UVA Wise Welcomes Philosophy of Religion Lecturer

UVA Wise welcomes guest lecturer Michael Peterson, Ph.D., to present “Why Does God Allow Suffering and Evil?” on Thursday, April 13 at 6:30 p.m. in the Science Center Auditorium. Peterson, an expert in the philosophy of religion, will address age-old questions that have puzzled many.

The event will be co-sponsored by the Wesley Foundation, who extended the invitation to Peterson.

“Students appreciate Peterson’s ability to wrestle with different faith-related questions in a logical and clear fashion. He is deeply respected in the field of philosophy,” says Beth Tipton, the director and campus minister at the Wesley Foundation. Reverend Tipton also adds that the hope of the Wesley Foundation is to encourage students and the community to think about what they believe and why.

The free lecture will build on the work of the College’s Philosophy of Religion course, which is taught by Anthony Cashio, associate professor of philosophy, each fall at UVA Wise.

“It’s good to see there are ways to engage with these challenges academically. It can be faith enhancing,” says Cashio. “There’s not always a tension between faith and reason like we sometimes assume there is.”

Peterson will also be hosting a group discussion with students prior to the evening lecture to discuss science and religion.

A professor of philosophy at Asbury Theological Seminary, Peterson’s areas of expertise are philosophy of science, philosophy of religion, the science-religion relationship, the problem of evil and the philosophy of C. S. Lewis. He is currently editor of the fifty-book Cambridge series, “The Problems of God,” which includes titles such as Religious Trauma, Religious Extremism and Violence, and Divine Simplicity. In 1984, he launched prestigious scholarly journal Faith and Philosophy, which has open access worldwide. Today, he continues as the Managing Editor of the journal while also lecturing widely and conducting seminars and workshops on topics in his areas of expertise.