Dr. Terrance A. Ford is known for delivering stimulating scholarly lectures be it in the classroom, on stage, or in small group settings. His scholar expertise and interests extend into the areas of Institutional Leadership, Digital Humanities/Digital Religious Rhetoric, Dynamics of African-American Preaching in the 21st Century, and African-American Literature.
Below are abstracts of Dr. Ford's current lecture topics. Each topic can be narrowed to specific subject matter upon request, and tailored for any audience/setting.
If you would like to invite Dr. Ford to speak or lecture at an event, please complete the Engagement Invitation form on the Home page.
Lecture Series & Topics
Institutional Leadership Topics:
Passing the Mantle without Losing Momentum
Right-fitting new leadership while sustaining a forward pace are primary foci when engaging a succession of leadership. This discourse addresses that balance using as a case model Southern Bible Institute & College’s successful transference of leadership from its fourth president—Dr. Martin E. Hawkins—to its fifth and current president—Dr. Terrance A. Ford.
In this presentation, Dr. Ford will explore:
* The definition of ‘leadership competency’ along with examples of various leadership models
* Leadership competencies germane to and/or characteristic in chief leadership positions
* The importance of deriving a clear leadership philosophy
* Aspects of conducting a reflective assessment of one’s own leadership acuities
* Challenges to navigate when continuing/recasting another's vision
Guardians at the Gate:
The Role of Bible Colleges in 21st Century Academics
The Role of Bible Colleges in 21st Century Academics
Worthy of close exploration, is an examination of where Bible Colleges fit within the twenty-first century academy of higher education. Central to this question is the implication of decentering or re-signifying the Bible—as well as their importance to Christian education and life. Such a significance calls for modern Bible Colleges and biblical scholars to fortify their role as guardians at the gate in protecting the primacy of the Biblical Text in Christian academics, scholarship, and discipleship.
Within this lecture Dr. Ford will expound upon the:
* Interpretative concepts of decentering and signifying
* Resonating impact of decentering the Bible with regards to Christian identity,
hermeneutic methodologies, homiletical traditions, and the spiritual life of believers
hermeneutic methodologies, homiletical traditions, and the spiritual life of believers
* Historical esteem and future possibilities surrounding centrality of the Bible in higher education
* Role and responsibility of Bible guardianship entrusted to institutions which study the sacred text
in depth and train others to understand, communicate, and value its purpose
in depth and train others to understand, communicate, and value its purpose
Is Digital Humanities a Godsend for Bible Colleges?
The burgeoning field of Digital Humanities (DH)—although still widely unknown and often misunderstood—is rapidly being cross-threaded with other disciplines throughout the academic spectrum. However, one area where it appears to be slower to invade is the realm of Biblical and Religious Studies. The technological impact on many academic disciplines is forcing even Bible College’s to reexamine and thus reaffirm its contemporary contribution to the academy of higher education. Hence, could it be that the some of the benefits associated with integrating DH with Biblical/Religious studies may just be a nudge of grace from God?
within this talk Dr. Ford will seek to:
* Present a working definition of Digital Humanities and explain its importance
* Consider institutional, academic, and career opportunities available through
interdisciplinary engagement of DH and Biblical/Religious studies
interdisciplinary engagement of DH and Biblical/Religious studies
* Review current scholarship and academic initiatives to integrate
digital analytics with ministerial study and training
digital analytics with ministerial study and training
* Explore particular implications that investing in DH may have for Black and minority serving Bible Colleges
Digital & Preaching/Homiletics Topics:
Understanding Preaching through a Culinary Paradigm
The connection between the culinary arts and biblical exposition is more than a clever analogy to characterize preaching and teaching. It is a deeply rooted biblical metaphor—used by Jesus Himself—to emphasize the nature and gravity that Scripture consumption has on the human soul. This lectureship is derived from Dr. Ford’s more than fourteen years as a homiletics and preaching professor. It extends this remarkable parallel into a very detailed paradigm for developing one’s own expository preaching/teaching towards its highest level of gifting.
Dr. Ford’s plethora of narrowed topics in this series include:
* Producing Bible Expositions that are both Nutritious AND Delicious
* Envisioning Bible Expositors as Cooks and Chefs
* Harvesting Healthy Ingredients through Sound Exegesis
* Planning Your Messages as a Well-Balanced Meal
* Seasonings & Sauces from Illustrations and Figurative Language
* Plating to make the Preaching Moment a Dining Experience
Theology of Technology
The Global Pandemic of 2019 in many ways thrust the church “lightyears” into its technological future! Hence, those of us who have been chosen to navigate this new terrain must not only be theologically sound, but technologically savvy as well as! This presentation sets the groundwork for those who must negotiate between theology and technology in practical ministry spaces.
* Working definitions of 'theology' and 'technology' in light of each other
* What is God’s view of technology?
* What are non-negotiable theology positions when it comes to technology?
