Dr. Allen Verhey of the Duke University Divinity School faculty, an expert on Christian ethics who formerly taught at Hope for many years, will present the address "The Art of Dying" as the 2009 Danforth Lecture at Hope College on Tuesday, March 3, at 4 p.m. in the Maas Center auditorium.
The public is invited. Admission is free.
Verhey focuses on the application of Christian ethics, especially in the area of medical and health practice. His address will critique the medicalization of death in the 20th century; reflect on the "Ars Moriendi," a guide on death and dying written in the 15th century; and then turn to the story of Jesus' death as a clue to dying well and faithfully.
Verhey is a professor of Christian ethics at Duke University Divinity School. He has published widely and is the author, editor, or co-editor of 12 books, most recently "Reading the Bible in the Strange World of Medicine."
Prior to coming to Duke, he was the Evert J. and Hattie E. Blekkink Professor of Religion at Hope, where he continues to hold an adjunct appointment in religion. He taught at Hope from 1975 to 1992 and from 1994 to 2004. From 1992 to 1994 he was director of the Institute of Religion at the Texas Medical Center for two years.
The Danforth Lecture is sponsored by the Hope College department of religion with support from an endowment established by the Danforth Foundation of St. Louis, Mo. The program was established by the foundation "to deepen and enlarge the religious dimension of the campus family through speakers who can reflect on the broad, interdenominational and yet positive sense of the Judaeo-Christian perspectives of life and existence."
Some of the many distinguished scholars who have visited the campus through the program in the past include theologian Dr. John D. Crossan of Orlando, Fla.; Dr. Stanley M. Hauerwas of the Divinity School at Duke University; Dr. Martin E. Marty of the University of Chicago Divinity School; Dr. Phyllis Trible of Union Theological Seminary; Dr. Jon D. Levenson of Harvard University; and Dr. Daniel Maguire of Marquette University.
The Maas Center is located at 264 Columbia Ave., on Columbia Avenue at 11th Street.