2016 Khatib Lecture

March 8, 2016
1:00pm
Tuohy Hall Auditorium BK

Each spring, through the generosity of Dr. Reza Khatib and Mrs. Georgianna Clifford Khatib '52, St. Joseph's hosts a noted scholar who lectures, leads faculty discussions and teaches a course to students from both campuses.

The Khatib Chair's purpose is to promote interfaith dialogue, with the study of Islam being an integral part of the initiative.

The Khatib Chair for 2016 is Kusumita P. Pedersen, Ph.D. Dr. Pedersen's lecture, "Hinduism and Universality in Religion," will take place at SJC Brooklyn on March 8.

About Dr. Pedersen

Kusumita P. Pedersen, Ph.D.: Chair of the Department of Religion at St. Francis College, Dr. Pedersen has been involved with the international interfaith movement for more than 25 years. Her academic interests include interreligious dialogue and cooperation, global ethics and human rights. Previously, she was executive director of the Project on Religion and Human Rights, a group that provides a forum for study and advocacy and collaborates with academic resources and public policy centers to ensure that religion is included in the promotion of human rights; joint secretary for religious affairs of the Global Forum of Spiritual and Parliamentary Leaders on Human Survival and executive director of the Temple of Understanding, which is involved with interfaith education and supporting the UN.

Currently, she is co-chair of the Interfaith Center of New York, which seeks to create understanding and respect between the different religious groups that can be found in New York City. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions, which hopes to establish harmony and engagement between the world’s religions. Dr. Pedersen has concentrated for much of her life to promoting interfaith dialogue and understanding and wrote for The World’s Religions After September 11, which highlights the changes in the relationships between the faiths that are occurring into the 21st century.