The Rev. Justin Lind-Ayres, a 1999 graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College, will deliver the College’s annual “Transfiguration Talks” on Feb. 20-21, during daily chapel services at 10 a.m. Rev. Lind-Ayres’ talks are titled “Clouded Vision” (Feb. 20) and “Be Afraid” (Feb. 21) and will center around the text in Mark 9:2-9.
The Transfiguration Talks at Gustavus have a long tradition. In 1986, religion professor Robert Esbjornson ’43, interim chaplain for the College, started the talks. He invited Thomas Anderson ’63, then pastor of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in San Francisco, to his alma mater to speak. Each year since, the Chaplains’ Office has invited alumni ministers to participate in the worship and academic life of the College.
After graduating from Gustavus with a degree in religion, Lind-Ayres attended Luther Seminary in St. Paul where he received his Master of Divinity degree in 2003. He has since served as an associate pastor at Pilgrim Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Woodstock, Ga., and currently serves as pastor at Bethany Lutheran Church in the Seward neighborhood of Southeast Minneapolis.
In May, Lind-Ayres will graduate with a Doctor of Ministry degree from Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Ga. His Doctor of Ministry project is titled “Biblical Metaphors in Worshiping Communities,” where he argues that biblical metaphors and metaphoric language are gifts for a worshiping community to deepen their experience of the promises of God. His project proposes that an intentional practice of metaphor in worship and preaching is needed to more fully immerse God’s people in the wideness of God’s promises. This then contributes to the redescribing of our reality through Jesus.
In addition to the talks in Christ Chapel, Lind-Ayres will meet with students, staff, and faculty in a variety of venues during his stay at the College. For more information about Lind-Ayres’ visit to Gustavus, contact the Chaplains’ Office at 507-933-7446.
Leave a Reply