Annual Global Scholars Grant Is Open!
The Annual Global Scholars Grant (2025) opened on 1 December. Applications can be submitted until 1 March 2025. The purpose of these grants is to help Society members become better equipped to fulfill their calling in academia.
December 1, 2024: First day to submit applications
March 1, 2025: Deadline for grant submissions
March 1 to May 31, 2025: Grant Evaluation Committee determines grant recipients
June 1, 2025: Grant recipients announced
July 31, 2025: Funds awarded
Grant recipients will be asked to submit regular reports as indicated in the terms of the specific grant.
Several grants between $500 USD and $2,000 USD will be awarded.
Applicants who have received this grant last year (2024) are not allowed to apply this year.
Note: The Annual Global Scholars Grant is only available to Full Members of the Society of Christian Scholars.
Honoring Dr. Bruce Hanson: A Legacy of Mentorship and Dedication
The Society of Christian Scholars extends its deepest gratitude to Dr. Bruce Hanson, who, after more than seven impactful years as Mentorship Director, is stepping down from his role at age 82.
Dr. Hanson has been a guiding force helping to build and shape our mentorship program, where senior Christian scholars come alongside junior scholars, fostering growth, encouragement, and community.
As assistant to the Society’s first mentorship director, Dr. Hanson was instrumental in laying the groundwork for this program that has since impacted lives around the world. Many of our mentees have been shaped not only by the wisdom and guidance of their mentors but by Dr. Hanson’s own example of compassionate leadership and commitment to service. Although Dr. Hanson is stepping down as director, he will continue to serve as a mentor under the program’s new leadership, sharing his insights and dedication with mentees for years to come.
In January, Dr. Peter Cimala of Prague, Czech Republic, will take on the role of Mentorship Director. We appreciate Dr. Hanson’s legacy of service and are grateful for his ongoing commitment to the Society and its mission.
Thank you, Dr. Hanson, for the lasting mark you’ve made on the Society and on so many scholars worldwide.
Society Library
Update: Library Reading Group begins meeting monthly
Starting in January 2025, the Library Reading Group will meet monthly on the first Friday of each month. Those wishing to lead a discussion related to a resource of their choice in accord with the Society’s mission should submit the article for review and inclusion in the Society’s Library or choose a resource from the Library. Please contact Dr Marlene Hines at librarian@societyofchristianscholars.org if you would like to lead a discussion.
Library Reading Corner
This month’s Library Reading Corner feature includes four library resources under the library categories of Pursuing Vocational Excellence, Loving God with the Mind, Theology and Academy and Interacting with Cultures. These resources provide further reading for the November 2024 webinar, ‘Ecosystemic Degradation and the Responsibility of the Church in Burkina Faso’, presented by Dr. Sambo Ouédraogo.
Title: Introduction: The Emerging Alliance of the World Religions and Ecology by Mary Evelyn Tucker & John A. Grim
Brief Description: ‘This issue of Daedalus [the journal in which the articles appeared] brings together for the first time diverse perspectives from the world’s religious traditions regarding attitudes toward nature with reflections from the fields of science, public policy, and ethics.’
Title: Poetry and Ecology: The Spirit Breathing through Word and World by Debra Brown
Brief Description: This reflective work was influenced by the author’s quest to find links between the Scriptures, literary expressions and interpretations and the natural environment in which we live. This interest led to the development and implementation of the ‘Poetry and Ecology Project’.
Title: Where Mortals Dwell: A Christian View of Place for Today by Craig C. Bartholomew
Brief Description: This book explores the concept and significance of place theory and a theology of place in the context of the Bible from creation to the Gospels, in terms of western philosophical thinking, Christian tradition, and contemporary Christian worldview.
Title: Green Space Development in Shrinking Cities: Opportunities and Constraints by Stephanie Robler
Brief Description: This resource examines the role of urban planning in the maintenance and sustainability of green spaces in cities. The study makes connections between place theory, theology of place, urban planning, practical urban theology and Christ-centered urban renewal.
Please contact the Society’s librarian, Dr Marlene Hines, at librarian@societyofchristianscholars.org for any further assistance.
Upcoming Conference
Call for Papers: 2025 Association of Christian Economists Conference: Economics as Faithful Stewardship
Hosted by: The Westmont College Department of Economics and Business
Conference Dates: July 17th to 19th 2025
Submissions Due: January 15th 2025
Location: Westmont College, Santa Barbara, California, USA
Summary of Conference: The Association of Christian Economists invites all interested scholars to join us for an academic conference at Westmont College in Santa Barbara California in July 2025. The conference will feature three plenary lectures by accomplished scholars, as well as concurrent sessions featuring economics research papers that are theoretical, empirical, historical, or philosophical in nature. We welcome research papers from all economics subfields that use conventional methods of economic analysis. We are also interested in papers that specifically address the relationship between faith and economic reasoning. Finally, we are also interested in submissions of panel sessions around a theme of general interest. All authors are invited to also submit their papers to our journal Faith & Economics.
Submission Instructions: Individual paper submissions should include a paper title, author, and an abstract (150 to 300 words). Full paper drafts are also welcome. Complete session proposals are encouraged and should include title/author/abstract for 3 to 4 speakers. Panel sessions that do not include research presentations should include a title, a detailed description of the topic to be discussed, and the proposed participants. All questions and submissions should be emailed to conference@christianeconomists.org. Priority will be given to submissions received before January 15th, 2025.
Submissions from graduate students are encouraged. Students can attend at a discounted rate, and there is a limited pool of travel support available for students whose papers are accepted. Please indicate your desire to apply for this support in an email to conference@christianeconomists.org
Upcoming Webinars
Be sure to check the Webinars Page for third-party webinars that are often added on short notice and for updated presenters and topics that may be helpful in equipping you to bring the gospel to bear in your university context.
Perceptions and Determinants of Entrepreneurship in a Christian Environment: A Science-and-Faith Analysis by Albertine Bayompe Kabou – POSTPONED
Unfortunately, our presenter for this month’s webinar, Dr Albertine KABOU, will not be able to present this Thursday, 19 December due to some unexpected family concerns. We have rescheduled her presentation, ‘Perceptions and Determinants of Entrepreneurship in a Christian Environment: A Science-and-Faith Analysis’, for Thursday, 19 June 2025 at 1400 UTC.
There will not be a webinar this Thursday, 19 December. You can still register if you would like.
What is a Human Person? A Robust Answer Avoiding Two (Popular) Extremes by Stan Wallace – Thursday, 16 January 2025 at 1400 UTC
What does it mean to be human, and what are the implications? This foundational question underlies many important conversations in our academic disciplines. Today the answer most popular in the academy (and seeping into the church through ‘neurotheologians’) is some form of physicalism, the idea that we are essentially, or at least fundamentally, physical beings. Despite many good intentions, this anthropology encounters a number of difficulties, both theologically and philosophically. A popular alternative often offered, especially by believers – Cartesian dualism – has problems of its own that lead many to find it equally untenable.
On Thursday, 16 January 2025 at 1400 UTC, Dr Stan Wallace, CEO and President of Global Scholars, will outline a ‘middle way’ anthropology consistent with both the grain of the biblical witness and wisdom found in the Western philosophical tradition. This ‘middle way’ is called ‘holistic dualism’, and it draws on the thought of Aristotle, Aquinas and a growing number of contemporary philosophers of mind. This anthropology also provides a fruitful way forward for all who, in their research and teaching, engage with what it means to be human and related implications.
In preparation for this webinar, read the introduction to Dr Wallace’s new book, Have We Lost our Minds? Neuroscience, Neurotheology, the Soul, and Human Flourishing. You can also listen to a podcast discussing the content of the introduction on his Thinking Christianly podcast. Or you can watch a short video about why he wrote the book.
Be sure to register for this engaging and exciting conversation today!
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the Addenda are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Society of Christian Scholars.
