Conference Schedule Details

Schedule Details

Sunday, 26 October 2025

2:00-4:00 p.m. Arrival, Registration Desk Open

5:00 p.m. Choral Evensong (Homily: the Rev. Canon Dr. Kara Slade)

6:00 p.m. Opening Reception

7:00 p.m. Keynote Talk #1 (Rev. Canon Dr. Kara Slade)

The Creed as Gift

What is the Nicene Creed for? Why is it an announcement of Good News for the Church today? This lecture will explore the role of the Creed as linguistic boundary, as a statement of metanarrative, and as an act of praise. Not only does the Creed establish the parameters of the Christian doctrine of God, it also provides the basis of our answer to the question, "How then are we saved?" 

Monday, 27 October 2025

7:45 a.m. Morning Prayer

9:00 a.m. Talk #1 (Dr. Liza Anderson)

9:45 a.m. Talk #2 (Maxine King)

“The Humor of Heresy”? On the Theological Foundations of William Stringfellow’s Defense of Bishop Pike

William Stringfellow has been lauded by many as one of the Episcopal Church's greatest theologians of the twentieth century. Yet even among Stringfellow's contemporary proponents, his defense of Bishop James Pike throughout his brushes with ecclesiastical trial and eventual censure seems to be treated as an embarrassing lapse in judgment or simply passed over in silence. This paper will instead sketch the continuities between Stringfellow's broader theological outlook and his defense of Pike, finding in them possible resources for thinking anew about the Nicene Creed in the Episcopal Church today.

10:30 a.m. Coffee & Snack Break

11:00 a.m. Talk #3 (the Rev. Dr. Kirsten Guidero)

Ecumenical Sins of Omission: Nicaea’s Liabilities and Resources for Gender Justice

This paper invites participants to reconsider Nicaea’s legacy of naming God ‘Father’ and ‘Son.’ When the majority of churches who use creedal language also deny women and gender-expansive persons leadership roles, this ecumenical consensus foments injustice. However, by analyzing primary sources, the paper demonstrates that separating the doctrine of God from the call for gender justice uses theological language in an anti-creedal way. Finally, I spell out how a truly pro-Nicene doctrine of God demands gender equality.

11:45 a.m. Nicaea Re-Enactment (the Rev. Dr. Kirsten Guidero)

You are cordially invited to the Council of Nicaea, 325 A.D. Bring your favorite sandals, your knowledge of Scripture, and the groupies who will help convince your opponents of your superior wisdom! You are invited to observe portions of the Council proceedings as adapted from the Reacting to the Past Consortium’s game, but be warned: you may find yourself pressed into duty to help a Council member prevail in the debates!

12:30 p.m. Noonday Prayer

1:00 p.m. Lunch

4:00 p.m. Talk #4 (Dr. Patrick Haley)

God’s Saving Deeds in History: The Unity and Relevancy of the First Article

Now the shortest part of the Creed, the first article can feel perfunctory. Yet it touches on many issues the Church is wrestling with today: the gender of God, the status of God's people Israel, the doctrine of creation from nothing. In this talk, Dr. Haley re-narrates the first article as one cohesive story and explains why its authors understood every phrase to constitute good news.

5:00 p.m. Choral Eucharist (featuring vocal ensemble Demestvo) 

This service will feature a complete performance of Guillaume de Machaut’s Messe de Nostre Dame.  This work is historically significant and rarely performed today.  It is the earliest known polyphonic mass setting written by a single composer.  Machaut is remarkable because of the wealth of information that survives about him, a rarity for musicians from the 14th century.  He was at the center of the Ars Nova movement, and his Messe de Nostre Dame set the stage for cyclic masses of the Renaissance.  It is thought that this work was composed in the 1360’s.

6:15 p.m. Dinner on your own in Princeton

Tuesday, 28 October 2025

7:45 a.m. Morning Prayer and Eucharist

9:00 a.m. Keynote Talk # 2 (the Rev. Dr. George Hunsinger)

10:30 a.m. Coffee & Snack Break

11:00 a.m. Workshop: Chant Settings of the Nicene Creed (Dr. Margaret Harper)

In this session, we will look through the musical history of the Nicene Creed, focusing primarily on the evolution of its settings in the context of Gregorian Chant.  

12:00 p.m. Noonday Prayer

12:15 p.m. Lunch

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