ICS in partnership with the Christian Teachers Academy is excited to announce a new Masters of Arts (Philosophy) degree in Educational Leadership. This new program has been approved in principle by the ICS Senate with a program launch for fall 2018!
This Masters program has two strands: Educational Leadership Stream and Educational Classroom Stream. Early in the program students will define their overarching project, begin to develop an ongoing portfolio of learning, and the program culminates with a celebration of their learning.
The program will be delivered through blended instructional methods with many opportunities for online and face-to-face interactions. Individual courses in the program are approved for the Christian School Teachers Certificate (CSTC) and the Christian School Principals Certificate (CSPC). If you are looking to stretch and grow professionally, this is a program for you!
For further information or questions about the program, please contact our Registrar, Elizabet Aras (academic-registrar@icscanada.edu) or Harry Blyleven (The Christian Teachers Academy - hblyleven@hdch.org )
Friday, 29 June 2018
Monday, 11 June 2018
Adorno and Truth
Lambert Zuidervaart, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at ICS, has published a new essay on Theodor Adorno, a leading figure in the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory. The essay is titled “Surplus beyond the Subject: Truth in Adorno’s Critique of Husserl and Heidegger.” It appears in the current issue of Symposium: Canadian Journal of Continental Philosophy 22.1 (Spring 2018): 123-40. In this article, Lambert examines Adorno’s critique of Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger on the topic of truth. He shows how, while offering legitimate criticisms, Adorno fails to provide an adequate alternative.
Sunday, 10 June 2018
In Memoriam: Morris Greidanus
by Robert Sweetman
Morris
Greidanus’s adult life and the ICS were inextricably interlinked. It began in the heady heyday of the Groen
Club at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI, the philosophy club that ran for
many years under the mentorship of H. Evan Runner and sent so many eager young
souls to the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam for intellectual formation within
the Reformational tradition in philosophy. Morris roomed with Hendrik Hart and James H. Olthuis, the former a
fervent Groen clubber, the latter still playing hard to get. That association would stick and so create
conditions that would tie his subsequent career as pastor and theological mind
to the work of the ICS once it opened its doors in 1967.
Morris went on to postgraduate study as did
his former roommates but he himself gravitated toward theology and ordination
into the ministry of the Christian Reformed Church in North America in
1964. His relationship to ICS grew very
close indeed when he took a call to found a campus ministry at the University
of Toronto in 1968. His “Hart House
Ministry” was a very exciting enterprise that attracted ICS Junior and Senior
Members as well as University of Toronto students. Indeed, well attended Sunday services in one
of the large meeting rooms of Hart House on the St. George Campus of the
University of Toronto meant that Morris had become in effect the pastor of his
former roommates and chaplain of the ICS as well as the U of T. It was a pastorate of great spiritual energy
and effect that lasted from 1968 to 1974.
In the way of ecclesiastical careers Morris
took other calls to serve other communities of Christians and to serve his
denomination in its highest synodical offices and yet his connection to ICS endured. He served on its board; he was a perennial MC
of its Ontario Family Conference over many years, one half of a formidable tag
team with spouse Alice who was an important leader in the all-important music
ministry of the conference. Morris the
ICS MC displayed Morris’ characteristic gifts. Above all, his wry humour, summoned with lightening swiftness and
exquisite comic timing, rescued captive audiences from crushing ennui during
the seemingly endless announcements that could not but accompany a conference
with so many people, subprograms and volunteers. He managed to make announcement time a
sparkling comedy routine filled with gentle humour and heartfelt laughter, not
once or twice but time and again over the course of an entire long weekend,
year in and year out.
That humour marked
the man in so very important ways. It
allowed him to maintain connections with people on all sides of the issues that
came to divide the several communities within the Reformed world that he made
his own. It was not that he didn’t have
a place within communal debates; it is that he saw no reason why differences of
opinion couldn’t coexist with a warm recognition of one’s interlocutor too as a
child of God. This allowed him to be an
effective voice in the controversies that seemed to cling around the ICS from
its earliest days, patiently explaining what ICS was trying to do to those who
did not understand and/or found they could not approve. This was a role he never laid down even in
periods when he was less close to the heart of things at ICS. Of course, his theological collaboration with
brother-in-law and long-time ICS Senior Member in Theology George Vandervelde—culminating
in the appearance of “Our World Belongs to God,” the CRCNA’s contemporary testimony—did
not hurt when it came to maintaining warm connections. “Our World Belongs to
God” remains to this day a jewel of theology in service of the witness of the
people of God.
