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December 1, 2008 PLU receives a 300 year-old Torah During November, Cindy Boyce generously gave PLU a Torah with a pedigree that dates back to the 1700s.“You want to be careful what you do with them,” Boyce said about the scroll’s delicacy and how sacred it is in the Jewish faith. The 300 year-old scroll has been decommissioned for a number of years and was transcribed in Morocco. “It can’t be used in a synagogue,” said Samuel Torvend, associate professor of religion and chair of the religion

multicultural setting for young adults experiencing homelessness. “I was shaped by the values of a liberal arts education at an ELCA-affiliated university,” Rude said. “I benefited from learning to ask questions, living into my values, engaging difference, serving others and living in community. It was hard, and at times, I desperately needed a place of grace. I feel called to help create that space – physically and spiritually – with the PLU community,” she said. Rude earned a B.A. in Religion, with minors

. “That’s what I’d encourage for students. Really follow your bliss.” Foster is now the co-owner of a community supported agriculture program, Zestful Gardens. Joining Foster were Stephen Alexander , who majored in anthropology and manages an offshore team in New Delhi, India for Russell Investments; Andrea Sander ’05, who majored in political science and English and is currently an attorney for Microsoft; and Kevin Anderson ’80, who majored in religion and is the president and CEO of Wesley Homes, a

April 6, 2014 New Series of Hebrew Idol Premieres—Your Vote Counts! By Shunying Wang ’15 The new PLU Hebrew Idol season is here, with another group of talented Lutes. And, just as with its inspiration, American Idol, it’s up to voters to determine the winner. Hebrew Idol is a microfilm competition series organized by Religion Professor Antonios Finitsis. Students in his introductory course on the Hebrew Bible—Religion and Literature of the Hebrew Bible—are required to apply their

Students crammed into PLU’s Studio Theatre on April 17 for the 2014 edition of PLU’s Hebrew Idol Live finale. Even the stairs and aisles were filled as the audience clapped, cheered and laughed its way through the event, hosted by Tommy Flanagan ’14 and organized by Religion Professor Antonios Finitsis. PLU Hebrew Idol reflects the knowledge students have gained in Finitsis’ introductory Religion and Literature of the Hebrew Bible course. Each year, students are required to apply their interpretations

and spiritual leaders, should be doing in such trying times.Samuel Torvend, Pacific Lutheran University professor of religion and university chair in Lutheran studies emeritus, recently hosted a series of Zoom presentations centering on Luther, and more specifically, how he navigated life and led others during the plague. The Zoom participants were from three local churches —two in Tacoma, and one in Olympia. Torvend has published articles, book chapters and books on Luther and early Lutheran

., Interpreting Bonhoeffer, published by Fortress Press in 2013). Bob also published a talk he gave in Dresden, “The Understanding of Religious Freedom in the United States of America,” in Religion – Staat – Gesellschaft 14/1 (2013). His paper, “The Luther Anniversary of 1933 in the Mirror of U.S. Church Press Reports,” delivered at a conference hosted by the Universities of Oldenburg and Kassel, appeared in the Fall 2013 issue of Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte. A publication set for 2014 involves the paper Bob

Samish Indian Nation, a Coast Salish nation from Puget Sound. She didn’t know what she wanted to study by the end of her first year at PLU, so she decided to pursue her love of her own Native American heritage and the cultures of other tribes. A group on campus had been working with Crawford-O’Brien, associate professor of religion and culture, to create a new program that would involve the study of Native Americans. But that program was not  ready in time for Hall to major in it during her time at

, and the importance of actually doing something to better the world. My next chapter: Graduate school to pursue Sociology…someday. For now, working somewhere locally in order to stay connected to the PLU community, and to help out my home here in Tacoma. Timothy Siburg – Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Religion Why PLU? The liberal arts education, the Lutheran heritage, smaller Class sizes, the great community life, the Lute Family and Legacy (my parents and aunts and uncles are alumni)and

Nation, a Coast Salish nation from Puget Sound. She didn’t know what she wanted to study by the end of her first year at PLU, so she decided to pursue her love of her own Native American heritage and the cultures of other tribes. A group on campus had been working with Crawford-O’Brien, associate professor of religion and culture, to create a new program that would involve the study of Native Americans. But that program was not  ready in time for Hall to major in it during her time at PLU. Above is a