For Jeemin Moon, to serve as a Lecturer and Biblical Counsellor with Heritage’s college is a true honour and privilege. To have the opportunity to contribute his part to the mission of a school like Heritage that equips students to serve the Lord throughout their life and ministry and point to the hope of Christ is a role he is looking forward to serving in.

“As a confessional institution, I believe that our role is to faithfully point people—believers and unbelievers—to the One in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, and hence the true hope for our life on earth and the life eternal,” says Prof. Moon. “Here at Heritage, I see both the faculty and staff who are committed to this mission, and it is tremendously encouraging to walk with like-minded brothers and sisters as an instructor.”

Born and raised in South Korea, Moon graduated with a BA in Counselling Psychology and English from Handong Global University in Pohang. From there, God led him to study at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he graduated with an MDiv in Worship Leadership and a ThM in Biblical Counselling.

While studying at Southern, Moon recalls sitting under the teaching of Dr. Jeremy Pierre through which God captured his heart for the ministry of biblical counselling. This passion for counselling ministry has led him to continue his education at Southern as he is currently working on his PhD in Biblical Counselling.

Moon explains that during studying at Southern, he began to see how the Word of God is truly the most comprehensive resource for understanding human problems and speaking to the hearts of hurting people. As a result, he says he is excited to help young Christians studying biblical counselling at Heritage to apply God’s Word to their own lives and the lives of others who are hurting so they can be a blessing wherever God takes them.

“Although not all believers are called to be a vocational counsellor, all Christians are called to join in the ministry of one-anothering,” says Moon. “In other words, we are to speak the truth in love so that we will grow together to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ (Eph. 4:15).”

Part of Moon’s job at Heritage will also be providing biblical counselling services for the male students at the school. In this role, he is looking forward to helping the students he sees thrive in their studies, lives, and ministries and helping them draw closer to Christ.

“My sincere prayer is to see my students building lifelong relationships with their friends while building the lifelong relationship with the One who calls us, ‘Friend,’” says Moon. “I would like to walk with them as they navigate through the difficulties of life as co-followers of Christ and co-heirs of the kingdom of heaven.”

Heritage College & Seminary is excited to host the tenth annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society Ontario and Quebec regional meeting on October 15, 2022.

The theme of this year’s meeting is “Holiness,” and the speaker for the plenary session is Dr. Amber Bowen. Dr. Bowen is Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Core Studies at Redeemer University in Ancaster, Ontario. Her research and writings primarily focus on Kierkegaard studies, phenomenology, and philosophical hermeneutics. The title of Dr. Bowen’s presentation is “The Nearness of the Holy: Kierkegaard on the Occasion of a Confession.”

Scholars of fifteen different affiliations will also present their research during the parallel sessions. Heritage is looking forward to welcoming scholars, students, and pastors to join in conversation and fellowship. The conference will begin at 9:00 am and finishes at 5:00 pm. Everyone is welcome to join. The regular cost is $20 and $10 for students.

Please direct any questions to Prof. Baiyu Andrew Song, the programme chair, at bsong@heritagecs.edu.

Programme

9:00: Registration ($20.00; Students: $10.00)

9:15: Welcome (201A/B)

9:20: Plenary Address (201A/B)

Amber Bowen (Redeemer University), “The Nearness of the Holy: Kierkegaard on the Occasion of a Confession”

10:15: Coffee/Tea Break

10:45–12:15: Parallel Sessions

Session I: Hebrew Bible (202; Chair: David Robinson)

10:45: David J. Fuller (Torch Trinity Graduate University), “Literary ‘Back-References’ in Genesis 47:13–26: Intersecting Themes and Their Implications for Meaning”

11:15: Jacob J.A. Tomc (McMaster Divinity School), “‘That You May Live’: An Analysis of the Heart of Torah in Deuteronomy and John Calvin

11:45: E. Carolina Holguin (McMaster Divinity College), “YHWH’s Glory Manifested in Ezekiel’s Temple and Repentance: A Study on Ezekiel 43:10–11 in Light of Biblical and Systematic Theology”

Session II: Church History (201A/B; Chair: John Sampson)

10:45: Jonathan N. Cleland (Knox College, Toronto), “Peter Martyr Vermigli’s Typological Interpretation of the Samson Narrative”

11:15: Michael A.G. Haykin (The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary), “This ‘fretting leprosy’: Andrew Fuller’s Posthumous Critique of Antinomianism”

11:45: Baiyu Andrew Song (Heritage College and Seminary), “John’s Baptism in the Hall-Kinghorn Communion Controversy, 1815–1827”

12:15–1:45: Lunch

1:45–3:45: Parallel Sessions

Session III: Biblical Theology (202; Chair: David Fuller)

1:45: James J.S. Harrichand (Morningstar Christian Fellowship, Scarborough), “Auxiliary Expressions Related to Prose Prayers of Disorientation in Hebrew Bible (Genesis to Esther)”

2:15: David I. Yoon (Emmanuel Bible College), “The Meaning and Use of λόγος in John’s Prologue: A Lexical Semantic Approach”

2:45: Solomon Getachew Ayecheluhim (McMaster Divinity College), “Reading John 4:1–26 as a Conversational Register”

