Brian K. Pennington, Professor of Religious Studies
Numen Lumen Pavilion 205
2960 Campus Box
Elon, NC 27244
(336) 278-5988
bpennington4@elon.edu
The Elon Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society is the research arm of the Elon University multi-faith center, which is located in the heart of campus and seeks to foster a diverse community of study, discourse and practice that promotes mutual understanding and respect across and within religious traditions and belief systems and contributes to the development of global citizenship.
The Elon Center for the Study of Religion, Culture, and Society highlights and promotes the interdisciplinary study of religion, culture, and society. This faculty-led center draws together faculty from disciplines across Elon’s campus, with students, staff, community members, and experts from the region and beyond. The Center will work to foster research, teaching, and dialogue that informs community knowledge and action.
The Center offers rich and varied resources to fulfill the university’s vision of encouraging spiritual formation and expression, promoting religious literacy and respect for diverse faith traditions and world views, examining the role of religion in society, and supporting research and scholarship on religion. The Center invites broad participation of community members into meaningful dialogue, regardless of personal professions of faith, as a reflection of our commitment to modeling the respectful exchange of ideas and perspectives.
Center Intiatives include:
An open conversation on the current humanitarian and political crisis in Syria.
Pennington's long-term research in the Indian Himalayas was extended by a grant from the American Academy of Religion to study how local Hindus respond to recent catastrophic floods
Faculty from the Religious Studies Department will be participating in the Annual Meetings of the American Academy of Religion, International Association for Qur’anic Studies and the Society of Biblical Literature Nov. 21-25 in San Diego, Calif.
Pankaj Rishi Kumar will screen and discuss film about conflict pitting villagers in South India against powerful Hindu temple
Susannah Heschel (Dartmouth College) will speak about the friendship and shared vision of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and her father, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, at 7:30 p.m. in the Numen Lumen Pavilion.
