The Clifton L. Snidow Lecture on Christian Life and Work will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 25, in the University of Lynchburg’s Snidow Chapel. The speaker, the Rev. Dr. Pamela Lightsey, will speak on “The Persuasiveness of Perfunctory Religion.”
Lightsey is vice president for academic affairs and an associate professor of constructive theology at Meadville Lombard Theological School, a Unitarian Universalist seminary in Chicago.
Lightsey, a U.S. Army veteran, is an original member of the executive committee for the Soul Repair Project, which “studies the role of moral injury in military veterans.” She received her bachelor’s degree from Columbus State University, her Master of Divinity from Gammon Seminary of the Interdenominational Theological Center, and her PhD from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary.
A United Methodist Church clergywoman, she has been described as a “leading social justice activist, working with local, national, and international organizations, focusing primarily on the causes of peacemaking, racial justice, and LGBTQ rights.”
She served on the LGBTQ Advisory Council for former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and current Mayor Brandon Johnson .
Among other published works, Lightsey is the author of “Our Lives Matter: A Womanist Queer Theology.” It was this book that inspired Lynchburg’s chaplain, the Rev. Nathan Albert, to bring Lightsey to campus.
“I was fortunate enough to study ‘Our Lives Matter’ for one of my doctorate courses,” he said. “As soon as I read it, I knew I wanted to find a way to bring her to campus. Dr. Lightsey is a Black queer womanist theologian who speaks on the intersectional ways race, sexuality, and spirituality influence her life and work.
“It’s our hope that having her on campus will allow students the chance to explore their own intersectional identities and how they can impact their life, work, and time at the University.”
Earlier in the day, a luncheon will be held in conjunction with the lecture at 11:30 a.m. in the East Room of Burton Dining Hall. Admission to the luncheon and lecture are free and the public is invited to attend.
The lecture is sponsored by the Spiritual Life Center and a grant from the Black Disciples Endowment Fund. For more information, contact the Spiritual Life Center at [email protected].
