Five Ripon College students present at Midwest religion conference

On April 1 and 2 at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, five Ripon students, along with Brian Smith, professor of religion, Charles and Joan Van Zoeren Chair in Religion, Ethics and Values, and Chair of the Department; and David William Scott, Pieper Chair in Servant Leadership and assistant professor of religion, gave paper presentations at the annual meeting of the Midwest American Academy of Religion conference.

The students and their topics were:

• Noah DeBruyn ’17, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, “Demoness to Deity: Historical and Modern Interpretations of Lilith”
• Courtney Green ’17, of Kenosha, Wisconsin, “A Higher Calling: How Religious NGOs Are Helping Refugees in the New Century”
• Ricardo Jaimes ’17 of Elgin, Illinois, “Ecological Hermeneutics for a Better Tomorrow”
• Alex Novotny ’16 of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, “Compassion, Mercy, Faith, and Salvation – The Parable of the Good Samaritan”
• Zach Muench ’16 of Franklin, Wisconsin, “Religious Influences on American Conceptualizations of Nature and Wilderness”

Scott’s paper was titled “The Methodist Episcopal Church’s Malaysia Mission as an Example of Pragmatic Mission Financing.”

Smith’s paper’s presented paper was “World Religions in Global Society: Sources of Justice and Peace or Conflict and Violence?”