Under the leadership of the Research Department, Asia Pacific Theological Seminary held an online Research Colloquium on June 18th, 2022 via Zoom at 9:00 A.M. – 11:00 A.M. (Manila Time). It was attended by about 20 participants from the US, Kenya, India, Myanmar, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The colloquium has a two-fold purpose; to systematically disseminate the research outputs of our students for the benefit of the wider community, and to provide an avenue for our students to share their expertise and competence in theological research with the community of ministry practitioners and academic scholars and make impacts throughout the country, Asia-Pacific, and the world, especially those belonging to evangelical Christianity. Our two resource speakers were our very own, Dr. Marie Joy Pring and Pastor Van Nun Thang.
The colloquium started with opening remarks by the APNTS President, Dr. Larry Bollinger. He stated that it was an exciting time for APNTS to be able to have a colloquium in which we get to enjoy the content of the learning of our students who have been part of the learning process and became experts in their particular area. He further said that this colloquium will help students who are going through this process of an academic exercise in their journey.
Then, for the colloquium proper, Dr. Marie Joy Pring, a recent graduate of the PhD in Transformational Development presented her insightful and remarkable research outputs from her PhD dissertation entitled, “Ugnayan: How the Christian Faith and Filipino Culture Build Relationships that Help Urban Poor Women Survive and Thrive.” She, from the findings of her thorough research, helped us see how the Christian faith and Filipino culture helped women living in the urban poor communities not only for their survival but also have been instrumental to what they consider to be true development which is beyond financial and economic bounds but as a good relationship with God, with one’s neighbors and with oneself. Her whole dissertation is now available in http://apnts.whdl.org/en/browse/resources/15328.
Pastor Van Nun Thang is a recent graduate of the MST in Biblical Studies. He is one of the APNTS research grant recipients. He helped us to see the significance of the whole burnt offering not only in the Old Testament context but also in the light of what Jesus had done on the cross and its application for our everyday Christian living as he presented to us his substantial Master’s thesis entitled, “ Happy are the People whose God is the Lord: The עלה (Whole Burnt Offering) in Leviticus 1 as an Expression of the Greatest Commandment.” Pastor Thang’s whole dissertation is now available in http://apnts.whdl.org/en/browse/resources/15325.
Besides those insightful research outputs, the attendees are also greatly benefited from the sharing of the presenters’ research expertise in how they utilized the appropriate method and carried out their respective research.
All for his glory!
Soli Deo gloria!
