Upper House Events

Have archaeologists “disproved” the historical reliability of the biblical texts? These concerns are as common as they are serious for believers, whether confronting flashy news articles or hearing well-articulated, challenging claims from scholars.

This lecture aims to contextualize such questions by describing what biblical archaeology is and why it is important for understanding the biblical world. By considering three brief case studies (the Hyksos, “Solomonic Stables”, and the siege of Lachish), we will examine how archaeology interacts with the Old Testament. This enables a perspective in which, rather than “proving/disproving” historicity, biblical archaeology properly applied can illuminate the background of Scripture and render its stories more understandable and more vivid.

ABOUT OUR SPEAKER

Dr. Geoffrey E. Ludvik, an active field researcher, Geoffrey is currently co-director of archaeological excavations at Tell el-Hesi, Israel (occupied 2800 BC through the Persian period). His interests include early Canaanite trade and technology, the cultural world of the Patriarchs, the Iron Age kingdom of Judah, and the Old Testament period generally.

He earned his Ph.D. in Anthropology (Archaeology) with an emphasis in Hebrew and Semitic Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2018 and is the author of numerous articles and book chapters on Biblical and Mediterranean archaeology. Geoffrey is also an instructor at St. Ambrose Academy in Madison, WI, and a research fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Cobb Institute of Archaeology at Mississippi State University. Geoffrey lives in Madison, WI, with his wife and son.

Have archaeologists “disproved” the historical reliability of the biblical texts? These concerns are as common as they are serious for believers, whether confronting flashy news articles or hearing well-articulated, challenging claims from scholars.

This lecture aims to contextualize such questions by describing what biblical archaeology is and why it is important for understanding the biblical world. By considering three brief case studies (the Hyksos, “Solomonic Stables”, and the siege of Lachish), we will examine how archaeology interacts with the Old Testament. This enables a perspective in which, rather than “proving/disproving” historicity, biblical archaeology properly applied can illuminate the background of Scripture and render its stories more understandable and more vivid.

ABOUT OUR SPEAKER

Dr. Geoffrey E. Ludvik, an active field researcher, Geoffrey is currently co-director of archaeological excavations at Tell el-Hesi, Israel (occupied 2800 BC through the Persian period). His interests include early Canaanite trade and technology, the cultural world of the Patriarchs, the Iron Age kingdom of Judah, and the Old Testament period generally.

He earned his Ph.D. in Anthropology (Archaeology) with an emphasis in Hebrew and Semitic Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2018 and is the author of numerous articles and book chapters on Biblical and Mediterranean archaeology. Geoffrey is also an instructor at St. Ambrose Academy in Madison, WI, and a research fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Cobb Institute of Archaeology at Mississippi State University. Geoffrey lives in Madison, WI, with his wife and son.

Have archaeologists “disproved” the historical reliability of the biblical texts? These concerns are as common as they are serious for believers, whether confronting flashy news articles or hearing well-articulated, challenging claims from scholars.

This lecture aims to contextualize such questions by describing what biblical archaeology is and why it is important for understanding the biblical world. By considering three brief case studies (the Hyksos, “Solomonic Stables”, and the siege of Lachish), we will examine how archaeology interacts with the Old Testament. This enables a perspective in which, rather than “proving/disproving” historicity, biblical archaeology properly applied can illuminate the background of Scripture and render its stories more understandable and more vivid.

ABOUT OUR SPEAKER:

Dr. Geoffrey E. Ludvik, an active field researcher, Geoffrey is currently co-director of archaeological excavations at Tell el-Hesi, Israel (occupied 2800 BC through the Persian period). His interests include early Canaanite trade and technology, the cultural world of the Patriarchs, the Iron Age kingdom of Judah, and the Old Testament period generally.

He earned his Ph.D. in Anthropology (Archaeology) with an emphasis in Hebrew and Semitic Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2018. He is the author of numerous articles and book chapters on Biblical and Mediterranean archaeology. Geoffrey is also an instructor at St. Ambrose Academy in Madison, WI, and a research fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Cobb Institute of Archaeology at Mississippi State University. Geoffrey lives in Madison, WI, with his wife and son.

