Providence, R.I.--Dr. William T. Cavanaugh, a scholar in systematic theology and social ethics, will lecture on "The Unfreedom of the Free Market" at Providence College as the Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminar (IFS) guest scholar on Monday, April 6.

Cavanaugh, an associate professor of theology at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., will deliver the talk in the Feinstein Academic Center, Room 400, at 4:00 p.m. The event is open to the public.

The IFS is an interdisciplinary program that brings together eight PC faculty members each spring semester in a collaborative teaching and learning experience. Outside scholars also are invited to campus to share their insights on the seminar topic with the PC community. The guest scholar lecture is sponsored by the Center for Teaching Excellence and the Office of Academic Affairs.

This year's IFS theme, "Are We Free?", has led the faculty members to analyze the philosophical, political, and cultural meaning of freedom in a variety of fields.

In his lecture, Cavanaugh will speak about the meaning of free market ideology and its implications on society. He will draw from a variety of theological sources, particularly the writings of St. Augustine on free will, to demonstrate that true freedom must embrace the positive end of life in God.

Cavanaugh is the recipient of the University Scholars Grant of St. Thomas, a visiting fellowship at the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at the University of Notre Dame, and the Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Fellowship.

He is a member of the American Academy of Religion, the Society of Christian Ethics, and the Catholic Theological Society of America. He is the author of The Myth of Religious Violence (Oxford University Press, 2009).

Cavanaugh received his bachelor's degree in theology from the University of Notre Dame in 1984, his master's in theology and religious studies from Cambridge University in 1987, and his doctorate in religion from Duke University in 1996.

For more information, call 401-865-1340 or e-mail cte@providence.edu.

- Joe Miller '10

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