Visit by Mark Edwards - February 2006
Mark U. Edwards, Jr., became Professor of the History of Christianity at Harvard Divinity School (HDS) in 1987, after teaching at Wellesley College and Purdue University. He was at HDS until July 1994, when he became the ninth president of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. In 2000 Edwards stepped down from the St. Olaf presidency and moved to New Hampshire. He returned to HDS in May 2003.
Edwards has written four books and numerous articles on Martin Luther and the German Reformation. The most recent book, entitled Printing, Propaganda, and Martin Luther (University of California Press, 1994; reprint, Fortress Press, 2005), deals with the West's first "mass media campaign" and Luther's pivotal role as both subject and object in the struggle for the hearts and minds of sixteenth-century Christians. Edwards has also published articles on religion and higher education and has done occasional columns on Christianity and the Internet for Christian Century .
He is currently working on two books funded by the Lilly Endowment; the first orients faculty to the role of religion on campus and is entitled Religion on Our Campuses: Awkward Silences and Promising Conversations (Palgrave, forthcoming), and the second, Having a Stake, Making a Contribution: Religious Perspectives in American Higher Education , argues for the importance of considering religious and spiritual perspectives in disciplinary scholarship. In addition to his historical interests, Edwards has taught introductory courses in computer science at Wellesley and Purdue and has developed three commercial software programs including ForComment , a pioneer "groupware" product that was designated one of the best products of 1987 by PC Magazine .
Mark will be joining us February 15th and 16th, 2006 to discuss for the benefit of the Sewanee community and general public, "the tension between academic professionalism and religious commitment." Here is the latest information on the time and location of Mark Edward's events:
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Professor Mark Edwards, Lecture: "Religion in the Academy: Personal and Professional Identities Interacting." Convocation Hall, February 15, at 4:30 p.m.
Quicktime Video of the Lecture
Mark Edwards, Luncheon Seminar. "Two Sets of Good Intentions: How Do Professionalism and Religious Conviction Interact in Teaching?" February 16th at 12:00 p.m.
Discussion with Mark Edwards on Professionalism and Religious Conviction. Convocation Hall, February 16th, 4:30 p.m.
Faculty Panel on Professionalism and Religious Conviction. Convocation Hall, Tuesday, February 21st at 4:30 p.m.
Quicktime Video of Faculty Panel
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Chapters for Mark Edwards' manuscript "Religion on Our Campuses A Professor's Guide to Communities, Conflicts, and Promising Conversations" are available to members of the Sewanee community using computers on campus. These manuscripts can be reached by clicking the following links:
Introduction:
http://classes-web.sewanee.edu:8080/htswl/Pages_from_Religion_on_Our_Campuses_Introduction.pdf
Reticence (on religion and research):
http://classes-web.sewanee.edu:8080/htswl/Pages-from_Religion_on_Our_Campuses_Reticence.pdf
In the Classroom:
http://classes-web.sewanee.edu:8080/htswl/ATT00022.pdf
If you are a member of the Sewanee community and wish to be sent a copy of these texts by e-mail, contact Kate Sullivan at ksulliva@sewanee.edu .