I am so grateful to work alongside my amazing colleagues and serve gifted and dedicated students! This was written last year, and it remains a great reflection on our work at the School of Religion and Theology Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam www.rd.nl/artikel/1090... #Theology #study #VUAmsterdam

Is it time to "un-think" the West? My newest article explores the future of Public Theology, decoloniality, and the rise of "theme park theology." I’m interested to hear from fellow theologians and practitioners: Read it here: doi.org/10.51619/stk... #PublicTheology

“For hate is strong and mocks the song Of peace on earth, good will to men.” Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: “God is not dead, nor doth he sleep; The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, With peace on earth, good will to men.” - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

‘I want to be ever a child…’ Blessings and joy to everyone who is returning to work and service today! Do good wherever and whenever you can. Take care of people and creation.

The WCC condemns US attacks in Venezuela, warning they set a dangerous precedent by normalising armed force for political ends. It calls for an immediate halt, respect for international law, and action by global bodies. oikoumene.org/news/wcc-con...

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ⛄️☃️🌨️❄️

At the start of a new year, I find myself returning to the Methodist Covenant Prayer. It frames my hope for the year ahead: faithfulness, service, and to be more deeply shaped by Christ, the Prince of Peace. May this year open paths toward peace, justice, wholeness, and love. God bless you all!

We watched MK Dons beat Swindon 1-0. Such a fun afternoon with family!! The football was great and the crowd was amazing!

‘O Word, now wrapped in human skin: speak peace on earth through your children.’ - Common Prayer: A liturgy for ordinary radicals ⁠ Child of Bethlehem, Prince of Peace, what do you wish for your birthplace, Bethlehem? What do you desire for your descendents in Palestine? youtu.be/9j4DO-_PLpE

#oldmanrunning slow, steady, and with freezing legs 🥶❄️🤣🎄🙌 in beautiful Hemel Hempstead.

A blessed Christmas to all of you, dear friends, dear family. We wish grace, peace, hope, goodness, and love for you and your loved ones!

I took my darlings to visit my old (and current!) college, Wesley House Cambridge. It was a beautiful day! It was amazing to show them some of my favorite places. I am back to do the Brian Beck Memorial Lecture on 22 January 2026, and spend time with colleagues, friends and students.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Getting a head start on Christmas! 🎅🎄❤️🎉🥳❤️🙏

We’re on our way to London! We drove from Amsterdam to Dunkirk and caught a Ferry to Dover, and then the last little drive to Craig and Kathryn! Let the festivities begin! We are so grateful to be with family this Christmas! We wish that Courtney and Darren were here too!🎄🚙🥳

I don’t write like ChatGPT, ChatGPT writes like me! A painful, yet beautiful reflection learning to read and write in English, and the distrust and miss-recognition that some in the majority world (and elsewhere!) face in the age of Large Language Models. marcusolang.substack.com/p/im-kenyan-...

💡Hoe krijgen we het politieke en maatschappelijke debat weer op de rails? Misschien door gewoon terug te grijpen op de klassieke deugden, betoog ik samen met @rikpeels.bsky.social: www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/...

@davidboogerd.bsky.social so great to find you here! I am absolutely loving De Ongelooflijke Geschiedenis - the longer episodes around a theme are a winner! Thanks David!

Go Cheetahs!!! We went to watch the South African Cheetah 🐆 rugby 🏉 team playing in Amsterdam! It was wonderful to be with friends, and sunshine in December was amazing! #Cheetahs @cheetahsrugby

The latest edition of our journal, IJPT has just been published. The theme of this issue is: ‘Public Theological Issues in Disputed Framings: Studies on Religious Freedom, Conflicts and Pressing Contemporary Debates’ brill.com/view/journal... Thanks to Prof Rudolf von Sinner.

“Remembering the stable where for once in our lives. Everything became a You and nothing was an it.” - W.H. Auden, For the Time Being

Dear friends, please join me in congratulating Dr Elijah Keay and Dr Wynand Marc Breytenbach who received their PhD degrees at Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University today! It was such a joy and a privilege to undertake this journey with you! Congratulations!

I spoke with @lesterkk on @CapeTalk about why religious groups oppose the CRL Commission’s plans to regulate religion. In SA we must protect people from abuse and safeguard religious freedom. Listen here ➡️ youtu.be/zBIJVaBXASs?... #ReligiousFreedom

Dearest friends, I am so grateful to deliver the Brian E. Beck memorial lecture at Wesley House, Cambridge on 22 January 2026. If you are in the area, please do join us! Registration is open for January's Brian E Beck memorial lecture: brianbeck.eventbrite.co.uk

Today is World AIDS day. We stand with all persons who are infected and affected by HIV & AIDS. The title is ‘The body of Christ has AIDS’. It is based on what we read in 1 Cor 12:26, ‘If one part of the body suffers, every part suffers with it.’ #WorldAIDSDay youtu.be/zbIsgsoDCA8?...

🌍 Save the Date! The Global Network for Public Theology meets in Amsterdam 19–23 Oct 2026, hosted at @VUamsterdam. Theme: Public Theology in a Fractured World. 📅 Call for papers: early Jan 2026 📝 Registration: March (capped at ~100) More soon! #GNPT2026 #PublicTheology

A major milestone! The social identity complexity concept I developed in my 2006 PhD has become an empirically tested theory! An Acta Theologica special issue honours Prof Chris Hermans with work by him, my former PhD students, colleagues, and myself. journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at...

