Revd Dr Jeffrey Conklin-Miller to join Cliff College

Most recently, Jeff served on the faculty at the Divinity School of Duke University in the United States as the E. Stanley Jones Assistant Professor of the Practice of Evangelism and Christian Formation. He teaches in the areas of evangelism and missiology, missional (ecclesial) innovation, Christian formation, and Wesleyan/Methodist history and theology.

Jeff completed his doctoral studies at Duke in the areas of theology and ethics, evangelism and mission, and Wesleyan and Methodist studies. His research draws focus to the significance of Christian formation and theological education in the practices of ecclesial innovation and evangelistic witness. His book, Leaning Both Ways at Once: Methodist Evangelistic Mission Between Church and World was released in 2020, and previously he published articles and chapters in the Wesleyan Theological Journal, The Dictionary of Scripture and Ethics, and in edited collections, including The Practice of Mission in Global Methodism, E. Stanley Jones and Sharing the Good News in a Pluralistic Culture, and Generation Rising: A Future with Hope for the United Methodist Church. He was a Fellow in the Center for Studies in the Wesleyan Tradition, and he currently serves as the Editor of Witness: The Journal of the Academy for Evangelism in Theological Education.

In addition to his teaching and research, Jeff has served in several roles connecting theological education to the mission and ministry of the Church: with young people as the Director of the Duke Youth Academy for Christian Formation, with students preparing for ordination as the Director of the Methodist House of Studies, and with licensed local (lay) pastors as the Faculty Advisor to the United Methodist Course of Study Program.

Jeff’s appointment is announced as Cliff College embarks upon Vision21, which sees the College recommitting to the resourcing of mission and evangelism in the UK and globally. Over the coming years, the College’s programmes of study at all levels are being developed and refreshed to serve God’s people in mission in the world today, particularly in confident Christian witness with the margins. As Learning Lead and Tutor in Evangelism and Missiology, Jeff will work with both the teaching staff of the College and the College’s Evangelism Team to connect innovative mission placements with creative and faithful theological reflection. His work will also serve the broader Methodist Church in Britain, and our UK and global partners, through the training and research resources provided at Cliff College’s Peak District site, and through its online platform, TheologyX.

Jeff is an Ordained Elder in the California-Pacific Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church and served for eleven years as a youth minister, co-pastor, and senior pastor in congregations in Southern California. Jeff is married to Shannon who also serves as an Ordained Elder in The United Methodist Church, and together they have two young adult children. Having grown up near San Diego, California, Jeff is always seeking to introduce others to the joy of authentic Baja Fish Tacos.

Jeff writes, ‘I am delighted for the opportunity to join the Cliff College community. Christian formation and theological education are crucial to the discernment of the creative, reconciling work of the Spirit in the world and to participation in Christ’s mission. Because such formation has long been the focus of Cliff’s labours in study and prayer, shaping lay, clergy, children, youth, and adults around the world for evangelistic witness and missional service, I am thrilled to join with colleagues there engaged in this holy work.’

For more information about this appointment, please contact the Rev Dr Andrew Stobart, Head of Academic Strategy and Innovation at Cliff College.