2017 Ebor Lectures Series 11

Theme: Journeys - Changing Places, Minds, and Beliefs
‘I lift up my eyes to the hills – from where will my help come?’ says the Psalmist in a pilgrim song in the Hebrew Bible. Journeys take various forms: moving places for political and socio-economic security, transformation of perceptions and ideas, seeking justice and peace, or pilgrimage for reasons of faith.

In 2017 the 11th series of the Ebor Lectures, Journeys: Changing Places, Minds and Beliefs, aims to explore humanity’s endeavours of journeying. Topics in this series include: religious radicalisation in contemporary politics, debates over the situation of refugees in Europe; pilgrimage and spiritual journeys; socio-cultural diversity; equal and just society; the changing nature of contemporary media; and the reformation of faiths (to mark the 500-year anniversary of the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in 1517).

As the ancient Chinese philosopher Laozi says, 千里之行，始於足下 (a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step). It is hoped that this series will provide a step further in the understanding and practice of our journeys.
Speakers
N.B. Biographical details and lecture descriptions were those written in advance of the lectures and have not been updated since.
Ruth Hunt - Chief Executive of Stonewall
''Here I am Lord': The Place for LGBT people in the modern Christian Movement'
22 February 2017, York Minster
The question of whether LGBT people can have faith has often led to polarised arguments, with some people losing sight of God. In this lecture, Hunt will explore the range of views on the issue and will discuss some productive ways forward towards creating an inclusive, modern Christian movement.

Ruth Hunt was appointed Chief Executive of Stonewall in August 2014, having worked in senior positions in the organisation since 2011. She has successfully led the development of Stonewall’s groundbreaking policy, campaigns and research outputs, including its work to tackle homophobic bullying in schools, interventions to improve the health of lesbian, gay and bisexual people, and Stonewall’s leadership development programmes. Since taking on the leadership, Hunt has committed to bringing Stonewall even deeper into communities, engaging with groups from different ethnicities, religions and geographies – both in the UK and abroad. She has also spearheaded Stonewall’s commitment to campaign for trans equality – a decision that will shape Stonewall’s work going forward. Hunt attended St. Hilda’s College, Oxford where she studied English and was elected President of Oxford Student Union. Prior to Stonewall, she worked at the Equality Challenge Unit and in 2015 she was voted the third most influential LGBT person in The Independent’s Rainbow List.
Dr Timothy Winter - Shaykh Lecturer in Islamic Studies at the University of Cambridge
'Religion, Radicalism and Contemporary Politics'
29 March 2017, Temple Hall, York St John University
In this lecture Dr Winter will discuss whether the modern communications revolution is provoking the kind of reformist movements in world religion of the kind which the invention of printing triggered in sixteenth-century Europe.
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Timothy Winter, also known as Abdal Hakim Murad, is the Dean of the Cambridge Muslim College, Director of Studies (Theology and Religious Studies) at Wolfson College and the Shaykh Zayed Lecturer in Islamic Studies at Cambridge University. In 2003 he was awarded the Pilkington Teaching Prize by Cambridge University and in 2007 he was awarded the King Abdullah I Prize for Islamic Thought for his short booklet Bombing Without Moonlight. He has consistently been included in the “500 Most Influential Muslims” list published annually by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre, and was ranked in 2012 as the 50th most influential. His academic publications include many articles on Islamic theology and Muslim-Christian relations, as well as two books in Turkish on political theology. He is the editor of The Cambridge Companion to Classical Islamic Theology (2008). Dr Winter is a regular contributor to BBC Radio 4’s “Thought for the Day” and one of the signatories of A Common Word Between Us and You, an open letter by Islamic scholars to Christian leaders, calling for peace and understanding. In January 2015 he was nominated for the Services to Education award at the British Muslim Awards.
Tim Shipman - Political Editor of The Sunday Times
'The Journey through Brexit'
26 April, York Minster
Tim Shipman is the Political Editor of The Sunday Times. He has written for The Spectator and Total Politics and made numerous appearances on the BBC. He has a growing following as a witty and sometimes irascible observer of the political scene on Twitter. His book All Out War is full of juicy insight into the events leading up to Brexit. Tim’s experience is diverse and has seen him report on a wide range of news, from the war in Kosovo to Bill Clinton’s impeachment, as well as writing extensively on security issues. He was the main anchorman for The Daily Express’s coverage of the Iraq War, reporting from the US Central Command in Doha. Well known in the Westminster political mix, he is a trusted confidant of politicians from all political parties. Shipman started at The Daily Express as a graduate trainee, moving to deputy foreign editor and covered the 2000 US presidential election.
Dr Casey Strine - Lecturer in Eastern History and Literature at University of Sheffield
'What refugees can teach others about the Bible'
24 May 2017, Temple Hall, York St John University
We often hear that the Bible is the best-selling book in history. Of course, one is just as likely to hear that it is a tool of power, privilege, and oppression. Neither sentiment reflects the Bible’s origins: despite its association with power and privilege, the texts that we call the Bible come from communities who experienced marginalization in various ways. One of the most prominent ways was involuntary migration. This theme dominates Genesis, frames Exodus, and features in the prophetic texts such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. Indeed, even Jesus of Nazareth appears as a refugee in the New Testament. In the midst of the current debates about migration, this talk will explore what asylum seekers and refugees can teach others about reading the Bible, a collection of texts that remain deeply influential in Western culture.

