Every field presents particular questions that are worth engaging with from a Christian perspective. The Center for Faith and Learning at Anselm House aims to be a catalyst for bringing together a group of faculty, staff and students (sometimes supplemented by community members) who are interested in developing and exploring these key questions and avenues of inquiry at the interface of academic domains and the Christian faith. Sometimes we call these groups Communities of Practice, to emphasize that the practical outworking of academic thought is just as important as the academic reflection itself. We hope that many of these communities will also produce academic outputs as a result of their work together—events, papers, symposia, etc.
We currently host the several Disciplinary Conversations and Communities of Practice at Anselm House. Some communities are organized very loosely, some are organized in collaboration with graduate/professional student organizations, and some meet regularly facilitated by an Anselm House staff member. If you are interested in joining a Community of Practice, or starting one, please contact us.
Our Faith & Healthcare community, in collaboration with the Twin Cities chapter of the Christian Medical and Dental Association, explores questions at the interface of healthcare and the Christian faith, with the guiding question “How does Christian faith influence and shape our pursuit and practice of healthcare?”
In 2024, the Center for Faith & Learning hosted a Healthcare Symposium with keynotes delivered by Dr. Farr Curlin (Duke) and Dr. Chris Tollefsen (University of South Carolina), authors of The Way of Medicine. The aim of this symposium was to offer healthcare students, faculty, and professionals an alternative vision of medicine that resists both the provider-of-services model and the reduction of the patient-practitioner relationship as one of mere economic exchange.
The Faith & Agriculture COP is a group of students and faculty studying and discussing the relationship between Christianity and agriculture, including about to integrate faith in the study and practice of agriculture and land use. Guiding questions are: How does fidelity to the Christian faith impact the study of agriculture? Where are the gaps between the way the modern research universities approach agriculture and a fully realized Christian view of agriculture?
In 2022 this Community of Practice organized a symposium with a keynote delivered by Dr. Gisela Kreglinger on “Technology, Spirituality, and Wine”, a discussion on the use of technology in wine-making, with the aim of offering theological reflection on how Christians should approach the use of technology in agriculture more broadly.
Anselm House supports the student chapters of the Christian Legal Society and the St. Thomas More Society in exploring questions at the interface of faith and law. Besides informal gatherings, this community also hosts locally and nationally recognized speakers. Past speakers include Dr. John Inazu (WashU Law), Richard Garnett (Notre Dame Law), David Skeel (Penn Law), and Archbishop Bernard Hebda.
The Community of Practice in Christianity and the Arts formed last fall to creatively engage the Arts community at the University of Minnesota and beyond. In April 2024, the COP hosted its first ever "Art Lounge", featuring nine local Christian artists, to reflect on the relationship of Christianity to the practice of art and showcase their talents.
The Faith & Sciences community is a group of graduate students and faculty studying and discussing the relationship between Christianity and the natural and life sciences. We are currently reading Graeme Finlay’s book God's Gift of Science: Theological Presuppositions Underlying Exploration of the Natural World.
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 141007, Minneapolis, MN 55414
Office Phone: 612-378-1935
