and deep Christian thought in skeptical times.
Dr. Esau McCaulley
Associate professor of New Testament at Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL, and theologian in residence at Progressive Baptist Church, Dr. McCaulley is the author of Sharing in the Son’s Inheritance (2019) and Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope (2020). He is a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times. His writings have also appeared in places such as The Atlantic, Washington Post, and Christianity Today.
Dr. Karen Swallow Prior
Research Professor of English and Christianity and Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dr. Prior is the author of On Reading Well (2018) and co-editor of Cultural Engagement: A Crash Course in Contemporary Issues (2019). She is host of the popular podcast Jane and Jesus and a monthly column for Religion News Service. Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, First Things, Vox, Relevant, Think Christian, The Gospel Coalition, Books and Culture, and in many other places.
Dr. Gavin Ortlund
The senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Ojai in Ojai, California, Dr. Ortlund is the author of seven books as well as numerous academic and popular articles including Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn’t: The Beauty of Christian Theism (2021) and Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage (2020). His writing has also appeared at The Gospel Coalition, Mere Orthodoxy, Desiring God, Center for Pastor Theologians, and Sapientia.
Dr. Charlie Dates
Charlie Dates is the senior pastor of Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago and an affiliate Professor at Baylor University George W. Truett Theological Seminary and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Dr. Dates is widely sought after for conferences, summits, retreats, and board memberships, as well as a guest in pulpits. His first single-authored book on Christianity and Social Justice is forthcoming.
Dr. Alan Noble
Noble is an Associate Professor of English at Oklahoma Baptist University and the editor-in-chief of Christ and Pop Culture. His two most recent books, Disruptive Witness: Speaking Truth in a Distracted Age and You Are Not Your Own: Belonging to God in an Inhuman World, address the challenges of faith and identity within the new context of a digital world. Dr. Noble’s writing has appeared in Christianity Today, VOX, Buzzfeed, and The Atlantic. He has been widely cited in a number of major publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, MTV News, MSNBC, The Guardian, Buzzfeed, Politico, Village Voice, Yahoo! News, ThinkProgress, The Blaze, WORLD Magazine, and Slate.
K.A. Ellis
K. A. Ellis holds an MFA from Yale University, a master of art in religion (theological) from Westminster Theological Seminary, and is a doctoral candidate at Oxford Center for Mission Studies in Oxford, England. She is also the director of the Edmiston Center for the Study of the Bible and Ethnicity.
Dr. Duane Litfin
The seventh president of Wheaton College, serving from 1993 to 2010, Dr. Litfin earned a reputation for both his institutional leadership and vision of Christian higher education. Among his many accomplishments, he enhanced the Faculty through the Faith and Learning Initiative, initiated the Doctoral Program in Biblical and Theological Studies, promoted Wheaton’s Evangelism Initiative, and envisioned the College’s Global Programs and Studies. His book Conceiving the Christian College (2004), remains a cornerstone text for understanding and leading Christian higher education institutions in the twenty-first century.
Honoring A. Duane Litfin | Wheaton College President Emeritus
A HEART FOR THE GLOBAL CHURCH
Dr. Litfin served as the seventh president of Wheaton College for seventeen years (1993 – 2010) and shared a passion for mission, ministry, and leadership development within the global Church and the academy.
During his seventeen-year tenure as president of Wheaton the physical plant of the school was enhanced by way of a campus mall, the Sports and Recreation Center, the Todd M. Beamer Student Center, the Marion E. Wade Center, and a new science center. Ten additional endowed academic chairs were established, and a doctoral program in Biblical and Theological Studies was initiated. Litfin retired in 2010 after a successful career in leadership and fundraising.
The A. Duane Litfin School of Mission, Ministry, and Leadership is home to the College’s graduate and undergraduate programs committed to rigorous scholarship, doctrinal integrity, and effective, global education in these vital areas of Christian witness and engagement. Together, the faculty and students collaborate to serve Jesus Christ and advance His Kingdom through excellence in liberal arts and graduate programs that educate the whole person to build the church and benefit society worldwide.
“During his time as President, Dr. Litfin touched virtually every aspect of Wheaton College, building on its heritage and positioning it for the robust future, which we now enjoy and endeavor to develop further,” said Ed Stetzer, executive director of the Wheaton College Billy Graham Center and Dean of the Litfin School of Mission, Ministry, and Leadership, “it is a great privilege to serve as dean of the school that bears his name”.
We continue to gather endowment resources to support this school and related graduate programs at Wheaton represents an excellent opportunity to honor A. Duane Litfin and sustain his legacy via the following efforts:
The A. Duane and Sherri LItfin Scholarship Fund | $1,000,000
Endowment for the benefit of Ph.D. students in Biblical and Theological Studies and graduate students pursuing degrees within the School of Mission, Ministry, and Leadership.
