Scholarly Engagement with Anglican Doctrine (SEAD) held its 11th annual conference in Charleston, S.C., Jan. 6-8, with a lineup of speakers from five university or seminary faculties. About 80 clergy and laity from 12 states gathered to hear six talks on the theme "Christian Hope 2000: Beyond Secularism, Suspicion, and Spirituality." The conference was held at the Cathedral of St. Luke and St. John.

SEAD's mission statement says it aims to witness to orthodox Christian theology and provide a "forum for a younger generation of theologians." SEAD brings together Anglican theologians, clergy and laity with scholarly interests. SEAD's president, the Rev. Christopher Seitz of the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, calls it "a group committed to Nicene Christianity in the Anglican tradition." He said, "We're trying to provide a setting for committed, articulate theological discourse. We try to listen and talk to one another so that we will be able to talk to the world about the gospel of Jesus Christ."

Fr. Seitz said the purpose of this particular conference was to "bring together Anglo-Catholic, evangelical and reformed thinkers to see if we could talk with each other and articulate a theology of Christian hope." Six speakers were given equal billing with no single "keynoter."

The Rev. David Scott, a long-time professor of theology and ethics at Virginia Theological Seminary, and founder of the SEAD conference, spoke on "Secularism." He later gave a special tribute and thanks to Tricia Vaughn, SEAD's executive director for 10 years before her recent resignation. He also welcomed Martha Bailey, SEAD's new executive director.

Kathryn Greene-McCreight spoke on "Suspicion," urging participants to move beyond a "hermeneutic of suspicion" in interpreting the Bible. Ms. Greene-McCreight, a graduate of Yale's doctoral program, is a postulant for holy orders in the Diocese of Connecticut who now teaches religion at Smith College.

The Rev. Robert Crouse from the University of King's College and Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Russell R. Reno, associate professor of theology at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., also gave addresses.

The Rev. Jon Shuler, executive director of the North American Missionary Society in Pawley's Island, S.C., gave a presentation outlining 10 basic convictions about church planting and evangelism in the Episcopal Church.

The final speaker was Alan Torrance, chair of systematic theology at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, and a layperson in the Church of Scotland. He brought together many of the threads of the discussion in his remarks on "Christian Hope."

Fr. Seitz said SEAD is planning a major ecumenical event in January 2001 and will invite keynote speakers from Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Reformed and Wesleyan traditions representing "Nicene Christianity."

"The Anglican Communion ... is in a robust gospel-centered missionary mode, especially in Africa. If it turns out that ECUSA is in a theological backwater, then that says more about ECUSA than it does about the vitality of the Anglican Communion."