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Annual Meetings Schedule 2023
Adventist Society for Religious Studies
San Antonio, Texas, November 16-18, 2023
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"Cosmic Conflict: Out-of-Date vs. Up-to-Date"
​Thursday, November 16
Hampton Inn and Suites San Antonio Riverwalk
Street Address: 118 Soledad Street, San Antonio, TX
Note: the room where we are meeting is in the basement. You’ll need to take the elevator and go down the SINGLE elevator (not the other two on the other side). Use code 114 and click B.
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​6:30-7:30 PM - Reception
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7:30-7:45 - Welcome and Announcements by President-elect
Lena Toews
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​7:45-8:45 - Presidential Address 2023
"Cosmic Conflict: Out-of-Date vs. Up-to-Date: Three Stops on a Journey"
Sigve Tonstad
9:00-9:30 PM - Business Session I
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Friday, November 17
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6:30-8:00 AM
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Grand Hyatt Hotel, Republic B
Street Address: 600 E Market Street, San Antonio, TX
Adventist Women's Scholars Breakfast hosted by the North American Division
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Marriott River Center Hotel
Street Address: 101 Bowie St, San Antonio, TX 78205
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8:00-8:20 AM - Morning devotional
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Grand Ballroom, Salon H
Paper: A History of the Book: The Great Controversy, from 1858 to the Storming of the United States Capitol
Michael W. Campbell, North American Division SDA
8:30-9:45 AM - Paper Sessions
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Grand Ballroom, Salon H
Cosmic Conflict in the Book of Revelation
Sigve Tonstad, presiding
Paper #1: The Identity of Michael in Revelation 12:7
Jon Paulien, Loma Linda University
Paper #2: Making Sense of Suffering, Kingdom, and Endurance with the Help of Revelation 1:9
Oleg Kostyuk, AdventHealth University
Paper #3: Understanding Eternal Gospel in Revelation 14 in Light of its Literary Structure
Zandritiana Lovanomena, PhD student, Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies
Con​ference Room 11
Cosmic Conflict and Judgement
Rodney Palmer, presiding
Paper #1: Creation, Cosmic Conflict, and Re-Creation
Martin Hanna, Andrews University
Paper #2: The Relationship of the Divine Judgment to God’s Love: A Biblical-Theological Examination
Jacob Aguimesheo, PhD student, Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies
Conference Room 12
Cosmic Conflict and the Gospels
Zdravko Stefanovic, presiding
Paper #1: Jesus’ Exorcism of the Temple: The Interplay between the Cosmic Conflict and Racial Conflict
Kenley D. Hall, Andrews University
Paper #2: Silent Night, or Fright Night? Martial Imagery as an Indicator of
Cosmic Conflict in the Lukan Nativity Narrative
Ross Winkle, Pacific Union College
Paper #3: Cosmic Conflict in the Gospel of Mark and Its Significance for the Seventh-day Adventist Message
Igor Lorencin, Friedensau Adventist University
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9:45-11:00 - Paper Session 2
Grand Ballroom, Salon H
Cosmic Conflict in Ancient and Biblical Literature
Lena Toews, presiding
Paper #1: Is a Cosmic Conflict Biblical?
Jean Sheldon, Pacific Union College
Paper #2: Exploring the Function of the Books in Daniel 7:10
Etienne M. Irakiza, AIIAS
Paper #3: The Mother of All Living: Listening to Her Tell the Story of Genesis 3
Mathilde Frey, Walla Walla University
Con​ference Room 11
Cosmic Conflict and Politics
James Walters, presiding
Paper #1: People of the Lie: Christian Alignment with the Antagonists in the Cosmic Conflict
Keith Burton, AdventHealth University
Paper #2: The Politics of Weaponizing the Controversy between Good and Evil”
Jeffrey Rosario, Loma Linda University
Paper #3: The Woman in the Wilderness and Other Tales: A Reassessment of Seventh-day Adventist Interpretation of Revelation 12
Kevin Burrell, Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada
Conference Room 12
Cosmic Conflict and Divine and Human Interaction
David Williams, presiding
Paper #1: Cosmic Politics: Conflict Governance versus Cosmopolitan Shared Governance
Moises Isaac, Loma Linda University
Paper #2: Race: SDA Hamartiology and Theological Anthropology
Alexander Douglas, Kings College, Cambridge University
Paper #3: The Cosmic Conflict Macronarrative as Key Component in a Fourfold Hermeneutical Structure
Adelina Alexe, Andrews University
Discussion (15 minutes)
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11:00-11:30 - Business Session II (Grand Ballroom, Salon H)
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11:30 – 11:45 - Break
11:45-1:00 - Paper Session 3.
