"Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." Matthew 4:4

Why is coming to the North American Professors of Christian Education conference in San Diego so important? You should attend because you will receive innovative and practical ideas as to how create anew a hunger for this personal intimate relationship with God in your students. Not only will our keynote speakers challenge you in the formation of the spiritual life, but also you will be given time to create and discuss ways to implement the important concepts of nurturing the spiritual life in the lives of your students. But much more lies in store for you on the southern coastline of the Pacific.

#1 Foundational "soul" concepts and Spiritual Formation Values
J.P. Moreland, Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology and author and co-author of over 35 books and numerous journal and magazine articles will be leading us in a deeper understanding of the soul. In his latest book "Love Your God With All Your Mind JP says, "The soul is a very complicated thing with an intricate internal structure that we need to understand if we are to appreciate spiritual transformation." His model of soul will have profound implications for integrating spiritual formation into the lives of our students. He will also do a workshop where more of you can interact with him on implementation of his concepts.

Rick Dunn, a member and friend of many at NAPCE (now pastor to Student and Family Ministries and Theological Educator-in-Residence at Fellowship Church in Knoxville, Tennessee) and author of several books and journal articles will offer an alternative model for learning. He will challenge us with six transforming values for Christian education and will encourage you to revisit your own values for Christian education ministries. Each of the six transforming values will be critiqued and discussed for practical implementation in your own schools. Since you can’t attend each praxis, papers of each will be distributed to the attendees and an overview of each discussion will be given.

#2 Professional Development
Each of us have areas of professional life we would love to develop but never seem able to find that needed time of enrichment. NAPCE ’99 gives you this opportunity. Time is set apart for you to choose one of several areas of professional development including distance education, developing an advisory board, a working model of spiritual formation, discipleship, and developing leadership through student-directed workshops. Several of our membership who are skilled in these areas will be stimulating your professional growth with what has worked for them.

There will also be time when you will be encouraged to interact, share programs, syllabi, and ideas that are being emphasized on your campus. So come prepared to share not only your success stories, but to seek answers to current problems you are facing in implementing your passions and programs.

Kevin Lawson will again be coordinating the sharing of current research by faculty and students. Our research shows where Christian education needs to go in the future. This is a great opportunity to share what you have been working on, receive feedback from others, and stimulate others to extend your work into new areas.

#3 Refreshment
As faculty, we too do not "live on bread alone." We need to be refreshed through worship and fellowship with other believers who are co-laboring in training others to impact the Kingdom. The ’99 conference will provide times of worship and San Diego is a wonderful place to see God’s creation. Views of the harbor and Mission Bay from the bluff of Point Loma are breathtaking and awe inspiring. You truly will not want to miss Seaport Village with its quaint shops or the smell of tacos and the sights and sounds of Mexico in Old Town. NAPCE in San Diego will give you an opportunity to enjoy fellowship with colleagues and truly be refreshed.

I pray that God will direct your coming!

Gregory C. Carlson, President

With the retirement of Ford, Gangel, Benson, and other Christian education heroes, I wondered about the momentum of NAPCE. And yet our academic community does seem to be doing well! We had one of our largest and most energetic conferences in Nashville last year, and plans for San Diego are exciting, but still . . .

So what about us?

#1 We need to gather for the promotion of discussion, research, and writing
Using e-mail, the NAPCE web site, and regional consortia, our annual conferences can be highlights, not expensive duties. Research grants await! Some of us need the stimulus to think, propose, and write. NAPCE is also about:

#2 We need to gather for relationships, "networking," encouragement, and fun
Virtual friendships are enhanced to vitality with face to face meetings and continual communication.

#3 We need to gather for new ideas and interdisciplinary integration
I’m surprised at the mileage I get from my conference attendance in the classroom, personal development, "cutting edge insight," and general help compared to some of my colleagues who trudge off to their meetings. No wonder they have a different attitude about annual conferences!

#4 We need to gather to appreciate differences
We need development and participation of more ethnic groups for multi-cultural insight and stronger partnerships. I am pleased that gender issues are discussed at NAPCE, and women succeed among us.

#5 The bottom line of why we need to gather is to be better educators
The service of connecting graduate students, available people, and places of ministry is great. But the most powerful reason is that I’m a better Christian educator because of NAPCE. I am exposed to essential seed-thoughts through the relationships, materials, and presentations. The publishers are there for us, and they provide for us a huge resource! Just the books and discs one receives would make the membership valuable. Teaching skills are enhanced as models, attitudes, workshops, and conversations occur. Professional standards are enhanced, and many of the ideas gained at the NAPCE conference impact the entire academic community. (My dean almost always asks for a tape, a summary, or a report relating to a current university issue.)