We are so grateful, so blessed! Our daughter Courtney got engaged to Darren yesterday! What a beautiful couple! Such joy, such hope, such love! Please join us in giving thanks!

Today I have the privilege of doing a public lecture at the Reutlingen School of Theology. I was asked to speak on Public Theology for times of crisis. I am looking forward to this engagement with Methodist siblings from around Europe a great deal! @theologischehochschule

The European commuters 😂😝☔️🏂 ⛄️

"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." - Groucho Marx (funnier than Karl) Ha ha! Every now and then, I do miss my old office with shelves and shelves of books 📚

Today is our son Liam’s 19th birthday! He was born premature (3 months early, at 26 weeks, weighing less than 1kg) - the size of that little teddy. Today he is a strong and healthy young man, with a love for Jesus and a good heart! We are so grateful! Please give thanks with us!!

“Some believe it is only great power that can hold evil in check. But that is not what I have found. I have found it is small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love.” - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

What a blessing to have my dear colleague Prof Demaine Solomons from Stellenbosch University (who did his PhD at VU Amsterdam a decade ago!), and my PhD student, Jonathan Tysick who lives in Cape Town, visit me at @vuamsterdam a busy week! Yes, I am growing a #Movember beard! 😜

Ha ha! Now there's something for you! My publisher asked me to let you know that my books are on sale with a 50% discount! Just use code CONFSHIP at checkout! You can find them here: [end of embarrassing self promotion!] wipfandstock.com/search-resul...

Today I had the privilege of co-teaching my class on Religion, Trauma and Violence with my dear colleague Dr. Razi Quadir. It is such a joy to learn alongside others, and the students at Amsterdam University College where Dr. Srdjan Sremac and I teach this course, are amazing! I am grateful!

Here is a copy of the interview on Cape Talk on Donald Trump's threat to send the military into Nigeria, supposedly to protect Christians. I would be grateful for your thoughts and feedback: youtu.be/qywlFDXf_p0?...

It was such a special day with colleagues from the PThU International Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University and The University of the Western Cape at a longstanding collaborative conference (I first attended in 2014, and every year since). Deep friendships, rich theological reflection!

This morning I spoke with Lester Kiewiet on CapeTalk about how Donald #Trump is instrumentalising Nigerian suffering to pander to his populist voter base. This has very little to do with #Nigeria it is a populist tactic that is dangerous and ill-informed. Read here: doi.org/10.5117/KT20...

Bakfiets. Havermelk. Existentiële vragen. Het complete Amsterdam-pakket.

A blessed Reformation Day! I give thanks for the Church in its various forms throughout history and the world. I am grateful for this community of imperfect people that nurtures faith, offers care, works for justice and seeks to be faithful. May we be more like Jesus, the one who lives for others.

The Amsterdam Centre for Religion, Peace and Justice Studies kindly featured a profile about my work on their website. If you would like to know more about what J am up to, please see the link below. religionpeacejustice.com/news/dion-a-...

Please join me in congratulating (soon to be!) Dr @elijahkeay who defended his PhD this afternoon, @stellenboschuni After some corrections, Elijah will graduate and the dissertation will be published. It was a joy to supervise alongside my friend and colleague Prof. @robert_vosloo1

Blessings to my Dutch friends voting today. May love outshine fear, justice guide your choices, and hope lead the way forward for all.

LLMs don’t reflect humanity they reflect a subset, trained on WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialised, Rich, Democratic) data. Models like GPT mirror Anglo-American moral and cultural norms. Cultural dominance in data = cultural dominance in AI. Study: scholar.harvard.edu/sites/schola...

Yesterday I made the final edits to the new book that @vonsinnerrudolf and I have done on Public Theologies in Brazil and South Africa. I have sent the manuscript to the series editor for final review and approval! It is an amazing project, the fruit of a long friendship!

I am so grateful to be re-appointed as an Associate of the Allan Gray Centre for Values-Based Leadership at @UCTGSB. Grateful to work with Prof Kurt April & colleagues doing remarkable research & teaching on ethical, values-based leadership. Learn more: www.gsb.uct.ac.za/allan-gray-c... #UCT #GSB

Yesterday was the Master’s Graduation for Peace, Trauma and Religion and Research Master’s at @VUamsterdam. Congratulations to all, especially to my students Joel Hannas (cum laude), Zuzana van de Weijer, Job van Lobenstein (cum laude). It’s a privilege to journey with you. 🎓✨ #VUA #theology #peace

Dear friends, You are invited to a public lecture entitled: ‘The Bread of Angels: A Phenomenological Reading of Evagrius Ponticus’ by Dr Khegan Delport, 27 October 2025, 14.00-15.30 At: VU Amsterdam, Room NU-02A55 Or online, contact Dion Forster for the link.

My new review essay, “Polyphonic Readings,” has just been published in African Christian Theology. It reflects on the excellent book, Reading Hebrews and 1 Peter from Majority World Perspectives. Read it here 👉 doi.org/10.69683/m9m...

A hearty congratulations to the students from @vuamsterdam School of Religion and Theology and @pthu_nl students who graduated with the Bachelor of Theology, or Bachelor of Religion and Theology, degree today. It was wonderful to celebrate your hard work with families, friends!