On April 9, 2018, the 2018 Harvey Lecture featured Dr. Kristin Leslie, Professor of Pastoral Theology and Care at Eden Theological Seminary. Her well-received talk, titled Noisy Lament, Noisy Believing: Sexual Assault in the time of #s provided the type of thought-provoking discussion that is a hallmark of the student and faculty community of Seminary of the Southwest.
The Very Rev. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge, Dean and President, reflected,”Presenting about the painful subject of sexual abuse, Kristen Leslie modeled the compassionate, wise, believing response that she advocated for pastors. The discussion that followed among students and faculty engaged the topic with background from theological courses and experience from pastoral settings.”
Dr. Leslie’s research has focused on intercultural pastoral theology; womanist and feminist pastoral counseling; pastoral theological implications of sexualized violence, particularly on pastoral counseling issues for survivors of acquaintance rape; and ministry in higher education with young adults.
She has taught many specialized courses on pastoral care and has led international travel seminars to Bosnia, Croatia, and Australia. She has worked with chaplains in the U. S. Military on issues of sexualized and religious violence and religious intolerance. In 2005, Dr. Leslie co-authored the report that brought to light the problem of Christian proselytizing at the Air Force Academy. In 2013, she was awarded a Navy contract to train Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard chaplains on matters related to military sexual assault.
The Harvey Lectures were established at Seminary of the Southwest as a way of honoring the late Dean Harvey, who died unexpectedly in 1972, after serving as the seminary’s Dean for just 5 years. The seminary community established the annual series, mandating that it would be overseen by student leaders, and that would address the relationship between pastoral leadership and contemporary issues confronting the church.
