“Shaped by Scripture: Radical Discipleship in the way of Jesus”

February 22–23, 2027

Keynote Speaker: Rev. Dr. Drew G.I. Hart

Rev. Dr. Drew G.I. Hart is Associate Professor of Theology at Messiah University, where he directed the Thriving Together: Congregations for Racial Justice program in central Pennsylvania for five years. His research and scholarship sit at the intersection of Black liberation theology, Anabaptism, anti-Christendom, and decolonial ecclesiology and ethics. He co-hosts Inverse Podcast with Australian pastor and peace activist Jarrod McKenna and is the author of Trouble I've Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism (2016), Who Will Be A Witness?: Igniting Activism for God's Justice, Love, and Deliverance (2020), and co-edited Reparations and the Theological Disciplines: Prophetic Voices for Remembrance, Reckoning, and Repair (Nov. 2023). His newest book is Making It Plain: Why We Need Anabaptism and the Black Church (September 2025), where he grapples with the meaning of radical discipleship to Jesus in the aftermath of Christendom and Colonial Conquest. Hart speaks regularly at colleges, conferences, and community groups across the United States and beyond and has received the bcmPEACE Peacemaker Award (2017), the W.E.B. Du Bois Award (2019), the Harambee Award (2023), and the Revelation 7:9 Award (2025) in recognition of his local justice work. He lives in Harrisburg, PA with Renee and their three boys.

Keynote Addresses

Shaped by story: How we read scripture | How we read scripture shapes how we live in the world. Drew Hart invites participants to consider how reading in community, especially alongside those on the margins, forms us into people of shalom. Together, we will explore whose voices are present, whose stories we carry, and how scripture calls us into deeper solidarity with those who struggle.

Discerning justice: How we wrestle with scripture | Some biblical texts challenge and trouble us. Rather than avoiding difficult passages about conquest, violence, and slavery, Drew Hart will examine how Christians can engage them honestly and faithfully. By embracing the Bible's diversity and complexity, participants will discover how wrestling with scripture can deepen our commitment to the liberating way of Jesus and the work of peacemaking.

The way of Jesus: How we embody scripture | Scripture is not only meant to be read; it is meant to be lived. In this keynote, Drew Hart explores what it means to follow Jesus through the inspiration of communities practicing justice, peace, and healing. Together, we will consider how the gospel frees us to participate in God's liberating presence and activity in our neighbourhoods and in the world.

Interactive Workshops and Presenters

• To be announced.

2027 Schedule

* denotes available online

Subject to change

Would you like to stay on campus during the conference, contact our Hosting Department at

rental:@:cmu.ca or call 204.594.0513 (toll free 1.877.231.4570).

renew is open to anyone involved in Christian ministry and leadership, regardless of specific congregational or denominational context.