The Rev Dr. L. Gregory Jones to Give 2026 G. Peter Kaye Lecture at VST
Re-Discovering Christianity’s Surprise: Cultivating Christian Social Innovation at the Heart of the Gospel
Friday, March 13th at 7 pm (Free)
Public Lecture: (In-Person & Online)
Saturday, March 14, 10 am – 2 pm ($10 – lunch included)
Public Workshop: Crazy People Who Have Hope: Practicing Social Innovation as a Renewal of Institutions and Communities (In-Person only)
Location (in-person):
Epiphany Chapel
6030 Chancellor Blvd, Vancouver
The Vancouver School of Theology is delighted to confirm that The Rev. Dr. L. Gregory Jones, President of Belmont University and former Dean of Duke Divinity School as the keynote speaker for the 2026 G. Peter Kaye lecture and workshop on March 13 and 14.
On Friday, March 14 at 7 pm The Rev. Dr. Jones will give a public lecture in-person and online titled Re-Discovering Christianity’s Surprise: Cultivating Social Innovation at the Heart of the Gospel. The following day on Saturday, March 14 from 10 am – 2 pm, he will lead an in-person workshop that expands on this theme entitled Crazy People Who Have Hope: Practicing Social Innovation as a Renewal of Institutions and Communities
Jones’ lecture will explore how Christian witness becomes most compelling when it is rooted in social innovation. It examines the practices, convictions, and relationships that allowed early Christian communities to surprise the ancient world and carry the Gospel far beyond expected boundaries.
This free public lecture invites participants to explore how Christian social innovation has shaped transformative witness throughout history. By revisiting the practices and convictions that made the early church so surprising, the session opens space to imagine how these patterns might inspire renewed and meaningful Christian witness in the 21st century.
Abstracts for both the public lecture and the in-person workshop can be found at www.vst.edu/event/re-discovering-christianitys-surprise/.
Both the public lecture (free) and the workshop ($10—includes lunch) require registration. Please register here: www.events.humanitix.com/re-discovering-christianitys-surprise.
The G. Peter Kaye Lecture series was established in 1987 by the Vancouver Foundation in honour of its well-respected former Board Chairperson Gilbert Peter Kaye. For the past 38 years the G. Peter Kaye Lecture series has brought to campus “scholars of international reputation chosen for their ability to make a serious intellectual contribution to theological enquiry in a way that nourishes the spiritual life of the church and the wider community.
The Rev. L. Gregory Jones is a theologian whose work centers on the nature of forgiveness, the significance of Christian ministry and pastoral leadership, and social innovation and entrepreneurship. He served as Duke’s chief international strategist to advance and coordinate the university’s global engagement. Between 1997 and 2010, and then between 2018 and 2021, Jones served as the dean of the Divinity School.
The author or editor of seventeen books, he has also published more than 200 articles and essays. A recent book is Christian Social Innovation: Renewing Wesleyan Witness (Abingdon Press, May 2016). He coauthored the book Forgiving As We’ve Been Forgiven with Celestin Musekura and another book with Kevin R. Armstrong, Resurrecting Excellence: Shaping Faithful Christian Ministry.