Scholarly Lunch Series

. . . goes virtual! The Scholarly Lunch Series has been on hiatus since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. We are happy to announce the revival of the series, for now in a remote format.

Two presentations have been scheduled for the remaining weeks of the Spring 2021 semester. As always, the presenters will be former recipients of Grauel Faculty Fellowships who have been invited to share their work with the University community.

The Scholarly Lunch presentations scheduled for the remainder of the spring semester are as follows:

Friday, March 26, 2021 at 12 p.m. (EST): Dr. Ralph Saporito, Biology

 "You are what you eat: The story of how poison frogs become poisonous."

Hosted on the Zoom platform. Open to all members of the JCU Community.

The use of poisons as a protection from predators is widespread among animals. While most animals make their own poisons, some must acquire them from other organisms—often by eating them. Small and brightly colored tropical poison frogs fall into this category, and obtain their poisons by eating a very specific diet. In this program, Dr. Saporito will summarize some of his ongoing research into understanding how poison frogs become poisonous, and share with you some of his lab’s most recent findings, including how mothers use poisons to protect their offspring.

Registration required: https://advancement.jcu.edu/register/scholarly-lunch-frogs-21
Zoom information provided upon registration.

For more information, contact Eric Eickhoff at eeickhoff@jcu.edu.

Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 12 p.m. (EST): Dr. Sheila McGinn (Theology and Religious Studies)

"'Uppity' Women in Early Christianity."

Hosted on the Zoom platform. Open to all members of the JCU Community.

Women were the “unsung heroes” of early Christianity. They played a central role in early Christian mission, yet the New Testament texts say little about them and almost never give women speaking lines. Apocryphal (non-canonical) texts from this same early period tell a somewhat different story, with central women characters who speak and act in ways we often think apply only to male disciples of Jesus. This lecture focuses on one of these apocryphal texts, the Acts of Paul and Thecla (also known as the Acts of the Holy Proto-Martyr Thecla or simply Acts of Thecla), to illustrate an alternate perspective on women’s contribution to the shape and spread of the early Christian movement. The women’s “uppity” behavior challenged the society of their own times—and perhaps still challenges ours as well.

Registration required: https://advancement.jcu.edu/register/women-early-christianity-21

For more information, contact Eric Eickhoff at eeickhoff@jcu.edu.

Faculty Research and Recognition