Fairchild to address Islamic Understanding of Jihad
FOR RELEASE: Thursday, November 6, 2003
Huntington, Ind. " Dr. Mark Fairchild, professor of Bible and Religion at Huntington College, will present, Islamic Understanding of Jihad: Past & Present, at the College's Focus on Excellence colloquium. The colloquium, which will take place on Monday, November 17, 2003, at 8 p.m., in the Harold M. Johnson Conference Room at RichLyn Library, will allow the public a chance to better understand Islamic thinking regarding an often misunderstood topic. The public is cordially invited to attend. Admission is free and refreshments will be provided.
Dr. Fairchild earned his BS in Biology-Genetics in 1976 from Pennsylvania State University, followed by a BA in Bible and Theology in 1980 from Toccoa Falls College. In 1982, he earned his Master of Divinity in Special Curriculum-Biblical Studies from Asbury Theological Seminary and his Master of Philosophy in 1985 in Biblical Studies from Drew University. All of his work culminated into a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies " New Testament in 1989 from Drew University. He has been professor of Bible and Religion at Huntington College since 1986, and in 1993 was a Visiting Scholar in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame.
Last summer, Dr. Fairchild was invited to the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Research Seminar, Societal Transformation and the Legitimation of Power in the Early Islamic States at the University of Chicago with 23 other scholars from across the United States. His research project for the prestigious seminar was on Jihad as Religious Aggression and Coercion in the Qur'an, Hadith and Early Documents of Islam. It marked the second NEH research grant he had received. In 1992, Dr. Fairchild was invited to the NEH Seminar The Greek Encounter with Judaism in the Hellenistic Period, at Yeshiva University in New York City.
He has written numerous articles and book reviews and holds professional memberships in The Catholic Biblical Association, The Evangelical Theological Society, The Society of Biblical Literature, an the Institute for Biblical Research.
