The annual Convocation & Pastors’ School is a conference that offers lectures, worship, and seminars for Christian leaders of all traditions. Led by scholars and practitioners from Duke University and beyond, this event is a cooperative endeavor with the North Carolina and Western North Carolina Conferences of the United Methodist Church, The Duke Endowment, and Duke Divinity School. The convocation also includes alumni gatherings.
Again in 2021, the annual Convocation & Pastors’ School will be a virtual, free event designed for Christian leaders of all traditions and take place October 4, 5, 11, 18, and 25.
2021 Theme
The 2021 Convocation and Pastors’ School will focus on the theme, Uncommon Ground: Living with Humility, Patience, and Tolerance in a Divided Age. We will highlight practitioners who, in a broken world marked by division, have found creative ways to work across “uncommon ground” to build up communities and relationships.
Our primary gathering will take place on October 4 and 5 from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. These sessions will center around panel discussions, with each session spotlighting one of our featured speakers: Bishop Claude Alexander, Dr. John Inazu, Sara Groves and Dr. Warren Kinghorn. As part of our gathering time we will host optional lunchtime sessions to hear updates on several Duke Divinity School Houses of Study as well as chances to register for small group opportunities with our featured speakers.
October 11, 18, and 25 we will host lunchtime webinars from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. with presentations by Tru Pettigrew, Dr. Jan Holton and Pslams in Dialogue featuring Dr. Ellen Davis, Dr. Zeb Highben, and Amanda Hughes.