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ACP 2017: Bridges to Understanding

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BRIDGES TO UNDERSTANDING:
ACP Convention 2017 returns to Chicago

* April 26 — 28, 2017, Fourth Presbyterian Church

CLICK HERE FOR CONVENTION SCHEDULE

SPEAKERS AND WORKSHOPS

Faith communicators once again gathered in Chicago, April 26-28, 2017 for the  annual convention of the Associated Church Press. The organization marked its 100th anniversary in 2016 by returning to St. Louis, the city where it launched a century ago by a group of religious journalists. But for many ACP members and friends, Chicago is home for the ACP.

Fourth Presbyterian Church
126 E. Chestnut St.
Chicago, IL 60611-2014
Driving Directions
ACP 2017 — BRIDGES TO UNDERSTANDING
 BUILDING bridges; cultivating civility; the art and science of respecting others; expanding the table; getting comfortable with the idea of one faith, many cultures; changing the culture with conversation; embracing differences: These are some of the ideas we explored at ACP 2017.

Historic Fourth Presbyterian Church is on the Magnificent Mile in downtown Chicago. We heard from dynamic keynote speakers and outstanding professional development workshops on writing, editing, marketing, design, spiritual and social justice resources, and publishing in the digital age.4th_presbyterian_chicago_2004-11_img_2602

Rev. John Buchanan, pastor emeritus of Fourth Presbyterian Church and former editor and publisher of The Christian Century, will preach at opening worship in the church’s beautiful John Buchanan Chapel.

Free-time options will include an evening at Chicago’s famed Second City comedy club (a limited number of group-rate tickets will be available). Convention planners are also working on other possibilities, such as an Architectural River Tour.

The convention will culminate with the annual Awards Banquet recognizing the best work done by ACP members in a wide range of categories in 2016.

ACP has reserved a small block of rooms at the Millennium Knickerbocker, a landmark hotel less than a five-minute walk from Fourth Presbyterian Church.

Don’t miss this once-a-year opportunity for professional development, inspiration, and networking with colleagues and friends!

In addition to John Buchanan, 2017 keynote speakers are Eboo Patel and Dr. Ganoun Diop, 

Eboo Patel

Eboo Patel delivered the keynote address at the ACP annual convention, April 26-28, 2017 in Chicago.

Patel is a leading voice in the movement for interfaith cooperation and the Founder and President of Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC), a national nonprofit working to make interfaith eboo-headshot-2012cooperation a social norm. He is the author of Acts of Faith, Sacred Ground and Interfaith Leadership. Named by US News & World Report as one of America’s Best Leaders of 2009, Eboo served on President Obama’s Inaugural Faith Council. He is a regular contributor to the public conversation around religion in America and a frequent speaker on the topic of religious pluralism. He holds a doctorate in the sociology of religion from Oxford University, where he studied on a Rhodes scholarship. For over fifteen years, Eboo has worked with governments, social sector organizations, and college and university campuses to help realize a future where religion is a bridge of cooperation rather than a barrier of division.

Quotes by Eboo Patel:

“To see the other side, to defend another people, not despite your tradition, but because of it, is the heart of pluralism.” – Acts of Faith, 2007

“Pluralism is not a birthright in America; it’s a responsibility. Pluralism does not fall from the sky; it does not rise up from the ground. People have fought for pluralism. People have kept the promise. America is exceptional not because there is magic in our air but because there is fierce determination in our citizens.” – Sacred Ground, 2012

Dr. Ganoune Diop

The ACP Convention Committee is delighted to announce that staff-diopDr. Ganoune Diop has agreed to present a keynote address at our annual convention, April 26-28, 2017, in Chicago. Dr. Diop is Director of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty for the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church. Before his election in July 2015 at the 60th General Conference Session in San Antonio, Texas, he served as the church’s liaison to the United Nations in New York and Geneva, and as its representative within the international community of civic and political leaders.

“Thank you very much for the invitation to speak at the Associated Church Press Convention on April 28, 2017,” Dr. Diop said. “It is an honor to participate at this significant event. You can therefore count on my contribution which I am hope will meet the high expectation of this distinguished gathering. I am looking forward to meeting you all personally in April.”

Dr. Diop’s passion for God has led him to extensive theological, philosophical, and literary studies. Dr. Diop has a Masters in Exégèses and Theology from Collonges, France, a Masters degree in Philiology from the University of Paris, and a PhD in Old Testament Studies from Andrews University. He is currently a PhD candidate in New Testament Studies. Most recently he was honored with a Doctorate Honoris Causa, granted for his contributions to developing a global culture of human rights and respect for human dignity.

Dr. Diop is also an ordained Seventh-day Adventist minister, and has served as a local church pastor. Other positions he has held include conference departmental director, and professor of Biblical Languages, Exegesis, and Theology at Saleve Adventist University in France, and later at Southern Adventist University and Oakwood University in the United States. Before joining the General Conference PARL department in 2011 as an associate director, Dr. Diop was Director of the five Global Mission Study Centers of Adventist Mission.

A passion for people led him to his first love of studying sociology, pastoral psychology, and pastoral care. His in-depth study of biblical anthropology has also helped sharpen his way of articulating the hope Adventists share with the world.

Dr. Diop’s life journey has been enriched by living and working on three different continents, within various cultural settings. But while his is comfortable within many different cultures, he finds his deepest identity in Jesus Christ.

He says the privilege of representing the Seventh-day Adventist Church around the world has helped him grow in the art and science of respecting others, and of developing productive relationships with those of other religious and philosophical persuasions.

Dr. Diop was born in Dakar, Senegal, and he and his wife, Helene, have three children. He is a concert flute soloist, who also loves art and literature. He enjoys teaching, preaching, and sharing the Gospel.

Time: ACP Convention starts Wednesday, April 26, 2017. Dr. Diop’s luncheon keynote address is scheduled for Friday, April 28.

Where: Fourth Presbyterian Church, 126 E Chestnut St, Chicago, IL 60611