So spread the word! Make it a point to tell at least one other person about NAPCE. Check out our web page for info. Get a student or colleague to come with you to the conference. Who knows? It may help you get up in the morning!

____________
1 Garber, Steven. 1996. Fabric of faithfulness: Weaving together belief and behavior during the university years. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. Page 15.

We are looking for faculty and students interested in sharing their research at the upcoming NAPCE conference. The research can be empirical in nature, or of a historical, philosophical, or theological model. A high quality of research workmanship is expected. Presentation sessions last approximately 75 minutes. We had a wonderful response last year, and had an outstanding group of presentations!

This year’s theme is "Nurturing the Soul Through Christian Education." Research presentations on this topic are especially encouraged, but need not be restricted to this area. If you are interested in making a presentation, please send a 1-2 page single-spaced abstract of your research effort to: Kevin E. Lawson, Talbot School of Theology, 13800 Biola Avenue, La Mirada, CA 90639, Phone: (562) 903-6000 x 5528, Fax: (562) 903-4759, E-mail: kevin_lawson@peter.biola.edu.

The deadline for applications is September 1, 1999. The number of research presentations is limited, so early applications will be given preference. This is a great opportunity to share what you have been working on, receive feedback from others, and stimulate others to extend your work into new areas. Please join us for a great conference, and share your work with us!

NAPCE.ORG
NAPCE has its own domain name on the Internet. You are invited to access the NAPCE web pages through the URL www.napce.org. This permanent URL should make locating the NAPCE web pages easier if/when a change in Internet Service Provider (ISP) is necessary.

Discussion Groups
NAPCE has its own online discussion groups thanks to the School of Christian Education and Leadership of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. All NAPCE members have guest access to these discussion groups. To access the discussions, please go to:

http://webclass.sbts.edu/scripts/webclass.cgi

Discussion Group Protocol
Instructions for participating in and making the most of online discussions can be found in the **Please Read Before Posting** group. You are strongly encouraged to start here before reading or posting messages.

All discussion groups are moderated, which means that when you submit a message to be posted, it will not appear immediately. The discussion group host will first review the message for content, and then post the message—this prevents objectionable language and material from appearing in our discussions.

You do not need to register to participate in discussions. However, for a message to be posted, you will be required to give your full name and e-mail address at the beginning of your message. Failure to do so will result in the message not being posted by the host. We request that netspeak (abbreviated language common on the Internet) be avoided, and that emoticons (facial expressions from text :) like the smiley face) be limited.

Request for Discussion Group Topics and Hosts
Our online discussion groups can be as varied as the interests of the NAPCE membership, and run as long or short as necessary. If you have a suggestion for a discussion group topic or would like to host a group, please e-mail Mark Simpson at msimpson@sbts.edu.

Access Problems
Occasionally the web server will go down, but it is reset daily in the early hours of the morning. If you cannot access the discussion groups and have been able to do so previously, please be patient and try again later before contacting the sysop (Mark Simpson).

NAPCE News Discussion Group
One of the NAPCE discussion groups is a read-only news group. This news group allows members of the NAPCE Board to post messages immediately, without having to wait for a web page to be updated.

The membership of the association has reached 262 for the 1998-1999 year (October 1-September 30). This is the highest membership we have had in several years and indicates the growing strength of the association.

Members receive the NAPCE Newsletter, the Christian Education Journal and, from time to time, free books provided by publishers.

Many who receive this newsletter have not renewed their membership. We invite you to do so for the coming year.

Membership is open to persons who teach Christian education in institutions of higher learning, persons who teach in related areas, persons who formerly taught Christian education in colleges or seminaries, and leaders of related Christian education organizations. Full membership is $40 per year and student membership is $25 per year. Checks should be made to NAPCE and payable in U.S. funds. Memberships received between now and October 1st will be counted for the 1999-2000 membership year. Please send your membership fee payable in U.S. funds along with your name and title, address (indicate home or work), home phone, work phone, fax line, e-mail address, and school/organization to NAPCE: c/o Dennis E. Williams, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2825 Lexington Road, Louisville, KY 40280, Phone: (502) 897-4813, Fax: (502) 897-4004, E-mail: celead@sbts.edu.

Please indicate if we have permission to post your membership on our web pages (excluding home address and/or home phone of course).

Qualitative Research Web Pages
Donald Ratcliff of Toccoa Falls College has created a group of web pages on qualitative research methods. The original content came from a graduate research Don course taught at The University of Georgia, and was developed further for a recent faculty development workshop taught at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The URL for these web pages is: http://www.alltel.net/~ratcliff.