3:15: Wyatt Graham (The Gospel Coalition Canada), “Is Pre-Critical Exegesis of the Psalms Actually Pre-Critical?: How Christians in the Earliest Centuries Read the Psalms”

Session IV Theology I (201A/B; Chair: Baiyu Andrew Song)

1:45: Christian Clement-Schlimm (Wycliffe College), “Applauding His Righteous Ire: The Theodicy of the Wesleys and the Great Lisbon Earthquake”

2:15: John Sampson (University of Toronto), “The Sanctifying Society: Recovering the Relational Life of Holiness”

2:45: Andrei Davedianov (Saint Paul University), “Hopeful Foresight in Public Policy Gambles”

3:15: Andrew G. Wildsmith (Fellowship International and Africa Inland Mission), “Communion as a Holy Rite in a Holy Place: An African Christian Example”

Session V Theology II (204; Chair: Jonathan N. Cleland)

1:45: David Robinson (Westminster Chapel; Tyndale University), “The Restoration of the Fallen Soul in the Early Writings of Maximus the Confessor”

2:15: Jesse Hill (McMaster Divinity College), “Reading Phenomenological Depth in Holy Encounters”

2:45: Chris Jeemin Moon (Heritage College and Seminary), “‘Strangers and Exiles’: Christian Identity as the Foundation for Counselling Korean Americans”

3:15: Andrew M. Fountain (Newlife Church, Toronto), “Responding to the Pandemic of Destructive Self- Condemnation––What was Nailed to the Cross in Col 2:12–15 and Who are the Powers and Authorities?”

3:45: Coffee/Tea Break (201A/B)

4:15: Brief Business Meeting

4:45: Closing Remarks

We thank everyone who has continued to pray for the health of Professor Emeritus of Theological Studies Dr. Stan Fowler. Please continue to pray for Dr. Fowler, his wife Donna, and their family.

Please read the following update from the Fowler family below:

“Stan is happy in our new home. He enjoys going out every day in his wheelchair and meeting new people and their dogs. He has a wonderful sense of humour. He reads, listens to music, and follows friends on Facebook. He now very much enjoys eating regular food. He loves going to church, enjoying the music, mouthing the words, and seeing familiar faces. Of course, he enjoys watching ALL his sports teams. He communicates with gestures and a photo communication book. He has regular physiotherapy and will hopefully have private speech/language therapy. He is definitely getting stronger all the time. God has brought him a long way in this journey. At the beginning of his stroke, no one thought he would be where he is today. We are very thankful. God is good.”

 Please continue to pray for Dr. Fowler, his wife Donna, and their family.

The Heritage Preaching Lectures is an event that seeks to equip and encourage pastors and other ministry leaders with the tools needed to sharpen their skills to serve their churches and congregations.

This year, Heritage Theological Seminary is thrilled to welcome Dr. Jonathan Griffiths on Thursday, October 20, 2022. The theme of his lectures for this full-day event will be From the Heart of the Text to the Heart of the Hearer.

Heritage is excited to announce that this year’s Heritage Preaching Lectures will be hosted both in-person and online. We are looking forward to the opportunity to welcome pastors to Heritage for a day of encouragement and equipping, as well as inviting people to join the event online from the places God has placed them to serve Him. To learn more about this year's Heritage Preaching Lectures, visit DiscoverHeritage.ca/HPL. 

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR HPL 2022

Bachelor of Theology – Pastoral Studies student Matthew Rodgers says God has given him a burden for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador and a desire to see the place he loves to come to know the person he loves, Jesus.

Therefore, he has decided to study at Heritage and attend classes where he feels God has him to serve in life and ministry. Rodgers studies at Heritage through online and live-streamed lectures throughout the academic year from his home in Newfoundland and Labrador— a choice that allows him to learn and grow while serving the province he feels called to serve.

“It allows me to continue serving my local church and contextualize the things I am learning in my local community," explains Rodgers. "It also helps me continue to learn about my community and deepen my desire to see the people in it come to faith."

As he studies at Heritage, Rodgers is serving in St. John’s as a ministry intern with Mile One Mission—an organization dedicated to planting gospel-centred, Christ-exalting churches throughout Newfoundland and Labrador. While helping with outreach initiatives to grow his reading, writing, and preaching skills, he explains that his heart has grown to serve in Newfoundland and Labrador.

With only 1% of St. John’s being evangelical Christians and a provincial population known for being disengaged religiously or even opposed to the gospel, it is an area of tremendous spiritual need. To best serve this need, Rodgers now continues his studies at Heritage to be equipped for his current and future ministry in this province.

So far, he sees how his time learning online alongside the Heritage community from his home province has equipped him for his ministry there while growing his faith and understanding through knowledge of the Bible.

“Learning more about the Bible has given me a better and bigger view of God and a clearer view of myself,” says Rodgers. “A better understanding of the Bible helps with both being able to teach and explain the truths in it as well as live out commands from it.”

“Being able to better live out my faith has equipped me to be a better witness to others and reflect what God has called me to be.”

For more information on Mile One Mission, visit mileonemission.ca.

