WIINNIPEG, MB-An estimated 6,000 academics visited the Manitoba capital at the beginning of June to attend the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences-an annual "meeting of minds."

They used to call this cluster of conventions the "learneds," a week at the end of the academic year when professors and graduate students from universities throughout the country gather to highlight their latest research, present learned papers, argue arcane minutiae and conduct the business of their respective disciplines. About 70 official groups participated in the event this year.

Several different societies for the study of religion were represented, along with other religion-oriented specialty groups including the Canadian Theological Society and the Society of Biblical Studies.

For many of the professors in these fields, the pursuit of learning and the livelihood it affords is an end in itself. Plenty of the experts in biblical studies, for example, have scant regard for the Bible as the Word of God; it’s simply an important and influential book, a rich vein for an academic mind to mine.

If this religion journalist sounds a tad dubious about the tedious pursuits of the tweedy types, please forgive me. I esteem greatly the contributions of scholars, and realize that their work plays an important role in determining the course of our society, especially by shaping the minds of succeeding generations.

Ideas matter, and these brain-blessed devotees will take all the time necessary to chase any particular idea to its source. They will speculate and experiment endlessly in order to determine its potential short and long term consequences. This is important work. Still, there are times when the preoccupations of scholars seem so esoteric and abstruse (extra points for vocabulary, please), so disconnected from the day-to-day realities of people’s lives.

Happily, many good people are very concerned to ensure that the separate worlds of ivory tower and hoi polloi are brought closer together. Gordon Smith, a theologian who works as a pastor, professor and ministry leader, told me that creating opportunities for regular conversation between theologians and pastors is "a significant priority" for the Canadian Evangelical Theological Association.

Why? So that "theologians can do their work in a way that is informed by the life and witness of the church, and that pastors do their work in a manner that is theologically informed. Theologians and pastors need one another as they seek to fulfill their respective vocations," says Smith.

To that end, Smith and his colleagues connected with MinistryNet, an evangelical leaders’ network in Winnipeg. They invited local clergy and ministry leaders to share a meal with the visiting theologians and religious academics. Alan Roxburgh spoke about leading congregations during times of cultural change; two visiting academics and two local pastors responded.

The presentations were followed by "an engaging conversation about the church and theology, and the kinds of theological issues that shape the contours and priorities of the work of pastors and church leaders," reports Smith.

On a Sunday morning (I had to miss church to be there), I attended a Canadian Society for the Study of Religion panel discussion on connecting religious scholars with the media. This, I discovered, is even tougher than bringing pastors and professors together.

From an academic point of view, journalism is too interested in conflict to give proper regard to truth, and in too much of a hurry to provide appropriate nuance. From a media perspective, "quotable scholars" are a relatively rare breed. Both professions, however, have a public service role to perform. Journalism provides a vehicle for scholars to communicate ideas and expertise to the public.

Meanwhile, the chasm between lectern and pulpit is more gaping than the proverbial gap between pulpit and pew. Shall the twain ever be joined? I, for one, certainly hope so. Many preachers would benefit from the perspectives of the scholarly, and more than a few professors can stand to be more practical.

And, of course, this journalist has much to learn from everybody.