Book Review Editor Needed
NAPCE needs a book review editor who will coordinate the distributing new books to members for review and editing the brief reviews appearing in this newsletter. Editing responsibilities can be completed once per year, usually following the annual conference, with the reviews distributed across the three NAPCE newsletters. For further information, please contact Mark Simpson: Phone: (502) 897-4813 or e-mail: msimpson@sbts.edu.

Research Grants Available
NAPCE receives a renewable grant of $5,000 each year from David C. Cook Church Ministries for research projects related to the field of Christian education. Research grant proposal guidelines are available in the previous issue of this newsletter or online from the NAPCE web site. Funding is on a first come basis. Grant recipients must have been members of NAPCE for at least two years. A limited number of dissertations are funded each year—doctoral student applicants must still meet the membership requirement. For additional information please contact: James Davies, Simpson College, 2211 Collegeview Drive, Redding, CA 96003, Phone: (530) 224-5600 x2149, Fax: (530) 224-2051.

David C. Cook Article Service
David C. Cook Church Ministries makes available a free Christian Education Article Service. This service provides magazines with excerpts from significant writings across a variety of vocations in Christian education ministry. Please contact Dawn Boden for additional information if you are responsible for a magazine or other publication: 4050 Lee Vance View, Colorado Springs, CO 80918, phone (800) 708-5550, x3983, e-mail MinistryRelations@cookministries.org.

What’s News with You?
If you would like to update your mailing profile or share information about yourself or another Christian educator for publication in the Newsletter, please send your updated information, news item, name and institution name to: Mark Simpson, 2825 Lexington Road, Louisville, KY 40280, or e-mail celead@sbts.edu.

Dennis E. Williams, Executive Administrator

Your hotel reservations should be made directly with: Hanalei Hotel, 2270 Hotel Circle North, San Diego, CA 92108, (800) 882-0858 or (619) 297-1101. Please indicate that you are with NAPCE to receive the rate of $89 for single or double occupancy. The cut-off date is October 6–thereafter reservations will be accepted on a space available basis and at the prevailing rate of the hotel. You must make your reservations prior to October 6 to secure the NAPCE room rate.

Need a Roommate?
If you would like us to help you find a roommate to share the cost of the hotel, contact Dennis Williams at (502) 897-4813 and leave your name, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address with the secretary or voice mail. You may also contact Dennis by fax at (502) 897-4004 or by e-mail at celead@sbts.edu. Either you will be given the name of someone to contact, or your name will be put on a waiting list. The earlier you make your request, the greater the chance you can share a room. When requesting a roommate, it is assumed that you both will be staying at the hotel Thursday through Saturday night.

Airline Special Rates
United Airlines is offering NAPCE members a 5% discount off the lowest available discount fare to San Diego, including First Class, or a 10% discount off full fare unrestricted coach class when purchased seven days in advance. An additional 5% discount will apply if tickets are purchased at least 60 days in advance. These discounts also apply to Shuttle by United and United Express. You or your travel agent may call United’s Specialized Meeting Reservation Center at (800) 521-4041 seven days a week from 7:00 a.m. to midnight EST. To receive the discount, you must refer to Meeting ID Number 543ZF.

Financial Assistance
Through the David C. Cook Church Ministries Professional Growth and Development Grant, the NAPCE Board is able to provide some financial assistance to professors who must pay all or part of their expenses to the Annual Conference in October. Persons requesting assistance should be members of NAPCE for the current year. Canadian members may deduct $35 from their registration fee as long as the check is payable in U.S. dollars. Scholarship funds are limited—if you need assistance, contact Dennis Williams as soon as possible.

Our first conference of the new century will be held at the International Plaza Hotel in Toronto, Canada. Mark your calendars for the dates of 26-29 October 2000!

Being Spiritually Formed and Refreshed as a Youth Ministry Educator
Hanalei Hotel, San Diego California
October 30-Nov 1

Wayne Rice is our guest speaker this fall, and the program is designed with a lot of small group interaction. Program details and a conference brochure will be mailed in March. For registration information and please contact: Jana Sundene, YME Administrator, E-mail: jsundene@tiu.edu, Phone: (847) 314-7165.

"We live in a global world." How often haven’t you heard that comment? Yet how often do we not simply continue our ministry as if we were ethnically and culturally isolated? This edited volume by Wilkerson can provide important guidelines and content for assisting you, your students, and Ministers of Education learn to see the world as God sees it. Wouldn’t it be silly if a person lived in a 32-room mansion, yet only actually occupied two of those rooms refusing to enter all the others? God has created many "rooms" on this globe, and we must help others enter and celebrate each one of them.

