A! Magazine for the Arts

Jeffrey Munroe

Jeffrey Munroe

King's Institute for Faith & Culture observes annual Buechner lecture

March 27, 2022

King University’s Institute for Faith & Culture 2021-22 speaker series, “Listen to Your Life,” concludes with the annual Frederick Buechner Lecture, presented by Jeffrey Munroe Monday, April 11.

Munroe is an authority on Buechner and recently published the book, “Reading Buechner.” He recently retired as executive vice president of Western Theological Seminary and is an ordained minister in the Reformed Church in America.

Munroe presents two lectures April 11. The first, “The Stewardship of Pain: A Case Study,” takes place at 9:15 a.m. in Memorial Chapel on King University’s main campus. The second, “On Paying Attention: Frederick Buechner and the Art of Listening to Your Life,” begins at 7 p.m. at Central Presbyterian Church in Bristol, Virginia.

“Since the founding of the King Institute in 2007, we have been inspired and guided by the work of Frederick Buechner,” said Martin Dotterweich, Ph.D., director of the IFC. “Buechner’s novels, sermons and occasional writings model the engagement of faith with culture, and this year we celebrate the 40th anniversary of his beloved memoir ‘The Sacred Journey.’

“To guide us through this volume and more, we are delighted to welcome Jeff Munroe, whose book ‘Reading Buechner’ offers a winsome, personal and accessible introduction to Buechner’s work. An old friend of the King Institute, Jeff’s warmth and wit and wisdom will provide the perfect finish to our 2021-2022 season.”

Munroe is editor for The Reformed Journal and writes regularly for the publication’s blog, “The Twelve.” He has also had his articles and poems published in The Christian Century, Christianity Today, U.S. Catholic and Think Christian. He frequently writes devotionals for Words of Hope. Munroe lives in Holland, Michigan, with his wife, Gretchen. They are the parents of two grown children.

The annual Frederick Buechner Lecture at King honors Buechner’s unique and lasting reflections on the intersection of faith and culture in his novels, memoirs, sermons and essays. Previous speakers include Pulitzer Prize-winning author Marilynne Robinson, poet and author Kathleen Norris, professor and author James K.A. Smith and memoirist Kate Bowler.

For more information about Munroe, visit www.jeffreymunroe.com. Learn more about the Institute and its speaker series at king.edu/faithandculture.

x