On March 12 and 14, Union University’s honors community will be hosting their 21st annual Scholar-in-Residence lecture series in Hartley Recital Hall in Jennings with guest speaker Jeremy Degbie, the Thomas A. Langford distinguished professor in theology at Duke Divinity School in North Carolina.
Scholar-in-Residence is an annual event open to all students in which the honors community brings in a scholar of international or national distinction. These scholars are often the top of their respective field and are currently involved in scholarly conversations. When lecturing at Union, they bring these insights with them, allowing the university and the surrounding Jackson community to be involved in these new and upcoming scholarly discussions.
This year, Union is excited to bring Degbie who, on top of many accomplishments, is a gifted pianist and oboist and enjoys integrating these into his lectures.
“The interesting thing about this lecture style is he will jump to the piano in the middle of the lecture to illustrate a particular point he is trying to make,” said Scott Huelin, the director for the honors community. “This makes him a very entertaining lecturer.”
This year, the lectures will focus on how music is such a powerful element in the Christian faith and lifestyle. In order to get the full impact of this lecture, guests do not need to be a music major or have prior knowledge of music theory.
“Any thoughtful person who wants to think about the relationship between theology and music would really enjoy this lecture series,” Huelin said.
Alex Rhody, a senior double major in theology and philosophy, attended all four Scholar-in-Residence lectures last year and is excited for this year’s Scholar-in-Residence.
“Even if it is not something that you know a lot about going into, when you leave the event, you will want to learn more, regardless of the subject,” said Rhody.
The lecture series is free to attend and open to the public. Degbie will be giving four different lectures. On Tuesday, he will present “Music and Hope” at 10:50 a.m. and “Freedom” at 7 p.m. On Thursday, he will give “Lament” at 10:50 a.m. and “Resurrection” at 7 p.m.
For further information about Jeremy Degbie or the topics of each lecture, visit the Union University website and search Scholar-in-Residence. There, you also have the opportunity to catch up on past Scholar-in-Residence lectures and to learn more about upcoming events.