As with many other publications from REP, this book relies heavily on a social science approach. Divided into four major sections, the reader is exposed to foundational issues, a glimpse at various cultural groups (African-American, Pacific-Asian, Hispanic, and Native American), ministry strategies, and a challenging conclusion by Virgilio Elizondo entitled "Benevolent Tolerance or Humble Reverence? A Vision for Multicultural Religious Education." Here he confronts "the sin of dogmatic ethnocentrism" and then calls us to conversion in Christ and construction on new church homes marked by patient trust, along with a welcoming and inclusive attitude.

Keely, Barbara Anne, ed. 1997. Faith of our Foremothers. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 0-664-25721-6.
Reviewed by Jackie L. Smallbones, Assistant Professor of Christian Education & Religion at Northwestern College, Orange City, Iowa.

Faith of our Foremothers is the story of twelve women, primarily from non-Evangelical positions, who have influenced 20th century Christian Education in the United States.

In her introduction, Keely, professor of CE at United Theological Seminary, emphasizes that the purpose of the book was not only to "hear one another into speech," but also to demonstrate how these women contributed to the feminist approach to education. She suggests eight ‘threads’ that are woven into the tapestry of women’s work in religious education. They range from universal Christian concerns such as the importance of the community and relationships within them, to issues considered problematic by some, dealing with power struggles in the church and how language shapes religious knowing. By and large, I find her eight ‘threads’ a helpful outline for doing Christian education.

The greatest strength of the book is its narrative approach. I gained a new perspective on the history of Christian education in the U.S. through these women educators. Hilda Niebuhr sounds wonderful. She taught in the classroom and practiced it in a compassionate life committed to the poor. Iris V. Cully’s story affirmed me in my approach to CE. I learned from Sophia Fahs’ practice, albeit not from her theology! I could ‘listen’ to all these women and evaluate my own story.

The greatest weakness of the book was the insistence on the feminist agenda. Not all the women considered themselves feminists, a fact admitted by the contributor. But all were forced into the feminist mold.

Keely’s book will make provocative reading in a foundational issues or history of CE course, enabling us to reflect on CE from the much-needed women’s perspective.

Pollard, Nick. 1997. Evangelism made slightly less difficult. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. ISBN 0-8308-1908-8. 178 pages.
Reviewed by Greg Carlson, Grace University, Omaha, Nebraska.

Nick Pollard is a campus evangelist who does a great service to campus and student pastors. Pollard is current, concise, and practical in addressing those along the following spectrum of evangelistic effort. The four sections of the book speak to: 1) Those who are not interested in the gospel (positive deconstruction); 2) Those who know very little about Jesus (gospel proclamation); 3) Those who have questions and doubts (apologetics) and 4) Those who are ready to receive Christ. (Gospel presentation).

Pollard writes in a simple, practical style with plenty of personal illustrations both positive and negative. He clearly has a heart to equip our generation to be more effective in evangelism. Youth groups, college ministries, churches and parachurch ministries will be strengthened as a result of studying this book. It is up to date, challenging, and insightful.

North American Professors of Christian Education Annual Conference
October 28-30, 1999
Hanalei Hotel - San Diego, California

Thursday, October 28th 1:00-5:00 P.M. Registration 5:00-6:00 P.M. Poolside Reception 6:00-7:30 P.M. Dinner 7:30-9:00 P.M. General Session—J. P. Moreland and Roundtable Friday, October 29th 7:30-8:30 A.M. Breakfast 8:30-9:30 A.M. General Session—Rick Dunn 9:30-10:00 A.M. Break 10:00-11:15 A.M. Spiritual Formation Praxis 11:15-11:30 A.M. Break 11:30-1:30 P.M. Lunch 1:30-2:30 P.M. Current Research 2:30-6:30 P.M. Leisure Time 6:30-7:45 P.M. Dinner 7:45-8:00 P.M. Break 8:00-9:00 P.M. General Session—J. P. Moreland 9:00 P.M. Questions and Answers with J. P. and Rick

Saturday, October 30th 7:30-8:30 A.M. Breakfast 8:30-9:30 A.M. Current Research 9:30-9:45 A.M. Break 9:45-10:45 A.M. Professional Development Workshops 10:45-11:00 A.M. Break 11:00-12:00 Noon Feedback from Professional Development Workshops 12:30-1:45 P.M. Lunch and Networking Tables 2:00-3:15 P.M. General Session—Rick Dunn and Closing Worship

Copyright © 1999. The North American Professors of Christian Education. All rights reserved.