Theologian Elizabeth Johnson spoke to an audience in Cataldo's Globe Room for the 28th annual Flannery Lecture on Thursday. The title of the lecture was "Mary of Nazareth: Friend of God and Prophet," regarding Johnson's new book, Truly Our Sister: A Theology of Mary in the Communion of Saints.
Dr. Ron Large, Religious Studies Department chair, describes the Flannery lecture as "a yearly lecture in which we try to bring in a distinguished theologian to speak on a topic in their area."
The Flannery Lecture is possible due to a gift from the late Maud and Milo Flannery.
"Over the years they've done well, and have gotten some well-known people to speak," Large said.
University Ministry decided to bring Johnson for this lecture for several reasons. Large said that the practical reason was that she was available, but moreover she is wellknown and respected, and the lecture would coincide with the publication of her new book.
In the lecture, Johnson discussed a contemporary perspective of Mother Mary, thinking about how to honor her in a way that is relevant in a post-Vatican II church. The promotional literature for the lecture said that Johnson talked about "[exploring] the idea that Mary is a Jewish woman who walked with the Spirit in her own difficult life."
Johnson is a Distinguished Professor of Theology at Fordham University in New York, in addition to being a teacher, writer, editor and public lecturer in theology. She has authored more than a 100 scholarly essays in a variety of media, in addition to several books.
In 1998, Johnson was awarded the Teacher of the Year Award at Fordham University. She is also very involved with the Church. She is a religious sister at a church in New York, as well as being a theologian and consultant to numerous church groups, including the National Lutheran-Catholic Dialogue, the Committee of Women in Church and Society, a Vatican-sponsored dialogue regarding science and religion, and various others.
While this lecture appeared on many of the posters for the Catholicism for a New Millennium series, it was a separate entity and is not part of that series.
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