NASHVILLE, Tenn. ñ Does God exist? Why is there so much pain and suffering in the world? What is happiness, and how do we find meaning and purpose in our lives?
The most profound questions we all face will be addressed during an event on Monday, Sept. 13, at Vanderbilt University, sponsored by its Center for the Study of Religion and Culture along with Nashville Public Television.
To coincide with a two-part show airing this month on NPT titled "The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud with Dr. Armand Nicholi," a sneak preview of excerpts from the show will be shown and followed by a panel discussion.
The event will start at 7 p.m. at Vanderbilt Stadium Club, 201 25th Avenue South. It is free and open to the public. Free parking will be available in the Kensington Garage.
Panelists from Vanderbilt will include Douglas Knight, professor of Hebrew Bible and chair of the Graduate Department of Religion; Volney Gay, professor of religious studies and chair of the department, professor of psychiatry, and professor of anthropology; J. Patout Burns, Edward A. Malloy Professor of Catholic Studies and professor of religious studies; and Susan Ford Wiltshire, professor of classics and chair of the Department of Classical Studies. Knight and Gay are directors of the Center for the Study of Religion and Culture.
"The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud with Dr. Armand Nicholi" will air from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sept. 15 and 22 on NPT. The show
contrasts the lives and attitudes toward religion of Freud and Lewis.
Freud, who developed psychoanalysis, was an atheist and critic of religious belief. Lewis, an author and literary critic, was an influential proponent of faith based on reason. Each had a crisis that precipitated them questioning their long-held beliefs in middle age.
"The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud with Dr. Armand Nicholi" is based on a course taught at Harvard University by Nicholi, who wrote the book The Question of God.
Media contact: Jim Patterson, (615) 322-NEWS
Jim.patterson@vanderbilt.edu