Merrick Lecture
Each year the Merrick Lecture Series brings to campus a renowned scholar of religion or philosophy for talks and for one-on-one discussion with students. In the past decade, speakers have included Gene Outka, Michael Novak, and James Charlesworth. Through additional University programs, prominent lecturers from France, Yugoslavia, and the United States have also visited our campus. Also, various lecture series at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio provide opportunities to hear eminent theologians.
The Merrick Lecture was founded by Frederick Merrick, Professor and Second President of Ohio Wesleyan University. They are in the area of "experimental and practical religion." It constitutes the oldest running series at the University.
YEAR |
LECTURER |
TITLE |
| 2019 | Vasudha Narayanan, Ph.D. |
“Who Owns a Story? Global Religions and Cultural Territoriality”
|
| 2018 | Carol Newsom, Ph.D. |
“Hope in a Time of Climate Change: A Conversation between the Bible and Science”
|
| 2017 | Paul C.H. Lim, Ph.D. | “Global Christianity and War on Human Trafficking: Snapshots from America, India, and Korea.” |
| 2015 (Fall) | Eddie S. Glaude, Jr. | "An Uncommon Faith: Pragmatism and Religion" |
| 2015 (Spring) | Christiane Gruber | "Prophetic Products: The Prophet Muhammad in Contemporary Iranian Visual Culture" |
| 2013 | Robin Jensen | "Ritual Spaces and Holy Places: The Archaeological Evidence for Ancient African Christianity" |
| 2012 | Laura Lieber | "Tragedy Tomorrow, Comedy Tonight: Scriptural Drama and Biblical Playfulness in Antiquity" |
| 2011 | Lori Meeks | "'Talking Past' Androcentric Religious Discourse: Gender, Agency, and Ideology in Medieval Japanese Buddhism" |
| 2010 | David Frankfurter | "Exorcising the World: New Perspectives on Christianization and Culture" |
| 2009 | Daniel T. Spencer | "The Greening of Religion: Religions' [Re]Encounter with the Earth and Its Distress" |
| 2008 | Jason C. Bivins | "'Like Beating the Dog:' Religion, Fear and American Democracy" |