To learn more about our College programs at Heritage, visit DiscoverHeritage.ca/Academics.

Dr. David Barker believes that it is essential for the church today to not only read the psalms but to read all of the psalms. For the Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies at Heritage College & Seminary, the psalms give the church a broad voice of prayer and worship amid all that life may bring—from praise and thanksgiving, to lament, confession for sin, and even imprecation.

It is this heart to see the church find this voice in the psalms of David in his latest book, This Poor Man Called: Stories and Songs of David.

“My hope is that the psalms will come alive as our expressions of praise and prayer in both speaking to the realities of life that are often difficult and painful, as well as to the truth that God welcomes these prayers as part of our authentic worship of him,” explains Barker.

Barker’s book is officially the first book to be released under Heritage Seminary Press—a new publishing imprint of H&E Publishing. Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin, Professor of Church History at Heritage Theological Seminary, will serve as Editorial Director of Heritage Seminary Press. He says that the imprint hopes to serve the church in Canada through publishing volumes that will relay rich exposition of the Scriptures, timely theological reflection on current issues in the church, and helpful studies for Christian leadership and laity to enhance their walk with God.

“The mission of Heritage Seminary Press is to further facilitate the interface between the Seminary and the Church by producing Christian literature that can advance the cause of the gospel, edify the people of God, and glorify our Triune Lord,” says Haykin.

In the first of the two-volume series, Barker takes a unique approach to the psalms of David by focusing on the psalms where a historical reference is made in the title of the psalm itself. Returning to the accounts of these events found in 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles, Barker creatively retells these stories to set the scene for the lyrics of the psalm that have come from these experiences in Scripture. After providing the foundation for the psalm, he then provides a verse-by-verse exposition of the psalm and helps the reader understand how his life experience shaped David’s theocentric and biblical worldview.

It is through connecting the background stories of David’s life to the psalms attributed to him that Barker explains sheds light on the reality that these songs and prayers come from real-life experiences that are most often difficult and dangerous. In doing so, we can enter those experiences and find a voice of prayer, petition, and praise in the life circumstances we face ourselves—an experience that Barker himself has treasured.

“For me, the references to difficult situations in which that David finds himself gives me permission to pray and praise from my places of grief and despair and inevitably brings a new orientation of hope and joy in my pilgrimage of faith,” says Barker.

To learn more and order 'This Poor Man Called: Vol. 1", visit hesedandemet.com.

Since I wrote 8 Habits for Growth: A Simple Guide to Becoming More Like Christ, people ask me which habit I struggle with the most.

The book covers habits like engaging the Bible, speaking to God in prayer, worshiping and belonging as part of the church, and more. But the habit I struggle with the most is rest.

On one hand, I’ve learned to take a weekly Sabbath. Every week, for a day, I set aside anything that looks like an obligation and enjoy God, friends and family, and life. It’s one of the practices that has helped keep me sane throughout thirty years of ministry.

But I’m not good at rest the other six days. I tend to overwork, packing more into my schedule than I should, and ending each day in exhaustion.

What’s the problem with that?

I’ve found that people who work too hard don’t tend to grow much spiritually. My wife frequently looks at some plants we have in our condo and talks about needing to replant them. The roots are too crowded, she says. They can’t continue to grow.

Our lives are like that too. Everyone’s busy sometimes, but when we neglect rest consistently, we don’t give our souls enough space to grow.

Perhaps that’s why Scripture speaks so much about the importance of rest. I picture Adam and Eve waking up the day after they were created and wondering what God had scheduled for them. That first day, they rested. They enjoyed God’s rest before they worked. It’s as if God told them, right from the beginning, that they would work out of rest. That first day is a picture of the gospel: we’re first recipients of God’s grace before we do anything for him.

Rest is a confession of our creatureliness. It’s a recognition of our limits, as well as God’s sufficiency. Plus we need it to grow.

DARRYL DASH is the author of 8 Habits for Growth. He serves as pastor of Liberty Grace Church in Toronto. He is also cofounder of Gospel for Life. He has a Doctor of Ministry degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and has over 30 years of ministry experience. Darryl is married to Charlene and has two adult children and one grandchild. You can find Darryl online at DashHouse.com.

Click here to read the Spring edition of our Alumni Newsletter or visit DiscoverHeritage.ca/Alumni. 

Political Theology in the History of the Church 

Shortly after what has been termed the Glorious Revolution (1688) in England, Gilbert Burnet, an Anglican bishop who supported that climactic event, penned a short work entitled A Letter to a Friend concerning the Behaviour of Christians under the Various Revolutions of State-Governments (1693). In this small tract, Burnet reviewed the history of how Christians had dealt with and responded to past political upheavals so as to find wisdom on how they should act in his day.

In like fashion, this three-day conference seeks to retrieve wisdom from the way churches and individual Christians have historically dealt with the sphere of politics so as to enable more faithful discipleship in this day. Join us for what promises to be a deeply informative three-day tour of the history of public theology.

Join us September 15-17, 2022 at Hope Bible Church in Oakville, ON for this special conference.

Find a full list of speakers and details on how to register for the conference—visit DiscoverHeritage.ca/AFCFall2022.