Archbishop of Canterbury to Deliver Schmemann Lecture at St. Vladimir's Seminary January 30, 2010

Next Saturday afternoon (January 30, 2010), the Most Rev. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury and senior bishop of the worldwide Anglican communion, will deliver the annual Father Alexander Schmemann Memorial Lecture at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in Yonkers, New York. The Archbishop will speak on the topic "Theology and the Contemplative Calling: The Image of Humility in the Philokalia," according to St. Vladimir's website.

St. Vladimir's Seminary will also confer upon the Archbishop an honorary Doctorate of Divinity, in recognition of his contribution to the academic study of Eastern Orthodox theology and spirituality.

The Very Rev. Dr. John Behr, dean of St. Vladimir's, said the Archbishop was a pioneer in the field of Orthodox Theology, with outstanding breadth and depth. He added, "The subject of the Archbishop's doctoral thesis was the work of the great Orthodox theologian Vladimir Lossky, the first academic study of the emigre theologians."

Archbishop Williams is scheduled to begin the lecture -- which is free and open to the public -- at 12:30 p.m.