The 2002 Gladstone Festival of Preaching

March 2, 2002

Since 1992, McMaster Divinity College has invited noted preachers and scholars to lead the Gladstone Festival of Preaching. This annual event was established in honour of the Rev. Dr. John N. Gladstone, currently Minister Emeritus at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church, where he served a distinguished preaching ministry for over 26 years. Previous speakers have included William Willimon, David Buttrick, Tony Campolo, John Stott, Edwina Hunter and Eugene Lowry (a complete list is included below). With its focus on Christian proclamation, the purpose of the Gladstone Festival is to provide students, faculty, alumni, and local church leaders with illuminating and provocative biblical, theological, and pastoral insights for ministry.

Our eleventh Gladstone Festival of Preaching, was held on March 2,  2002. Our lecturer was the Rev. Dr. Stephen C. Farris, Professor of Preaching and Worship at Knox College, Toronto, who addressed the topic of "Preaching for a Church in Conflict." Preaching and leading worship was the Rev. John L. Bell, an ordained minister of the Church of Scotland and member of the Iona Community who is well known for his contemporary hymns and musical arrangements.

Legend of Festival Lecturers

1992 William H. Willimon - Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
           "Preaching and Evangelism in Today’s World"

1993 David Buttrick - Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
           "Preaching Toward God’s Future"

1994 Frederick Swann - Garden Grove, California
          Charles Adams - Detroit, Michigan
          "Proclamation, Music, and Culture in the Christian Worship Experience"

1995 Anthony Campolo - Eastern College, St. Davids, Pennsylvania
          "Preaching to the Youth Culture in North America"

1996 John R. W. Stott - London, England
          "A Call to Faithfulness"

1997 Thomas G. Long - Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, New Jersey
          "Taking the Listener Seriously in Preaching"

1998 Edwina Hunter - Union Theological Seminary, New York City
          "The Word Made Flesh: Preaching in Christ’s Body"

1999 Paul Scott Wilson, Emmanuel College, Toronto School of Theology
          "Practical Lessons for Passionate Preaching"

2000 Eugene Lowry - Saint Paul School of Theology, Kansas City, Missouri
          "A New Homiletic for a New Millennium"

2001 Martin E. Marty - University of Chicago Divinity School, Chicago, Illinois
          "Preaching in Three Modes: Historical and Contemporary Addresses"

2002 Stephen Farris - Knox College, University of Toronto
          "Preaching for a Church in Conflict"