COGIC Scholars Fellowship Academic Forum Programming AIM 2010

As the COGIC faithful and friends of the denomination turn this summer toward Charlotte, North Carolina for the denomination’s annual Auxiliaries in Ministry Convention, (July 5-10, 2010) the leadership of the COGIC Scholars Fellowship are busily preparing another highly provocative and stimulating academic forum.  This year, which happens to be the 10th year of the Fellowship, the programming will feature papers from the academic fields of constructive theology, biblical studies and church history. Two authors will also lead book discussions on text written in the field of practical theology. This year’s presentations to be given from the area of constructive theology include papers by Howard University theology professor Dr. Frederick Ware entitled “Embodied Agency and Spirit Baptism: Human-Divine Partnership in the Fulfillment of Life” and Elder Oscar Owen’s  “Practicing Tongues Prayer as an Edifying and Transforming Spiritual Discipline.”  Owens is the director of Christian Education at the West Angeles Cathedral of Los Angeles.

            From the field of biblical studies papers will be presented by two COGIC Bible scholars. Dr. Eric Greaux of Winston-Salem State University will present a paper called “Barack Hussein Obama: Messiah or Antichrist? Towards the Identification of the Beast in the Book of Revelation” and Dr. Jamal D. Hopkins of the Interdenominational Theological Center of Atlanta will present his paper on “The Blessing of Ham: Exploring the Tradition through Tracing the Biblical and Intertestamental Literary Witnesses.”
 
            The single paper “Make Them One: Rediscovering Unity and Hope in North Africa from Among Fragmenting Early Christianities” to be presented in the area of early church history will be given by the Elder David Moore.  Moore, the senior pastor of the New Covenant Worship Center of Santa Barbara, California, is also a Doctor of Theology candidate at the University of South Africa.

In addition to the papers presented, books to be discussed during this year’s forum include Dr. Leonard Lovett’s Crockpot Preaching: Toward a Preaching Methodology and Dr. Antipas Harris’ For Such a Time as This: Re-Imaging Practical Theology for Independent Pentecostal Churches.  Lovett currently serves the denomination as Ecumenical Officer while Harris is the Assistant Professor of Practical Ministry at Regent University in Virginia Beach.  Please join us for an uncommon time of conclave, dialogue and fellowship.  I hope to see you there!

                                                                                                                                           ***Eric Lewis Williams