32nd Annual Aquinas Lecturer to Discuss Scientific Evidence for GodÕs Existence

32nd Annual Aquinas Lecturer to Discuss Scientific Evidence for Gods Existence

Nationally recognized authority on the transcendent implications of contemporary astrophysics Rev. Robert J. Spitzer, SJ, will deliver the 32nd Annual Aquinas Lecture at the University of Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2014, at 7:30 p.m. in Lynch Auditorium. Spitzer, who serves as president of the Magis Center of Reason and Faith in Irvine, Calif., a Catholic institute dedicated to educating people of all ages about the complementary relationship between science and faith, will speak on "The Evidence of Creation from Contemporary Big Bang Cosmology: Extending the Legacy of Monsignor Georges Lematre." The lecture is free and open to the public.

"The UD community is delighted to welcome Fr. Spitzer to discuss the legacy of Msgr. Lematre, who first formulated the Big Bang hypothesis," said Philipp Rosemann, professor of philosophy and department chair.

Spitzer served as president of Gonzaga University for 11 years before joining the Magis Center. He has debated God and physics with Stephen Hawking on Larry King Live and euthanasia on NBC's Today Show. A scholar whose academic interests include the philosophy of science and metaphysics, Spitzer earned a doctorate in philosophy from the Catholic University of America.

Christopher Mirus, associate professor of philosophy and director of the university's philosophy and history of science program, will deliver a response to Spitzer's lecture immediately afterwards.

The Aquinas Lecture series, begun in 1983, is an annual event sponsored by the Philosophy Department. It features distinguished contemporary thinkers who address topics in the spirit of St. Thomas Aquinas. In recent years, Aquinas Lecturers have included luminaries such as Robert George from Princeton University, William Desmond from the University of Louvain (Belgium), Thomas Hibbs from Baylor University, Timothy Noone from the Catholic University of America and John Milbank from the University of Nottingham (United Kingdom). For more information about the Aquinas Lecture, visit udallas.edu/aquinas2014.

The Magis Center produces documentaries, books, high school curricula, college courses, adult-education curricula and new media materials to show the close connection between faith and reason in contemporary astrophysics, philosophy, and historical study of the New Testament. For more information, visit magisreasonfaith.org.