The Apostolic Johannite Church is proud to present the twenty-third annual AJC Conclave – May 26 – 28, 2023
After a review of costs involved for attendance at our host cities, the Apostolic Johannite Church has opted in favour of accessibility and affordability – Conclave 2023 will be entirely online.
Each year the people of the AJC, friends and family gather together to socialize, learn, build our skills and deepen our community. It is an amazing opportunity for spiritual growth and insight to modern Gnostic practice. Conclave is a rich opportunity to deepen your practice, education and experience of Gnosticism, Spirituality, Esotericism and the Apostolic Johannite Church.
Conclave offers lectures, workshops and panel discussions selected to develop ministry skills, support the work of church leaders both lay and ordained and deepen and enrich the spiritual lives of attendees.
As always, we welcome you, no matter who you are or what your spiritual path, to join us for this unique week. You can come for all or part and participate as much or as little as you’d like. However you choose, we welcome you into our household.
Our theme this year is Saints, Demi-Gods and Intercessors
Our Guest Speakers
Keynote – M. David Litwa on the Hermetica
The Apostolic Johannite Church is excited to welcome and present Dr. M. David Litwa as our Keynote speaker- and he will be presenting on Hermetica
M. David Litwa, PhD, is a scholar of ancient Mediterranean religions with a focus on early Christianity. He has taught courses at the University of Virginia (Religion and Classics), the College of William & Mary (Classics), and Virginia Tech (Religion and Culture). His current appointment is at the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry (ACU Melbourne). He is a member of the steering committee of the Bible, Myth, and Myth Theory Group at the Society of Biblical Literature. His recent publications include How the Gospels Became History: Jesus and Mediterranean Myth (Yale University Press, 2019), Desiring Divinity (Oxford University Press, 2016), and Iesus Deus: The Early Christian Depiction of Jesus as a Mediterranean God (Fortress, 2014)
The Dr. Juliana Eimer Memorial Lecture – Eimear Burke on Brighid of Ireland
The Apostolic Johannite Church is excited to welcome and present Eimear Burke as our Dr. Juliana Eimer Memorial Lecture presenter. She will be presenting on Brigid of Ireland.
Eimear is the Chosen Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD) and lives in Kilkenny, Ireland.
Eimear has private practice as a Counselling Psychologist and her interests in Druidry and psychology have led her to act as a Celebrant, helping people to design and enact meaningful rites of passage. She is licensed to perform legal weddings in the Republic of Ireland and can also offer non legal ceremonies.
Eimear has a deep love of the ancient Irish tales and has a passion for storytelling. She brings the old tales to new audiences, and – while remaining faithful to the stories – often examines them from new perspectives, so that listeners experience them as fresh and relevant. She particularly enjoys showing people the sacred sites of Ireland and telling the ancient tales right where they happened.
Eimear is also a Priestess dedicated to Danú in the Fellowship of Isis. She is an Arch Druidess in the Druid Clan of Dana and a member of the Noble Order of Tara.
For several years, the Rev. Subdeacon Juliana Eimer, Ph.D was an active presenter and participant at our Conclaves- speaking on a variety of topics, from female Saints to the nature of Divinity. Her passing a mere months after Conclave 2016 was difficult for our community, and the Apostolic Johannite Church has chosen to remember her work here with us through a lecture series in her name.
Bridget Jeffries on The Apostle Vanishes: Junia and the Reception History of Romans 16:7
Bridget Jack Jeffries is a PhD student in church history at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. She has written for The Hill, RELEVANT magazine, and Priscilla Papers, and her interviews on religion have appeared in The Washington Post and Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. She likes church history, hamsters, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
She will be presenting on St Junia
Program of Conclave Lectures and Workshops
In addition to our featured talks, we are also excited to bring you an engaging list of speakers and activities throughout the Conclave program.
Without further preamble- here are some of the talks and workshops we have at the time of this announcement:
The Most Rev. Dr. William Behun – Daimon Love: Plato’s Symposium and Intercession
The Most Rev. Dr. William Behun – The Sacred Cycle: An Introduction to the Liturgical Year (New Series)
The Most Rev. Scott Rassbach: The Role of the Saints in the Johannite Tradition
Rev. Fr. John DiGilio: Echoes of the Apocalypse: The Enduring Legacy of St. Joachim of Fiore
The Rev. Fr. Brenden Humberdross: The Cult of the Saints
The Rev. Deacon Jonathan Stewart: Saint Expedite: Magic, History and Devotion
The Rev. Deacon Angie Wisk-Nowell: Women in Church Leadership- A Reclamation
Joanne Leone: In the image of God: Angelic creation of the psychic body in the Apocryphon of John
Costs and Registration
Full Registration: All Talks and Workshops – 100 USD
Student Registration: All Talks and Workshops – 50 USD
Individual Talk or Workshop – 25 USD
Refund Policy
Full Refund Available until May 26, 2023 (Start of Conclave)
We look forward to seeing you there and sharing your journey. Register at https://www.johannite.org/conclave/