Dr Casey Strine completed his D.Phil. at the University of Oxford, before holding research fellowships at King’s College London and at the University of Sheffield. Dr Strine is the author of Sworn Enemies: The Divine Oath, the Book of Ezekiel, and the Polemics of Exile (Walter de Gruyer, 2013), winner of the 2015 Manfred Lautenschläger Award for Theological Promise, and a co-author of When the Son of Man Didn’t Come: A Constructive Proposal on the Delay of the Parousia (Fortress, 2016). He wrote the Christians in Parliament document What the Bible Says About Migration, and also co-curated the Back Where You Came From exhibition in The Gallery at 35 Chapel Walk in Sheffield, which featured art made by people seeking asylum in response to stories from The Book of Genesis about migration.
Professor Eamon Duffy, FBA - Emeritus Professor of the History of Christianity & Fellow of Magdalene College, University of Cambridge
'Writing the Reformation: Fiction and Faction'
5 July 2017, York Minster
An Irishman educated largely in England, Professor Duffy did his doctoral work at Cambridge under Owen Chadwick and Gordon Rupp, and formerly taught at the University of Durham and at King’s College London. He is chair of the editorial board of The Calendar of Papal Letters relating to Great Britain and Ireland, a multi-volume project which aims to publish all the Vatican material relating to these islands between the fourteenth and the sixteenth centuries. A former member of the Pontifical Historical Commission, he sits on numerous editorial boards and advisory panels, including the Fabric Commission of Westminster Abbey. Professor Duffy is a Fellow of The British Academy, a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, an Honorary Fellow of the Ecclesiastical History Society, an Honorary Professor in the Department of Theology at Durham, and holds honorary Doctorates from the University of Hull, King’s College London, Durham, and the Pontifical Institute for Medieval Studies in Toronto. He is a frequent broadcaster on radio and television.
Ruth Gledhill - Contributing Editor at Christian Today and former Religious Affairs Correspondent for The Times
'This Virtual Pilgrimage: How our Temporal Journey is Leading Us in a New Reformation'
11 October 2017, Temple Hall, York St John University
Ruth Gledhill is a contributing editor for Christian Today. She is passionate about faith and its power and potential in the world today. Her journalistic career began with indentures on The Birmingham Post and Mail. From there she went to The Daily Mail and then in 1987 to The Times, where she began specialising in religion from 1989. She contributes regularly to Sky and BBC television and to radio as a commentator on religious affairs. Gledhill volunteers as an intern at the West London Mission, helping them to raise their media profile. She also assists a number of local organisations with their social media presence. She is currently involved with Refugees Welcome in Richmond, trying to help find properties for Syrian refugees under the Government’s resettlement scheme. She has also been training to join the Street Pastors scheme in Richmond.

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