I wonder if it wasn’t the
retirement of Jim Olthuis and George Vandervelde that reintroduced Morris to the
living heart of ICS, for he MC-ed both their retirement dinners to great
success. At any rate, Morris became a
mover and shaker in ICS’s Friends of ICS board in the U.S. and then acting
president when Harry Fernhout moved to The King’s University in Edmonton and
ICS had to wait an extra year for the advent of Harry’s successor John
Suk. Throughout the academic year
2005-2006, he would be on campus spreading his personal serenity to the Senior
Members, staff, and Junior Members of ICS in what was an anxious time. I like to think that some of that virtue has
remained even in the more anxious times that followed.
Certainly, Morris remained an enthusiastic
member and later chair of the FICS board. Just days before his passing, when new President Ron Kuipers was in Grand
Rapids to attend the CRCNA’s annual synod, he called Morris hoping to meet with
him. By then Morris was in hospital with
pneumonia. Alice took the call, gave Ron
the low down, and then invited him to come to Morris’ hospital bed to carry on
his intended conversation, provided he did not have a cold. That is dedication. Yes, Morris’s adult life and ICS’ has been a
mutual dance where both partners have taken turns with the lead to mutual
benefit. We know that Morris Greidanus
is irreplaceable. His passing is a loss
to be sure. But his perseverance and
talent and winsome love have ever been and so will remain a great blessing now
baked into all that is best of what ICS has been able to do and be.
Requiescat
in pacem. Thanks be to God.
Saturday, 9 June 2018
Prayer Letter: July 2018
Sunday, July 1 - Friday, July 6
On July 1, people across Canada celebrate Canada Day, and ponder the blessing of living in a country that is relatively free from strife, that cherishes its ability to provide universal healthcare, and in which many are fortunate to enjoy a good quality of life. This anniversary of Canada’s confederation also gives us a moment to pause and consider the ways we can do better as a country, including achieving justice for and reconciliation with Canada’s indigenous peoples, adopting a strategy to address national poverty more effectively, including the development of a national affordable housing program, and increasing action for ecological justice. When we consider the blessings we receive by living in relative peace and prosperity here in Canada, we think of the global refugee and migration crisis, and pray for those desperate people enduring or fleeing from poverty and war. And to all members of the ICS community in the United States, we pray for God’s richest blessings as you celebrate Independence Day, and may you also use this occasion to pause and consider similar ambiguities in your nation’s witness to the world as a voice for justice and peace.
Please pray this month for our Registrar, Elizabet, as she looks after the academic details needed to be ready for the beginning of the school year in September, such as new courses being approved, registration of students, course schedules, and working with the faculty to get all the course syllabi up on the website. Pray too as she works with the new students in their application process and decisions around course selection.
Monday, July 9 - Friday, July 13
As we begin this new fiscal year, we continue to face challenges. At the same time, we are encouraged by the possibilities the Lord will bring our way, and seek His wisdom and guidance. We look forward to our move to Knox, and work hard to balance the size of the task with the opportunities that this relocation will present for ICS. It has been a challenging year from a budgeting point of view, due to the presidential transition and the delays in getting the lease at Knox signed. With those issues behind us, we are anticipating a good start to our new fiscal year.
Please pray for long-time PhD candidate, Benjamin Groenewold, as he meets with ICS supervisor Bob Sweetman on July 10th about the latest complete draft of his PhD thesis. Benjamin works with his wife and fellow ICS alumna, Dr. Tricia van Dyk, for the LCC International Univeristy in Lithuania, where he teaches courses on Worldview to college students.
We are so very grateful for the continued commitment of our supporters and pray God’s abundant blessing on each one. This support means so much to us, especially as we begin the new fiscal year with the Renaissance ICS campaign, as explained in last month’s appeal letter. Pray for sustained grace and strength as we work to achieve the goals set out before us in our renovation plan for our new home at Knox College. Pray too for vision and creativity as we move forward with new program initiatives and partnership development.
Monday, July 16 - Friday, July 20
Please pray for our Art in Orvieto program that begins on July 15 and runs for three weeks into the beginning of August. Again, we have had good subscription to both our artists' workshop and ICS course that looks at the role of the image in the three main Christian traditions. Please pray for safety both for students and faculty as they travel to and around Italy, and pray that they might have a fruitful time learning, creating, and appreciating art together.
