First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley and New College Berkeley have launched a new annual lectureship in honor of the Reverend Earl F. Palmer, pastor of First Presbyterian Church Berkeley from 1970 to 1991, and founding trustee of New College Berkeley. The Berkeley Palmer Lectureship will examine current biblical scholarship at the intersection of the Church and the Academy. This lectureship will bring the lens of biblical scholarship to issues of concern to the university, the seminary, and the church. 

Saturday April 13, 2024 / 7-8:30PM

The Reverend Dr. Mark Labberton will present “The Wonder and Tyranny of Fear”.

Fear can lead us into life. It can also strip us of life and drive us towards death. And, it can both liberate and imprison us in-between.

Our lives and cultures are besieged by fears of many kinds—sometimes by an array of circumstances or threats, sometimes by the curated intentions of influencers, sometimes by inner voices creating and escalating anxiety.

We will explore some of the biblical, psychological, cultural, and spiritual dimensions of how we experience fear, why, and the hopeful impact of wonder and worship in our fear-shaped lives.

Location: First Presbyterian Church Bekeley

Past Lectures

April 22, 2023

Dr. Choi examined "The Mystery of the Divine Economy," inviting us to perceive the presence of the Mystery amidst our life together, in solidarity with the invisible, voiceless and displaced persons in today's world. 

Jin Young Choi, PhD, is professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. She is the author of numerous books, including Postcolonial Discipleship of Embodiment: An Asian and Asian American Feminist Reading of the Gospel of Mark. 

Co-sponsored by New College Berkeley and First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley. This annual lectureship, established in honor of the Reverend Earl F. Palmer, brings the lens of biblical scholarship to issues of concern to the university, the seminary, and the church.

Friday and Saturday, April 29-30, 2022

in search of god, identity, and home with/in others

Dr. Uriah Kim, President of the Graduate Theological Union and Professor of Biblical Studies.

Each year, the Berkeley Palmer Lectureship examines, through current biblical theology and scholarship, issues of concern to the church and academy. Dr. Uriah Kim, President of the Graduate Theological Union and Professor of Biblical Studies, presented this year’s Berkeley Palmer Lecture.

Dr. Kim reflected on his faith journey, scholarship, and diasporic experience as he engaged with a third type of relationship in the Bible. This relationship reminds us that we need to pay attention to our own diasporic situation to fully understand our relation to God and to those who are different from ourselves - no matter how comfortable we may feel in our country of residence or how strongly we identify with it. The paradox of being a diasporic people is the experience of being both guests and hosts. Dr. Kim critiques the refusal to see this paradox in themselves and the insistence on seeing themselves solely as permanent hosts. They might enjoy material and social benefits from such politics of identity, but because their understanding of God stems from the position of the majority group, it impedes their access to God whenever they encounter others. Dr Kim proposes the positionality of diasporic paradox as another avenue to knowing God, shaping our identity, and affiliation with our home whenever we encounter those who are different from us.

“fleeing the hot spots: climate change, migration, and mission”

Dr. Ruth Padilla DeBorst, Theologian, missiologist, educator, leader in theological formation for integral mission in Latin America and beyond.

This lecture took place on April 10, 2021 and the video recording is available here.

Pre-session:

“Our changing atmosphere: evidences that demand a verdict?”

Dr. Jeffrey Reimer, Chair of UC Berkeley Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department. This lecture took place on April 9, 2021 and a video recording is available here.

Student Session:

This intimate Q&A with Dr. Ruth Padilla DeBorst, took place on April 10, 2021. Dr. DeBorst is a Theologian, missiologist, educator, leader in theological formation for integral mission in Latin America and beyond. This student session was designed for undergraduates, graduates and seminary students however all were welcomed. A link to Dr. DeBorst’s April 10, 2021 lecture will be available soon.

“Choosing a Race: Overcoming our racial antagonism”

This lecture took place on March 16, 2019, and the video recording is available here

This lecture explored how Christians should understand and respond to the racial antagonism of the western world. The racial problems of the western world emerged from Christian beginnings and we have a responsibility and an opportunity to address them through our life of faith.

INAUGURAL LECTURE - May 2018

“the temptation to be less than human”

This lecture took place on May 5, 2018 and the video recording is available here

You are invited to support the Berkeley Palmer Lectureship!

LAUNCH! Help sponsor the lecture series (which is free to the public).

SUSTAIN! Contribute to the endowment fund to ensure the continuation of this lectureship. 

DONATE BY CHECK OR CREDIT CARD! 

If you donate by check, we'll avoid processing fees for NCB and the lectureship! Mail your check (designated for the Berkeley Palmer Lectureship) to:  New College Berkeley, 2029 Durant Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94704, Attention: Berkeley Palmer Lectureship. We'll send you a receipt for your tax deductible donation, by email or regular mail. Please let us know your preference. Questions?  Call 510.841.9386 or info@newcollegeberkeley.org