Election 2012: “Sacred Texts in the Public Sphere” Series at Santa Clara University’s Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education Begins Oct. 2

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As the 2012 election approaches, Santa Clara University’s Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education is holding a series of lectures titled Sacred Texts in the Public Sphere. Speakers will discuss the ways in which sacred texts such as the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Scriptures shape the hottest debates of our times: immigration, the economy, gay marriage, war, democracy, and the presidency.

“Scriptural Politics of Democracy: Divine Violence and the Higher Law.”

The lectures begin on Oct. 2 and continue to Election Day on Nov. 6. Lecture speakers will include:

*Oct. 2, Ted Smith, professor at the Candler School of Theology, Emory University, “Scriptural Politics of Democracy: Divine Violence and the Higher Law.”

*Oct. 9, Kristin Heyer, religious studies professor at Santa Clara University, “Scriptural Politics of Immigration: Subversive Hospitality and Kinship.”

*Oct. 10, M. Cathleen Kaveny, professor of law and theology at University of Notre Dame, “Voting, Religious Liberty, and the Common Good.”

*Oct. 16, The Rev. Daniel Bell Jr., professor of ethics and theology at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, “Scriptural Politics of War: Morality and War in Public Discourse.”

*Oct. 17, Sr. Carol Keehan, CEO of the Catholic Health Association, “Catholic Healthcare: Mandates and Morals in an Era of Change.”

*Oct. 23, Jeffrey Siker, professor of theological studies at Loyola Marymount University, “Scriptural Politics of Family and Homosexuality: Textual Orientations.”

*Oct. 24, David DeCosse, professor of ethics at Santa Clara University, “Catholicism, Politics and the Primacy of Conscience: Reflections on Newman’s 'Letter to the Duke of Norfolk.'”

*Oct. 30, Catherine Murphy, religious studies professor at Santa Clara University, “Scriptural Politics of the Economy: Bringing the Gospel to Bear on Our Economic Debates.”

*Nov. 6, James Bennett, professor of religious studies at Santa Clara University, “Scriptural Politics of the American Presidency: Religion in the 2012 Presidential Election.”

The lectures are offered through the Center’s Bannan Institute, which hosts yearlong thematic programs to engage Santa Clara University and the larger community around issues of contemporary religious, cultural and theological debate. A full list of events and speakers, times and locations is available at http://www.scu.edu/ic/institute/sacredpolitics/.

About the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education

The Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education promotes and enhances the distinctively Jesuit, Catholic tradition of education at Santa Clara University for students, faculty, staff, and the larger local and global community. The Center aims to be recognized throughout Silicon Valley as a leader in the integration of faith, justice, and the intellectual life. The Center supports four signature programs: Bannan Institutes, yearlong thematic programs on contemporary religious, cultural, and theological issues; local community-based learning programs for students; local, national and global immersion programs for students, faculty, and staff; and opportunities for the broader Santa Clara community to benefit from the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. More information is available at http://www.scu.edu/ignatiancenter/.

About Santa Clara University

Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located 40 miles south of San Francisco in California’s Silicon Valley, offers its more than 8,800 students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, theology, and engineering, plus master’s and law degrees and engineering Ph.D.s. Distinguished nationally by one of the highest graduation rates among all U.S. master’s universities, California’s oldest operating higher-education institution demonstrates faith-inspired values of ethics and social justice. For more information, see www.scu.edu.