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Monday, December 11, 2006
Earl Lectures tackles issues of religious wars and diversity
For Immediate Release
December 7, 2006
Contact: Russell Schoch
510/849-8215
Pacific School of Religion
BERKELEY, CA — “There will be no world peace until there is peace among the religions,” according to Swiss theologian Hans Kung. With that in mind, the 106th annual Earl Lectures of Pacific School of Religion will focus on Christian responsibility in light of the bristling of religious wars globally and an increasing diversity of religions in the United States. “We the people” now include Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Zoroastrians, and new varieties of Christians and Jews—and all of these people must learn to live together in peace or perish. Under the general title “All the Rivers of Paradise: Christian Responsibility in an Interfaith World,” the lectures will take place January 23-25, 2007, at the First Congregational Church in Berkeley.
A multidenominational Christian seminary in Berkeley, Pacific School of Religion (PSR) has been preparing leaders for historic and emerging faith communities since 1866. Since 1901, PSR’s Earl Lectures have brought eminent scholars to Berkeley to speak on themes important to Christian life and thought.
Four religious scholars with deep political involvement will deliver this year’s public Earl Lectures, including: Mahmoud Mustafa Ayoub, professor of Islamic studies and comparative religion at Temple University and author of a number of books in English and Arabic on Islam and interreligious dialogue, who will explore how extremism, exclusivism, and violence have obscured the divine light; and Bernice Powell Jackson, recent past president of the World Council of Churches (WCC) for North America, who previously served as head of Justice and Witness Ministries of the United Church of Christ. In her work with the WCC, Rev. Jackson focused on the interfaith “Decade Against Violence” program.
Two Pacific School of Religion professors will also be featured: Tat-siong Benny Liew, who taught at Chicago Theological Seminary for nine years before becoming associate professor of New Testament at PSR in 2006, engages in interdisciplinary readings of the New Testament to both explore the relations between religion and various colonizing/racializing dynamics and to break open boundaries that keep us from seeing and thinking differently. Choan-Seng (C.S.) Song, distinguished professor of theology and Asian cultures at PSR since 1984, has had a world-wide impact on the teaching of Christianity and is revered for his tireless work on behalf of democracy in his native Taiwan; he is featured in a recent book as one of 12 thinkers whose work epitomizes theology in the 20th century (God at the Risk of Engagement: Twelve Theologians and Philosophers of Religion in the 20th Century, by Henry Mottu).
During the three days of the Earl Lectures, a Pastoral Conference will also be held, with 30 workshops exploring many facets of interfaith work. These include: understanding grief and fear, engaging difference in small-group interfaith work, scientific perspectives on spirituality and health, appreciative inquiry, moving beyond words in interfaith understanding, and writing the sacred.
The four public Earl Lectures are free; registration for the Pastoral Conference is $95. To register, call 510/848-8274 or 800/999-0528. For more information, visit www.psr.edu. First Congregational Church of Berkeley is located at 2345 Channing Way.
Note to press: Each of the Earl Lecturers will be available for interviews both before and during the Earl Lectures.
*****
About Religion Press Release Services
Religion Press Release Services distributes press releases, press advisories, photos and other stories on behalf of religious organizations, denominational offices, think tanks, watchdog groups, advocacy groups, coalitions, foundations, colleges, universities, seminaries, publishers and others.
The organizations and/or individuals who submit materials for distribution by Religion Press Release Services are solely responsible for the facts in and accuracy of their materials. Religion Press Release Services will correct any errors brought to its attention.
Contact Us
To distribute press releases through Religion Press Release Services, contact Claudia Sans at csans@religionnews.com or 202-383-7870. For more information check out our PDF brochure.
