IASYM 2026 International Conference: Call For Papers

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IASYM 2026 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: CALL FOR PAPERS

Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa, 5 – 8 January 2026

THEME: Resilient Hope in a Global Context

The IASYM biannual International Conference 2026 academic committee calls for paper submissions on the theme of Resilient Hope in a Global Context. Considering the immense stressors across the globe: ecological devastation, political violence and turmoil, global pandemics, economic crises, mental health crises, and other challenges we would like to invite you do reflect on the following questions:

  • How do we assist young people in youth ministry to be resilient in the face of all these challenges?
  • How do we teach skills that enable young people not only to survive but to flourish in a troubled world?
  • How do we nurture resilient communities and churches that can support young people?
  • How does Youth ministry create spaces and opportunities where this kind of hope could be experienced and shared with the world.

Resilient hope is a complex, open-ended concept that is hard to define and not to be confused with optimism. Youth Ministry aims to offer hope for churches, communities, families, and young people. Theologically, hope is resilient within people involved with youth ministry; hope exists in embodied relationship with pain, desire and lament.

Acknowledging both rootedness and fluidity in concepts like resilient hope within youth ministry, the academic committee invite proposals for papers that:

  • Explore how youth ministry embodies resilient hope in various viewpoints, styles and contexts.
  • How does the character of resilient hope differ between contexts and demands placed upon it by churches, communities, families, and young people?
  • What does resilient hope mean theologically? How is this theological hope prefigurative to engaging in youth ministry within varied contexts?
  • Reflect on how resilient hope is a performative action for youth ministry.
  • How and what resources does youth ministry contribute to a resilient hope for justice, perhaps within movements; socio-economic, anti-racist, climate justice or other similar movements?
  • What is the interplay between resilient hope with mission, discipleship, human flourishing, and the common good?

We also invite papers on other themes that meet the IASYM’s stated aim to further the academic study and research of youth and youth ministry to raise the profile of youth ministry as a calling, career and/or professional enterprise and to encourage the reflection on youth ministry and academic discipline that will support the practice of youth ministry.

TYPES OF PRESENTATION  

Proposals are invited for research papers, a dialogue, workshop, roundtable discussion, or an emerging research paper:

  1. Research Papers present new research ready to be presented and critically engaged by a formal respondent and group discussion. Research Papers will be chosen by the academic committee to be presented as a keynote address or in an elective session.
  2. Dialogue, workshop, or roundtable discussions present a topic that will benefit from interaction from diverse perspectives. These sessions are often presented by a team of scholars working together to frame the dialogue. The academic committee may choose dialogue, workshop, or roundtable discussions to be presented as a keynote or elective session.
  3. Emerging Research sessions provide an opportunity to share works in progress, develop thoughts, and test ideas yet to be established in a formal paper. These sessions allow new or emerging researchers (whether engaged in formal study or as thoughtful practitioners) to receive feedback in a constructive environment or for seasoned researchers to road-test preliminary project ideas. Emerging research will be presented in elective sessions.

Papers will only be presented through an in-person format.

IMPORTANT DATES AND DEADLINES

  • Abstracts for Papers should be submitted via the web form https://forms.gle/JY9vNaZSRH73FGb56 no later than 7 April 2025.
  • The academic committee will provide notification of paper acceptance 2 June 2025.
  • Full-text papers that were accepted need to be submitted no later than 5 November 2025.

We encourage presenters to consider submitting their papers to the Journal of Youth and Theology. Please make sure that you follow the author’s instructions that is available at: Author_Instructions_JYT.pdf

The full academic committee for the IASYM International Conference 2026 comprises

  • Prof. Anita Cloete – Stellenbosch University (chair),
  • Prof. Jaques Beukes – University of South Africa
  • Dr. Elizabeth Corrie – Emory University
  • Dr Kevin Muriithi Ndereba – St. Paul’s University
  • Rev. Dr. Gretchen Schoon-Tanis – NLA University College
  • Dr. Scott Paget

University of Pretoria, Youth Ministry Conference: Call for Papers (due 7 March 2025)

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University of Pretoria, Faculty of Theology and Religion, Department of Practical Theology and Mission Studies

CALL FOR PAPERS: YOUTH MINISTRY CONFERENCE

It is with great excitement and expectation that the Department of Practical Theology and Mission Studies in the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Pretoria invite all academics and practitioners of youth ministry in Southern Africa to come and share their knowledge and experiences to the benefit of all involved in youth ministry in Southern Africa.

