Colgate lecture series focuses on ‘Politics and World Religions’ Fall programs are free and open to the public

Back to All Stories

Colgate University’s Center for Ethics and World Societies is offering a lecture series on ‘Politics and World Religions,’ two much-discussed topics in the media today. This series is free and open to the public.

‘Religion is a way in which literally billions of people try to make sense of their lives. Politics is the process through which these same people either govern themselves or are governed by others,’ says Tim Byrnes, Colgate political science professor and this year’s center director. The series will attempt to illuminate the many and complex ways in which politics and religion intersect. A listing of the fall schedule follows below:

v Friday, September 26, 4 p.m., Colgate Memorial Chapel
‘Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence’
Mark Juergensmeyer, University of California-Santa Barbara
v Wednesday, October 8, 4:30 p.m., Ho Lecture Room, 105 Lawrence Hall
‘World Religions and Globalization’ – Jose Casanova, The New School
v Wednesday, October 22, 4:30 p.m., Persson Auditorium
‘Religious Institutions and Civic Engagement’
J. Bryan Hehir, President of Catholic Charities USA
v Wednesday, October 29, 4:30 p.m., Ho Lecture Room, 105 Lawrence Hall
‘Catholicism at a Turning Point: Liberal Challenges and Conservative Currents’
Sabrina Petra Ramet, University of Trondheim
v Wednesday, November 5, 4:30 p.m., Ho Lecture Room, 105 Lawrence Hall
‘Global Religions and Competing Human Rights Paradigms’ ‘
Evelyn Bush, Fordham University
v Wednesday, November 19, 4:30 p.m., Ho Lecture Room, 105 Lawrence Hall
‘Religions, Politics, Inter-Civilizational Dialogue and Cross-Cultural Morality’
Bassam Tibi, University of Gottingen

Speakers tentatively scheduled thus far for the spring include:
v John Burdick – Syracuse University: on liberation theology and politics in Brazil
v Ian Lustick – University of Pennsylvania: on religion and politics in Israel
v Maria Rosa Menocal – Yale University: on how Muslims, Jews and Christians created a culture of tolerance in medieval Spain
v Eugenie Scott – National Center for Science Education: on religion and science in American education
v Charles Beirne, S.J. – LeMoyne College: on Jesuit education and social justice
v Amina Wadud – Virginia Commonwealth University: on Islam and women

For additional information call 315-228-7807.

Founded in 1819, Colgate University is a highly selective, residential, liberal arts college enrolling nearly 2,750 undergraduates. Situated on a rolling 515-acre campus in central New York State, Colgate University attracts motivated students with diverse backgrounds, interests and talents.
###