Grand Ballroom, Salon H
The Great Controversy
Michael W. Campbell, presiding
Paper #1: The Role of the Sabbath in the Great Controversy: A Voice from the Past
Nicholas P. Miller, Andrews University
Paper #3: “Jacob Defeated God and So Can You: Ellen White’s Important Vision Reconsidered Anew”
Matthew Korpman, La Sierra University
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Con​ference Room 11
Cosmic Conflict in Literature
Alexander Douglas, presiding
Paper #1: Sauron or the White Witch? The Adversary in John’s Gospel
Jonathan A. Campbell, Burman University
Paper #2: Ethics of the Other and Christian Theodicy: A Focus on Emmanuel Levinas
Sunghun Choi, PhD Student, Andrews University
Paper #3
Ivan Karamazov’s "Rebellion", the Mid-Twentieth Century Gas Chambers, and the Need for a Deeper Adventist Vision of the Cosmic Conflict
Zdravko Plantak, Loma Linda University
Conference Room 12
Cosmic Conflict and the End
Mathilde Frey, presiding
Paper #1: The Focal Theme of the End-time Great Controversy in the Central Section of the Book of Revelation
Alfredo G. Agustin, Jr., Asia Pacific International University
Paper #2: Cosmic Eschatology in Acts 2 and its Implications on the Community of Believers
Lena Toews, Union College
Paper #3: Advent Hope on the Edges of Silicon Valley: Technofuturism, Adventist Eschatology, and the Relevance of Cosmic Conflict
Michael Swenson, Safety Policy Manager, Meta, Inc.
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1:00-2:00 - Lunch Break
2:00-3:15 - Paper Session 4.
Grand Ballroom, Salon H
Cosmic Conflict and Theodicy
Zdravko Plantak, presiding
Paper #1: The Devil is in the Details: Black Theodicy from a Cosmic-Conflict Perspective
Ingram London, Oakwood University
Paper #2: Cosmic Conflict as an Answer to Innocent Suffering
Thomas Toews, Union College
Paper #3: De-Framing God: Theodrama and the Challenge of False Narratives in the Face of Evil
Tihomir Lazic, Newbold College, UK
Conference Room 11
Cosmic Conflict in theologians, Old and New
Johnny Ramirez-Johnson, presiding
Paper #1: The Vindication of God’: Edward Heppenstall and the use of the concept of cosmic conflict for reframing the sanctuary doctrine – a contextual study of theological development.
Gilbert Valentine, La Sierra University
Paper #2: Martin Luther and Seventh-day Adventism’s Antichrist(s)
Daniela Pusic, PhD student, Andrews University
Paper #3: “And there was war in heaven” — A Comparison of Ellen White and John Milton on the Fall of Lucifer and Its Theological and Pastoral Implications
Denis Fortin, Andrews University
​Conference Room 12
Cosmic Conflict and Adventism
Bonnie Dwyer, presiding
Paper #1: Revelation 13 - From Out-of-date to Up-to-date
Mihai Bijacu, PhD student, Andrews University
Paper #2: Cosmic Conflict: A Dynamical Redemption Story
Tammy Wiese, University of St. Andrews
3:15-3:30 - Business Session III (Grand Ballroom, Salon H)
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3:30-4:45 - Session 5. There will be no traditional sectional meetings. But the paper presentations are somewhat grouped by disciplines.
Grand Ballroom, Salon H
Biblical Studies (OT and NT)
Ross Winkle, presiding
Paper #1: What happened to the thrones in Daniel 7:9
Zdravko Stefanovic, AdventHealth University
Paper #2: Cosmic Conflict and Adventist Ethics
P. Richard Choi, Andrews University
Paper #3: Daniel and Revelation: Blasphemy in the Cosmic Conflict
Bohdan Kuryliak, PhD student, University of Zurich, Switzerland
Ihor Kuryliak, PhD student, University of Zurich, Switzerland
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Conference Room 11
Theology, Ethics and History
Martin Hanna, presiding
Paper #1: Cosmic Conflict as Story—Literal and Symbolic
James W. Walters, Loma Linda University
Paper #2: The Power and Relevance of Cosmic Conflict as Aesthetic Narrative
Greg Hoenes, La Sierra University
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Paper #3: A Progressive Understanding: The Great Controversy in the past and now.
Donny Chrissutianto, Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies
Conference Room 12
Practical Theology and World Religions.
Thomas Toews, presiding
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Paper #1: The Great Contrast: The Psycho-Social-Spiritual Validity of the Great Controversy Narrative in Explaining the Erosive and Corrosive Nature of Evil & Christ’s Bitter Fight for Wholeness
Cory Wetterlin and Duane Covrig, Kettering Health
Paper #3: The Cosmic Conflict, Pop Culture, and Digital Missions
Mabio Coelho Neto, AU PhD Student
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4:45-5:30 PM - Additional Sectional Meeting and Convener
Grand Ballroom, Salon H
Black Theology Group
Alexander Douglas, King's College, Cambridge University
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Conference Room 11
Women's Group
Lena Toews, Union College
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Conference Room 12
Philosophy of Religion and Ethics
Marina Garnier, President of SAPhilosophers
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Friday Evening, November 17
The First Presbyterian Church of San Antonio
(404 N. Alamo Street, San Antonio, TX 78205)
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5:45-9:00 PM - Adventist Scholars' Supper/Vespers by the North American Division Ministerial Department
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Sabbath, November 18
Westin Hotel, Navarro Room
Street Address: 420 W. Market Street, San Antonio, TX
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9:00 -9:20 AM - Devotional (paper)
From the Minutest Atom to the Greatest World: Worship
David A. Williams
9:20 -10:35 - Sabbath School panel discussion moderated by Lena Toews, featuring Jean Sheldon, John McVay, Ingram London, Denis Fortin, and John Peckham.
"Cosmic Conflict: Out of Date, Up to Date?" Implications for the Curriculum at an Adventist Institution of Higher Learning.
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11:00-12:00 - Sabbath Service.
Sermon: "Navigating the Cosmic Conflict: Insights from the Great Controversy Motif" by Dr. Daniel Duda
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