Please join with us in prayer this month as we make decisions about downsizing and begin the ominous task of packing what we will take with us to Knox College. Pray that we will know God’s grace and strength during this time of upheaval in our normal working day, and that we might enjoy a sense of joy and excitement together as we anticipate moving into our new home. As Bob Sweetman so eloquently put it in the meditation he wrote in the summer of 2009, when ICS moved down to the first floor of 229 College: “Even in moves there are things to pray about in gratitude, not just anxiety …. Thank God for the moves we all make; how else would we know we weren’t rocks. And may God be with us in our moves, even to the end of the age.”
July being the month that a number of our staff and faculty take holidays, we ask that you pray that their time away will be refreshing and renewing. Some are travelling long distances so we ask God to grant them safe and hassle-free travels.
Monday, July 23 - Friday, July 27
Please pray for our PhD candidate, Joshua Harris, who, with his wife Sarah and son Rowan, will be moving to Edmonton later this month to begin a new chapter in their life together. We pray for the Lord’s richest blessings on them as they make this significant transition, and Josh takes up a teaching position at The King's University.
Please continue to pray for our dear friends, Alice Greidanus and Janet Borgdorff and their families, as they grieve the loss of Morris and Peter. We pray that God will be very present with them and that they will know his abundant grace and peace during this difficult time.
The Centre for Philosophy, Religion, and Social Ethics (CPRSE) continues to build on the “Currents in Reformational Thought” series, featuring the contributions of our current and emeriti faculty to our scholarly tradition. Currently, the CPRSE team is working on the final editing stages of a forthcoming festschrift on the work of Emeritus Senior Member, Lambert Zuidervaart. Please pray for those involved in editing, producing, and publishing this important series.
CPRSE’s Research Assistants, Grace Carhart and Dean Dettloff have contributed immensely to the life of ICS, keeping the community informed through social media, helping with the planning and execution of events, and assisting in other projects run by the Centre, including our new podcast Critical Faith. We pray in thanksgiving for the contribution of Grace and Dean to ICS community through their involvement in the CPRSE, and ask for God’s continued blessings on them.
Monday, July 30 - Tuesday, July 31
Please pray for our Librarian, Hilary Barlow who will be applying for permanent residency/landed immigrant status within the next seven months. Pray that the process of putting the myriad of documents and information together for the application will go smoothly so she can make the February 2019 deadline with little hassle. Hillary is currently on a temporary work permit, but once she makes application, she is eligible to extend the work permit until she gets an answer on her application.
Please pray for Bob Sweetman as he attends the Annual Aquinas Studium, held this year at Villanova University in the Philadelphia area July 29-August 2. The theme of the Studium will be Thomas Aquinas's Trinitarian thought. He will be leading in the presentation of a series of readings that will be the basis for discussions during one of the morning sessions. This will be a great warm up for Bob as he gears up to teach a seminar on Aquinas's presentation of the phenomenon and reality of miracles within the frame set for them by the framing notions of "nature" and "the supernatural".
Currently, CPRSE is exploring new partnership possibilities with community organizations that share the spirit of inquiry and openness of ICS. Please pray that CPRSE is able to continue its history of partnership through collaborations that are fruitful and life-giving in the new academic year.
On July 1, people across Canada celebrate Canada Day, and ponder the blessing of living in a country that is relatively free from strife, that cherishes its ability to provide universal healthcare, and in which many are fortunate to enjoy a good quality of life. This anniversary of Canada’s confederation also gives us a moment to pause and consider the ways we can do better as a country, including achieving justice for and reconciliation with Canada’s indigenous peoples, adopting a strategy to address national poverty more effectively, including the development of a national affordable housing program, and increasing action for ecological justice. When we consider the blessings we receive by living in relative peace and prosperity here in Canada, we think of the global refugee and migration crisis, and pray for those desperate people enduring or fleeing from poverty and war. And to all members of the ICS community in the United States, we pray for God’s richest blessings as you celebrate Independence Day, and may you also use this occasion to pause and consider similar ambiguities in your nation’s witness to the world as a voice for justice and peace.
Please pray this month for our Registrar, Elizabet, as she looks after the academic details needed to be ready for the beginning of the school year in September, such as new courses being approved, registration of students, course schedules, and working with the faculty to get all the course syllabi up on the website. Pray too as she works with the new students in their application process and decisions around course selection.
Monday, July 9 - Friday, July 13
As we begin this new fiscal year, we continue to face challenges. At the same time, we are encouraged by the possibilities the Lord will bring our way, and seek His wisdom and guidance. We look forward to our move to Knox, and work hard to balance the size of the task with the opportunities that this relocation will present for ICS. It has been a challenging year from a budgeting point of view, due to the presidential transition and the delays in getting the lease at Knox signed. With those issues behind us, we are anticipating a good start to our new fiscal year.
