The Thomas F. Staley Lectureship
The Thomas F. Staley Endowment for the Distinguished Christian Scholar Lecture Series at Lees-McRae College Presents
Laura Hobgood-Oster, PhD. Animals and Christianity
Tuesday February 21, 2012
Dr. Hobgood-Oster will present 2 lectures on the topic of Animals and Christianity Tuesday, February 21 in Evans Auditorium located in the Cannon Student Center at
Lees-McRae College. The lectures will be presented at 3:30 and 7:00pm.
Laura Hobgood-Oster is Professor and Paden Chair in Religion and Environmental Studies at Southwestern University where she has served on the faculty since 1998. Dr. Hobgood-Oster has chaired both the religion department and the environmental studies program. She teaches in the areas of religion and ecology, animals in religion, the history of Christianity, environmental studies, animal ethics and ecofeminism.
Her two most recent books are The Friends We Keep: Unleashing Christianity’s Compassion for Animals and Holy Dogs and Asses: Animals in the Christian Tradition. She also served as an executive editor of The Encyclopedia of Religion and Nature and has written numerous articles and encyclopedia entries. She has co-chaired the Animals and Religion Consultation of the American Academy of Religion and is currently President-Elect of the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture.
Dr. Hobgood-Oster is a frequent lecturer on college campuses and is a contributor to several popular publications such as The Huffington Post. Her current book project, A Dog’s History of the World, is scheduled for publication in 2013. Dr. Hobgood-Oster holds a Ph.D. in historical theology from St. Louis University and a M.Div. from Vanderbilt University. In addition, she is the dog rescue coordinator for the Georgetown Animal Shelter and lives with her spouse, Jack, and their two rescue dogs Codi and Cooper.
The Staley Distinguished Christian Scholar Lecture Series is designed to provide scholarly evangelical speakers for religious emphasis programs at small Christian colleges. The founder, Thomas F. Staley, strongly felt that young Americans should have the opportunity of hearing the faith defended by evangelicals who were also well-trained scholars. These lectures are free and open to the public. Lees-McRae College is located in Banner Elk, North Carolina.
For more information, contact Mr. Jim Taylor at 1-828-898-8842 or taylor@lmc.edu