The Graduate School Global Impact Fund | $1,000,000
An initial endowment to primarily support the development and delivery of innovative programs within the School of Mission, Ministry, and Leadership and, secondarily, foster innovation within the Wheaton College Graduate School more broadly.
The A. Duane Litfin Symposium
Wheaton College will hold a one-time symposium celebrating Dr. Litfin’s legacy. The symposium will include:
• Marquee keynote and distinguished symposium speakers to address the current state of mission, ministry, and leadership within the global Church
• Opportunity for Dr. Litfin to address friends, supporters, and attendees on critical issues in Christian leadership and the mission of the Church
Dr. James Davison Hunter
Executive Director of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture and the LaBrosse-Levinson Distinguished Professor of Religion, Culture and Social Theory at the University of Virginia. Dr. Hunter has written nine books, edited four, and is widely published concerning the problem of meaning and moral order in a time of political and cultural change in American life. His two most recent books, Science and the Good and To Change the World, have shaped debates across communities and academic disciplines. Through appearances on National Public Radio and C-Span, at the National Endowment for the Arts, and at colleges and universities, Dr. Hunter continues to lead the conversation on the intersections of faith, politics, and culture.
Dr. Easu McCaulley
Associate professor of New Testament at Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL, and theologian in residence at Progressive Baptist Church, Dr. McCaulley is the author of Sharing in the Son’s Inheritance (2019) and Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope (2020). He is a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times. His writings have also appeared in places such as The Atlantic, Washington Post, and Christianity Today.
Dr. Charlie Dates
Charlie Dates is the senior pastor of Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago and an affiliate Professor at Baylor University George W. Truett Theological Seminary and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Dr. Dates is widely sought after for conferences, summits, retreats, and board memberships, as well as a guest in pulpits. His first single-authored book on Christianity and Social Justice is forthcoming.
Dr. Sam Chan
Dr. Chan is a public evangelist with City Bible Forum in Sydney, Australia, where he regularly shares the gospel with high-school students, city workers, doctors, and lawyers. He is also the author of several publications, including Evangelism in a Skeptical World and How to Talk About Jesus (Without Being That Guy). He speaks at conferences around the world on the topics of ethics, storytelling, apologetics, and the practice of evangelism in a post-Christian culture.
Dr. Karen Swallow Prior
Research Professor of English and Christianity and Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dr. Prior is the author of On Reading Well (2018) and co-editor of Cultural Engagement: A Crash Course in Contemporary Issues (2019). She is host of the popular podcast Jane and Jesus and a monthly column for Religion News Service. Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, First Things, Vox, Relevant, Think Christian, The Gospel Coalition, Books and Culture, and in many other places.
Dr. Alan Noble
Noble is an Associate Professor of English at Oklahoma Baptist University and the editor-in-chief of Christ and Pop Culture. His two most recent books, Disruptive Witness: Speaking Truth in a Distracted Age and You Are Not Your Own: Belonging to God in an Inhuman World, address the challenges of faith and identity within the new context of a digital world. Dr. Noble’s writing has appeared in Christianity Today, VOX, Buzzfeed, and The Atlantic. He has been widely cited in a number of major publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, MTV News, MSNBC, The Guardian, Buzzfeed, Politico, Village Voice, Yahoo! News, ThinkProgress, The Blaze, WORLD Magazine, and Slate.
Dr. John Dickson
The former Distinguished Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Public Christianity at Ridley College, Dr. Dickson is the newly appointed Jean Kvamme Distinguished Professor of Biblical Evangelism and Distinguished Scholar in Public Christianity at Wheaton College. He has published across a range of mediums and platforms, including Simply Christianity: Beyond Religion, and is also the founder and continuing director of Undeceptions, an organization that seeks to promote truth and deep Christian thought in skeptical times.
Gavin Ortlund
Senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Ojai in Ojai, California, Dr. Ortlund is the author of seven books as well as numerous academic and popular articles including Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn’t: The Beauty of Christian Theism (2021) and Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage (2020). His writing has also appeared at The Gospel Coalition, Mere Orthodoxy, Desiring God, Center for Pastor Theologians, and Sapientia.
Dr. Duane Litfin
The seventh president of Wheaton College, serving from 1993 to 2010, Dr. Litfin earned a reputation for both his institutional leadership and vision of Christian higher education. Among his many accomplishments, he enhanced the Faculty through the Faith and Learning Initiative, initiated the Doctoral Program in Biblical and Theological Studies, promoted Wheaton’s Evangelism Initiative, and envisioned the College’s Global Programs and Studies. His book Conceiving the Christian College (2004), remains a cornerstone text for understanding and leading Christian higher education institutions in the twenty-first century.