Please pray for long-time PhD candidate, Benjamin Groenewold, as he meets with ICS supervisor Bob Sweetman on July 10th about the latest complete draft of his PhD thesis. Benjamin works with his wife and fellow ICS alumna, Dr. Tricia van Dyk, for the LCC International Univeristy in Lithuania, where he teaches courses on Worldview to college students.
We are so very grateful for the continued commitment of our supporters and pray God’s abundant blessing on each one. This support means so much to us, especially as we begin the new fiscal year with the Renaissance ICS campaign, as explained in last month’s appeal letter. Pray for sustained grace and strength as we work to achieve the goals set out before us in our renovation plan for our new home at Knox College. Pray too for vision and creativity as we move forward with new program initiatives and partnership development.
Monday, July 16 - Friday, July 20
Please pray for our Art in Orvieto program that begins on July 15 and runs for three weeks into the beginning of August. Again, we have had good subscription to both our artists' workshop and ICS course that looks at the role of the image in the three main Christian traditions. Please pray for safety both for students and faculty as they travel to and around Italy, and pray that they might have a fruitful time learning, creating, and appreciating art together.
Please join with us in prayer this month as we make decisions about downsizing and begin the ominous task of packing what we will take with us to Knox College. Pray that we will know God’s grace and strength during this time of upheaval in our normal working day, and that we might enjoy a sense of joy and excitement together as we anticipate moving into our new home. As Bob Sweetman so eloquently put it in the meditation he wrote in the summer of 2009, when ICS moved down to the first floor of 229 College: “Even in moves there are things to pray about in gratitude, not just anxiety …. Thank God for the moves we all make; how else would we know we weren’t rocks. And may God be with us in our moves, even to the end of the age.”
July being the month that a number of our staff and faculty take holidays, we ask that you pray that their time away will be refreshing and renewing. Some are travelling long distances so we ask God to grant them safe and hassle-free travels.
Monday, July 23 - Friday, July 27
Please pray for our PhD candidate, Joshua Harris, who, with his wife Sarah and son Rowan, will be moving to Edmonton later this month to begin a new chapter in their life together. We pray for the Lord’s richest blessings on them as they make this significant transition, and Josh takes up a teaching position at The King's University.
Please continue to pray for our dear friends, Alice Greidanus and Janet Borgdorff and their families, as they grieve the loss of Morris and Peter. We pray that God will be very present with them and that they will know his abundant grace and peace during this difficult time.
The Centre for Philosophy, Religion, and Social Ethics (CPRSE) continues to build on the “Currents in Reformational Thought” series, featuring the contributions of our current and emeriti faculty to our scholarly tradition. Currently, the CPRSE team is working on the final editing stages of a forthcoming festschrift on the work of Emeritus Senior Member, Lambert Zuidervaart. Please pray for those involved in editing, producing, and publishing this important series.
CPRSE’s Research Assistants, Grace Carhart and Dean Dettloff have contributed immensely to the life of ICS, keeping the community informed through social media, helping with the planning and execution of events, and assisting in other projects run by the Centre, including our new podcast Critical Faith. We pray in thanksgiving for the contribution of Grace and Dean to ICS community through their involvement in the CPRSE, and ask for God’s continued blessings on them.
Monday, July 30 - Tuesday, July 31
Please pray for our Librarian, Hilary Barlow who will be applying for permanent residency/landed immigrant status within the next seven months. Pray that the process of putting the myriad of documents and information together for the application will go smoothly so she can make the February 2019 deadline with little hassle. Hillary is currently on a temporary work permit, but once she makes application, she is eligible to extend the work permit until she gets an answer on her application.
Please pray for Bob Sweetman as he attends the Annual Aquinas Studium, held this year at Villanova University in the Philadelphia area July 29-August 2. The theme of the Studium will be Thomas Aquinas's Trinitarian thought. He will be leading in the presentation of a series of readings that will be the basis for discussions during one of the morning sessions. This will be a great warm up for Bob as he gears up to teach a seminar on Aquinas's presentation of the phenomenon and reality of miracles within the frame set for them by the framing notions of "nature" and "the supernatural".
Currently, CPRSE is exploring new partnership possibilities with community organizations that share the spirit of inquiry and openness of ICS. Please pray that CPRSE is able to continue its history of partnership through collaborations that are fruitful and life-giving in the new academic year.
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