Dudleian lectures
Encyclopedia
The Dudleian lectures are a series of prestigious lecture
s on religion
at Harvard University
, where they are the oldest endowed lectureship. They have been given every year from 1755 to the present.
The lectures were endowed by Paul Dudley in 1750 with a sum of £133 6s 8d. Dudley specified that the topic of the lectures should rotate among four themes, so that students would hear each one before graduation:
In accordance with these precepts, the Dudleian lecturers of the 18th century did faithfully promote the doctrines of New England's anti-authoritarian Low-Church
Protestantism
, and — as L.K. Gilbert argues — wedded them to principles of Enlightenment
rationality by associating ecclesiastical with civil tyranny.
By the 19th century, however, the virulent anti-Catholicism had been much tempered, and in the middle of the 20th century, Clifford K. Shipton could note that "for many years past it has not been deemed expedient by the college authorities to honor the donor’s wishes in this respect." Contemporary Dudleian lectures tend to be highly academic in nature, and are often delivered by Catholic or non-Christian theologians or priests. In a more ecumenical, less religiously polemical age the third topic has been reinterpreted to intend relations among the Christian denominations: The first Catholic who gave the Dudleian lecture under this rubric was Fr. Henri Nouwen
.
Notable Dudleian lecturers have included William Ellery Channing
, Reinhold Niebuhr
, Paul Tillich
, Seyyed Hossein Nasr
, Carlo Maria Martini
and Maria Pilar Aquino .
Lecture
thumb|A lecture on [[linear algebra]] at the [[Helsinki University of Technology]]A lecture is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical information, history,...
s on religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where they are the oldest endowed lectureship. They have been given every year from 1755 to the present.
The lectures were endowed by Paul Dudley in 1750 with a sum of £133 6s 8d. Dudley specified that the topic of the lectures should rotate among four themes, so that students would hear each one before graduation:
- The principles of natural religionNatural religionNatural religion might have the following meanings:* In the modern study of religion it is used to refer to the notion that there is a spontaneous religious apprehension of the world common to all human beings, see:**Urreligion**origin of religion...
. - The truths of scriptural revelationBibleThe Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. - "The detecting and convicting and exposing the idolatryIdolatryIdolatry is a pejorative term for the worship of an idol, a physical object such as a cult image, as a god, or practices believed to verge on worship, such as giving undue honour and regard to created forms other than God. In all the Abrahamic religions idolatry is strongly forbidden, although...
of the Romish churchRoman Catholic ChurchThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, their tyranny, usurpations, damnable heresiesHeresyHeresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
, fatal errors, abominable superstitionSuperstitionSuperstition is a belief in supernatural causality: that one event leads to the cause of another without any process in the physical world linking the two events....
s, and other crying wickedness in their high places". - "The validity of the presbyterial ordinationOrdinationIn general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
of ministers" (specifically, in the form practiced at the time in ScotlandScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and GenevaGenevaGeneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, and among Englishmen who opposed the episcopal ordination of the Church of EnglandChurch of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
).
In accordance with these precepts, the Dudleian lecturers of the 18th century did faithfully promote the doctrines of New England's anti-authoritarian Low-Church
Low church
Low church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups...
Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
, and — as L.K. Gilbert argues — wedded them to principles of Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
rationality by associating ecclesiastical with civil tyranny.
By the 19th century, however, the virulent anti-Catholicism had been much tempered, and in the middle of the 20th century, Clifford K. Shipton could note that "for many years past it has not been deemed expedient by the college authorities to honor the donor’s wishes in this respect." Contemporary Dudleian lectures tend to be highly academic in nature, and are often delivered by Catholic or non-Christian theologians or priests. In a more ecumenical, less religiously polemical age the third topic has been reinterpreted to intend relations among the Christian denominations: The first Catholic who gave the Dudleian lecture under this rubric was Fr. Henri Nouwen
Henri Nouwen
Henri Jozef Machiel Nouwen , was a Dutch-born Catholic priest and writer who authored 40 books about spirituality.- Writing :...
.
Notable Dudleian lecturers have included William Ellery Channing
William Ellery Channing
Dr. William Ellery Channing was the foremost Unitarian preacher in the United States in the early nineteenth century and, along with Andrews Norton, one of Unitarianism's leading theologians. He was known for his articulate and impassioned sermons and public speeches, and as a prominent thinker...
, Reinhold Niebuhr
Reinhold Niebuhr
Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr was an American theologian and commentator on public affairs. Starting as a leftist minister in the 1920s indebted to theological liberalism, he shifted to the new Neo-Orthodox theology in the 1930s, explaining how the sin of pride created evil in the world...
, Paul Tillich
Paul Tillich
Paul Johannes Tillich was a German-American theologian and Christian existentialist philosopher. Tillich was one of the most influential Protestant theologians of the 20th century...
, Seyyed Hossein Nasr
Seyyed Hossein Nasr
Seyyed Hossein Nasr is an Iranian University Professor of Islamic studies at George Washington University, and a prominent Islamic philosopher...
, Carlo Maria Martini
Carlo Maria Martini
Carlo Maria Martini, SJ is an Italian Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Milan from 1980 to 2002, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1983.-Early life and education:...
and Maria Pilar Aquino .
External links
- Online video recordings (Real Player) of recent Dudleian Lectures:
- 2003: In the Beginning of Creation was Consciousness by Seyyed Hossein Nasr (full text)
- 2006: Jesus and Shylock: Feminist Views of Christianity's Jews by Susannah Heschel