Tag Archives: interfaith lecture series
James Robenault

Robenalt, Dean speak on ethical lapses behind Watergate scandal

August 22, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

People hate losing more than they love winning.

It is knowledge that might seem common to competitive types, but it now has a name — prospect theory — and a Nobel Prize to back it. The theory, which describes behavioral economics and found that people dislike losing more than they like winning explains why people lie, cheat, cover up and act irrationally when they are in trouble. See the Monica Lewinsky or Penn State scandals, said Thompson Hine LLP partner James Robenalt, who has studied prospect theory in legal ethics and who now works closely with John Dean — former White House counsel to President Richard Nixon who was called “master manipulator of the cover-up” by the FBI and later became a key prosecution witness.

Robenalt and Dean will discuss the Watergate scandal and ethical obligations of lawyers at 2 p.m. Thursday in the Hall of Philosophy. Their conversation is titled “The Ethics of Clarity: Waking Up From Wrongdoing” and is based on their national tour of lectures on the 40th anniversary of the Watergate break-in.

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Barrett

Barrett examines ethics of JFK, LBJ in civil rights era

August 21, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

President John F. Kennedy made a statement in 1961 when he appointed Thurgood Marshall — who later became the first African-American Supreme Court justice — to the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in a country polarized by racism.

Though racial discrimination in judicial appointments is now a thing of the past, the country is perhaps more polarized than ever before, said law professor John Q. Barrett, and President Barack Obama has the chance to make a similar statement — by appointing gays and lesbians.

Barrett will discuss civil rights, the ethics of Kennedy and Johnson, and modern judicial equality at 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Hall of Philosophy. Though he is a renowned teacher and lecturer, Barrett said he has not spoken about that particular topic, and he enjoyed preparing it for Chautauqua. Barrett has lectured at the Institution every summer since 2001.

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Nash

Presidential ethics of nuclear age oversimplified, Nash says

August 20, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

The decision to drop atomic bombs over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, was one of the biggest ethical dilemmas of the mid-1900s — but it wasn’t a real decision at all, said historian Philip Nash. Rather than a choice, it is more accurate to talk about the assumption that the bomb would be dropped.

For a week on “The Ethics of Presidential Power,” President Harry Truman’s “OK” to drop two bombs that killed more than 100,000 people seems like a perfect topic, Nash said. But Truman actually had little involvement in the process and never made a “yes” or “no” decision to use the bombs. Instead, the question was “how” to use them.

Nash, an associate professor of history at Penn State University, will discuss the context surrounding the bombs, the moral considerations that were involved and Truman’s limited voice at 2 p.m. Tuesday in the Hall of Philosophy.

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White

White explores Lincoln’s faith through 2nd inaugural address in 1865

August 19, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

In a country hot with debate surrounding the economy, health care, war and gay rights, the ethics of presidential power are closely scrutinized — especially in an election year.

During this week’s Interfaith Lecture Series, experts on American leaders will discuss presidential ethics from the Civil War, World War II and the Manhattan Project, Vietnam and civil rights, and Nixon and the Watergate scandal.

Today, professor and presidential biographer Ronald White Jr. will talk about an ethically conscious, faith-oriented side of Abraham Lincoln that many biographers have neglected. His lecture, titled “Lincoln’s Sermon on the Mount: The Second Inaugural Address,” is at 2 p.m. Monday in the Hall of Philosophy.

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Waskow

Waskow shares thoughts on reinvigorating Judaism

August 16, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

After decades of rabbinical leadership and honors, Arthur Waskow is still a down-to-earth Jew.

Waskow is one of the most prominent leaders of the Jewish Renewal movement, which seeks to reinvigorate lofty, institutional Judaism with practices grounded in spirituality. In 1983, he founded The Shalom Center, an interfaith organization that unifies political and social action with spiritual search, and has served as director since.

He will join the Rev. Joan Brown Campbell, director of the Department of Religion, for a conversation about radicalism at 2 p.m. Friday in the Hall of Philosophy.

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Clayton

Clayton to address rise of religious radicalism since 9/11

August 15, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

Many innovations in recent years seem radical, but perhaps the most shocking are the the manifestations of radical religion, said Philip Clayton, provost of Claremont Lincoln University and dean of the university’s School of Theology.

Atheists often argue that religion is poisonous, Clayton said, but there are two sides to every argument. There are suicide bombers, but there are also religiously motivated radical reform movements. Clayton will discuss both sides of radicalism at 2 p.m. Thursday in the Hall of Philosophy. His lecture is titled “Suicide Bombers and Barefoot Prophets: The Faces of Radical Religion in the Early 21st Century.”

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Chane

Chane embraces ‘radical’ label while building interfaith bridges

August 14, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

From rock ‘n’ roll artist to student activist to eighth Episcopal bishop of Washington D.C., the Rt. Rev. John Bryson Chane is used to having “radical” attached to his name.

Chane will discuss what it means to be a radical — theologically and in his own journey — at 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Hall of Philosophy. He said he will look at the term from various perspectives, because he thinks it is often misused.

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Patel

Patel spreads gospel of America’s radical idea: religious pluralism

August 13, 2012 by The Chautauquan Daily 0 Comments

The United States was a radical idea from its beginning, said Eboo Patel, founder and president of Interfaith Youth Core.

The country was founded on principles of cultural and religious pluralism — ideas that would be considered radical in many other countries throughout the world even today, he said. But religious pluralism, radical or not, is what makes the U.S. a unique place of sacred ground.

Patel will discuss religious pluralism and the promise of America at 2 p.m. Tuesday in the Hall of Philosophy. His Interfaith Lecture is based largely on his new book, Sacred Ground: Pluralism, Prejudice and the Promise of America, which goes on sale today. Outside his family, Patel said Chautauquans are the first able to buy the book, and there will be a book signing after his lecture.

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