Digitalizing Pulpits & Pews
This presentation is another lecture blog extension. It looks at the rapidly increasing influence of technology on preaching and pulpit ministry in general—and subsequently those in the pews. A key developmental question of this discourse is: How should we as Christian ministers USE technologies in light of the Creator of the Universe?
Under this lectureship, there will be an extend exploration of the following subjects:
* Digital Influences on Worship
(Such as: the Hybrid Church and Church in the Metaverse)
(Such as: the Hybrid Church and Church in the Metaverse)
* Digital Influences on Preaching
(Primarily on: Preparation; Proclamation; Perpetuation; and Preservation)
(Primarily on: Preparation; Proclamation; Perpetuation; and Preservation)
* Digital Influences on the Pews
(Emphasis on: Online Discipleship and Social Media Evangelism)
(Emphasis on: Online Discipleship and Social Media Evangelism)
Sermon Memoirs:
An Introspection of 30 Years of Preaching
An Introspection of 30 Years of Preaching
Take an exploratory journey into the more than 700 sermons penned and preached by Dr. Terrance A. Ford during his first thirty years in preaching ministry. This archived collection and unique analytical project unveiled data stories, genre nuances, and intriguing visualizations which were embedded in the life of these sermons beyond the preaching moment. Within this presentation is conveyed proof of concept with regard to the potential of intersecting digital humanities methodologies with sermon archiving, corpus analytics, and topic modeling.
This presentation will discuss homiletic topics and narratives specific to Dr. Ford’s 30 year sermon repertoire which includes:
* Cross-threading Digital Studies and Homiletics
* A New Description of the New Homiletician
* Discovering Types of Stories from the Life of a Sermon
(e.g. Collection Data Meta-stories; Sermon Backstories;
Manuscript Content Developmental stories; Cultural Context Side stories)
(e.g. Collection Data Meta-stories; Sermon Backstories;
Manuscript Content Developmental stories; Cultural Context Side stories)
* A 'Meta' Look at a Sermon Corpus/Collection
* Examination of Categorical Sermons from Dr. Ford’s Sermon Repertoire
(Including: First Sermons; Seminary Sermons; Chiasms; Common Text Sermons;
Bible Expositions; Doctrinal Sermons; Final Sermons as a Pastor)
(Including: First Sermons; Seminary Sermons; Chiasms; Common Text Sermons;
Bible Expositions; Doctrinal Sermons; Final Sermons as a Pastor)
Dissertation Lecture Topics:
These lectures are lifted from Dr. Ford’s (2021) Ph.D. dissertation entitled: Sermonic Fugues Evaluated in a Thematic Collection of African-American Homiletical Responses to the 9/11 Tragedy Using Distant Reading Analytics. Dr. Cedrick May—Dr. Ford’s dissertation chair—is quoted as saying that this work included “an original theoretical and computational framework for analyzing African-American oral and written homilies…the results of Dr. Ford’s work are an incredible contribution to African-American literary and religious studies.” (May)
Given the density of the dissertation, lectures derived from this project are broken into the following three options:
The Value of Thematic Sermon Collections
The scope of this talk presents the importance, worth, and benefits that cultivating thematic sermon collections and archival projects have on the fields of rhetoric, homiletics, and literature. It exposes the historical and future impact of such collections have particularly on the African-American oral tradition and its contribution to the enrichment of these fields.
What in the World are Sermonic Fugues?
This lecture introduces and explores the rhetorical/homiletical concept of the 'sermonic fugue'. Coined by Dr. Ford, the term is an expanded adaptation of the musico-literary fugue concept applied principally in the context of thematic collections and homiletical analytics. In short, sermonic fugues define recurring—common or contrasting—rhetorical topical patterns present among multiple sermons of the same/similar thematic notion.
African-American Sermonic Responses to 9/11
This presentation discusses the results and observations drawn from the research critiques of a select collection of African-American homiletical responses to the 9/11 tragedy. The evaluation was conducted using distant reading and topic modeling analytics.
This talk unpacks the methodological approach—performed in phases—which involved:
* Collecting select sermons preached in September 2001 (post tragedy)
* Conducting appropriate computational analytics
* Constructing relevant datasets
* Conveying the findings of the research through
data visualizations and storytelling
data visualizations and storytelling
African-American Literature Topics:
God & the Church as Reflected in African American Literature
Drawn from an academic literature course developed by Dr. Ford, this lecture series takes a summarized look and evaluation of ideas which emerged—specifically in popularized African-American literature and from familiar Black authors—reflecting variant secular and sacred literary expressions of God and the Church throughout American history. The presentation will cover an introductory overview and highlighted summation of select time periods, genres, and authors spanning from the days of slavery in America to era of its first Black president.
Included in This talk's timeline spotlight are:
* Poetry and proses of Jupiter Hammon and Phillis Wheatley from the 1700’s
* Pamphlets of David Walker & Maria Stewart from the 1800's
* Historical book chapters of W. E. B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington in the early 1900's
* Select orations of Jeremiah Wright and Barak Obama in the 2000’s.
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