Venue: The University of Pretoria, Faculty of Theology and Religion
Date: 22-24 July 2025
Mode: In-person
Cost: R 750,00 (Include refreshments)
Participants are responsible for their own lunches.

THEME: Youth Ministry in Southern Africa: Celebrated and Rediscovered

Africa is known as a youth continent and the biggest part of the South(ern) African population is youth. Fifty years ago (1974) when the biggest part of the white population in Southern Africa was youth the Dutch Reformed Church had the “Youth to youth action.” During this time more than 350,000 young people attended their rallies. As part of the evangelical youth outreach, around 32,000 young people were trained to talk to their peer group about the gospel and matters of faith.

This ministry led to new enthusiasm for the church among many young people and large numbers of them signed up for theological study after 1974.

Today in 2025 the South(ern) African context, also the church context is totally different. Most of the South African population still confess they are Christian (80%). Most Christians belong to independent and or Pentecostal churches, mainline missionary denominations are decreasing in membership. Fewer young people enrol for theological education to become pastors while many pastors of independent churches have no theological training. The purpose of the “youth-to youth” action (1974) was to establish a ministry philosophy that young people should be equipped to work with young people.

During the 2025 youth conference we want to celebrate and rediscover youth ministry within an ever-changing Southern Africa society. Four main questions that will frame this conference are:
• Who is the youth in youth ministry?
• Where is God in youth ministry?
• What is the purpose of youth ministry?
• Who is the youth minister in youth ministry?

To address these questions, we suggest that papers will attend to one of the following themes:
1. Youth Ministry as a theological endeavour
2. Youth ministry as family ministry through faith formation
3. Youth Ministry: when we ignore youth, we deny our identity.
4. Youth Ministry as a call to follow Him
5. Youth Ministry as “place sharing” (Root) in a ministry of belonging
6. Youth Ministry and “at risk” communities
7. Youth ministry and relational learning
8. Youth Ministry: learning from Africa
9. Youth Ministry and political activism
10. Youth Ministry and God’s world, our earth

HOW TO SUBMIT A PAPER PROPOSAL:
Paper proposals (for single papers of 20 minutes, to be followed by 10 minutes of discussion) should include: a proposed title for the paper, your name and institutional affiliation, and as an abstract, a brief outline (200 — 300 words) of the topic, the argument and an indication of the relevance of the topic and approach to the conference theme.

Proposals as well as any questions in this regard should be directed to Prof. Hannes Knoetze, email: Johannes.Knoetze@up.ac.za

PROPOSAL DEADLINE: 07 March 2025

FEEDBACK ON ABSTRACT: 20 March 2025

Upon acceptance, you will be requested to send an 80% completed paper on or before Monday 16 June 2025. Thereafter, your name will be affixed to the program for a 30-minute presentation.

HOW TO REGISTER FOR THE CONFERENCE
Please request banking details from and then send your proof of payment, name, and institution to: karen.esbagh@up.ac.za

We look forward to receiving your papers on this topic.

With kind regards,
Hannes Knoetze

IAPT 2025 Conference

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2025 Conference: (Be)Coming Home and (Re)Building Community in the Face of Displacement

Details are available at the conference website: https://2025iapt.wixsite.com/home

Where: The Saskatoon Theological Union and St. Thomas More College, Saskatchewan, Canada

When: June 13-16, 2025

ICPCC and the European Council on Pastoral Care & Counseling to Offer Joint Congress in October of 2025

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The executive committees of the International Council on Pastoral Care & Counseling (ICPCC) and the European Council on Pastoral Care & Counseling (ECPCC) have been corresponding and meeting since late November with the purpose of collaborating to bring pastoral caregivers and educators together from around the world for a joint congress. Although ICPCC has traditionally held its congress on an every-four-year basis (the next ICPCC Congress would normally be held in 2027), the chance to partner with ECPCC seemed to be too good an opportunity pass by.

