The first event in the University of Lynchburg’s new Pluralism Lecture Series, hosted by Office of Inclusive Excellence, will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 8.
Dr. Melanie Trexler, associate professor of religion at Roanoke College, will present a lecture titled, “What Could Hold Us Together? Listening, Trust, and Practices of Pluralism.” The event will begin at 6:30 p.m. in Hall Campus Center’s Memorial Ballroom.
Admission is free and the public is welcome.
Trexler will “explore why civic and religious pluralism matters now and what it requires of us as citizens and neighbors,” focus “on the practice of active listening,” and examine “how curiosity and genuine attention create opportunities to learn from people whose experiences and perspectives differ from our own.”
Trexler is the author of “Evangelizing Lebanon: Baptist, Muslims, and the Question of Cultures,” published in 2016 by Baylor University Press.
Per her faculty page at Roanoke, her scholarly interests “focus on Muslim-Christian relations in the U.S. and Arab world” and “the encounters between Muslims and Christians throughout history and examining the ways in which these encounters shape identity construction, religious ideas, political views, and interreligious engagement.”
She is currently researching Muslim chaplains who serve incarcerated Muslims.
Lynchburg’s Pluralism Lecture Series is funded by a $25,000 grant from the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia and Interfaith America, a Chicago-based nonprofit that advances the cause of pluralism.
The University’s grant proposal defines pluralism as “not simply the presence of different identities but rather the conscious and deliberate ways in which we interact with, understand, and collaborate across those differences to create a more inclusive and thriving society.”
The Pluralism Lecture Series will continue through the 2026-27 academic year, with an overall theme of “The Art of Coexistence.” All events will be held at 6:30 p.m. in Hall Campus Center’s Memorial Ballroom. Upcoming lectures include the following:
- Thursday, Oct. 22 — “Pluralism as a Civic Operating System: Building a Democracy of Dignity,” Professor Kimberly Walton, Boston College.
- Tuesday, March 9, 2027 — “America at a Crossroads: The Threat of Christian Nationalism to Our Pluralistic Past, Present, and Future,” Dr. Todd Green, senior director of campus partnerships for Interfaith America.
- Thursday, April 1, 2027 — “The Art of Coexistence Begins Within: Human Literacy and the Capacity to Live Together,” Dr. Carl Moore, lead architect for the Human Literacy Institute.
For more information on the Pluralism Lecture Series and the University’s efforts to promote pluralism, contact Dr. Robert Canida II, Lynchburg’s chief inclusive excellence officer, at [email protected] or 434.544.8540.
