Dr. Amy Laura Hall, 2018 Matthew Simpson Lecturer
The Matthew Simpson Lecture in Religion is an annual lecture delivered by a nationally known scholar in the area of religion.
On October 9, 2018, at 7:00 p.m. in Hubbell Hall in the Kent Campus Center, we will welcome Dr. Amy Laura Hall, Professor of Christian Ethics at Duke University. She is the author of Conceiving Parenthood: American Protestantism and the Spirit of Reproduction, Writing Home, with Love: Politics for Neighbors and Naysayers, and Kierkegaard and the Treachery of Love. We will post Dr. Hall’s lecture title closer to the date.
The Matthew Simpson Lecture in Religion was established in 1980 by Professors Roger Betsworth and Bruce Haddox, members of the religion and philosophy department. With an initial operating budget of $500, the two founders invited their first speaker, Dr. Stanley Hauerwas. Since 1980, many distinguished scholars have delivered the lecture; see the list below. In 2013, gifts from two college employees established the Matthew Simpson Lecture Endowment Fund to help ensure the ongoing quality of the annual lecture and related events. In 2016 the Fund had grown to approximately $10,900. In February 2017, a gift of approximately $50,000 boosted the Fund significantly! For more information about the recent gift to the Endowment, check out page 7 of the spring 2017 Simpson Magazine by clicking here.
The original goal of the lectureship was to expose Simpson students to the leading thinkers in religion, biblical studies, and social ethics. The Endowment will ensure the Lecture’s future.
Past speakers include
| 1980 – Stanley Hauerwas | 1999 – Roberta Bondi |
| 1981 – John Dominic Crossan | 2000 – Luke Timothy Johnson |
| 1982 – Will Campbell | 2001 – L. Gregory Jones |
| 1983 – John Cobb | 2002 – William H. Willimon |
| 1984 – John Yoder | 2003 – George Forell |
| 1985 – Stephen Crites | 2004 – Stanley Hauerwas |
| 1986 – Martin Marty | 2005 – Robin W. Lovin |
| 1987 – Beverly Wildung Harrison | 2006 – Gregory Boyd |
| 1988 – Walter Brueggemann | 2007 – Pamela Eisenbaum |
| 1989 – Dan Maguire | 2008 – Mark D. Jordan |
| 1990 – James Cone | 2009 – Teresa L. Fry Brown |
| 1991 – Huston Smith | 2010 – Grant Wacker |
| 1992 – Charles Long | 2011 – William Cavanaugh |
| 1993 – Sharon Ringe | 2012 – Anantanand Ramachan |
| 1994 – Robert McAfee Brown | 2013 – Amy-Jill Levine |
| 1995 – Rebecca Chopp | 2014 – Victoria Barnett |
| 1996 – Phyllis Trible | 2015 – Traci West |
| 1997 – Marcus Borg | 2016 – David Gushee |
| 1998 – Richard Hays | 2017 – Barbara Newman |