🎥 NOW LIVE AFTER AN INTERNET GLITCH! 🎥 Church attendance and affiliation are facing rapid decline in Europe and the Americas. Considering the rise of secularism and fundamentalism, Christianity’s collapse has been anticipated since the Enlightenment. Many wonder whether Christianity can survive the 21st century. But is Christianity collapsing or evolving into new forms?
This lecture is part of our series exploring Christianity and the Bible from an academic perspective through history, mythology, archaeology, theology, and biblical studies. In this presentation we focus on current demographic trends, Islam, secularism, the Enlightenment, and fundamentalism.
Join us NOW to catch the live lecture and share insights in the chat with our community of critical thinkers and spiritual seekers. Live viewers can also ask questions to our lecturer! 🙋♀ 🙋♂
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Will Christianity Survive the 21st Century?
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Church attendance and affiliation are facing rapid decline in Europe and the Americas. Considering the rise of secularism and fundamentalism, Christianity’s collapse has been anticipated since the Enlightenment. Many wonder whether Christianity can survive the 21st century. But is Christianity collapsing or evolving into new forms?
In this lecture, John Hamer of Toronto Centre Place examines the latest trends in secularization, the rise of the religiously unaffiliated — including the “Nones” and the “Spiritual-but-not-religious” — shifting demographics and fertility, religious switching, migration, and growth in the Global South to ask: Will Christianity survive the 21st century?
📅 Tuesday, AUG 26
⏰7:00 PM EDT
🎥 Watch live: https://youtu.be/jFzkUAV9cy0
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🎥 NOW LIVE 🎥 What does it mean to be truly alive? What is eternal life? What is the meaning of the resurrection of the dead? In this online worship service, John Hamer and Leandro Palacios go beyond the walls and consider these ideas of spiritual resurrection and life eternal while they explore the streets of downtown Toronto.
The raising of Lazarus is one of the most remarkable miracle stories in the Gospel of John. While the authors of John present the miracle as the physical resurrection of Jesus’ dear friend, the lesson they take from the story is about “true Life” — participating with the eternal right now in the present.
We invite you to share this moment with our global community 🌏
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🎥 NOW LIVE 🎥 Enkidu becomes “civilized” and loses innocence; Adam and Eve’s eyes are opened and they lose innocence. In both narratives, departure follows—Enkidu leaves the wild; Adam and Eve are expelled from Eden. Are these coming‑of‑age stories? How do they differ and why?
The Epic of Gilgamesh preserves some of the oldest stories in human history—and many of its themes resurface in the Bible. In this lecture, John Hamer of Toronto Centre Place examines how myths of creation, the fall, the flood, and humanity’s quest for eternal life were reimagined by the authors of the Bible. We’ll explore how these retellings differ from the original Mesopotamian accounts and why.
Join us NOW to catch the live lecture and share insights in the chat with our community of critical thinkers and spiritual seekers. Live viewers can also ask questions to our lecturer! 🙋♀ 🙋♂
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At the height of his life, when everything seems secure, Gilgamesh witnesses the painful death of his closest companion, triggering an existential crisis and a quest for immortality. The Epic of Gilgamesh suggests human destiny is to accept mortality and enjoy the blessings of this life. What counsel is presented in the primaeval Biblical account (Genesis 1–11), before the covenants or ideas of resurrection are introduced?
📅 Tuesday, AUG 19
⏰7:00 PM EDT
🎥 Watch live: https://youtu.be/gaI53yIkBN0
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🎥 NOW LIVE 🎥 Lazarus has died. His sister Martha is grieving—but her faith remains. “I know he will rise again,” she tells Jesus, even as she mourns his absence and wonders why he didn’t come in time to heal her brother.
Have you ever felt like Martha—grappling with loss, asking why bad things happen, why prayers go unanswered?
At this moment of sorrow, Jesus makes a bold claim: “I am the resurrection and the life.” Is he talking about a future literal resurrection or a present reality? Can we live that true life now? What is eternal life: Future hope for a literal resurrection or hidden present reality?
We invite you to share this moment with our global community 🌏
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The Epic of Gilgamesh preserves some of the oldest stories in human history—and many of its themes resurface in the Bible. In this lecture, John Hamer of Toronto Centre Place examines how myths of creation, the fall, the flood, and humanity’s quest for eternal life were reimagined by the authors of the Bible. We’ll explore how these retellings differ from the original Mesopotamian accounts and why.
📅 Tuesday, AUG 19
⏰7:00 PM EDT
🎥 Watch live: https://youtu.be/gaI53yIkBN0
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🎥 NOW LIVE 🎥 Did Stoicism influence early Christianity? Can we understand Jesus as a teacher of Stoic virtue within the framework of Second Temple Judaism? In the Roman Empire, Stoicism was more than philosophy—it was a way of life embraced by emperors, slaves, and sages alike. At the same time, the teachings of Jesus offered a radically different vision of justice, humility, and spiritual integrity. Yet in some respects, Stoic and Christian moral teachings converged.
In this lecture, John Hamer of Toronto Centre Place explores the possible influence of Stoicism on early Christianity.
Join us NOW to catch the live lecture and share insights in the chat with our community of critical thinkers and spiritual seekers. Live viewers can also ask questions to our lecturer! 🙋♀ 🙋♂
watch video on watch page
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We explore Christianity and the Bible from an academic perspective. Our lectures cover history, theology, philosophy, mythology, archaeology, and biblical studies. John Hamer, map maker, historian, and pastor, makes complex subjects accessible and engaging with graphic models, charts, and timelines. Our channel also features the online church service Beyond the Walls and the musical recordings of the Beyond the Walls Choir.