Reading Genesis with the Rabbis – A Guide to Preaching from the Questions

Reading Genesis with the Rabbis: A Guide to Preaching from the Questions

Join us at the serene St. Crispin’s Conference Center and Camp for a restorative retreat led by Dr. Amy Robertson and Dr. Robert Williamson, Jr., as we dive deeper into our sacred text.

The ancient Jewish rabbis had an intense curiosity about the biblical text, a deep love for God’s word that led them to pore over every sentence–every letter–to see what it might reveal to them about God and the life of faith. During this retreat, we will look to the rabbis as conversation partners as we develop our own capacity to read the Bible with deep curiosity, exploring what the text might offer us as we wrestle with what it means to be people of faith today.

With Drs. Amy Robertson and Robert Williamson, Jr., co-creators of the BibleWorm podcast, we’ll spend our time together in focused study of texts from Genesis alongside selections from rabbinic literature, allowing the curiosities and concerns of the rabbis to inspire our own imaginations about what the biblical text might hold for faithful preaching today. We’ll conclude the weekend with a better sense of how to preach from the questions as well as a general outline of a four-week preaching series on the book of Genesis.

Details

When

February 8 – 11, 2026

Where

St. Crispin’s Conference Center and Camp, Wewoka, OK

Cost

Registration fees include morning and evening worship, workshops, meals, and lodging.

- Are you a registering as a regular participant and reside within OPSF’s 13 state territory? The cost is $200, double occupancy.
- Are you a registering as a regular participant and live outside OPSF’s 13 state territory? The cost is $250, double occupancy.
- Are you an alumni of PLR? The cost is $100, double occupancy.
- Are you registered as a full participant in Pastoral Leadership Revitalization (PLR)? This event was included in your PLR registration cost.
- Add $150 for single occupancy. Limited spots available.

What Should I Expect?

This event incorporates prayer, vespers, worship, and an attitude of mindfulness to begin the day. Our days will have workshops and discussions that delve into the context of our Bible texts with Drs. Amy Robertson and Bobby Williamson to discern how God might be calling us and the church to be in the world. You’ll also have free time to do whatever helps fill your soul: read, pray, nap, hike, play games, crafts, ride into town- whatever fills your cup.

Leaders

Dr. Amy Robertson is the Director of Lifelong Learning and Music at Congregation or Hadash, a Conservative synagogue in Sandy Springs, GA, where she enjoys asking questions that have no straightforward answer and will do almost anything to get a group to sing with her. She believes that our unfolding lives are a real source of Torah in the world, and seeks always to understand written Torah and lived Torah in light of each other. Amy is the co-host of the BibleWorm podcast, and is studying for rabbinic ordination through ALEPH: The Alliance for Jewish Renewal. She holds degrees from Emory University, Harvard Divinity School, and Rice University, and makes her home with her husband, Will, and two wonderful teenagers who enjoy neither her impossible questions nor her propensity to break into Jewish song.

Dr. Robert Williamson, Jr (Bobby) is Professor of Religious Studies at Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas, and Theologian in Residence of Canvas Community, a church for those living on the streets of Little Rock. He is producer and co-host of BibleWorm, a popular Narrative Lectionary podcast. He holds graduate degrees from Emory University, Oxford University, and Columbia Theological Seminary, and is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA). HIs most recent book is Reading the Bible with Brueggemann: Scripture’s Power to Remake the World.

Lodging

Event Flyer

Registration