"FAITH & POLITICS" theme of March 29 Currie-Strickland Distinguished Lectures in Christian Ethics

Next week offers a special opportunity for Texas Baptists during a presidential election year.

On Thursday, March 29, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., Howard Payne University in Brownwood will host the 5th annual Currie-Strickland Distinguished Lectures in Christian Ethics. The program will be presented in the Richard and Wanda Jackson Conference Room of the university’s Paul and Jane Meyer Faith and Life Leadership Center.

The topic of this year’s lecture series is

“Faith and Politics: Being Prophetic Without Being Partisan.”

Guest lecturers are:

• Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of Interfaith Alliance and pastor of preaching and worship at Northminster Church in Monroe, LA
• Suzii Paynter,  director of Texas Baptists' Christian Life Commission and Advocacy and Care
• Stephen Reeves, legislative counsel for Texas Baptists' Christian Life Commission

The lecture series is made possible through the generosity of Dr. and Mrs. Gary Elliston and was established to honor the life of Dr. David R. Currie, retired executive director of Texas Baptists Committed, and the memory of Phil Strickland, who dedicated nearly 40 years of ministry to the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission.

Admission to the lecture series is free, but reservations are required. For reservations, please contact HPU’s Office of University Marketing and Communications by e-mail at currie-strickland@hputx.edu or by phone at 325-649-8009.

C. Welton Gaddy is the author of more than 20 books and hosts the weekly State of Belief radio program. Gaddy provides regular commentary to the national media on issues relating to politics and religion and has appeared on programs such as MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show and Hardball; NBC’s Nightly News and Dateline; PBS’s Religion and Ethics Newsweekly and The Newshour with Jim Lehrer; C-SPAN’s Washington Journal; ABC’s World News; and CNN’s American Morning.

Under the leadership of Suzii Paynter, the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission addresses a variety of public policy areas, including leading the coalition against the expansion of gambling, human trafficking issues, food policy, energy issues, life issues, children’s needs, and predatory lending practices. Paynter is an active member of interfaith efforts to affect legislation and policy, including the Council on Foreign Relations Religion and Foreign Policy network and the Evangelical Environmental Network. She previously served on the faculties of Stephen F. Austin University and Baylor University, and has been an advocate for religious liberty issues, literacy, and early intervention for high-risk children.

Stephen Reeves works out of the Christian Life Commission's Citizenship and Public Policy office in Austin. His primary duties include advocating for moral and ethical public policies in the Texas Legislature, educating church members about current policy issues, encouraging participation by Texas Baptists in the political process, and keeping abreast of developments in church-state law. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas and serves on the Board of Directors for Stop Predatory Gambling and Christians for Environmental Stewardship. Before joining the Christian Life Commission, he served as staff attorney for the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty in Washington, D.C.