Website: https://icpcc.net/icpcc-congress-2025/

African Homiletics Society Conference 2025: Call for Papers

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Theme: Biblical Preaching and Development

Location: Online

Date: 22-23 July 2025

Announcement

You are invited to write and present scholarly papers on “Biblical Preaching and African Development” at the Third International Conference of the African Homiletics Society. This year’s will be virtual. You are expected to write from your various specialisations and backgrounds on what the relationship between Christian Preaching and African Development is. Sub-themes include:

  • Pastoral Preaching and African Development
  • Evangelistic Preaching and African Development
  • Prophetic Preaching and African Development
  • Prosperity Preaching and the Challenge of Poverty in Africa
  • Preaching and Environmental Sustainability in Africa
  • Curriculum for Preaching and African Development
  • Preaching, Democracy and Good Governance in Africa
  • Case Studies of Preachers and Development
  • African Preachers’ Participation in Development
  • African Preachers and Community Development
  • Preaching and the Development of Western Civilisation
  • African Women in Preaching

Submission Deadline: 28 February 2025

Please submit your 300 word abstract here.

For any questions, please contact africanhomileticssociety@gmail.com

Website: https://african.theologyworldwide.com/component/pthucontent/article/415-african-homiletics-society-conference-2025-call-for-papers?catid=19&Itemid=638

ReDi Conference 2025 in Wellington, South Africa

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The 10th Conference for Research in Diaconia and Christian Social Practice (ReDi) on April 1 to 4, 2025 is approaching. The theme of the conference is Diaconia and Christian Social Practice: Challenging Contexts and Emerging Trends.

The conference will take place at the Andrew Murray Centre for Spirituality in Wellington, South Africa.

We invite contributions across a wide spectrum of formations and traditions to advance a global debate on diaconia and Christian social practice, thematically organized around twelve different tracks:

  1. Diaconia and colonialism: Entanglement and detachment.
  2. Diaconia of the marginalised: self-empowerment and self-representation through church-based initiatives towards social responsibility in local Christian social practices.
  3. Diaconia, climate change, creation care and the sustainable development goals (SDG) agenda.
  4. Expressions of Christian social practice (diaconia) in independent (including neo-Pentecostal and Charismatic) Christian traditions and churches / New approaches and practices of the diaconal church.
  5. Diaconia and the non-profit sector: questions of diaconal agency and identity in market-related and civil society contexts.
  6. Diaconia in dialogue with religion and development (RaD) / Diaconia and religion and development as overlapping expressions of Christian social practice.
  7. Diaconia and interreligious or secular collaborations: Challenges and opportunities.
  8. Conviviality, diaconia and society: transforming vision and creative practice for life together.
  9. Health and healing in diaconal practice: Trauma healing, diaconal health, science, social healing and other practices.
  10. Youth agency: Diaconia by, with and for the young people.
  11. Diaconia and the missio Dei: New thoughts on the relationship between Diakonia and Missiology
  12. Practitioners’ research: Reflections on diaconal practice

We especially encourage researchers from the Global South to submit a proposal. Abstracts should be between 350 and 500 words and be sent to ReDiSAConfe2025@vemission.org by 31 December 2024.

If you have recently finished a master’s thesis, please consider submitting it for the Anders Bäckström Prize!

The conference fee – which includes stationery, transport to and from the airport, excursion transportation, lunches, coffee breaks, refreshments, and two conference dinners – is structured as follows:

  • €20 for Masters and PhD students of the Global South (ReDi members)
  • €30 for Masters and PhD students of the Global South (non-members of ReDi)
  • €70 for Masters and PhD students of the Global North (ReDi members)
  • €100 for Masters and PhD students of the Global North (non-members ReDi)
  • €80 for participants from the Global South (ReDi members)
  • €120 for participants from the Global South (non-members of ReDi)
  • €200 for participants from the Global North (ReDi members)
  • €250 for participants from the Global North (non-members of ReDi)

Note that flight and accommodation costs are excluded from the fee.

