LAKELAND, Fla. (Nov. 16, 2009)  — Florida Southern College's Department of Religion and Philosophy welcomes Dr. D. Stephen Long to deliver the 2009-2010 Warren W. Willis Lecture in Religion on Friday, Nov. 20, in the Hollis Room in the Buckner Building on campus. Dr. Long will speak on "Turn these Stones into Bread: The Temptation in Alleviating Poverty."

The event begins with registration at 9:30 a.m. The lecture begins at 10 a.m., followed by discussion. After a lunch break, discussion will continue at 1 p.m. and adjourn at 3 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Lunch will be available in the Hollis Room for $7.

Dr. Long is professor of systematic theology at Marquette University. He holds a B.A. from Taylor University and a M.Div. from Duke Divinity School, and a Ph.D. from Duke University. He is an ordained United Methodist minister who has served churches in Honduras and North Carolina. Dr. Longs interests lie in the areas of moral theology and Christian ethics. He speaks and writes frequently about the relationship of theology, faith, and the church with the economic, political, and social structures of our time.

He has published a number of scholarly works on topics ranging from United Methodism to the Roman Catholic Church, from Augustine and Aquinas to John Wesley, from social justice to atonement. He is the author of Living the Discipline: United Methodist Theological Reflections on War, Civilization, and Holiness; Tragedy, Tradition, Transformism: The Ethics of Paul Ramsey; Divine Economy: Theology and the Market; The Goodness of God: Theology, Church and Social Order; John Wesley's Moral Theology: The Quest for God and Goodness; Calculated Futures; Theology and Culture; Speaking of God: Theology, Truth and Language; and most recently, Christian Ethics: Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, forthcoming).

One Continuing Education Unit is available for attending the day's workshop. For more information, please contact Beverly Johnson at 863.680.4180 or bjohnson@flsouthern.edu.