Experience BCC Conference 2025
At the end of May, a special edition of the Believers Church Conference was held in Amsterdam or rather at the Mennorode, about an hour and a half outside the city. The gathering commemorated 500 years of Anabaptist beginnings, inviting participants to reflect on what “radical renewal” means. Regardless of the location, the conference was a great success, as was the preparation leading up to it.
Our work had begun the year before. In September 2024, a small team of volunteers gathered to divide the tasks and roles both before and during the conference. Mikhael (one of the Peace, Trauma, and Religion students) and I were responsible for promoting the event to potential attendees. Although advertising was unfamiliar territory for me, I found it surprisingly enjoyable and rewarding. When the conference finally began, I was able to serve in person as well. My first task was to welcome attendees at Amsterdam Airport together with Christhe Vreugdenhil and to help them navigate the train system to reach the venue. One by one, the participants and speakers arrived, some confused, most tired, but all excited. Fortunately, other wonderful volunteers were waiting for them at the main station in Amsterdam to guide them on the next part of their journey.
For the rest of the week, my role remained much the same: helping people find their way, answering questions, and offering a friendly face. I genuinely enjoyed it, not only because of the incredible volunteer team but also because it gave me the opportunity to meet and talk with so many people from different parts of the world. Between quick conversations during coffee breaks and more in-depth discussions over lunch, I learnt a great deal from these exchanges. I also had the chance to attend several presentations, although I did not always get to choose which ones, since I was often helping with the technical side of things. Even so, every session I attended was engaging and thought-provoking. One presentation that particularly stood out addressed the impact of sexual harassment and violence by church leaders, not only on survivors but on entire congregations. Although I was already aware of how devastating such experiences can be for individuals, this presentation helped me understand more deeply the collective trauma and spiritual disruption that ripple through a community in such situations.
Another highlight was a presentation by some of my peers on Christian mission work abroad. I loved seeing how each of them brought their own experiences and theological reflections to the topic; it was both insightful and inspiring. The ended their presentation with a final exercise in which we as an audience were invited to reimagine mission work. This made us not only a listener to their words, but also an active participant, applying what we just learned from my peers experiences and insights.
And, of course, the lecture by Willie James Jennings was unforgettable. I was not only struck by what he said, but by how he said it. Jennings truly embodied his message. Through poetry, imagery, and personal narrative, he held the room’s attention for forty minutes straight. He told personal stories of his family bringing us into his childhood garden or living room. Or he reflected on the meaning and difference behind blues and gospel music, how gospel music is not only creative like blues, but is also melancholy being guided by God. As someone only just entering academia, I was in awe of his ability to combine intellect and imagination so seamlessly. Moments like that inspire me to keep growing, to think more deeply, listen more carefully, and engage more fully. Throughout the conference, I felt both encouraged and challenged to expand my theology and to see faith and community through new eyes.
Job van Lobenstein
Job is a graduate in Political Science and recently also in Theology and Religious Studies. He grew up in a small town on the countryside of the Netherlands. In the last few years Job has become more active in the (ana-) Baptist traditions by following the theology specialisation in Peace, Trauma and Religious Studies, offered by the Amsterdam Centre for Religion and Peace & Justice Studies and by taking part in the apprenticeship programme at IBTS.
