The James Didier Symposium
Friday, October 2, 2026 · Judson University · Elgin, Illinois
RegisterThe invitation
The James Didier Symposium On Christ and Architecture brings together architects, designers, academics, and students to explore the intersection of architecture, the city, and its inhabitants with Christian faith and worldview. The symposium seeks perspectives that make visible the nexus between architecture as a making discipline and the theologically derived worldviews held by Judson University and its community.
This year the conversation follows a single thread: natural law and the built environment, approached from theology, from urbanism, and from practice. Three lectures and a midday dialogue take up the same question from different vantage points, and the day is built to leave room for the argument to develop.theme unconfirmed
Schedule
10:00 a.m.
Opening lecture, Andrew T. Walker
Herrick Chapel
12:00 p.m.
Lunch and a dialogue between Walker and Philip Bess
Reed Room
1:30 p.m.
Second lecture, Steve Mouzon
Herrick Chapel
3:00 p.m.
Closing lecture, Philip Bess
Herrick Chapel
Lecture titles will be posted as they are set.
This year's speakers
Dean of the School of Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminarytitle unconfirmed
Professor of Christian Ethics and Public Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he also directs the Carl F. H. Henry Institute for Evangelical Engagement. His research addresses natural law theory, human dignity, and the theology of law.
Architect and urbanist, founder of the New Urban Guildnot yet accepted
Author of The Original Green and A Living Tradition. Originator of the Original Green initiative, which recovers patterns of sustainability that predate mechanical conditioning.
Professor Emeritus, University of Notre Dame School of Architecture
Interim Dean of Architecture at Judson University. His work joins classical urbanism to questions of the human good.
Let us rise up and build.
So they strengthened their hands for the good work.
Past speakers
2022
September 16, Herrick Chapel.
Register
Registration is free and open to the public. Lunch is served between the morning and afternoon lectures, so the meal question sets the catering headcount.
