l’Abri Nederland Lezingen

Personality Redeemed

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture February 4th 2023
Speaker: Robb Ludwick

The intention of the Christian Gospel is not that we should resemble Christ at the cost of who we already are. God promises to redeem his creation - including man.
The raw matter of our created personalities can because of misleading voices get on a track where we do not love our neighbours as ourselves. Freeing from this 'False Identity' is not just denying myself. It is asking God's help for rediscovering, saving and redeeming my personality.
With insights from modern coaching tools next to the thorough wisdom of the Bible.

Levensbestemming

l'Abri Zaterdagochtendlezing 21 januari 2023
Spreker: Wim Rietkerk

Heeft de bekende levensloop-deskundige Erik Erikson gelijk als hij zegt: 'Door het ontbreken van een levensvatbaar ideaal van ouderdom ontbreekt het onze beschaving aan een concept van het leven als geheel'?
Levensbestemming is de titel van mijn nieuwe boek dat in het voorjaar verschijnt: het gaat om een toespitsing en uitwerking - voor alle leeftijden - van de bekende allereerste vraag van de Heidelbergse Catechismus: Wat is uw enige troost in leven en sterven?
Het antwoord is wel het meest verbijsterend dat een postmodern mens zich kan voorstellen: dat wij niet van onszelf zijn. Oorsprong, doel en samenhang van het leven zijn voorgegeven. Vandaar de titel van het boek: Levensbestemming.

”Everybody wants to rule the world”: Reflections on Justice in an Unjust World

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture November 19th 2022
Speaker: Arthur Metz

What do the Roman Empire, Liberation Theology, and Kindergarten have in common? In this lecture, we will reflect on why justice - something desired by most people - is so difficult to achieve and what, as Christians, we have to offer in an unjust world.

Weakness of Body & Soul: Towards a Theology of Suffering

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture November 5th 2022
Speaker: Ana Elisa Carvalho

In a world immersed in high performance and the construction of identities that conquer everything they want, we are confronted with a wounded reality: the reality of weakness. What can vulnerability and suffering teach us about God's sovereignty and our creational calling?
Learning "how to suffer" can reveal a testimony to the good gifts God gives us. To understand our weaknesses and what they mean in our narratives, we need to cultivate a good theology of suffering.

Searching for Spirituality and beauty in Nature

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture October 15th 2022
Speaker: Robb Ludwick

Searching for spirituality outside of traditional religions is nothing new. But recently this quest got an interesting turn: returning to nature. For one person it emerged during a stroll in the woods during lockdown, for another while reading a convincing article about the climate crisis, but the message is clear: we must anew experience, honor and value nature.
From popular documentaries to the new book of historian Karen Armstrong "Sacred Nature" (2022) this movement has an emphatic spiritual side. What do we seek? Why is it important? And: what does the bible say about our relationship with nature?

Freedom and power: Do my feelings determine who I am?

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture October 1st 2022
Speaker: Henk Reitsema

The desire to be free and not be determined by the power of someone else points to the "Imago Dei" that is present in all of us. But do our feelings determine mainly what we are or does the given reality do that? How much power do I have to determine my identity - or is life discovering who I am? When do we violate each other, and is power over another by definition violation of that other?

Building bridges for the gospel

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture September 17th 2022
Speaker: Wim Rietkerk

How do you connect the gospel to the more than 50% of Dutch who are not affiliated with any church or religion? Are there any points of contact? Karl Barth said 'NO' ('NEIN'; the title of the shortest and smallest booklet he ever wrote, in 1934). The well-known English theologian N.T. Wright says YES in a recent book, but acknowledges they are broken: 'Broken Signposts - How Christianity makes sense of the world' (2020).
In this first lecture of the fall season we read the speech of the apostle Paul on the Areopagus in Acts 17: a combination of both the YES and the NO. We will discuss whether this is perhaps the most urgent challenge for Christians today: building bridges across the chasm!

Who do people say we are? The representation of Christians in pop culture

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture June 4th 2022
Speaker: Arthur Metz

Have you ever heard about Ned Flanders from "The Simpsons"? What about The Bishop from "Les Misérables?" In this lecture, we are going to analyze these and many other - so-called - “Christian Characters” in Pop Culture. From mocking to admiration, from hypocrites to heroes, we are going to see what is behind these characters, what society thinks about Christians, and why knowing these things is important for us to impact people with the Gospel.

Het Unieke van Europa

l'Abri Zaterdagochtendlezing 18 juni 2022
Spreker: Wim Rietkerk

In de wereldwijde botsing tussen autocratie en democratie, moeten we kiezen tussen die twee? Of is er een derde weg? Met aandacht voor de achtergrond van de oorlog in Oekraïne.

Digital technology and Spirituality

l'Abri Saturday Morning Lecture May21st 2022
Speaker: Henk Reitsema

The shift away from the given reality to a virtualised variant has a large influence on our self-perception. Does this offer opportunities or does it cause trouble, concerning spirituality and our relationship with God?