Vol. 38, No. 18

2-28-2007
By:

Noted religious life scholar to deliver keynote address

Joseph Lynch, Distinguished University Professor in the Department of History, will deliver the winter commencement address.



Approximately 1,800 degrees will be awarded at the ceremony, which begins at 1 p.m. March 18 at St. John Arena.

An expert in the history of the European middle ages with a special interest in ancient and medieval Christianity, Lynch has been a member of the history department since 1971. He has served as director of the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies and as chair of the Department of History.

Lynch is respected both as a teacher and as a scholar, having received the Alumni Distinguished Teaching Award, the Distinguished Scholar Award, the College of Humanities Exemplary Faculty award, and the Joe R. Engle Designated Professorship.

In 2000, he received the Distinguished University Professorship, which has been awarded to only 35 faculty over the last 18 years.

Lynch has published four books, including “The Medieval Church: A Brief History” (Longman, 1992), “Godparents and Kinship in Early Medieval Europe” (Princeton University Press, 1986) and “Christianizing Kinship: Ritual Sponsorship in Anglo-Saxon England 597-1066” (Cornell University Press, 1998).

A fifth is close to completion. He also is author of a dozen essays and articles.

Lynch also has received national honors for his academic work, including fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation and two fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies.

Lynch earned his bachelor’s degree from Boston College and his master’s degree and doctorate from Harvard University.

Lynch and his wife, Ann, have lived in Clintonville for 35 years. They have three children, two of whom have degrees in veterinary medicine from Ohio State, and six grandchildren.

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