Silvia Brynjolfson, DML, MDiv

Assistant Professor of World Languages and Cultures; Chair, Spanish
While I can say my subject is Spanish, my passion is for my students.

Over her life of Christian service, Silvia Brynjolfson has lived on three continents. She earned four graduate degrees culminating in a Doctor of Modern Languages. She has provided leadership to several international networks including WakeUp Deborah a prayer network in Spanish-speaking countries, and the WEA Women’s Commission where she served as the representative for Latin America. Silvia is the co-founder of the Latino Antihuman Trafficking Forum a network of evangelical leaders from 19 countries in Latin America addressing the concerns relating to human trafficking in the region. Originally from Argentina, Silvia enjoys cooking, gardening, and sailing and resides in Langley City with her husband and three adult children.

  • Doctorate in Modern Languages - Spanish / Italian (Middlebury College, Vermont, USA; 2017)
  • MA in Hispanic Studies (University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada; 2007)
  • Máster Universitario en Lengua y Cultura Española (MULCE) (Universidad de Salamanca, Spain; 2004)
  • Master of Divinity (M.Div.) (Regent College, Vancouver, Canada; 1985)
  • BA In Religious Studies (Instituto Bíblico Buenos Aires, Argentina;1979)

Expertise

Spanish language instruction years one through four, and the writings of Jerónimo Gracián, in particular the Ten lamentations of the miserable state of the atheists of our times (1611).

Jerónimo Gracián (1545- 1614) was a Spanish Carmelite and writer who was also the spiritual director of St. Teresa of Ávila a renowned Spanish mystic. At the end of his life, while serving as preacher and confessor of the Spanish Ambassador in Brussels, he wrote a controversial book entitled: Ten lamentations of the miserable state of the atheists of our times (1611). He was concerned about the advancement of the protestant faith and the decline – in his eyes- of some sectors of Catholicism – and tried to warn the Spanish General Inquisitor of his day and other ecclesiastical authorities of this situation. My doctoral dissertation analyzes the rhetoric and theological content of this text in the historical, political, and religious context of its time.

  • CAWL Conference: Azusa. Los Angeles, CA. Isabel Allende’s Spirituality: An Interdisciplinary Resource for Cultivating Religious Discussions. (2022)
  • CAWL Conference online. Religious Intolerance in the XVII Century Belgian Margin of the Spanish Empire (2021)
  • Middlebury College, Vermont, US. Doctoral dissertation: Diez Lamentaciones de Jerónimo Gracián: Expresiones de intolerancia religiosa en el entorno de la confesionalización. (2017)
  • TWU Faculty Retreat, Sumas, WA. Nourishing the Soul of Learning. Practicing Community. Final Exams: A New Place for Experiencing Mutual Spiritual Nourishing. (2016)
  • Middlebury College, Vermont: Language Schools Public Lectures: Santa Teresa: ¿santa o subversiva? (2016)
  • Council of Christian Teachers. Langley, BC. Correct mistakes, or let them speak? (2014)
  • Middlebury College, Vermont, US. Qualifying Doctoral Paper: La incorporación del “Marco Común de Referencia para las lenguas” en el sistema educativo de la provincia de British Columbia (Canadá): implicaciones y desafíos en a enseñanza y aprendizaje de español como L2 en el nivel de Educación Superior. (2013)
  • University of British Columbia. M.A. Graduating Essay Defense: La figura de Dios en la novela y poesía de José María Arguedas. (2007)
  • Universidad de Salamanca. Master Universitario en Lengua y Cultura Española (MULCE) graduating paper. Aspectos religiosos de “Los ríos profundos” de José María Arguedas (2004)

Awards & Honors

Nominated for:

  • Provost’s Innovative Teaching Award (Trinity Western University; 2014)
  • David Distinguished Teaching Award (Trinity Western University; 2013, 2014)

Recent Publications

  • Brynjolfson, Silvia. Trata de personas: lo que la Iglesia necesita saber. (Human Trafficking: What the Church Needs to Know) September 2023. Ediciones Certeza: Buenos Aires.

 

Affiliations & Memberships

  • CAWL (Christian Association of World Languages)
  • Latin Anti-Human Trafficking Forum. Cofounder and co-director
  • SCOLA (Standing Committee on Language Articulation) of British Columbia
  • WakeUp Deborah: Mothers praying for their children (Youth for Christ International) Founder and leader in the Spanish World
  • World Evangelical Alliance. World Freedom Network. Latin American Representative

  • SPAN 101 Introduction to Spanish I
  • SPAN 102 Introduction to Spanish II
  • SPAN 201 Intermediate Spanish I
  • SPAN 202 Intermediate Spanish II
  • SPAN 301 Literature, Grammar and Composition I
  • SPAN 302 Literature, Grammar and Composition I
  • SPAN 320 Spain. Civilization and Culture
  • SPAN 405 Spanish Peninsular Literature and Culture I
  • SPAN 406 Spanish Peninsular Literature and Culture II
  • SPAN 410 Hispanic Latin American Literature and Culture I
  • SPAN 411 Hispanic Latin American Literature and Culture II
  • SPAN 498 Special Topics in Spanish Literature (Directed Studies)