Evangelical Theological Society Will Gather in Denver to Defend the Faith

The Evangelical Theological Society will convene its 78th Annual Meeting from November 17 through November 19, 2026, at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, 1550 Court Place in Denver, Colorado. The official meeting theme is Defending the Faith, placing Christian apologetics, biblical authority, and theological clarity at the center of the national gathering. The program identifies David W. Pao as program chair and Scott R. Swain as the presidential address speaker. It also announces three plenary sessions focused on defending the faith, alongside the society’s extensive schedule of academic papers and discussion. Typical paper sessions allow approximately 25 to 30 minutes for presentation and 10 to 15 minutes for questions, giving participants room to test arguments, clarify terms, and engage fellow scholars. ETS describes itself as a professional academic society of biblical scholars, teachers, pastors, students, and others committed to the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture and the gospel of Jesus Christ. That confessional identity makes the meeting clearly Christian rather than a generic religion conference. Its Denver location draws participants nationally and provides a concentrated forum for research, publishing, teaching, and ministry conversations. Seminary faculty and students can encounter current work across biblical studies, theology, church history, ethics, philosophy, missions, and related disciplines. Pastors and ministry leaders can also benefit from hearing how scholars address questions that increasingly surface in churches, classrooms, media, and public life. Anyone planning to attend should use the official ETS page for the latest registration, program, lodging, and schedule information before booking travel or accommodations.

A theme such as Defending the Faith is most fruitful when defense is understood as both intellectual and pastoral. Christian apologetics involves answering objections and exposing faulty assumptions, but it also calls for patience, honesty, careful listening, and confidence in the truth of the gospel. The annual meeting creates a setting where arguments can be presented to informed peers and strengthened through serious discussion before they reach classrooms, publications, or congregations. That process can serve the church when scholarship remains accountable to Scripture and communicates in a way ordinary believers can understand. Participants can prepare well by reviewing the program in advance, selecting sessions across more than one discipline, and leaving time for conversations with presenters, publishers, professors, and students. Churches and seminaries that sponsor attendees should also plan how useful research will be shared afterward through teaching, reading groups, articles, or ministry training. Gregory Koukl’s Tactics, 10th Anniversary Edition: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions is an appropriate companion because it translates apologetic reasoning into practical, respectful conversation. The verified 2019 Zondervan paperback edition adds updated material while retaining Koukl’s emphasis on asking thoughtful questions, clarifying claims, and placing responsibility for an argument where it belongs. The book is less technical than many conference papers, which is precisely why it fits this record: it can help pastors, students, and lay leaders carry serious theological reflection into everyday encounters. Read alongside selected ETS presentations, Tactics offers a bridge between the academy and the local church. It encourages Christians to defend truth without treating people as projects, and it supports the meeting’s theme by showing how clear convictions, careful questions, and gracious conduct can work together in witness.