Levinson Lecture Oct. 22 to Focus on Foundations of Environmental Ethics

Contact: (336) 334-5371

Posted 10-8-09

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Jonathan W. Schofer, associate professor of comparative ethics in the Harvard University Divinity School, will give the annual Henry Samuel Levinson Lecture on Thursday, Oct. 22, at 7:30 p.m. in the Alumni House on College Avenue.

His topic is “Stewardship or Vulnerability? Ancient Jewish Rainmaking and the Foundations of Environmental Ethics.” The lecture is free and open to the public; a reception will follow. Free parking will be available in the Walker Avenue Deck.

The lecture will discuss rain as a crucial element in the religion of Ancient Israel and later Judaism. It will describe theology and related practices, and how they became the background for narratives in which people attempt to bring rain through their connection with the divine. The stories portray humans as deeply grounded in their surroundings and the cycles of nature, and many set out ideals for daily interpersonal relations, given vulnerabilities to the environment. These stories will be explored, with reflections on their significance for ethics today.

Schofer’s books include “Confronting Vulnerability: The Body and the Divine in Rabbinic Ethics” and “The Making of a Sage: A Study in Rabbinic Ethics.” He is a graduate of Stanford University, and holds a master’s degree from Stanford. He earned a master’s degree and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago Divinity School.

The Levinson Lecture is sponsored by the Department of Religious Studies, the Jewish Studies Program, and the College of Arts and Sciences in conjunction with the Henry S. Levinson Program Endowment for Jewish Studies, the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professorship in Jewish Studies, the Barbara Colchamiro Jewish Studies Program Endowment, and the Judith Rosenstock Hyman Jewish Studies Program Endowment.  For more information, call the Department of Religious Studies at (336) 334-5762.