Past Speakers

Fr. James Martin, SJ

November 10,  2016

Fr. JAMES MARTIN, SJ, is a Jesuit priest, editor at large of America magazine, and bestselling author of Jesus: A Pilgrimage, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything, and Between Heaven and Mirth. Father Martin has written for many publications, including the New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and he is a regular commentator in the national and international media. He has appeared on all the major radio and television networks, as well as in venues ranging from NPR’s Fresh Air, FOX’s The O’Reilly Factor, and PBS’s NewsHour to Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report. Before entering the Jesuits in 1988, Father Martin graduated from the Wharton School of Business and worked for General Electric for six years.

Amy-Jill Levine

October 21-23, 2016

Amy-Jill Levineis a Professor of New TestamentStudies at Vanderbilt University Divinity School, Department of Religious Studies, and Graduate Department of Religion and the author of several books including, Short Stories by Jesus, The Misunderstood Jew and The Jewish Annotated New Testament.

A self-described “Yankee Jewish feminist who teaches in a predominantly Protestant divinity school in the buckle of the Bible Belt,” Levine “combines historical-critical rigor, literary-critical sensitivity, and a frequent dash of humor with a commitment to eliminating antisemitic, sexist, and homophobictheologies.”She is a member of an Orthodox Jewish synagogue.

Bryan Stevenson

September 24, 2016

Bryan Stevenson is the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama, and a professor of law at New York University School of Law. He has won relief for dozens of condemned prisoners, argued five times before the Supreme Court, and won national acclaim for his work challenging bias against the poor and people of color. He has received numerous awards, including the MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Grant. Stevenson is the bestselling author of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption.

http://bryanstevenson.com

Peter Enns

May 14, 2016

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Peter Enns is an American biblical scholar, theologian, and writer. He has written widely on hermeneutics, the relationship between science and religion, Christianity and evolution, and Old Testament interpretation. Outside of his academic work Enns is a contributor to the Huffington Post and Patheos.

Roland Merullo

April 9, 2016

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Roland Merullo is an acclaimed novelist, essayist and memoirist, including Revere Beach Boulevard, In Revere in Those Days, A Little Love Story, Golfing with God, Breakfast with Buddha, Lunch with Buddha, Dinner with Buddha and American Savior. Merullo has won numerous prizes, including the Massachusetts Book Award for both fiction and nonfiction. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife and two children.

Mary Karr

March 12, 2016

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Mary Karr is an award-winning poet and New York Times bestselling memoirist, and professor of literature at Syracuse University. She is the author of the critically-acclaimed, bestselling memoirs The Liars’ Club, Cherry, and Lit. Her latest book, The Art of Memoir, is a master class on the fastest growing literary genre. It debuted at #3 on the New York Times Bestseller List and was blanketed in stellar reviews. In 2015 Syracuse University awarded Karr an honorary doctorate in humane letters. Karr made her debut as a songwriter, to her pedigree with the release of Kin: Songs by Mary Karr & Rodney Crowell. She is an in-demand speaker on her career, writing, alcoholism, mental health, faith and spirituality, Catholicism
and sexual abuse.

Martin Laird, O.S.A.

February 20, 2016

Martin Laird, O.S.A. is Associate Professor of Theology at Villanova University. An Augustinian priest and a highly experienced retreat leader throughout the United States and Great Britain, he is the author of the classic guidebook to contemplative prayer,Into the Silent Land, and its companion volume, A Sunlit Absence.

Full list of Past Courage&Faith Speakers
(in alphabetical, not chronological order):