Perkins to Offer Houston Lay School of Theology on Saturday, Feb. 11

Dr. O. Wesley Allen Jr. will be presenting “The Reign of Heaven … What on Earth? The Heart of the Gospel of Matthew” during the day-long workshop at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church.

DALLAS (SMU)O. Wesley Allen Jr., the Lois Craddock Perkins Professor of Homiletics at Perkins School of Theology, will be presenting “The Reign of Heaven … What on Earth? The Heart of the Gospel of Matthew” at the upcoming Houston Lay School of Theology.

The day-long workshop, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 11, at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church (5501 Main Street), is designed to provide participants an opportunity to engage a leading topic of Christian theology alongside a Perkins faculty member.

Dr. Allen will lead participants through an examination of the first gospel in the New Testament – the Gospel of Matthew – through the lens of its eschatology … that is, its theology of the end of times and the return of Christ. Modern readers often miss how strong an apocalyptic worldview this gospel offers. Participants not only will discover how much the Gospel of Matthew emphasizes eschatology but also will uncover clues for a non-literal way to understand eschatology in the 21st century.

The Houston Lay School of Theology is sponsored by Southern Methodist University’s Perkins School of Theology, in cooperation with the Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and St. Paul’s United Methodist Church of Houston. The school meets each February and August, offering an opportunity for laity and others to explore issues of spirituality, theology, religion, and church leadership with faculty and leaders from Perkins.

Advanced registration of $65 – which includes the cost of the course and lunch – is available through Monday, Feb. 6. First-time attendees can receive a $25 discount, and continuing-education credit (.5 CEU) is available for an additional $25. All registration information is available at http://bit.ly/2gMoIDA.

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Perkins School of Theology, founded in 1911, is one of five official University-related schools of theology of The United Methodist Church. Degree programs include the Master of Divinity, Master of Sacred Music, Master of Theological Studies, Master of Arts in Ministry, Master of Theology, Doctor of Ministry, and Doctor of Pastoral Music as well as the Ph.D., in cooperation with The Graduate Program in Religious Studies at SMU’s Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences.