Craigville Theological Colloquy
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
July 6-10, 2026
Preaching, Prophecy and Prayer in a Time of Crisis
How do congregations and pastors
proclaim and live the Word of God
in a time of turmoil, division, and fear?
How did we reach this turning point? Is the church complicit in the current crisis—
and if so, what are the causes of our complicity?
Why have many Christians turned towards authoritarian ideologies?
Can we find a common biblical language?
What are the biblical and theological resources that can help us?
What are the models of activism for congregations seeking to respond faithfully
with confidence and hope?
What are the models for dialogue that can help reconcile divided congregations?
How can pastors provide spiritual care for members
who are exhausted by anger or losing hope?
Are there spiritual practices that can keep pastors and lay leaders
centered and healthy?
REGISTRATION OPENS SOON!
The first Craigville Theological Colloquy, convened in 1984, marked the fiftieth anniversary of the Barmen Declaration, issued in 1934 as an act of resistance by Protestant faith leaders to the emerging Nazi regime. Back then, Colloquy participants discussed how Barmen might be relevant to the contemporary church.
This year’s Colloquy returns to pressing matters of faith and politics as we address our own national crisis with the rise of authoritarianism in the U.S. Former President Biden, among others, has spoken of waging a “battle for the soul of the nation.” Similarly, we might speak of engaging in a “battle for the soul of White Christianity,” given the rise of White Christian Nationalism and the fact that a majority of White Christians–evangelical, mainline, and Catholic–voted not once, not twice, but three times to place a would-be dictator in the White House. In February of this year, at the start of the Lenten season, a group of U.S. Protestant and Catholic leaders issued “A Call to Christians in a Crisis of Faith and Democracy,” echoing the urgency of the Barmen Declaration by stating “there are moments that call for repentance and resistance, courage and conviction, faith and fortitude. This is one of those moments.”
Marvin Ellison, a Christian social ethicist and scholar-activist, will offer two presentations on the theme of this year’s Colloquy. The first is entitled “Speaking Truth to Power: The Twin Crises of an Endangered Democracy and a Corrupted Faith,” and the second is “Holding onto Hope: Empathy and Solidarity as the Antidotes to Authoritarianism.”