To register for the conference, please fill out the registration form.

For further information, including funding and how to pay the fee, please consult the full ReDi 2025 Call for Abstracts.

Website: https://www.diaconiaresearch.org/redi-conference-2025-wellington/

SPTSA 2025 Conference – Call for Papers now open!

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Herewith is the Call for Papers for our 2025 SPTSA conference to be hosted by North-West University in Potchefstroom from 21-23 January 2025.
The theme is “Practical Theology facing digital (AI and ChatGPT) revolutions in the age of homo-digitalis” and more details can be found at this link: https://forms.gle/hHx7AW7paFit9naA8
Please take note that the deadline for abstract submissions is 30th September 2024 so don’t delay in submitting your paper title and abstract.
Theme: Practical Theology facing digital (AI and ChatGPT) revolutions in the age of homo-digitalis.
Our everyday living, from banking to socialising, dating, religion and communication are mediated by technology. There is hardly an area of our lives that is not mediated by technology. The persistent presence of technology is shaping our identity, dreams, expectations and hopes for the future. Since the use of technology has become so entrenched in our daily lives, we seldom reflect critically on what it is doing to and in us. Moreover, we often view technology as tools we can use as we deem fit.
This instrumental view of technology, however, does not fit anymore, especially since the dawn of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The aim/vision to be upgraded as human beings and become one (singularity) with machines as postulated by trans– and posthumanism respectively, poses serious questions and challenges as to what it means to be human today. Similarly, the field of teaching and learning is confronted to rethink how to conduct, in particular, assessments since ChatGPT was introduced.
Together with the challenges produced by technology there are benefits and opportunities that cannot be denied or ignored. Consider how the health professions benefit from robots that with great precision assist in surgery. These technologies, however, are not value neutral but promote certain value systems that significantly affect our personal and communal lives. The speed at which technological innovation is taking place makes it almost impossible to foresee and predict the unintended consequences it may have. We invite participants to consider the following subthemes for reflection:
Sub-themes:
  1. Living in a digital age and faith communities being challenged by a digital culture.
  2. Embodiment, Medio-passivity and “Response”–ability of Practical Theology.
  3. Practical theological communicative practices in light of digital abundance and weblogs, for example.
  4. How Practical Theology relates to developing revolutions and enacting rituals and practices.
  5. Contextual engagement with the digital world (AI and ChatGPT) — participation or reactionism?
  6. Being church in an age of the homo-digitalis.
  7. The change in practical theological training considering digital revolutions.
  8. Will pastors and preachers be redundant in light of the digital revolution?
ABSTRACT SUBMISSION CLOSING DATE: Monday 30th September 2024
CONFERENCE REGISTRATION CLOSING DATE: Thursday 31st October 2024
PAYMENT OF FULLY INCLUSIVE FEE OPTION: Wednesday 13th November 2024

International Conference of Pastoral Care

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The ICPCC conference, 3-6 July 2023 will be presented at the SportVillage, NWU, Potchefstroom. The theme for the conference is: Truth and Reconciliation: Pastoral Caregiving within processes of radical socio-political transformation, change and conflict. Registration is online at www.icpcc.net

Practical Wisdom on the Living Web of the Anthropocene

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The International Academy of Practical Theology (IAPT) will have its bi-annual conference, under the title Practical Wisdom on the Living Web of the Anthropocene, from Wednesday June 7 to Sunday June 11 2023. The conference will be held in Seoul, Korea and organized by a local committee from Yonsei University, Ewha Womans University, Hoseo University, Busan Presbyterian University, and Kookmin University. Conference web page for information: https://www.ia-practicaltheology.org/conferences/2023-seoul/.

The Ninth Conference for Research in Diakonia and Christian Social Practice – Contested spaces of diakonia

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The Ninth Conference for Research in Diakonia and Christian Social Practice – Contested spaces of diakonia is taking place in Oslo, Norway from 31 May to 2 June 2023. More information is available at https://www.vid.no/en/events/the-ninth-conference-for-research-in-diaconia-and-christian-social-practice-contested-spaces-of-diaconia/