Blog 7 - Paul Nesselroade

Germany/Poland ’23, Day 1

Paul Nesselroade May 9, 2023

Arrivals and First Things It took most of the day, but we got everyone here safe and sound (minus one piece of luggage, sadly). Despite jet-lag, dispersed landing times, and rail construction complicating our movements, we were able to find about 4 hours in the evening to do some exploring downtown. Among other sites, we checked out Alexanderplatz, Rosenstrasse Protest Memorial, Hackescher Markt, Museum Island, Humboldt University, Bebelplatz, and the Brandenburg Gate. Below are some pics. Everyone is exhausted and needing rest. Tomorrow we will further explore by local rail and foot the sites of Berlin.

Germany/Poland ’23, Day minus 1

Paul Nesselroade May 8, 2023

(The students arrive tomorrow.) Day minus 1 allowed me to gain virtually all of the rail tickets we need (took nearly 2 hours, whew!), find our hotel for this year (conveniently located near Alexanderplatz), and do a little exploring on my own. What I set out to find was the Berlin Wall Park and Memorial which is located in the north-central part of the city. This particular venue features several memorials, large stretches of the outer wall peppered across the park’s western edge (a bit of the inner wall is there as well), and many markings on the ground where

Book Review: Of Popes and Unicorns

Paul Nesselroade February 28, 2023

By David Hutchings & James Ungureanu; Oxford University Press, 2022 (263 pages) Accessibility rating 4 (out of 5) Recommendation rating 5 (out of 5) Of Popes and Unicorns, a 2022 offering written by science educator David Hutchings and Humanities Professor James Ungureanu, takes the reader on a brief yet impressively comprehensive tour of the history of the so-called “conflict thesis,” the widely accepted claim that there exists a long-standing and fundamental antagonism between religious thought, notably Christian thought, and the goals and efforts of modern science. In the book, the authors tackle two issues. The first is a careful exploration

KET covers “Don’t Forget Us”

Paul Nesselroade January 28, 2023

On January 27th, International Holocaust Memorial Day, Kentucky Educational Television (KET) aired a story on the documentary that Asbury University Journalism Professor, Rich Manieri, and his students wrote, shot, and produced. I was grateful to be a part of both the tour that inspired the documentary as well as this KET news story. Here is a link to the story. [The piece on the Asbury documentary starts at the 19:15 mark.] And for more information about the documentary, immediately below is the trailer, and to the right (or just below the first video) is the documentary itself (after a three

Interview with John Lennox, Part 3 – Spiritual Journey

Paul Nesselroade December 22, 2022

In September of 2022, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and Emeritus Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy of Science at Green Templeton College, Dr. John Lennox, sat down to talk with me about his spiritual journey. The exchange lasts about 20 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZ3Se7iyIcE.

The 2022 AUHP Christmas Cookie Decorating Party!

Paul Nesselroade December 6, 2022

The success of last years’ Christmas Cookie decorating party (and contest) spurred on another similar event this year. On the last day of regular classes, Friday, Dec 2nd, the AUHP opened up our conference room to a cookie decoration party – and just like last year, no more had the decorating started than the urge to compete overcame nearly everyone. Categories were quickly identified, a scale of measurement was established, and two of Asbury’s librarians were recruited to be neutral judges. (Thanks Beth Groves and Ashley Wahlert!) With a second cohort of students on campus this year, the number of

Interview with John Lennox, Part 2 – Human Flourishing

Paul Nesselroade November 21, 2022

In September of 2022, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and Emeritus Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy of Science at Green Templeton College, Dr. John Lennox, sat down to talk with me about the relationship between Christianity and human flourishing and well-being. The exchange lasts about 30 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4St_G-_FtcA

Educational Convening at Equal Justice Initiative

Paul Nesselroade November 19, 2022

On November 17-18, 2022 I had the privilege of attending an Educational Convening in Montgomery, Alabama, sponsored by and located at the headquarters of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) – an organization committed to “ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.” Bryan Stevenson, the founder and author of the book “Just Mercy” was our main presenter. (A movie with the same title featuring Bryan and the work of EJI was released in 2019.) The two day event

Human Dignity: Invented or Discovered (reprised)

Paul Nesselroade November 13, 2022

(Talk delivered to AUHP students at Nov, 2022 orientation meeting.) As you know, the honors experience here at Asbury is a themed enrichment program – “Studies in Virtue and Human Value.” This evening, I want to invite you to walk along with me as we explore our theme for a few moments. Our program’s two guiding questions are, “What gives humans value or dignity?” and “What are the implications of finding value in ourselves and others?” We can start by recognizing that most everyone feels like they have value, it’s instinctive – I am somebody, and my life is

Premier of “Don’t Forget Us,” Documentary

Paul Nesselroade November 1, 2022

On Wednesday evening, October 26th, nearly 350 students and community members crowded into the new CLC auditorium to view the first Asbury-student directed and shot documentary, Don’t Forget Us. The evening featured the 42 minute film followed by two panel discussions. The film project was the idea of Journalism professor, Rich Manieri, who traveled with his team of students to Germany and Poland to provide oversight for the project, also helping to write of the script. Here is a link to most of the events of the evening, including the documentary and the panel discussions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-Z9ZthcOao. Prof. Manieri plans to

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