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🖥️ Watch this talk on YouTube

https://youtu.be/i5n8Xbuazv0

This event was recorded live at Upper House on June 6, 2024.

This contentious era has tested many of us who long to positively engage on issues that matter, yet find ourselves instead engaging in fruitless arguments, or distancing ourselves from people we care about, or occasionally disparaging those we oppose. We know that God desires us to work out our differences and seek mutual flourishing. In that hope, how can we disagree with empathy and respect without sacrificing our convictions? How can we better navigate the differences and disagreements we encounter every day?

John Inazu — law professor, thought leader, and former litigator — addresses these challenges in his new book Learning to Disagree: The Surprising Path to Navigating Differences with Empathy and Respect (Zondervan, 2024), the basis of his in-person interview with Ed Ollie, Jr. at Upper House. John will discuss what he has learned through his years of teaching and working as a litigator, based on navigating conversations with those whose viewpoints seemed ill-informed, wrong, or even evil. At the same time, he will also share gleaned insights that can inform patience, trust, forgiveness, and compassion for the “other.”

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Insights:

➡️ Cultivate empathy as a skill for your personal and professional life.

➡️ Live a more connected life and have more authentic relationships with family and friends with whom you disagree.

➡️ Better understand what holds you back from healthy disagreement.

➡️ Develop practical strategies for making difficult conversations more respectful, with better outcomes.

➡️ Know when to walk away from difficult conversations.

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SPEAKERS:

John Inazu is the Sally D. Danforth Distinguished Professor of Law and Religion at Washington University in St. Louis. He teaches criminal law, law and religion, and various First Amendment courses. He writes and speaks frequently about pluralism, assembly, free speech, religious freedom, and other issues. John has written three books and published opinion pieces in the Washington Post, Atlantic, Chicago Tribune, LA Times, USA Today, Newsweek, and CNN. He is also the founder of the Carver Project and the Legal Vocation Fellowship and is a senior fellow with Interfaith America.

Ed Ollie, Jr. will interview John to kick off our program. Ed is an executive leader, coach, pastor, educator, and master encourager, and currently serves as board chair for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA.

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🖥️ Watch this event on YouTube = https://youtu.be/8q6XaZwRKlE

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This event was recorded live at Upper House for our annual Baccalaureate Service. Adam Penning serves as lead pastor of Blackhawk Church Downtown. Previously, he was the Cru Campus Ministry Director for the New York City Metro Area; from 2001 to 2015, Penning served with Badger Cru on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, including as Area Director. Penning studied at Iowa State University and earned an M.A. in Biblical Studies, Languages, and Urban Ministry from Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

This was recorded live at our annual Baccalaureate Service. Thomas Browne is the Senior Assistant Dean in the Office of Academic Affairs in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at UW–Madison. He is an advocate for meaningful culture and climate change to encourage and support those who might feel undervalued or marginalized. Since 2000 he has worked at UW–Madison, where he also completed undergraduate and graduate work.  

This panel discussion was recorded from our annual arts conference, Let the Art Speak: Between Friends. The panelists include Melissa Shackelford (curator), Leslie Iwai (visual artist), and Susi Jensen (writer).

Melissa Shackelford is the Director of Program Curation and Community Impact at Upper House.

Leslie Iwai is an installation artist and sculptor. With an undergraduate degree in mathematics and chemistry from Wayne State College in Nebraska and a Master of Architecture from Virginia Tech, her work is multidisciplinary and material rich. From the Midwest, Iwai cut her artistic teeth in Omaha, Nebraska. Leslie was the first recipient of the Bemis Community Arts Fellowship (2005), and most recently was the Artist in Residence for Urbana 2018 amongst many other awards and residencies. She now enjoys living and exploring Wisconsin with her husband, where she makes art, collaborates, and connects with her local community.

