Duke Divinity School Professor Will Lecture on the Shift in Leadership Roles for Christian Women

Follow us on Twitter: @BaylorUMedia

Media contact: Terry Goodrich, (254) 710-3321

WACO, Texas (Feb. 27, 2017) – Kate Bowler, Ph.D., assistant professor of the history of Christianity in North America at Duke Divinity School, will lecture on the shift in leadership roles for Christian women at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, March 2, in Room 102 of the Foster Campus for Business and Innovation, 300 Guittard Ave.

The lecture, entitled “The Mommy Wars: Modern Megaministry and the Battle for Sacred Motherhood,” will be hosted by the Institute for Studies of Religion (ISR).

“Kate Bowler is one of the nation’s top experts on Christianity in contemporary America. She has already published a major book on the ‘prosperity gospel’ movement. She is now turning her attention to the challenges and controversies regarding women’s leadership roles in churches, and in Christian media, which will be the subject of her lecture here,” said Thomas Kidd, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of History and associate director of ISR.

Bowler is the author of Blessed: A History of the American Prosperity Gospel, published by Oxford University Press in 2013. Her writing also has been published by CNN, The Huffington Post and The Globe and Mail on a variety of issues, including the prosperity gospel’s music, gender politics and political theologies.

Bowler is working on a book tentatively titled Co-Pastor: Women and Power in American Megaministry, funded by a sabbatical grant for researchers from the Louisville Institute. The book follows the rise of celebrity women including pastors, co-pastors, executive directors and pastors’ wives who pitch their expertise to the public.

“Baylor’s Institute for Studies of Religion seeks to host lectures by leading scholars of religion from across many disciplines,” Kidd said. “We hope these lectures enrich campus discussions about faith, which is obviously such a crucial topic at our university.”

This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

by Kalli Damschen, student newswriter, (254) 710-6805

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 16,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.

ABOUT THE INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES OF RELIGION
Launched in August 2004, the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion (ISR) exists to initiate, support and conduct research on religion, involving scholars and projects spanning the intellectual spectrum: history, psychology, sociology, economics, anthropology, political science, epidemiology, theology and religious studies. The institute’s mandate extends to all religions, everywhere, and throughout history, and embraces the study of religious effects on prosocial behavior, family life, population health, economic development and social conflict. While always striving for appropriate scientific objectivity, ISR scholars treat religion with the respect that sacred matters require and deserve. For more information, visit www.baylorisr.org.