Consider the Lilies

Consider the Lilies 2023 is our first annual conference for Christians and church leaders in and around Winnipeg, Manitoba, who want to learn about, discuss, workshop, and commit to creation care.

Be Not Afraid

Be Not Afraid is a St. Margaret’s Anglican Church Theological Consultation on Climate Change. You can find out more about St. Margaret’s on their website, including past lectures here.

A Rocha in Manitoba

We are part of A Rocha Canada, an organization that has been doing conservation science, environmental education, and sustainable agriculture in Canada for over 20 years! If you want to learn more about our organization, head here, and if you want to learn more about what we’re up to in Manitoba specifically, head here.

Who is this event for?

If you are interested in how Christianity and caring for the earth intersect, this conference is for you! We’re providing robust theological education, and equipping church-goers and church leaders to care for creation in their own unique contexts.

Dr. Norman Wirzba – Keynote Speaker

Raised on a farm near Lethbridge, AB, Norman Wirzba is the Gilbert T. Rowe Distinguished Professor of Christian Theology at Duke Divinity School and senior fellow at the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University. He teaches at the intersection of philosophy, theology, ecology, and agrarian and environmental studies, and is the author and editor of sixteen books, including Agrarian Spirit and This Sacred Life: Humanity’s Place in a Wounded World, as well as many essays and articles.

Steve Bell  – Musical Guest

Manitoba-based singer-songwriter Steve Bell consistently plumbs the depths of beauty and truth while maintaining a humble generosity that has profoundly impacted the lives of countless individuals. Steve launched record label Signpost Music, and has received numerous awards including three JUNO Awards. In addition to his year-round touring schedule and increasing number of speaking engagements at conferences and universities, Bell has written articles for various publications; co-published a book on the Psalms with Jamie Howison; and recently completed a seven-book boxset called Pilgrim Year, which features reflections on the spirituality of the Christian liturgical calendar that incorporate story, song, poetry and art. He lives with his wife Nanci in Winnipeg, Treaty 1 Territory and homeland of the Métis Nation.

Dr. Anupama Ranawana – Workshop Facilitator

Anu is a theologian and political economist with over eight years of experience working in academia and international development. Her research and teaching expertise and interests are focussed on gender and justice, decolonial thought, diversifying research methodological practice, religious thought in the Global South, faith and international development and the intersections between racial and climate justice. She holds advanced degrees in Theology and International Politics. Her most recent publication has been on the importance of women’s religious thought to global politics. Her first book, A Liberation for the Earth: Reflections on Race, Climate and Cross was published in 2022.

Trevor Herriot – Panelist and Workshop Facilitator

Trevor Herriot is a prairie naturalist, activist, and award-winning author from Regina, SK. He is the author of six books, including Islands of Grass, Towards a Prairie Atonement, and The Road is How. His writing has appeared in Canadian Geographic, CBC’s Ideas, and The Globe and Mail, and he is a regular guest on CBC Radio Saskatchewan’s “Blue Sky.” His first novel, The Economy of Sparrows, will be published in September.

Ryan Turnbull – Workshop Facilitator

Ryan Turnbull is a Theologian based in Winnipeg, MB. Having grown up on a cattle ranch in western Manitoba, Ryan Turnbull has a deep interest in the intersection of theology, decolonization, ecology, place, and friendship. Ryan holds a BA and MA in Theology from Providence University College and Theological Seminary and is a lay-minister in the Diocese of Rupert’s Land as well as the former Director of CHAI Immigrant Centre. He is pursuing a PhD in Theology and Religion funded by the Stanley Ray Scholarship at the University of Birmingham in Birmingham, U.K., focusing on Christian theologies of place and their colonial entanglements. Ryan teaches theology at Thorneloe University.

Dr. Rachel Krause – Panelist

Associate Professor of Biology at Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg, Rachel’s teaching and research interests include parasitology, ecology, and global health. She has a B.Sc. in environmental sciences from the University of British Columbia, and a M.Sc. in Biology from Concordia University (Montreal). She holds a Ph.D. in Parasitology from McGill University, where she studied at McGill’s Institute of Parasitology and the McGill School of Environment.

She has worked on both wildlife and human parasitology projects, and is happiest when she can combine her interests in ecology, environment and human health. Rachel enjoys collaborative research and has worked on research and monitoring projects with collaborators at A Rocha, the B.C. Ministry of Environment, Environment Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Panama Ministry of Health, and the University of Panama.

Deanna Zantingh – Panelist

Deanna Zantingh  is a PhD student at St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto. She is a Joseph-Armand Bombardier scholar. Her work explores connections between spirituality, eco-theology, and suicide prevention. Alongside a decade of experience in community-based partnerships with Indigenous children and youth work organizations across Manitoba and Northern Ontario, she has also worked with Indigenous elders and knowledge keepers at the Sandy-Saulteaux Spiritual Centre along the Brokenhead River in Manitoba.  At CHSA, she provides coordinating leadership across all research partnerships and administrative management to the lab.

Scott Gerbrandt – Workshop Facilitator

Scott Gerbrandt joined the A Rocha Canada Team in 2017 as the Manitoba Director. As an all season cyclist he boasts of having the best commute in Winnipeg along the Assiniboine River. Growing up near the small hamlet of Vivian in eastern Manitoba, he fell in love with the boreal forest and Canadian Shield through camping, canoe tripping and rock climbing. Scott has over 30 years of adaptive leadership experience in various Christian ministry roles. Most notably, he served 19 years with InterVarsity Canada, in a variety of roles, including Western Field Director. His family has deep roots in the Wolseley neighborhood of Winnipeg where you can see him and his wife Jana nurturing their fledgling food forest and receiving well deserved eye rolls from their three boys as he calls out to them to be curious, kind and courageous.

Zoe Matties – Workshop Facilitator

Zoe grew up in the Red River watershed in the city of Winnipeg, but has enormous fondness for the wind-blown white pines of the Whiteshell. She has degrees in International Development Studies and Food Systems and Society. Since 2018 she has worked for A Rocha Canada as Manitoba Program Manager, where she grows programs that integrate faith, creation care, and everyday life. She enjoys the taste of carrots fresh from her garden, and walking in the woods with her partner, Tim, and their dog, Pippin.

Rev Dr. David Widdicombe – Lecturer

David grew up milking cows and grooming horses on a small farm in western Manitoba. He has degrees in philosophy and theology from the University of Manitoba, the Vancouver School of Theology, and Oxford. He was for many years the rector of St. Margaret’s Anglican Church.

Registration