Conferentie 'Reinventing Authority and Leadership in a Fragile World'

Education, Formation and the Church IV

Apeldoorn, October 29 and 30

Introduction

Education cannot exist without guidance and leadership. Consequently, pedagogical relationships are characterized by forms of authority. In our current world authority is confronting us with feelings of complex ambiguity. At the one hand authority is perceived as problematic in itself, an assault one someone’s autonomy and subjectivity, emphasizing and maintaining inequality. At the other hand strong forms of authority are returning in politics, society and also education. In a global scene with tensions between nations and interest groups, there is a tendency to support strong and even autocratic leadership.

At the same time one can observe the fragility and vulnerability of authority and leadership as it is executed, also in the domains of church and education. Leaders everywhere, those in educational and religious institutions included, struggle with the task of navigating between different demands and interests. The delicate reliability of authority has increased enormously due to the impact of social media and artificial intelligence. Who knows which statements and voices should be heard or can still be trusted?

Authority and leadership

All these considerations have led us to dedicate the fourth EFC conference to authority and leadership in the context of school and church. How should pedagogical and theological leaders and institutions express and embody authority in an era in which leadership is fragile? What forms of authority are fruitful in educational, pastoral care and church leadership? This topic is a logical follow-up of the findings of the previous conference, in which we observed that the loss of traditions went hand in hand with uncertainty about authority. The urgency for this theme is strengthened by our observation that churches and schools are in need for leaders who are not only able and willing to interpret our fragile world wisely, but who also have the courage to act wisely and, in the meantime, can sensitively guide people in forming their own judgments.

Conference

The conference aims to promote conversation between scholars and researchers from universities and practitioners working in the context of education and the church. Next to keynote lectures, we will have room for paper presentations and other activities. All parts of the conference will be structured along three lines:

1. Conceptual and theoretical issues

We would like to start with basic reflections on the problem, stated above and how we can we best give meaning to authority and leadership. Societal developments and views on authority will be summarized. We also aim to have a thorough theological understanding of the authority of the divine. How is this related to the authority of canonic sources? What is the meaning of the authority of Christ for the Church and Christian institutions? Because of the pedagogical focus of the conference, we need also to be fed with basic thoughts on authority and responsibly of parents, teachers and educators and leaders of educational and religious institutions. Here the relationship between authority, agency and freedom also have to be discussed.

2. Contextual backgrounds and pedagogical issues

In this part we aim for contributions that exemplify real life. We think about casus in education and church from diverse contexts which show how people deal with authority and leadership. This can be contextual, like the appearance of leadership in different countries or (sub-)cultures in those countries. With regard to pedagogy, we need reflection on the use of AI, (social-) media and authority. Special subjects within this part are how to guide adolescents in their search for meaning and how to deal with the distortion of pedagogical relations by abuse.

3. Promoting good practices of leadership in education and the Church in the future

In this part we explore options for practicing leadership in the future. We think for example about leaders as wise interpreters of divine revelation, and the role of leaders in shaping a collective identity.

Invited Keynote speakers

Prof. dr. Annette Edenhofer (DE)
Dr. Øyvind Fosse (NO)
Prof. dr. Roel Kuiper (NL)
Dr. Marloes Hoencamp (NL)
Dr. Margaret James (UK)
Dr. Annemarie Foppen (NL)

Call for papers

Researchers, PhD-students and practitioners are invited to submit abstracts for a presentation in short paper sessions. These sessions are meant to present all kinds of research, also those that are not directly relating to the topic but have a focus on Christian education and formation at schools and in churches, the overarching theme of this conference series. Proposals for short paper sessions can be sent in before June 1, 2026 (new deadline!), by filling in the form on this page. The text should not exceed a maximum of 500 words, apart from the title of the paper, the author’s name, and affiliations. The content is preferably related to the conference theme. Proposals will be assessed by the committee and those who will be selected will be scheduled in the program of the conference.

Location and lodging

The conference will be hosted by the Theological University of Apeldoorn.

Participants take care of their own lodging during the conference. A list of hotels is available below.

• Bastion Hotel Apeldoorn Het Loo (~1.3 km from TUA)
• Zenzez Hotel & Lounge (~1.5 km from TUA)
• Hotel et le Café de Paris (~2 km from TUA)
• Hotel Pegasus (~1.8 km from TUA)
• Bilderberg Hotel De Keizerskroon (~2 km from TUA)
• B&B De Mansarde (~1.7 kmfrom TUA)
• De Grift Apeldoorn (~2.9 kmfrom TUA)

Tickets

Participation fee is € 195. Early bird € 165 (until 1 May 2026). You can buy your tickets on this page.