ICS/CPRSE Co-Presents One-Act Play as 2015 Art Talks! Event

DOORS OPEN AT 6:30

Please join us on Friday, February 6 at 7PM for the opening performance of Just Faith?, a one-act play that dramatizes the research findings of the CPRSE's partnered research project, Justice and Faith: Individual Spirituality and Social Responsibility in the Christian Reformed Church in Canada. The event will take place at the University of Toronto's Multifaith Centre, Koffler House, 569 Spadina Crescent. Presented by MT Space Theatre, the performance will be followed by a facilitated community discussion. Mark your calendars and be sure to participate in this admission free event, funded by the Christian Reformed Church and ICS' Ruth Memorial Fund.

ART in Orvieto Information Night on February 12

There will be an ART in Orvieto information night on 12 February 2015 in the first floor Boardroom of the TST building, 47 Queen's Park Crescent East, from 7 to 8:30pm. If you have any questions or want to hear more about this exciting new learning opportunity, please come and bring your friends!

A limited number of spaces are still available. The deadline for registration is March 31, 2015. Final year undergraduates are welcome to apply.

Strategic Directions

Several months ago, the Board co-chairs (Henriette Thompson and Aileen van Ginkel) and the Leadership Team (Ed Hayley, Ron Kuipers and Doug Blomberg) formulated a statement of three “strategic directions” for ICS. This summarises the outcomes of extensive consultation among faculty, staff, Senate and the Board of Trustees. In brief, these priorities are advancement, partnering and online education. Of course, each has long played a part in the execution of ICS’s mission. You might like to review, for example, the June 1998 issue of Perspective, available in our Institutional Repository (ir.icscanada.edu/icsir/handle/10756/337854).

Advancement

The Board of Trustees recently decided to appoint an Advancement Committee to concentrate on this crucial aspect of ICS’s functioning. Board member Philip Preville has agreed to act as chair, and brings significant expertise to this role. We are also in the process of filling positions on three Task Forces reporting to this committee, in Eastern Canada, Western Canada and the United States (the latter in close collaboration with Friends of ICS). Janet deVries, Development Counsel from Christian Stewardship Services, has been providing significant oversight of these structural changes and many other initiatives in the advancement arena. An immediate priority is the recruitment of a Director of Advancement, for which advertising will soon begin.

Partnering

The Board has also established a Partnering Committee, comprising Board co-chair Aileen Van Ginkel (an expert in this field), Harry Fernhout (former President of ICS and The King’s UC), Nicholas Terpstra (University of Toronto, former Senate Chair and Chancellor), John Valk (University of New Brunswick, ICS trustee), Neal De Roo (Dordt College, ICS trustee and FICS board member), Bob Sweetman and Doug Blomberg. Frameworks for partnering with other institutions are being developed, at the same time as a number of grassroots initiatives in distance education are being negotiated. The Centre for Philosophy, Religion and Social Ethics (CPRSE) is another important dimension in our partnering activities, with the “Justice and Faith” project having the potential to expand its current collaboration with the Christian Reformed Church and the Centre for Community Based Research to include other partners.

Just recently, ICS has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Baekseok University, Republic of Korea, and agreed to explore possibilities for collaboration, with respect especially to the exchange of students, faculty and academic information and a study abroad program. This agreement emerged from the conference of institutional leaders organised by the International Association for the Promotion of Christian Higher Education in Malaysia, November 2014.

Online Education

The three strategic directions are intertwined. For example, off-campus programs have often been in partnership with other institutions. These have included the National Institute for Christian Education in Australia and the International Association for the Promotion of Christian Higher Education, through the Christian Academic Studies Certificate. We are currently partnering with faculty in Central America for the MWS in Urban Ministry and Gordon College at its Orvieto facility in Italy in our Art, Religion and Theology concentration, as well as exploring other cooperative ventures. These more recent engagements include intensive residential components, likely to be emulated. A previous ICS vision statement highlighted “Globally Accessible Christian Graduate Education”: we remain committed to this goal.

The link with advancement is clear: the “Graduate School with a Difference” needs to be (seen to be) making a difference if we are both to be faithful to our vision and to enthuse a broader range of supporters, those for whom academic pursuits seem too removed from concrete realities. This support is vital to the gamut of our operations, and always has been.

Position Opening: Registrar

We currently have an opening for the position of Registrar. Please visit www.icscanada.edu/jobs for details.

Prayer Letter: February 2015

Monday, February 2: We thank God for all the applicants to our programs. We pray that the successful applicants will be able to join us in our mission.

Tuesday, February 3: We ask God's help and guidance for all those who are doing advancement work for ICS. Please pray that support for the vision and mission of ICS continues to grow.

Wednesday, February 4: Many of our Junior Members are working on their their Masters and PhD thesis projects. We pray for our Junior Members and ask that they will have time, concentration, and wisdom.

Thursday, February 5: Today we pray for the general well-being of the ICS. We ask for blessings and energy for ICS faculty and staff as they work together to manage their many responsibilities.

Friday, February 6: The opening performance of the one-act play Just Faith? is this evening. We pray for blessings on everyone involved in this event.

Monday, February 9: Today we pray for blessings for the Friends of ICS Board and all those who are doing advancement work in the US.

Tuesday, February 10: The Leadership Team meets today. We pray for God’s wisdom and guidance for this meeting.

Wednesday, February 11: There are two meetings today, the Academic Council and the Partnering Committee. We ask God to guide both of these meetings.

Thursday, February 12: Tonight there is an information meeting about our summer course in Orvieto, Italy. We pray for blessings on all participants.

Friday, February 13: We offer prayers of gratitude for the generous spirit that is always shown by you, our many supporters who have presented ICS with gifts of prayer, money, and expressions of appreciation. We are constantly blessed with your interest and support.

Monday, February 16: Today is Family Day in Ontario. We pray that everyone has a happy and peaceful day with their loved ones.

Tuesday, February 17: This is Reading Week! Please pray that our Senior and Junior Members will be able to use this break from classes to catch up, get ahead, or use the week for whatever they may need to help them in their studies. May God bless each of us with what we need during this week.

Wednesday, February 18: We continue to pray for blessings and energy for ICS President Doug Blomberg, as he manages his many responsibilities and provides ICS with his leadership.

Thursday, February 19: As Reading Week continues, please pray that it will be a fruitful week for the academic body at ICS as many Senior and Junior Members have projects they are working on beyond normal class work. Whether these are publications, papers for conferences, or other scholarly activities, pray that this week will afford extra time to make progress in these areas.

Friday, February 20: For any of us who are ill or who have family or friends who are ill, we pray for peace, strength, hope and healing.

Monday, February 23: As classes resume, we pray for the classes and the students this semester, that our Lord will grant the wisdom and strength to endure the process of ongoing learning and preparation for ministry and teaching.

Tuesday, February 24: There is a Board Meeting this evening. We pray for God’s wisdom to guide this meeting.

Wednesday, February 25: We ask God to bless and guide Senior Member Ron Kuipers and Allyson Carr as they continue their work with our Centre for Philosophy, Religion and Social Ethics.

Thursday, February 26: We ask God to bless those who are teaching, as they balance reporting, paperwork and course work with managing their families.

Friday, February 27: With the winter weather here bringing colds and flu, please continue to pray for the health of staff, faculty and students here at ICS.

Just Faith?

ICS/CPRSE Co-Presents One-Act Play as 2015 Art Talks! Event

DOORS OPEN AT 6:30

Please join us on Friday, February 6 at 7PM for the opening performance of Just Faith?, a one-act play that dramatizes the research findings of the CPRSE's partnered research project, Justice and Faith: Individual Spirituality and Social Responsibility in the Christian Reformed Church in Canada. The event will take place at the University of Toronto's Multifaith Centre, Koffler House, 569 Spadina Crescent. Presented by MT Space Theatre, the performance will be followed by a facilitated community discussion. Mark your calenders and be sure to participate in this admission free event, funded by the Christian Reformed Church and ICS' Ruth Memorial Fund.

Bob Sweetman Accepts Office of Academic Dean

We are very pleased to announce that Senior Member Bob Sweetman has agreed to accept the office of Academic Dean. Dr. Sweetman brings a wealth of experience and wisdom to this role, and not only because he served two terms as Dean during the last decade. I am particularly grateful to him for stepping up to this task yet again. His dedication to the ICS community and its vision and mission is an example and encouragement to us all. I know his leadership and counsel will be of inestimable value, as always. We pray the Lord will continue to uphold him.

Doug Blomberg

Shannon Hoff in St. Catharines

Shannon Hoff will be giving a four-week seminar at Jubilee CRC in St. Catharines on Wednesday nights, beginning January 14. The seminar is called "Four Reflections on the Structure of a Good Life," and it will include discussions of brief writings from Plato, Sophocles, Martin Buber, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, as well as passages from Matthew, John, and several of Paul's letters. The goal of the seminar is to identify and discuss some of the key aspects of a meaningful human life, with the idea that if we better understand the conditions that allow human life to be meaningful we can better discern how to care for and sustain them.

Art, Religion, and Social Justice to be published in the Czech Republic

A small book of recent essays by Lambert Zuidervaart, Senior Member in Systematic Philosophy, will be published in the Czech Republic this year. Titled Art, Religion, and Social Justice, the book is being translated into Czech and introduced by Ludvik Hlaváček, Director of the Foundation for Contemporary Arts in Prague.

Justice and Faith Project Video Available

A short video describing the Justice and Faith Project undertaken in partnership with the Christian Reformed Church's Canadian Ministries is now available on the CPRSE's project website. The video describes the project's purpose and methods, and future activities including opportunities for community engagement. Click here to go to the project page and watch the video.