JBU Center for Faith and Flourishing to hold inaugural lecture

The Center for Faith and Flourishing (CFF) at John Brown University will hold its inaugural lecture, Textbook for Liberty: How the Bible Made the Western World with author Vishal Mangalwadi Thursday, Sept. 12, on the Siloam Springs campus of JBU.

Mangalwadi, referred to as “India’s foremost Christian intellectual” by Christianity Today, recently published This Book Changed Everything which reveals the Bible’s far-reaching effects and argues that the West faces potential catastrophe by ignoring its founding text, the Bible.

“As Christians, we love the Bible as the only rule given to direct us how we may glorify God and enjoy him forever,” Jay Bruce, CFF director and JBU associate professor of philosophy, said. “Vishal Mangalwadi reminds us that this book, given to us so that we may know Jesus — the way, the truth and the life — is also a textbook for liberty and a cornerstone of Western civilization. We are thrilled to welcome him to JBU and grateful for his willingness to speak at our inaugural event.”

The lecture, which is free and open to the public, is at 7 p.m. in the Soderquist Business Center Room 241/242. For more information or to RSVP, email cff@jbu.edu.

Vishal Mangalwadi was born and educated in India. Along with his wife, Ruth, he began serving India’s destitute in 1976. Persecution and political imprisonment led him to study how the West eradicated chronic poverty and built more just, free and prosperous societies. He was awarded the Bhimrao Ambedkar Distinguished National Service Award in India and a doctorate in Laws by the William Carey International University in California, USA.

Mangalwadi has lectured in 40 countries, including in universities and to Parliamentarians in UK, Germany, Brazil, Colombia, Uganda and India. He is the author of 21 books including: The Book That Made Your World: How the Bible Created the Soul of Western Civilization (Thomas Nelson, 2011); Truth and Transformation: A Manifesto for Ailing Nations (YWAM Seattle, 2009); When the New Age Gets Old: Looking For a Greater Spirituality (IVP 1992) and The World of Gurus (Vikas, 1977).

John Brown University is a leading private Christian university, training students to honor God and serve others since 1919. Arkansas’ topranked regional university (U.S. News Best Colleges, 2019), JBU enrolls more than 2,100 students from 38 states and 53 countries in its traditional undergraduate, graduate, online and concurrent education programs. JBU offers more than 40 undergraduate majors, with top programs including engineering, nursing, family and human services, biology, graphic design and construction management. Sixteen graduate programs are available in the areas of business, counseling, cybersecurity, education and higher education.