Coptics Studies: Past Events

Spring 2010

Claremont Graduate University School of Religion
and Claremont McKenna College Department of Religious Studies
cordially invite you to a public lecture on

Christians and the State:
Comparing Russian and Egyptian Experiences

Professor Sergei Plekhanov
York University, Toronto, Canada

With Introductory Notes by

His Grace Bishop Serapion
Coptic Orthodox Bishop of Southern California
On Ecumenism between the Coptic and Russian Orthodox Churches

Dean Anselm Min
Dean, School of Religion, CGU

Professor Gaston Espinosa
Chair, Department of Religious Studies, CMC

Wednesday February 17, 2010
7:00 pm Social and Refreshments
7:30 Introductory Notes
7:50 pm Lecture by Professor Plekhanov

Albrecht Auditorium, CGU
925 N. Dartmouth Avenue, Claremont, CA 91711

Relations between temporal and ecclesiastical authorities were once at the center of public life everywhere. With the progress of secularization, church-state relations have receded into the background in most countries. But this rich and complex problematic is now revealing itself again in various cultural settings on a global scale.  Comparing the historical and contemporary experiences of two sister churches - Coptic and Russian Orthodox - in this context can help understand the evolving role of religion in the contemporary world.

Professor Sergei Plekhanov teaches political science at York University in Toronto, Canada. He also serves as Secretary of the Canadian Pugwash Group – Canadian section of the global movement of scientists for peace and nuclear disarmament. Born and educated in Moscow, he worked for over 20 years at the Soviet Academy of Sciences and in the 1980s was an advisor to Mikhail Gorbachev. Prof. Plekhanov is an expert on Russia and other post-communist countries. The revival of Orthodoxy in Russia is one of his current research interests.

Inquiries may be addressed to Dr. S. Michael Saad, Chair, Council for Coptic Studies, School of Religion, Claremont Graduate University, e-mail: saad3@aol.com.