Religion News Service, 1101 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036 (202) 463-8777
December 7, 2006
Contact: Russell Schoch
510/849-8215
Pacific School of Religion
BERKELEY, CA — “There will be no world peace until there is peace among the religions,” according to Swiss theologian Hans Kung. With that in mind, the 106th annual Earl Lectures of Pacific School of Religion will focus on Christian responsibility in light of the bristling of religious wars globally and an increasing diversity of religions in the United States. “We the people” now include Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Zoroastrians, and new varieties of Christians and Jews—and all of these people must learn to live together in peace or perish. Under the general title “All the Rivers of Paradise: Christian Responsibility in an Interfaith World,” the lectures will take place January 23-25, 2007, at the First Congregational Church in Berkeley.
A multidenominational Christian seminary in Berkeley, Pacific School of Religion (PSR) has been preparing leaders for historic and emerging faith communities since 1866. Since 1901, PSR’s Earl Lectures have brought eminent scholars to Berkeley to speak on themes important to Christian life and thought.
Four religious scholars with deep political involvement will deliver this year’s public Earl Lectures, including: Mahmoud Mustafa Ayoub, professor of Islamic studies and comparative religion at Temple University and author of a number of books in English and Arabic on Islam and interreligious dialogue, who will explore how extremism, exclusivism, and violence have obscured the divine light; and Bernice Powell Jackson, recent past president of the World Council of Churches (WCC) for North America, who previously served as head of Justice and Witness Ministries of the United Church of Christ. In her work with the WCC, Rev. Jackson focused on the interfaith “Decade Against Violence” program.
Two Pacific School of Religion professors will also be featured: Tat-siong Benny Liew, who taught at Chicago Theological Seminary for nine years before becoming associate professor of New Testament at PSR in 2006, engages in interdisciplinary readings of the New Testament to both explore the relations between religion and various colonizing/racializing dynamics and to break open boundaries that keep us from seeing and thinking differently. Choan-Seng (C.S.) Song, distinguished professor of theology and Asian cultures at PSR since 1984, has had a world-wide impact on the teaching of Christianity and is revered for his tireless work on behalf of democracy in his native Taiwan; he is featured in a recent book as one of 12 thinkers whose work epitomizes theology in the 20th century (God at the Risk of Engagement: Twelve Theologians and Philosophers of Religion in the 20th Century, by Henry Mottu).
During the three days of the Earl Lectures, a Pastoral Conference will also be held, with 30 workshops exploring many facets of interfaith work. These include: understanding grief and fear, engaging difference in small-group interfaith work, scientific perspectives on spirituality and health, appreciative inquiry, moving beyond words in interfaith understanding, and writing the sacred.
The four public Earl Lectures are free; registration for the Pastoral Conference is $95. To register, call 510/848-8274 or 800/999-0528. For more information, visit www.psr.edu. First Congregational Church of Berkeley is located at 2345 Channing Way.
Note to press: Each of the Earl Lecturers will be available for interviews both before and during the Earl Lectures.
*****
About Religion Press Release Services
Religion Press Release Services distributes press releases, press advisories, photos and other stories on behalf of religious organizations, denominational offices, think tanks, watchdog groups, advocacy groups, coalitions, foundations, colleges, universities, seminaries, publishers and others.
The organizations and/or individuals who submit materials for distribution by Religion Press Release Services are solely responsible for the facts in and accuracy of their materials. Religion Press Release Services will correct any errors brought to its attention.
Contact Us
To distribute press releases through Religion Press Release Services, contact Claudia Sans at csans@religionnews.com or 202-383-7870. For more information check out our PDF brochure.
Religion News Service, 1101 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036 (202) 463-8777
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About Religion Press Release ServicesReligion Press Release Services distributes press releases, press advisories, photos and other stories on behalf of religious organizations, denominational offices, think tanks, watchdog groups, advocacy groups, coalitions, foundations, colleges, universities, seminaries, publishers and others. The organizations and/or individuals who submit materials for distribution by Religion Press Release Services are solely responsible for the facts in and accuracy of their materials. Religion Press Release Services will correct any errors brought to its attention.
Contact Us
To distribute press releases through Religion Press Release Services, contact Claudia Sans at csans@religionnews.com or 202-383-7870. For more information check out our PDF brochure.
Religion News Service, 1101 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036 (202) 463-8777
