The Healthy Dialogue Series welcomes Jennifer Powell McNutt, Professor of Theology and History of Christianity and Franklin S. Dyrness Chair of Biblical and Theological Studies at Wheaton College's Litfin Divinity School. Her book The Mary We Forgot: What the Apostle to the Apostles Teaches the Church Today (Brazos, 2024) unpacks Scripture and history to reveal the real Mary Magdalene: the first apostle of the good news and a model of discipleship for both men and women today.

The Rev. Dr. Jennifer Powell McNutt is a Fellow in the Royal Historical Society and a Parish Associate at First Presbyterian Church of Glen Ellyn. Dr. McNutt received her Ph.D. in History from the University of St. Andrews (Reformation Studies Institute, 2008), M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary (2003), and a B.A. in Religious Studies from Westmont College (2000). Dr. McNutt’s research specializes in the history of the church and Christian Theology from the Reformation through the Enlightenment with particular expertise in John Calvin and his clerical legacy, the Reformed tradition, the relationship between Christianity and science, and the history of the Bible and its interpretation.

The Healthy Dialogue Series is a collaboration between the Office of the Provost and The Sexuality Series. It reflects Calvin’s commitments to engage challenging conversations with humility, love, charity, and respect, eager to learn with and from each other. It reflects our commitment to understanding better, before we seek to be understood, as well as the vulnerability necessary to listen well and engage with those who perspectives may differ from our own.