GREENVILLE, Pa.—Bishop Emeritus of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land Munib Younan, an internationally-recognized expert on Christian, Jewish and Muslim relations, is speaking Thursday, April 12 at Thiel College, a leading liberal arts college in northwest Pennsylvania, as part of the institution’s Interfaith Series.
Younan is a Christian Arab, who was born in 1950 in Jerusalem to parents who were Palestinian refugees, and won the Niwano Peace Prize in 2017 for his work fostering dialogue between Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Younan was the first person to translate the Augsburg Confession, a key document of the Lutheran Church, into Arabic.
At 7 p.m. Thursday in the Sawhill-Georgian Room of the Howard Miller Student Center, Younan will present his talk, “Interfaith Engagement in the Holy Land.” The presentation is free and open to the public.
He was elected and consecrated as Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land in 1998 and served until his retirement in January.
Working with other religious leaders in the Holy Land, he was a founder of the Council of Religious Institutions in the Holy Land in 2005.
Younan, Bishop of the Northwestern Pennsylvania Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Ralph Jones H’05; Bishop of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Kurt Kusserow ’85; Thiel College Pastor Jayne M. Thompson and student leaders will speak as part of an interfaith service at noon Thursday in the David Johnson Memorial Chapel.
Thiel College’s Interfaith series started in fall 2017. Past Interfaith events at the College have included an appearance by Augsburg (Minn.) University’s first Muslim chaplain, a Buddhist monk and a celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The series fulfills the College’s goal of inclusion and diversity by engaging faculty, staff and students as well as community members to be globally aware.
About Thiel College
Thiel College is an independent college founded in the Lutheran tradition. Located in Greenville, Pa., the College offers 60 majors and minors, 24 varsity sports, and an 11:1 student-faculty ratio. The College is also home to a new Master of Science in speech-language pathology and 2Master of Business Administration. Both master’s degree programs offer innovative and accelerated five-year paths which allow students to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree in five years. The speech-language pathology program also has an accelerated 15-month graduate-level program. The M.B.A. program also has a 12-month post-graduate program.A dedicated faculty paired with dynamic research and internship opportunities produce numerous graduate school and job placements. Coeducational from its beginnings, the College remains committed to combining tradition with innovation as it celebrates 150 years.