Our First-Ever Virtual Annual Meeting!

For 80 years now, the ASA's unique mission has been to integrate, communicate, and facilitate properly researched science and theology in service to the church and the scientific community. Since 2016, the Creation Project of the Carl H. F. Henry Center for Theological Understanding has been inviting theologians, pastors, and scientists to engage in the study of the doctrine of creation with all of its implications for faith, learning, and living. In partnership, we invite you into this conversation.

Participants in the 2021 ASA annual meeting will interact with biblical and theological scholars who have thought deeply and written provocatively on topics relevant to the faith-science dialogue. Conversations include the following:

• Adam, Genes, & Genealogy, with David Livingstone and also in a special discussion with Ted Davis and Josh Swamidass
• Science & Extra Biblical Literature, with C. John Collins
• Accounting for Mental Illness, with Hans Madueme
• Science & the Doctrine of Creation, with Lydia Jaeger
• Transhumanism & the Resurrection, with Christina Bieber Lake

How This Virtual Meeting Will Work

This virtual meeting has been designed to emulate the key elements of our traditional annual meetings. Here is what you can expect.

Welcome Center: You will be greeted by our ever-present Lyn Berg. Throughout the conference, you can duck in to say "hi" and get answers as always. Your hosts, John Wood and Vicki Best, will greet you at each transition and guide your meeting experience.

Pathable: We are using a virtual meeting management system to make your online meeting experience as seamless as possible. We will continue to use the Zoom functionality, wrapping the Pathable platform around it with new features. Visit our Prepare to Attend page for information and overview.

Program Features and Highlights

Plenary Speakers and Respondents–New this year are select respondents for each plenary. Adding depth to the Q&A sessions, these scholars will have read and shared their reactions with the author in advance.

Concurrent Sessions–A mainstay of our annual meetings, member talks have been collected into parallel sessions. Each session will have up to three 15-minute presentations each followed by a 5-minute Q&A time.  

Poster Sessions–The asynchronous poster room will be open throughout the meeting. Drop in and view this work. You will have the option to send a chat to the author.

Devotions and Sunday Worship–No ASA annual meeting is complete without the ability to join together in worship. Again this summer, ASA members will provide daily devotionals, and we will enjoy a Sunday morning service together in quintessential ASA style — singing hymns, praying together, and hearing God's word.

Student/Early Career Event–Mars, math, and lifesaving technology—what do they have in common? Our early career event features experts on all three. Explore how to work for the common good as you grow your science career. Keynote speakers are health innovator Alynne MacLean of Science with a Mission and Francis Su, author of Mathematics for Human Flourishing. Our reception guest is Mars expert Roger Wiens.

State of the ASA–Yes, we will do some business at the State of the ASA meeting. But new this year is our guest speaker Steve Macchia, Founder and President of Leadership Transformations and Director of the Pierce Center for Disciple-Building at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. Steve is devoted to developing leadership among nonprofits such as the ASA and for the church of the 21st century. Join us as we take a peak forward just two short decades and imagine what the ASA might be at its centenary in 2041.

Socials R Us–The ASA is nothing if not a friendly group! We love to get together in person or virtually, so we have created both formal and informal social spaces for you to gather. Hang out with friends, schedule a meet-up with new acquaintances, or drop-in and see who is around in the chat rooms. As always, we'll have our opening night mixer, ice cream social, and coffee hour. New this year are our nightlight games!

Bring a Guest–We have planned the meeting for you and your guest this summer. Notice in the registration packages that there are ways for you to bring a guest. This might be your pastor, a colleague at work or from your church, or a small group of colleagues and their students. The more, the merrier!

Sunset Access Pass–But if you can't make it "live," there is also a sunset access pass with exclusive access to the recordings for the coming year.

So, bring your friends and join in the Scientia this summer.

With great anticipation,

The ASA Team: John, Vicki, Lyn, Becky, Dana, and Mark

P.S. Those who register for the full conference or the Student/Early Career Event only by June 30, 2021, will be sent an ASA gift bag (US & Canadian addresses only) with goodies to enhance your conference experience.