Poet, Biographer to Explore Life of Jesuit Priest and Poet Gerard Manley Hopkins

WORCESTER, Mass. – Noted Catholic poet and literary biographer Paul Mariani will speak about the life of Jesuit priest and poet Gerard Manley Hopkins in a lecture titled, “What Hopkins Can Teach Us,” Monday, Sept. 21, at 4:30 p.m. in the Rehm Library at the College of the Holy Cross. The event is part of the Presidential Colloquium on Jesuits and the Liberal Arts, sponsored by the president’s office and the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture. It is free and open to the public.

Mariani, University Professor of English at Boston College, has published over 200 essays and reviews and is the author of 16 books, including five biographies and six volumes of poetry. His biography Gerard Manley Hopkins: A life was published last year (Viking/Penguin, 2008). Mariani will talk about Hopkins’ work and its significance for understanding Jesuit life and mission, both in his time and now. Thomas M. Landy, director of the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture and a lecturer in sociology and anthropology, will respond with some suggestions about what Hopkins' legacy can mean for education at Holy Cross.

To learn more about this program and other Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture events, visit holycross.edu/crec.

About The Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture:

Established in 2001 and housed in Smith Hall, the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture provides resources for faculty and course development, sponsors conferences and college-wide teaching events, hosts visiting fellows, and coordinates a number of campus lecture series. Rooted in the College's commitment to invite conversation about basic human questions, the Center welcomes persons of all faiths and seeks to foster dialogue that acknowledges and respects differences, providing a forum for intellectual exchange that is interreligious, interdisciplinary, intercultural, and international in scope.  The Center also brings members of the Holy Cross community into conversation with the Greater Worcester community, the academic community, and the wider world to examine the role of faith and inquiry in higher education and in the larger culture.