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This project led by Steve Porter at Westmont College aims to amplify the impact of specific research projects from TWCF’s Science of Religious and Spiritual Exercises (SoRSE) priority to scholars and faith communities. It will organize three annual conferences bringing together a selection of SoRSE researchers, scholars, and church leaders to discuss and engage with research findings from SoRSE projects and more generally, with the science of religious and spiritual practices.
Designed and hosted by Westmont’s Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture (MI), these workshops will highlight findings on how the nature of spiritual exercises and their connection to positive change can be understood through psychological science research, as well as through theological thought and pastoral experience.
Three three-day workshops will bring SoRSE researchers conducting research into practices from the Christian tradition into purposeful engagement with scholars (from theology, religious studies, biblical studies, philosophy, social sciences) to integrate and contextualize these findings, and then to share these findings with Christian leaders in diverse ministry contexts.
The goal is to promote dialogue and collaboration between scholars and practitioners, helping church leaders apply science-informed insights in ministry, and enabling researchers to better understand how their work is received and used beyond academia.
The themes are: Connecting Religious and Spiritual Practice to Spiritual and Moral Change; The Role of Suffering and the Practice of Lament in Spiritual and Moral Formation; The Formational Effects of Contemplative Prayer.
Several post-workshop resources will be produced including:
