Center on Religion & the Professions

Improving religious literacy among professionals.

Gist luncheon seminar on Heifer Project

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Mel West will present “Passing on the Gift: The Heifer Project in Nicaragua and Thailand” during the Gist Brown Bag Luncheon Seminar on International Affairs, noon Thursday, Sept. 30.

Mel was raised on a dairy farm outside of Golden City, Missouri.

After his service in the Marine Corps during WWII he obtained a Bachelors Degree in Dairy Husbandry from MU and operated a dairy farm for 12 years outside of Golden City.

Starting in 1965 until he retired in 1985 he developed and directed the Office of Creative Ministries for the Missouri area where he created over 20 mission projects.

He has served on the boards of several international organizations including among others: the Heifer Project, Habitat for Humanity, the Society for Appropriate Technology, Alphabet Literacy, and the National Association of Churches Concerned about The Environment.

In 1995 he started and now directs the PET or Personal Energy Transportation project that is providing wheel-chairs to low income disabled people in 61 countries.

The seminar will be held in N52 Memorial Union. For more information, visit the Gist Seminar’s website.

Conference on ‘healing power of food’ in Columbia

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The First Presbyterian Church in Columbia will host “The Healing Power of Food,” a conference on food’s relationship to the self and the world, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Sept. 29. Dr. Shannon Jung will provide addresses during the day on food in consumer culture, and food and the soul. Jung is the Franklin and Louise Cole Professor of Town and Country Ministries at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City, Mo. and the author of Hunger and Happiness: Feeing the Hungry, Nourishing Our Souls.

The even will focus on a luncheon featuring food from Columbia’s Main Squeeze Cafe. Main Squeeze owner Leigh Lockhart will also speak on the joys of preparing and sharing food.

Registration is $65. For more information and to download a registration PDF, visit the website of the Missouri Conference of The United Methodist Church.

6th Annual Health Ethics Conference in Columbia

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Conference logoThe 2010 MU Health Ethics: Redefining Death in the 21st Century conference is scheduled for Oct. 8-9, 2010, at the Holiday Inn Select. There will be a special lecture, “Reflections of the Master Bioethicist,” by Edmund Pellegrino, chairman of the President’s Council on Bioethics, at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 7. A complimentary reception will follow at 7 p.m., free of charge to the public. The conference will examine the transdisciplinary ethics of defining death in contemporary health care settings across the lifespan. Continuing education credit will be available to physicians, nurses, social workers and other health professionals.

For more information or to register for the conference, please see www.muhealth.org/cme or call Natalie Carter at 573-882-9973.

Register soon for the bi-annual MizzouDiversity Summit

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Summit logoRegardless of who you are or what your role on campus is, you can register to attend the second bi-annual MizzouDiversity Summit, “Taking Ownership for an Inclusive Campus: What’s My Role? Where Do I Fit In?” on Oct. 21-22. Learn about the positive progress the campus community made toward becoming a more inclusive and welcoming Mizzou at the State of Diversity Address delivered by Chancellor Brady Deaton. Attend thought-provoking presentations and participate in many inspiring conversations which explore the countless facets of MizzouDiversity. This year’s keynote speaker is Kenji Yoshino, the Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at New York University, whose research sets out a new paradigm for civil rights and a way forward.

Register today as seating is limited: MizzouDiversity.missouri.edu.

8 questions about Judaism at Columbia’s Carpe Diem

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Downtown Columbia’s Carpe Diem will hold a series of classes about Judaism, 2-3:30 p.m. Wednesdays from Sept. 22 until Nov. 23.* Each class focuses on a question such as “How do Jews worship?”, “What’s with Kosher food?” and “What do American Jews think about Israel?” The classes are led by Dianna Long, a member of Temple Israel in Springfield, who regularly speaks with adult Sunday School classes and other adult-education groups about basic Judaism.

* Update: Carpe Diem closed in early November 2010.

9th annual Pagan Pride Day on Sept. 19 in Columbia

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Mid-Missouri Pagan Pride will proudly host 9th Annual Pagan Pride Day, a day to celebrate the harvest of our community and the sharing of knowledge, from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, at Peace Park. Be carried away by the melodies of Raven Wolf and enchanted by the Deva Dancers as they weave their magic. Enjoy the eye candy of renowned artist Mickie Mueller, who’s most recent work includes the Voice of Trees Tarot deck! Mid-Missouri Pagan Pride will also be collecting food donations for Loaves and Fishes food pantry to help with the drastic need for food this winter.

For more information, e-mail midmopaganpride@yahoo.com.

Summit on immigration policy and assistance in Columbia

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Centro Latino will host the Central Missouri Immigration Summit from 8 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 25, at Columbia Hope Church.

Attorneys, professionals and the public will discuss immigration and naturalization services for low-income immigrants, as well as hear a panel of migrants tell their stories. Other speakers include representatives from the Mexican Consulate, Mihaela Britt of MU’s International Center on visa statuses for international students and researchers, and Helene Fehlig Tatum of the Law Offices of Fehlig & Fehlig Tatum with an overview of employment visas and residency eligibility.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit centralmissouriimmigrationsummit.eventbrite.com.

‘Democracy Now!’ host Amy Goodman to speak at MU

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Amy Goodman

Amy Goodman

Award-winning investigative journalist and “Democracy Now!” host Amy Goodman will be on MU’s campus for a free lecture and book signing on Saturday, Oct. 9.

Goodman’s talk, “The Role of the Media in Promoting Social Justice,” begins at 7 p.m. in Keller Auditorium, 123 Geological Sciences Building (map), and is open to the public.

Goodman is the author of four New York Times bestsellers. Her latest book, Breaking the Sound Barrier, argues in favor of the power of independent journalism in the struggle for a better world. “Democracy Now!” airs on more than 800 radio and TV stations nationwide. For more information, contact us.

Reservations for a reception and dinner in Goodman’s honor are also available. The cost is $25. E-mail Kathy Andresen at AndresenK@missouri.edu to learn more.

Photo: ChrisEaves.com / CC-BY

Speech at MU to address nuclear weapons challenges

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Note: The time of the speech has been corrected.

David Krieger

David Krieger

David Krieger, a founder of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, will speak on campus on Oct. 20. His lecture, “The Nuclear Challenge: From Omnicide to Abolition,” begins at 7 p.m. 7:30 p.m. in Gannett Hall.

Krieger is the author of several books on peace in a nuclear age, most recently “At the Nuclear Precipice: Catastrophe or Transformation?” and “The Doves Flew High.” He also writes articles frequently at the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation’s website, wagingpeace.org.

Krieger received his doctorate in political science at the University of Hawaii, as well as a J.D. from the Santa Barbara College of Law. While on campus he also plans to speak to the MU Law School and a “Philosophies of War and Peace” class.

For more information, please contact us.

Discussion on race and law enforcement

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The Boone County Government Center will host a discussion about racial bias in police work and protecting individual rights on Wednesday, July 21.

David A. Harris, a law professor at the University of Pittsburgh, will lead the discussion. Harris is the author of Good Cops: The Case for Preventative Policing and Profiles in Injustice: Why Racial Profiling Cannot Work, and has published scholarly articles on the relationship between law enforcement and faith communities after Sept. 11.

The event will begin at 7 p.m. on July 21 at the Boone County Government Center in Columbia, Mo. For more information, contact Don Love at (573) 875-7918 or dmaclove@centurytel.net.