Wednesday, February 01, 2012

News from the Bentley's

Dear friends
 
Just to share some news (which may be of no interest to most - apologies for cluttering your inbox)...
 
It is now official that I have been granted secondment to work as a senior researcher at the Research Institute for Theology and Religion at the University of South Africa. The offer from the university came as quite a surpise in the middle of December and we had literally three days to respond.
 
The Research Institute is a very exciting part of the University. We do not have any undergraduate students, only Masters and Doctorates, and it is our function to publish, publish, publish. My areas of focus are twofold. First of all, I will be looking at the faith-science discourse. This is an area of tremendous growth and requires a lot of reflection in the fields of systematic theology and theological ethics. Second, I will continue my research focus on the relevance of church in society, particularly pertaining to the Wesleyan tradition. I keep myself anchored in the local church and will be assisting at the Glen Methodist Church until such time that another minister is stationed (and hopefully beyond, in accordance with the requirements and needs of this congregation).
 
Friends, I strive to serve God and the Church to the fullest of my abilities and ask for your prayers and guidance as we venture on this new path. Natalie, Matthew, Nathan and I are in agreement that this is where we believe God wants us to be (for now), knowing fully well that God sends and we follow.
Kind regards and lots of love.
 
Wessel Bentley
- Theology is grounded in the church, serving God.