Stern Lecture to Return to St. Matthew’s Parish With James K. A. Smith

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

The Parish of Saint Matthew will host James K. A. Smith as its guest speaker for the 2023 Stern Lecture on Friday evening, March 3, and Saturday morning, March 4.

The Stern Lecture endowment was created in 1989 as a gift by longtime parishioner W. Eugene Stern in memory of his wife, Libby Naffziger Stern, who was also very active in the church. The lectures were launched shortly after the endowment, with a goal of inviting experts to St. Matthew’s to lecture on the topics of theology or spirituality, according to Director of Communications Jennifer McCarthy.

“Since then, many renowned speakers have presented talks,” McCarthy said to the Palisadian-Post. “Over the past several years, Stern Lecturers have included Miroslav Volf, Walter Brueggemann, Amy-Jill Levine, David Lose and Becca Stevens, all of whom are either biblical scholars, theologians or authors who have a unique expertise [or] impact in religion and spirituality.”

The last Stern Lecture took place in early 2020, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Unfortunately, because of quarantine restrictions in early 2021 and then concern over the surge of COVID cases in early [2022], the Stern Lecture was put on hold until now,” McCarthy explained. “St. Matthew’s is delighted to bring the Stern Lecture back to our Palisades community with James K. A. Smith’s upcoming visit.”

Smith is a professor of philosophy at Calvin University and serves as editor-in-chief for Image journal.

“Trained as a philosopher with a focus on contemporary French thought, Smith is an award-winning author and widely traveled speaker, and has emerged as a thought leader with a unique gift of translation, building bridges between society and the church,” according to a press release.

Smith’s Stern Lecture is anticipated to explore the ways in which Augustine is connected with “the challenges and opportunities of our present moment.”

Smith will begin his first session on Friday evening at 7:30 p.m., and continue on Saturday with two sessions at 9 and 10:30 a.m. There will be a short break between the Saturday morning discussions, and a lunch will be offered to participants at 12 p.m.

The event will take place at St. Matthew’s Parish, located at 1031 Bienveneda Avenue. The Stern Lecture is free, however online registration is required.

For more information, visit stmatthews.com.