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The School of Divinity is pleased to announce that Elizabeth Johnson, Distinguished Professor of Theology at Fordham University, will be the 2016 Steelman Lecturer.
"Is God's Charity Broad Enough for Bears?" is inspired from an observation by the naturalist John Muir. Coming upon a dead bear in the woods, he scorned those religious folk who excluded such noble creatures from divine mercy. To the contrary, he wrote, “God’s charity is broad enough for bears.” Is it? Making use of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’, this lecture explores key theological themes needed for conversion to the earth in this age of ecological crisis. Rather than forcing a choice between heaven or earth, we seek to invigorate ethical behavior that cares for plants and animals with a passion integral to belief in the living God.
The lecture is open to the public and will begin at 7 p.m. in Wait Chapel on the Wake Forest campus. Doors open at 6 p.m.
About Elizabeth Johnson
Distinguished Professor of Theology at Fordham University, Elizabeth Johnson grew up in Brooklyn, New York, the oldest of seven children in a sprawling Catholic family that included beloved cats and dogs. As a young adult she joined the religious order of the Sisters of Saint Joseph whose motherhouse is in Brentwood, Long Island, NY. At the time of the Second Vatican Council, she was a young sister teaching in elementary school as a New York State certified teacher of reading from grades K-6, a certification she still maintains. The Council energized her interest in matters theological.
After receiving a PhD in theology from Catholic University of America (1981), she taught at that university for ten years before moving to Fordham University where she teaches in both graduate and undergraduate programs. Professor, mentor, writer, editor, and public lecturer at home and abroad, she is a former president of the Catholic Theological Society of America, the oldest and largest society of theologians in the world, and a former president of the American Theological Society, an ecumenical association. She loves to teach and was awarded Fordham University’s Teaching Award in 1998 and Professor of the Year Award in 2011 (most fond of these).
Dr. Johnson has received fifteen honorary doctorates, the John Courtney Murray Award for distinguished achievement in theology, and numerous other accolades. Her book She Who Is garnered several honors, most notably the Grawemeyer Award in Religion. Her work has been translated into thirteen languages, including German, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Icelandic, Lithuanian, Bosnian, Korean, Indonesian, and Thai. She serves on the editorial boards of the journals Theological Studies, Horizons: Journal of the College Theology Society, and Theoforum. She appears with photo and brief biography in the Library of Congress 2009 Engagement Calendar, entitled Women Who Dare, for the week of June 22-28, 2009.
Deeply involved in the life of the church, her public service has included being a theologian on the national Lutheran-Catholic Dialogue (1984-91); a consultant to the US Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Women in Church and Society; a theologian on the Vatican-sponsored dialogue between science and religion, and on the Vatican-sponsored ecumenical conference on Christ and world religions; and a core committee member of the Common Ground Initiative, started by Cardinal Joseph Bernardin (Chicago) to reconcile polarized groups in the Catholic Church.
Read more about Elizabeth Johnson »
About the Steelman Lectures
The Margaret A. Steelman Lectures were endowed in 1998 with a gift from Dr. Sanford L. Steelman in honor of his wife, Margaret A. Steelman, and to establish a legacy at the newly established School of Divinity at Wake Forest University. The Steelmans were originally from Hickory and returned there to retire in 1988. Dr. Steelman spent 28 years with Merck Research Laboratories in New Jersey. His career as a biochemist was distinguished with hundreds of scientific articles and five patents. They were active members of First Baptist Church, Hickory, NC. This lectureship provides funding for prominent lecturers of Judeo-Christian theology.
Parking
Parking is available in Lots A, P, and Q, as well as individual spots along the street directly in front of Wingate Hall - which provide direct access to Wait Chapel. See parking map »
Tuesday, March 1, 2016 at 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Wait Chapel
1834 Wake Forest Road Winston-Salem, NC 27106
Alumni, Faculty, General Public, Staff, Students, Prospective Students
Free
Janice Huesman
336.758.3957
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