Addenda 2.9 (September 2019)

We are Listening!

A few months ago the Society asked for your anonymous feedback. Your advice was helpful. Thank you! One Society member thought that the Member Directory could be more intuitively located. Another member asked, “Can you offer us incentives to find new Society members?” Explore here the Society’s responses to these and other comments.

Is there a point of convergence between prayer and the scientific laboratory, between the altar and the classroom, or between the Bible and the academic research project?

Indeed, there is! As Christians, we know that we live, move, and have our being only in Christ (Acts 17:28). As academics, we also know that only in Christ do we have the wisdom and strength to teach, to research, and to offer our lives in service to our institutions and communities. 

Hence, it’s reasonable to conclude that a growing spiritual life nurtures the academic life and that, conversely,  a thriving academic life also cultivates one’s spiritual life. What does it mean, then, for a Christian academic to grow spiritually? 

Find out by perusing Society resources about Growing Spiritually as an academic. 

Teach from a Distance!
“Today’s lecture [Zoom™] was very revealing, impactful, and successful” (Nigeria).

This was a student’s email response to Professor Danny McCain, who recently took an unexpected trip but still needed to teach his class at the University of Jos in Nigeria. Group videoconferencing requires a monthly subscription, but not for full members of the Society! Prof. McCain used Zoom™ to teach his class and said that “it worked great!” Explore today how you can leverage Zoom™ for your teaching and conferencing needs. 

Don’t Submit a Paper without Help
Every paper you write should be edited by a colleague, preferably one within your own discipline. Journal editors are more likely to accept for publication articles with impeccable grammar and groundbreaking content. 

But editors are expensive–unless you are a full member of the Society! Society members have access to volunteer editors from a broad range of disciplines. Whether publishing an article, composing a conference paper, designing a PowerPoint or writing a monograph, be sure to take advantage of this strategic member benefit.  

Access to Webinar Recordings
Did you miss a previous webinar? We have the recorded sessions on the Member site to view at your convenience. Click below to find out more!

International Prayer Weekend for Academia, 5-6 October 2019
C-A-N- Invites You to Join!

The Christian Academic Network in the United Kingdom is holding a national prayer weekend for academia on the 5th-6th October 2019. They have laid out five prayer and praise points to direct their prayers for Christian academics in the UK.

We encourage you to send us up to five prayer and praise requests so that internationally we can all pray for the needs of Christian academics in different nations during the same weekend. Send your prayer requests by 4 October to mdeaver@global-scholars.org.

Below are the five prayer and praise items from our brothers and sisters in the UK. Please pray for them, and feel free to use their five requests to structure your own. Then please share items with us as you are able.

1. We are thankful for the value of free speech in the UK and the privileges of academic freedom to allow Christians the chance to contribute to and enrich their disciplines. We pray for the upholding of academic freedom and the importance of our Universities in this regard.

2. The UK has a strong equality and diversity agenda within which faith is included within seven protected characteristics of the Equality Act made by the government in 2010. Please pray that faith will be given equal attention to other protected characteristics that Christian academics and researchers can unashamedly be part of the environment they are in.

3. Please pray for the impact on the funding of academia, due to the threat of cuts from both the UK government and the EU. Threatened cuts put pressure on academics and bring more uncertainty to researchers who are seeking an academic career with limited opportunities. There still exist insecurities for EU citizens wishing to work in the UK. Please pray for the opportunity for an intake of new Christian academics far and wide.

4. Academics in the UK are facing substantial workloads up to 60 hours a week with little chance to use up their annual leave. This work includes increased bureaucratic administration, expectations to deliver consumer-focused teaching, and maintaining research activity.

5. Around one-fifth of students in the UK are currently facing mental health issues. Please pray for the provision of staff and time from academics to meet this growing need so that students can be best supported in their studies.