Examining the issues in contemporary Middle Eastern societies

March 10, 2010

The intersection of Islam and democracy in the Middle East will be the topic for discussion at a public lecture to be held on Wednesday, March 24.

John L. Esposito, professor of religion and international affairs as well as Islamic studies at Georgetown University, will discuss contemporary cultural and political culture in the Middle East at 4 p.m. in Ellison Lecture, Watson Fine Arts. The event is free and open to the public.

In addition to his position as university professor, Esposito is founding director of the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding: History and International Affairs in the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown. At the College of the Holy Cross, he was Loyola Professor of Middle East Studies, Chair of the Department of Religious Studies, and Director of the Center for International Studies.

A consultant to the Department of State as well as corporations, universities, and the media worldwide, Esposito specializes in Islam, political Islam, and the impact of Islamic movements from North Africa to Southeast Asia. He has served as President of the Middle East Studies Association of North America and the American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies, among others. Esposito is a recipient of the American Academy of Religion's 2005 Martin E. Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion and of Pakistan's Quaid-i-Azzam Award for Outstanding Contributions in Islamic Studies. In 2003 he received the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University Award for Outstanding Teaching.

Esposito is the editor-in-chief of the four-volume Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, and the author of more than 30 books including Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam (a Washington Post and Boston Globe best seller).

The lecture is part of the Modern Islamic World Program at Wheaton, and it is held in memory of Professor of Political Science Jerry Murphy. Sponsors include  the Educational Council, the Intercultural Board, the Speaker Fund, the Senate Fund, the Venture Fund, the Marshall Center for Intercultural Learning and the Political Science Department.