Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena will host its annual Payton Lectures next month, featuring Wheaton College professor Dr. Amy Peeler exploring the theological significance of Mary in Christian understanding of Jesus’ incarnation.
The free event, titled “Born of a Woman: Incarnation, Christology, and the Life & Language of the Church,” will be held May 12-13 at the seminary’s Travis Auditorium. It will examine how Mary’s role in the birth of Jesus provides insight into gender roles and masculine language for God in Scripture.
“God has definitively entered the world through the life of a particular person, yet Protestants rarely reflect on the importance of God’s work in the world being channeled through the life of Mary,” a statement by the organizers said.
Peeler, who holds the Kenneth T. Wessner Chair of Biblical Studies at Wheaton College, will deliver two lectures. The first, “Mother and Father: The Life of Mary as Theological Lens,” will take place Monday evening, May 12, and explore New Testament accounts of Mary’s life, offering perspectives on masculine language for God in Scripture.
Tuesday morning’s lecture, “Laboring Sons: Paul’s Appeal to the Incarnation for the Life of the Church,” will examine how the apostle Paul’s understanding of the incarnation relates to his views on gender roles in church communities.
Two scholars will respond to Peeler’s presentations: Dr. Alice Yafeh-Deigh, professor of biblical studies at Azusa Pacific University, and Dr. Chris Blumhofer, associate professor of New Testament at Fuller Seminary.
Yafeh-Deigh specializes in New Testament exegesis, Greco-Roman sexual ethics and feminist hermeneutics, while Blumhofer focuses on the Gospel of John and early Christianity in its Jewish context.
The lectures aim to provide Pasadena’s diverse religious community with fresh perspectives on familiar biblical texts and address contemporary questions about gender, church roles and theological language.
Peeler, who serves as an assistant priest at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Geneva, Illinois, has authored books including “Women and the Gender of God” and “Hebrews: A Commentary for Christian Formation.” She is currently working on projects focused on Paul’s statements on gender and a commentary on the Pastoral Epistles.
The Payton Lectures, a longstanding tradition at Fuller Seminary, will be offered both in-person and virtually. Registration is required for attendance.
To register and for more information, visit https://www.fuller.edu/payton-
