GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN (January 6, 2011) – The Aquinas College Catholic Studies Lecture Series will host Eduardo J. Echeverria, STL, Ph.D. as part of the 20th anniversary St. Thomas Aquinas Lecture presentation on Thursday, January 27, 2011 at 12:15 p.m. The lecture, entitled “Evangelizing the Culture," is free and open to the public and will be held in the Aquinas College Student Center Wege Ballroom, Aquinas College, 1607 Robinson Rd. SE, Grand Rapids. The lecture is sponsored by Eric and Elizabeth Kirby.

Born in Merida, Mexico in 1950 to a Catholic family of five children, he soon became entrenched in a variety of cultures after his family moved to the Eastern coast of the United States at age two. After a formal Catholic education, his discontent in religion led to a European tour which led him to the popular diverse faith community of the L’Abri Fellowship, an Evangelical Christian Community in Switzerland. Here, Dr. Echeverria’s true journey in faith began. After this life-changing experience, he continued to pursue his faith through twists, turns, and education of denominations of the Christian faith that eventually led him to a unique appreciation of the traditional Roman Catholic faith.

Dr. Echeverria is currently a professor of philosophy at the Graduate School of Philosophy at the Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit and has written three books on theology. Slitting the Sycamore: Christ and Culture in the New Evangelization, published in 2008, discusses the importance of the Catholic Church’s role in modern society. Dialogue of Love: Confessions of an Evangelical Catholic Ecumenist, published in January of this year, is a unique conversational text that reflects Dr. Echeverria’s personal views on religious issues from the viewpoint of a reformed Catholic. His newest book, In the Beginning: A Theology of the Body, will be released sometime in 2011.

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