Professor, author, and pastor, Rev. Dr. A.J. Swoboda will be the commencement speaker at Northwest Christian University’s 117th graduation ceremony slated for Sat., May 7, 2016, at 10 A.M. in the Morse Events Center.
Rev. Dr. Swoboda is pastor of Theophilus, a Christian Community in Southwest Portland, whose mission is to believe, embody, and bear the Good News of Jesus in the city of Portland. He teaches theology, biblical studies, and Christian history at George Fox Evangelical and Fuller seminaries as well as several other universities and Bible colleges.
He also serves as director of operations for Blessed Earth Northwest, a think tank that creatively and strategically addresses creation care issues, known in more general terms as faith-based environmentalism. In addition, Rev. Dr. Swoboda is also the national director of the Seminary Stewardship Alliance, a consortium of Christian schools of higher education that are thinking strategically about Christian education in creation care.
A former campus pastor at the University of Oregon, his doctoral research at the University of Birmingham (U.K.) explored the never-ending relationship between the Holy Spirit and ecology. He earned a Master’s degree in Theological Studies from George Fox Evangelical Seminary and Bachelor’s degrees in Pastoral Studies and Greek from New Hope Christian College.
Rev. Dr. Swoboda is a prolific writer and author. He has written many peer-reviewed articles for scholarly publications and is the author of several books, including Tongues and Trees: Toward a Pentecostal Ecological Theology and Introducing Evangelical Ecotheology.