GREENEVILLE – A Tusculum University professor who has extensive knowledge of European history will deliver a special presentation on the Renaissance and Reformation for the higher education institution’s prestigious Cicero Lecture Series.
Dr. Joel Van Amberg
Dr. Joel Van Amberg, professor of history, will deliver his insightful and free presentation Tuesday, March 30, at 7 p.m. in the Meen Center lecture hall. Seats are limited to 50, but spectators can also watch the lecture remotely through the Zoom virtual platform. The link to the lecture is https://tusculum.zoom.us/j/87998458143.
The presentation’s title is “Themes of Renewal, Restoration and Rebirth in the Renaissance and Reformation.” Dr. Van Amberg had planned to give the presentation in 2020, but it was postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
“The Cicero Lecture Series is a cherished tradition on the Tusculum campus, and it is a privilege to serve as this year’s presenter,” Dr. Van Amberg said. “I welcome the opportunity to discuss two well-known periods in European history and hear the audience’s perspective. Through information and idea sharing, we will enhance everyone’s understanding of the Reformation and Renaissance and inspire people to explore these subjects further afterward.”
The lecture’s namesake, Cicero, was a Roman statesman, lawyer, teacher and orator. He established an academy at the former Roman town of Tusculum, where he outlined principles of civic virtue in a republic to vote, volunteer, serve the community above oneself and work to achieve excellence. His principles serve as the inspiration for Tusculum University’s focus on civic engagement, a key part of the institution’s mission statement.
Wayne Thomas, dean of the College of Civic and Liberal Arts at Tusculum, said Dr. Van Amberg is an outstanding choice as this year’s lecturer. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Dr. Van Amberg is chairman of the History, Museum Studies and Religion Department.
“As a longtime Tusculum faculty member with thorough knowledge of the university’s connections to Cicero, Dr. Van Amberg will achieve our goal of engaging the community with a compelling subject that will appeal to many people,” Thomas said. “The quality of Dr. Van Amberg’s scholarship is superb, and he is highly regarded among his history peers and the Tusculum family. We have a can’t-miss evening ahead of us.”
Dr. Van Amberg describes the 15th and 16th centuries as transitional for Europe. He will examine how Europeans held deep feelings of yearning and affinity and sought to restore the best of their ancient past. He said they hoped that would lead to the birth of a new Europe to meet that period’s challenges.
“The political, economic and intellectual structures of the Middle Ages seemed increasingly ill-suited to accommodate the new realities with which Europeans were grappling,” Dr. Van Amberg said. “However, the contours of a new arrangement, one that we will come to call Modernity, were not yet in view. To think their way forward, Europeans who were associated with the age’s two great movements, the Renaissance and the Reformation, reached backward.”
Dr. Van Amberg has served as a Tusculum professor since 2005 and as an administrator since 2006. He is a historian of 16th century Europe and the author of “A Real Presence: Religious and Social Dynamics of the Eucharistic Conflicts in Early Modern Augsburg 1520-1530.” He delivered the lectures for Tusculum’s Theologian-In-Residence series in 2018 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts in religious studies from Bowdoin College, a Master of Arts in church history from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and a doctorate in European history from 800-1648 from the University of Arizona.
To reserve one of the 50 available seats in the Meen Center, please email Jennifer Hollowell, coordinator of Tusculum Arts Outreach, at jhollowell@tusculum.edu. She is also available to answer any questions about the event.
More information about the university is available at www.tusculum.edu.