Dear friends and colleagues,
August has been a great month at IFL, as we helped welcome an amazing cohort of new Baylor faculty and staff. We kicked off the first of our research cohorts for this year focused on the intersection of Business, Economics, Theology, and Ethics. While we have a lot of wonderful programming coming up in September, we are especially excited to welcome Dr. John Barton to the IFL team for 2025-2026 (see below for more information). We are also looking forward to celebrating the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea across the Baylor campus with a Symposium featuring public plenaries given by internationally renowned scholars. We will wrap up the Symposium with a public family-friendly concert by the chart-topping bluegrass band the Hillbilly Thomists (check them out if you aren’t familiar with their faith-infused bluegrass music, and come join us to sing along!). Baylor faculty, as the year speeds up, don’t forget to reach out to IFL to help publicize your events integrating faith across campus, join a research cohort, and take advantage of consulting services on how to integrate faith into classes and curriculum. It’s going to be a great year, and we are excited to get started!
In Christ,
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In Memoriam: Don Schmeltekopf |
"Don Schmeltekopf was a visionary. He saw what could be, not just what was. He was an encourager, a mover, and a source of inspiration. His commitment to and enthusiasm for church-related higher education changed Baylor and helped shape the conversation about faith and learning for a generation. Along with so many others, I forever will be grateful for his friendship."
-Reflection by Darin H. Davis, Clinical Professor of Moral Philosophy in the Honors Program and IFL's Director from 2008 to 2023
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Guest Column Reflections on Communio 2025
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| Baylor Symposium on Nicaea
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| Register for the Baylor Symposium on Faith and Culture 2026
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Elise King, Interim Chair, Department of Human Sciences & Design; Associate Professor |
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There are many things I could highlight about Communio: the relationships built, the thoughtful speakers, and the rare opportunity to step away and reflect.
I’ll focus on a particular moment that has stayed with me. One of the sessions was centered on communication as a craft. As I listened, my mind ran through the practical realities of university life—deadlines, competing responsibilities, and the pressure to produce—many of which seem at odds with the careful work and time that craft requires. What does craft look like in the contemporary university? And in a Christian university?
Since that session, I’ve been thinking about how efficiency can either make space for craft or quietly crowd it out. I may not have answers, but Communio prompted me to ask the questions. I’ve begun reading Makoto Fujimura's Art and Faith: A Theology of Making. And over the summer, as a colleague and I consolidate two courses into one (efficiency), we are intentionally building in practices in the course that engage with students on the sacredness of craft—a direct outcome of that Communio moment.
For me, this is what Communio does so well: it gives us space to pause, think, and to grow in Christ. It’s been one of the most meaningful experiences of my time at Baylor, and I’m truly grateful.
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| Elise King
Interim Chair, Department of Human Sciences & Design; Associate Professor
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John Chen, Curtis Hankamer Chair in Entrepreneurship; Associate Professor |
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When I was first invited to Communio, I had no idea what it was. I asked a friend who had participated before, and he described it as “theoretical reflection” or something similar. He added, “You’d like it.” He knows me well!
His description was spot on. Going into Communio, I found myself occasionally checking the boxes of professorship, a safe distance from burnout but hovering uncomfortably close to the question of “why am I still doing this?” Communio created space for a healthier exploration of that question—one that I believe we should ask in any vocation, and, especially as Christians, in light of our call to bring glory to God.
One of the key things I took away from Communio was an invitation to move beyond a checkbox mentality and reengage the life of the mind as the lifeblood of our vocation. Our guest speakers, Ellen Davis and Jonathan Tran, offered compelling reminders that thinking lies at the heart of academic life, rooted not in performance but in wonder. This resonates deeply with being God’s image-bearers, capable of marveling at His creation through deep reflection.
Dr. Davis emphasized that thinking well begins with listening well—including what she called “altruistic curiosity” toward our students. Dr. Tran reminded us that writing is not just a way of recording what we already know, but a generative practice that helps us discover what we have yet to see. I left Communio feeling renewed in my calling as an academic—not to merely check boxes, but to think critically and to invite my students into that same posture.
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| John Chen
Curtis Hankamer Chair in Entrepreneurship; Associate Professor
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We're excited to announce another Symposium speaker!
Alejo José G. Sison holds appointments from the School of Economics of the University of Navarre, and accreditation as Catedrático (Full Professor) from the Spanish state university system. His research deals with issues at the juncture of ethics, economics, and politics, with a focus on the virtues and the common good.
Please like or follow us on social media for speaker updates, and view the full list here.
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Faith & Science Colloquium |
The Faith & Science Colloquium meets most Fridays from 12 - 1 pm in Baylor Science Building E201. These informal brownbag lunches welcome members of the community to engage in discussions about sciences, faiths, and their interactions.
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Front Porch Republic Conference on Work and Leisure |
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Faith and Learning Around Baylor Campus |
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September 3: Book Launch: Madness, Theocracy, and Anarchism, by Barry Harvey
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September 10: "Religion in the Lands that Became America," by Thomas A. Tweed (J.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies Lecture)
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September 11: Christian Feminisms: Faith, Gender, and Justice
- September 23-25: African American Preaching Conference
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September 23 - 24: Baylor Symposium on Nicaea: Creed, Culture, and Christendom
- September 24: The Hilbilly Thomists Concert
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September 25: Readers Meet the Authors Lecture with Elisabeth Rain Kincaid, Law from Below: How the Thought of Francisco Suárez, SJ, Can Renew Contemporary Legal Engagement
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September 30: Formation Series Lecture: Community is Good, Friendship is Better, with Darin H. Davis
- October 10-11: Front Porch Republic Annual Conference on Work and Leisure
- October 22: Book Launch: The Reformations of Medicine, by Dr. Ekaterina Lomperis
- October 28-29: Parchman Lecture with Dr. Rowan Williams
- November 13: Starring the Earth: Our Planet and Other Worlds from Copernicus to NASA: Lecture by Dr. Dennis Danielson
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December 4: "Things We Don't Talk about at Dinner: Civil Discourse and Disagreement in Politics and at Church," with John Inazu and Tish Harrison Warren (Bill and Roberta Bailey Family Lecture in Christian Ethics)
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Faith and Learning Outside Baylor |
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Gifts to our Excellence Fund fuel opportunities for faculty and staff growth and development.
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Are you hosting an event or working on a project related to faith and learning? We'd love to hear about it! Click the link below, share your information, and we'll follow up with you directly.
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Institute for Faith and Learning
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Waco, Texas 76798
(254) 710-4805
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