Burchenal Lecture Series

From Heresy to History: Engaging Biblical Studies in An Age of Scientific Faith
Thursday, February 9, 7:30 pm, Fox Hall
Davina C. Lopez, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies , Eckerd College
Todd Penner, Gould H. and Marie Cloud Associate Professor (and Chair) of Religious Studies and Director of the Gender Studies Program at Austin College in Sherman, Texas.

Davina C. Lopez teaches courses in biblical, ancient, and gender studies at Eckerd College in St Petersburg, Florida. A New Testament and Early Christianity scholar, her research interests include Pauline studies, Roman imperial art and literature, social theories and methods in the study of religion, and critical approaches to teaching and learning in Biblical and Religious Studies. She is the author of Apostle to the Conquered: Reimagining Paul's Mission.

Todd Penner is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Director of the Gender Studies Program at Austin College. Todd's area of expertise is in New Testament and Christian Origins. Most recently, he has co-authored Contextualizing Gender in Early Christian Discourse.

The Tenth Parallel: Dispatches From the Fault Line Between Christianity and Islam
February 16, 7:30 pm, Fox Hall
Eliza Griswold, Award-winning investigative journalist and poet
Co-sponsored by the Col. Christian L. and Edna March International Relations Speakers Series

Eliza Griswold received a 2011 Anthony J. Lukas prize for her New York Times Bestselling Book The Tenth Parallel, an examination of examination of Christianity and Islam in Africa and Asia. A former Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, she reports on religion, conflict and human rights. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, The New York Times Magazine, Harpers, The New Republic, among many others.

Lost Cities, Tombs, Treasures, and Ethics: Solving the Ancient Mysteries and Battling the Modern Oppression of the Maya
Monday, February 27, 7:30 pm, Fox Hall
Arthur Demarest, Ingram Professor of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University

Arthur Demarest is the Ingram Professor of Anthropology and Director of Vanderbilt Institute of Mesoamerican Archaeology at Vanderbilt University. Professor Demarest's has published over a hundred articles and twenty books and monographs including Ancient Maya: The Rise and Fall of a Rainforest Civilization. His archaeological discoveries have been covered in National Geographic and American Archaeology and he was profiled in Science.

Reframing the Open Source Church
Tuesday, March 13, 7:30 pm, Fox Hall
Reverend Carol Howard Merritt, Associate Pastor, Western Presbyterian Church, Washington DC Reverend Landon Whitsitt, Vice-Moderator, Presbyterian Church (USA)

Carol Howard Merritt is a pastor at Western Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. and a student and prolific writer of issues related to social media, generational characteristics and the church. She is the author of Reframing Hope: Vital Ministry in a New Generation and Tribal Church: Ministering to the Missing Generation. She also co-hosts God Complex Radio, an online radio program.

Landon Whitsitt is a Presbyterian minister and is currently the Vice-Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and Executive and Stated Clerk of the Synod of Mid-America. He is the author of Open Source Church: Tapping into the Wisdom of the Priesthood of All Believers. He is a co-host God Complex Radio, a weekly internet radio show.

Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and Mohammed Walk Into a Bar: Christian Identity in a Multi-Faith World
Thursday, April 19, 7:30 pm, Fox Hall
Brian McLaren

Brian McLaren is an activist and bestselling author. His dozen-plus books include A New Kind of Christianity, A Generous Orthodoxy, and most recently, Naked Spirituality. He is a former pastor and college English teacher.

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