Repeated: Thursday, 2/7, 3 pm, Oberlin UU Fellowship, 355 E Lorain St. 

This six part BBC series on philosophy is presented by popular British philosopher Alain de Botton, featuring six thinkers who have influenced history, and their ideas about the pursuit of the happy life. Each film is just 24 minutes long.  They are entertaining and thought-provoking and should serve as starting points to interesting discussions. Each film is independent from the others. Attend any ones that you can. 

Episode 1: Socrates on Self-Confidence: Why do so many people go along with the crowd and fail to stand up for what they truly believe? Partly because they are too easily swayed by other people's opinions and partly because they don't know when to have confidence in their own.

Illuminating Faith in the Russian Old Believer Tradition (Ripin Print Gallery)

This exhibition draws on the holdings of the AMAM and Oberlin College's Special Collections to present late-18th and early-19th century illuminated manuscript leaves of the Russian Old Believers, a Christian faction that split off from the Russian Orthodox Church in the middle of the 17th century.

The exhibition features art and instruments of ritual Yoruba performance from Nigeria and the broader Yoruba world. The diaspora in the Caribbean, North America, and England has been seminal in the construction of Yoruba ethnic identity, and the exhibition examines commonalities in rituals of divination and the performance of identity through the artwork of Vodun ("Voodoo") ceremonies, Orisha cults, and contemporary artists.

  

Modern Book Illustrations (Ripin Print Gallery)  This exhibition presents 19th-20th century works from the AMAM collection designed by artists to illustrate texts such as William Blake's Book of Job, Edouard Manet's The Raven, Claire Leighton's Wuthering Heights, and Oskar Kokoschka's King Lear."

  

Illuminated Manuscripts from Oberlin Collections (Ripin Print Gallery)

Illuminating Faith in the Russian Old Believer Tradition

2/5-6/30, Ripin Gallery, Allen Memorial Art Museum

Opening reception - Thursday, 2/7, 5-8 pm 

  

This exhibition draws on the holdings of the AMAM and Oberlin College's Special Collections to present late-18th- to early-19th-century illuminated manuscript leaves of the Russian Old Believers, an extant Christian faction that separated from the Russian Orthodox Church in the middle of the 17th century. Denied access to printing presses and persecuted for their dissenting views on liturgical reforms, the Old Believers copied and illustrated by hand religious books, which they disseminated secretly and venerated alongside icons. Including two complete manuscripts on loan from Ohio State University's Hilandar Research Library, the exhibition throws light on Old Believer rituals and book illumination, which helped preserve Old Belief and its culture over the past 350 years. The exhibition is curated by Liliana Milkova, AMAM Curator of Academic Programs.

Saturday, 2/9, 6 pm, First Church in Oberlin, 106 N. Main Street

 

Oberlin's SEPA (Santa Elena Project of Accompaniment) will hold its annual Guatemalan dinner featuring Latin American fare with a live dessert auction following. A highlight of the evening will be a presentation by the Oberlin College and Community travel delegation, led by SEPA Board member John Gates, who will have just returned from a three-week teaching-and-learning experience in Guatemala. Individual tickets for the event are $10; family tickets (including 2 adults and children under 12) are available for $25. Tickets may be purchased until 2/4 at Ben Franklin (13 West College Street) or by contacting SEPA Board members Lori Taylor (774-8171) or Sue Simonson (774-8220). All proceeds from the evening support scholarships, teachers and projects in the Guatemalan communities of Santa Elena and Copal AA. To learn more, visit www.obsepa.org. 

Tuesday, 2/12, 7:30 pm, Craig Lecture Hall

 

Followed by a discussion with the director and an Oberlin alum attorney who helped get Debbie Peagler out of jail. "Crime After Crime" tells the dramatic story of the legal battle to free Debbie Peagler, an incarcerated survivor of domestic violence. Over 26 years in prison could not crush the spirit of this determined African American woman, despite the wrongs she suffered, first at the hands of duplicitous boyfriend who beat her and forced her into prostitution, and later by prosecutors who used the threat of the death penalty to corner her into a life behind bars for her connection to the murder of her abuser. To see the trailer and find out more information visit http://crimeaftercrime.com. For more information contact dmostow@oberlin.edu.

Wednesday, 2/13, 12:10 pm, Fairchild Chapel

 

The Newman Catholic Community will offer Mass and the Imposition of Ashes for Ash Wednesday. All are welcome to attend.

Sunday, 2/17, 3 pm, First Church in Oberlin (UCC) 106 N Main St.

 

A baroque music concert to benefit the homeless families served by Family Promise of Lorain County. Three performers of Apollo's Fire on baroque flutes and cello, plus a guest harpsichordist. Freewill offering. Reception to follow.

Professor John Strong of Bates College will lecture.

Sponsored by the Mead Swing Lectureship Committee and the Religion Department.

Friday, 2/22, 7 pm, West Lecture Hall

 

Professor Markides, a sociologist of religion, will discuss his journey of exploration and discovery of the mystic tradition of Eastern Christianity that is largely unknown to Western scholars and spiritual seekers. 

Kyriacos Markides received his Ph.D. from Wayne State University in 1971 and is currently a professor of sociology at the University of Maine. Kyriacos' areas of interest in teaching and research are: sociology of religion, sociological theory, sociology of mental illness and sociology of violence and international terrorism. His research has ranged from projects related to political sociology and nationalist movements to the sociology of religion, non-medical healing and Christian mysticism. For the last twenty years he has been exploring the lives and teachings of Christian mystics, healers, and miracle workers and monastics around the world. In this area he has written several important books published in English and in eight other languages. His most recent work is Inner River, A Pilgrimage to the Heart of Christian Spirituality. Sponsored by Oberlin Orthodox Christian Fellowship.

Friday, 3/8, 7:30 pm, King 106

 

In honor of International Women's Day, Loretta Ross will lecture on Reproductive Justice, Religion, and Human Rights. Ross is co-founder of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, a network founded in 1997 comprised of 80 local, regional, and national organizations that focus on reproductive justice for women of color. Sponsored by the Mead Swing Lectureship Fund and the Oberlin Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies.  Event website: http://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/departments/gender/intl-wom-day.