“Origins Today: Genesis Through Ancient Eyes”
John Walton, Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College, author of Lost World of Genesis One (Intervarsity Press, 2009), will be giving lectures in the Vancouver area Wednesday 20 March to Saturday 23 March 2013.
Walton’s work in Genesis 1–3 offers a fresh perspective on this complex issue by seeking to understand the message of Scripture within its ancient context.
A close reading of the Genesis creation account and an evaluation of its ancient Near Eastern setting raise the question of whether the Bible provides modern scientific information related to our understanding of the natural world (e.g., cosmology, biology, or human origins), or whether it offers a theological, rather than material, framework for thinking about the cosmos—for example, God made everything and is sovereign over it. This question in turn leads us to inquire whether today’s scientific conclusions regarding old earth, common descent, and parentage of the human race necessarily conflict with the Bible or theology.
Walton’s research and his energized presentations are rooted in his passion for drawing people into a better understanding of God’s self-revelation in Scripture. He focuses his research on the literature and cultures of the ancient Near East and the Old Testament, with a particular interest in Genesis. Before his role at Wheaton, Walton taught for 20 years at Moody Bible Institute.
Dr. Walton has authored many articles and books, including The Lost World of Genesis One, Genesis 1 as Ancient Cosmology, and Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament. His book on Genesis 2–3, The Lost World of Adam and Eve, is forthcoming from InterVarsity Press. He also served as general editor of the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Old Testament and co-author of the IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament.
Itinerary:
- Wednesday 20 March, 4pm: The Graduate & Faculty Christian Forum at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
- public lecture: “The Lost World of Genesis One in the Ancient Near East”
- Woodward (IRC) Room 5; more info here
- Thursday 21 March at Trinity Western University, Langley, BC
- 1:10-2:25pm: faculty lecture, students and public welcome: “Human Origins: What are the Claims of Genesis 2?” – Facebook event page
- 7:30-9:30pm: public lecture: “Origins Today: Genesis Through Ancient Eyes” – Facebook event page
- Both events are in the Northwest Auditorium (building #28 on this map); pay parking is available nearby.
- Friday 22 March
- 12:30pm: Simon Fraser University‘s Christian Leadership Initiative, Burnaby, BC (Shrum Science Centre K9500)
- “Genesis and the Genome” – similar to Saturday event, with Walton & Venema* – Facebook event page
- 7:30-9:00pm: Regent College, Vancouver, BC (details here)
- public lecture: “Origins Today: Genesis Through Ancient Eyes”
- 12:30pm: Simon Fraser University‘s Christian Leadership Initiative, Burnaby, BC (Shrum Science Centre K9500)
- Saturday 23 March, 10am-noon: Richmond Alliance Church
click for full size poster
- “Genesis and the Genome: What two ancient texts reveal (and don’t reveal) about human origins” – a pair of lectures by John Walton and Dennis Venema* (associate professor of biology at TWU and senior fellow of BioLogos)
- Panel discussion with Walton, Venema, and pastor Jon Coutts
- Q&A with the audience
- Facebook event page to “Join” and “Invite Friends”
All events are free and open to the public.
Co-sponsored by Origins Today, the hosting institutes and organisations, and Canadian Scientific & Christian Affiliation, Vancouver Area Science & Religion Forum.
*Abstract of Dennis Venema’s lecture, paired with John Walton on Friday at SFU and on Saturday in Richmond: Is evolution “just a theory?” Is “Mitochondrial Eve” the Eve of the Genesis narrative? Do we all descend from Adam? These questions have recently caught the attention of Christians interested in the interaction between science and faith. The Human Genome Project, and comparative genomics in general, have provided a wealth of information about how our species came into being. Two findings, in particular, are of interest to evangelical Christians: first, the confirmation that we share ancestry with other forms of life, and secondly, that our species arose as a population, not through an ancestral pair. This talk will discuss how evolution works as a theory in the scientific sense, and explore what the genome can tell us about human origins.