Michiana Adventist Forum

"Paul among the Ecologists: Romans for the 21st Century" with Sigve K. Tonstad

The Michiana Adventist Forum is presenting "Paul among the Ecologists: Romans for the 21st Century" with Sigve K. Tonstad, MD, PhD, Professor of Biblical Interpretation in the School of Religion at Loma Linda University. The program is at 3:30 pm, Saturday afternoon, April 14, 2018, in Chan Shun Hall on the campus of Andrews University in Berrien Springs, MI.

About the Speaker
Sigve Tonstad was born and raised in Norway. He completed a BA in Theology at Middle East College in Lebanon and Andrews University, his MD from Loma Linda University, and a PhD in New Testament Studies at the University of St. Andrews.

He is Professor of Biblical Interpretation at Loma Linda University in California. In 2017, he received the Charles E. Weniger Award for Excellence. He has written books and many articles in Norwegian. His English-language books include The Scandals of the Bible; Saving God’s Reputation; The Theological Function of Pistis Iesou in the Cosmic Narratives of Revelation; The Lost Meaning of the Seventh Day; and God of Sense and Traditions of Non-Sense. He is currently working on the Revelation volume in the Paideia New Testament Commentary series published by Baker Academic.

His latest book, The Letter to the Romans: Paul among the Ecologists, is part of the Earth Bible Commentary series published by Sheffield Phoenix Press.

His teaching and research interests include the problem of suffering, Johannine Literature, Paul as an apostle of hope, ecological hermeneutics, and biblical ethics. He is married to Serena Hasso Tonstad, a physician and preventive medicine expert. They have two grown daughters. In his spare time, Sigve enjoys running, rollerblading, and cross-country skiing.

About the Subject
Martin Luther's reading of Romans has been normative among Protestants for five hundred years, but during the past forty years, Luther’s dominance has been shattered. Compelling new perspectives have transformed our understanding of Paul and his most influential letter. In Romans we find Paul among the ecologists in a way that promises to make Romans a key text for the 21st century. In this epistle Paul outlines an ethical vision of compassion in human community, with regard to citizenship and government. His call to mercy blends with the best and most urgent sentiments of contemporary ecologists. Much of this has not yet impacted Seventh-day Adventist institutions of learning and is still unknown in lay Adventist communities."

Adventist Forum is open to the public. All are welcome. For information, contact Art Robertson at robertsa2@earthlink.net or call 471-7150.