Holy Spirit in the World Today Conference
Five hundred people came to hear Archbishop Rowan Williams, German theologian Professor Jürgen Moltmann, Professor Miroslav Volf and Professor David Ford speak at the Holy Spirit in the World Conference at Holy Trinity Brompton on the 20th and 21st of May.
The first day of the two day conference jointly sponsored by St Paul's Theological College and St Mellitus College with HTB was opened with a homily from Rowan Williams, followed by an interview with Jürgen Moltmann by Chairman of Lazard International and Alpha International, Ken Costa.
Professor Moltmann then spoke on ‘The Church in the Power of the Spirit’.
After lunch Professor Miroslav Volf spoke on ‘One Spirit, Many Tongues: Globalization, Faith Traditions, and Human Flourishing.’
Volf studied under Jürgen Moltmann at the University of Tübingen and was formerly a professor at Fuller Theological Seminary.
His book Exclusion and Embrace, was selected as among the 100 best religious books of the 20th Century by Christianity Today.
Moltmann himself has written many books, in particular The Theology of Hope.
The afternoon ended with a reflection from Professor Tom Greggs and at the Evening Celebration the Revd Sandy Millar spoke on ‘Filled with the Spirit’.
The conference ended on Friday 21 May, after talks by Professor David Ford, Dr Graham Tomlin and Revd Tom Smail and a time of prayer and worship.
The Bishop of London Richard Chartres
“At a time when fragmentation and partisanship can appear to threaten the credibility and effectiveness of our ministry, St Mellitus represents a bold step of faith and trust. We believe that as we pursue the harder path of unity in diversity, the College will prove to be an instrument of the Spirit in equipping the whole people of God to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Bishop of Chelmsford Stephen Cottrell
“As we seek to train men and women for ministry and mission in a rapidly changing context, St Mellitus College offers the Chelmsford Diocese a flexible and inclusive approach for theological and ministerial education and formation. It is very exciting to be part of this pioneering initiative.”
The Dean Revd Dr Graham Tomlin
“St Mellitus College is a very exciting place to work. It brings together students from across the spectrum of the church to learn about and prepare for mission in the contemporary world, in a way that tries to be open to the Spirit of God and learning from each other. We have a fantastic group of students, a great staff team and it is a privilege to be part of it.”
Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge University, David Ford
"One of the most important experiments to have happened in British theology and church theological education for a long time. The way it is bringing together academy and church, including church at the grass roots - that collaboration is just full of potential for the future and I feel everyone should watch this space. What it can do is something that really no other theological institution in the country can achieve at the moment."