Susi Jensen is a Stanford creative writing graduate. She worked as a college minister for ten years at UC Berkeley following graduation, then started writing dramas for the stage. She turned toward science fiction writing about ten years ago and is currently working on a final edit of her Young Adult science fiction novel, Sarai of Earth. Susi consumes a lot of sci-fi via all mediums and reviews all of what she sees, hears, and reads at her author website, allscifiallthetime.com.

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🖥️ Watch this recorded event on YouTube = https://youtu.be/UawCofJiBZ8

This talk was recorded live at our annual arts conference, Let the Art Speak. Craig Detweiler is a Los Angeles-based author, filmmaker, and cultural commentator. As a film producer and author, Craig writes about culture, theology, and technology, as well as creates screenplays. He received an MFA in cinema-tv production from the University of Southern California and a Master of Divinity and Ph.D. in theology and culture from Fuller Theological Seminary. Craig co-founded the annual Windrider Forum at Sundance in 2005. He was Variety’s 2016 mentor of the year. His just-released book — Honest Creativity — is described as “an essential guide for not only fostering genuine personal expression, but also the courage to share our most meaningful work with others—all without pretense or artifice.” 

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🖥️ Watch this talk on our YouTube channel = https://youtu.be/V9V1l47bG7s

In this conversation, Marcia Bosscher (editor) and Tish Harrison Warren (writer) discuss the collaborative process of writing between writer and editor. This video was featured at our annual Let the Art Speak conference.

Tish Harrison Warren is a priest in the Anglican Church in North America. Her most recent book is Prayer in the Night: For Those Who Work, or Watch, or Weep. As an author, her other writings include a weekly newsletter for The New York Times, columns for Christianity Today, and many articles and essays for other publications. For over a decade, Tish has worked in various ministry settings. She is a founding member of The Pelican Project and a Senior Fellow with the Trinity Forum. She lives with her husband and three children in Austin, Texas.

Marcia Bosscher is the former editor of The Well, a website for women in the academy and professions, and is now an associate with InterVarsity's Faculty Ministry. Having been married to a professor and sharing life with grad students and faculty in a campus church, she has a deep interest in and care for those in the academy. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with her dog. Lilah, and a diverse array of lodgers and travelers.

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Watch this conversation on YouTube = https://youtu.be/X0aHRXN4K9g

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What does it mean to love someone?

This is a recorded lecture by theologian and public intellectual Miroslav Volf. Drawing on biblical themes and stories of The Good Samaritan and The Widow’s Offering, Professor Volf will speak to love’s generous practicality, its incomparable power to confer value, nobility, and beauty on others, and its active refusal to respect boundaries born of prejudice.

If you seek a fresh vision of love and its outworking in a society grappling with division and disenfranchisement, or if you desire a deeper understanding of what it means to love your neighbor as God’s Great Commandment exhorts, you will be in good company.

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About our Speaker:

Miroslav Volf is the Henry B. Wright Professor of Systematic Theology and Founding Director of the Yale Center for Faith & Culture. His books include Allah: A Christian Response (2011); Free of Charge: Giving and Forgiving in a Culture Stripped of Grace (2006), which was the Archbishop of Canterbury Lenten book for 2006; Exclusion and Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation (1996), a winner of the 2002 Grawemeyer Award; and After Our Likeness: The Church as the Image of the Trinity (1998), winner of the Christianity Today book award. A member of the Episcopal Church in the U.S.A. and the Evangelical Church in Croatia, Professor Volf has been involved in international ecumenical dialogues (for instance, with the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity) and interfaith dialogues (Common Word), and was an active participant in the Global Agenda Council on Values of the World Economic Forum. A native of Croatia, he regularly teaches and lectures in Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, and across North America. Professor Volf is a fellow of Berkeley College. His degrees include a B.A. from Evangelical-Theological Faculty (Zagreb, Croatia), an M.A. from Fuller Theological Seminary, and a Dr. of Theology from the University of Tubingen (Tubingen, Germany).

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🎥 Watch this recorded event on YouTube - https://youtu.be/bu8PeKRVD9M