In 2017, the #MeToo hashtag started a global movement to destigmatize and increase awareness about sexual violence. This coming March, Carol Penner, Assistant Professor of Theological Studies, will speak on 鈥#MennonitesToo: Sexual Violence and Mennonite Peace Theology鈥 as the C. Henry Smith Peace Lecturer at Bluffton University and Goshen College.聽
鈥淭he #MeToo movement has placed sexual violence in the spotlight and Mennonites are asking: 鈥榃hat does it mean to be people of peace when sexual abuse and assault is woven into the fabric of our own communities?鈥 聽Some Mennonites have been working on this topic for almost fifty years,鈥 Carol explained. 鈥淢y lecture will outline the themes and methods of this grassroots practitioner-based theology.鈥
The C. Henry Smith Peace Lectureship is named after the distinguished Mennonite scholar C. Henry Smith. He wished to maintain and strengthen the peace witness in Mennonite churches, and this desire inspired the lectureship. It aims to highlight an Anabaptist peace perspective whenever possible. Carol鈥檚 lecture will illuminate an important issue within the subjects of Anabaptism and peace.聽
by Katrina Steckle (Communications Co-op Student)