Gordon in the News: last updated 09/19/2013
For Immediate Release
September 19, 2013
Media Contact
Cyndi McMahon, [email protected]
978.867.4236
@Gordon_CMcMahon
WENHAM, MA—Evangelicals of nearly all political and denominational persuasions now view social engagement as a fundamental responsibility of the faithful—an important if not an exclusive legacy of the evangelical left. In light of recent history, what can an evangelical progressive vision of politics contribute to the common good? David Swartz will address these topics and more in an upcoming lecture at Gordon College.
On Thursday, October 3 at 4:30 p.m., David Swartz will deliver a talk entitled, “The Evangelical Left: Oxymoron or Opportunity?” in the Ken Olsen Science Center, MacDonald Auditorium. A reception with light refreshments will begin at 4 p.m. This lecture is free and open to the public.
"The story that David Swartz tells is a heartening one for the many evangelicals whose social and political views put them out of step with much of the movement today," notes Daniel Johnson, professor of sociology at Gordon College. "Yet it should also be welcomed by those who embrace the entrenched conservatism that has come to define American evangelicalism in public consciousness. For the public's easy equation of 'evangelicalism' with a particular social and political agenda surely stifles the chance for evangelicals to define themselves with reference to the common commitment to 'gospel work' that has historically marked the tradition."
David Swartz teaches history at Asbury University. He is author of Moral Minority: The Evangelical Left in an Age of Conservatism, and writes at the Moral Minority blog and at Anxious Bench for Patheos. His areas of teaching interest and research include American religious history, twentieth-century American politics, Anabaptism, global religion, and issues of war and peace. He is the founder and faculty sponsor of Plowshares, a Central Kentucky group that promotes peace and reconciliation.
This event is the annual Franz Lecture sponsored by Gordon's Division of Social Sciences in honor of David L. Franz, Gordon College history professor emeritus. It is also part of the Faith Seeking Understanding lecture series sponsored by the Center for Faith and Inquiry at Gordon College; this ongoing lecture series brings first-rate guest speakers to Gordon College to address various topics related to Christian thought and practice, the theology of vocation, intellectual commitment, ethics and more.
For more information please visit the Center for Faith and Inquiry webpages on the www.gordon.edu site or contact Debbie Drost by email at [email protected].
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