Teleios Conference 2025
Highlights from the 2025 Teleios Conference hosted by the Teleios Journal and the College of Biblical Studies at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas on Feb 20-22.
• The 2025 Teleios Conference entitled Spirituality in the Stone-Campbell Heritage was attended by scholars, students, and a rare blast of cold weather in Texas. Despite the cold outside, the atmosphere of the event was warm and engaging.
• The opening lecture was given by the Stone-Campbell Heritage’s preeminent historian, Dr. Douglas Foster. He delivered a case study of two influential preachers from the 20th century who shared the same heritage but ended up with divergent contributions to spirituality. Dr. Foster set the framework for the presentations on Friday and Saturday.
• Friday morning began with Dr. Lauren Smelser White of Lipscomb University. Dr. White asked the audience to consider the tension between following Scripture and discerning the Holy Spirit both as individuals and as faith communities. She offered an incarnational hermeneutic model that runs between a rational Biblicism and a Spirit-based emotionalism.
• The morning’s second session featured Dr. Stanley Talbert of Pepperdine University who spoke on Spirituality and Justice. He inspired the audience by beginning his presentation singing, “I woke up this morning with my mind centered on freedom.” This was a perfect introduction to a presentation where Dr. Talbert demonstrated the necessity of integrating spirituality and justice in our faith communities.
• After a lunch break, attendees chose from three engaging sessions that highlighted diverse aspects of spirituality: Dr. Ken Cukrowski (Abilene Christian University) presented on Spirituality & Film, Dr. Heather Gorman (Johnson University) presented on Spirituality & Sexuality, and Dr. Steve Kinnard (Mountain Theological Seminary) presented on Spirituality & Nature.
• Dr. Randy Harris (Abilene Christian University, retired) delivered Friday’s final lecture where he illuminated spirituality and formation through his own journey where he sought formation through experiences in various of spiritual practices. He emphasized the importance of remaining grounded in the Word even as we seek our own spiritual experiences. His presentation was personal, deep, and inspirational.
• On Saturday morning, Dr. Tera Harmon of Abilene Christian University uncovered the history of spirituality through the voices of women. She proposed that we pay attention to vestiges that faithful women of faith have left in history. She demonstrated how to discover these vestiges and learn from them.
• The conference closed out with a stirring, lyrical, and forward-looking vision of the future of spirituality in the Stone-Campbell heritage from Dr. Jerry Taylor (Abilene Christian University). Dr. Taylor prophetically guided the audience through the pitfalls of leaning on the humanistic patternism that has often been teased out the book of Acts. Instead, he called the audience to a fresh perspective that recognizes the Holy Spirit’s work over and above all human effort. He challenged the movement to repent of greed and selfish ambition and to return to the upper room and to a posture waiting for the Holy Spirit. Dr. Taylor’s speech is available for anyone to hear at teleiosjournal.com/exclusivecontent.
The 2026 Teleios Conference will be held at Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, Texas on February 26-28. Everyone is invited to attend. Look for details at TeleiosConference.com.
With Love,
Dr. Steve Kinnard
