SPRINGFIELD, OH. – Bart D. Ehrman, New York Times best-selling author, renowned American Biblical scholar, and award-winning New Testament historian, will present the Wittenberg Series-sponsored William A. Kinnison Endowed Lecture in History, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, in Bayley Auditorium inside the Barbara Deer Kuss Science Center. His address is titled "Love Thy Stranger: How the Teachings of Jesus Transformed the Moral Conscience of the West."
The author or editor of 35 books, six of which have been New York Times bestsellers, including Misquoting Jesus, God’s Problem, Jesus Interrupted, How Jesus Became God, Forged, and The Triumph of Christianity, Erhman is the James A. Gray Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-Chapel Hill), where he taught from 1988 until his retirement in 2025. His research and courses focus on the New Testament, the history of Early Christianity, and the Apostolic Fathers.
His latest book, Love Thy Stranger: How the Teachings of Jesus Transformed the Moral Conscience of the West, was published in March 2026 by Simon & Schuster. To date, more than 2 million copies of his books and courses have been sold. His books have also been translated into 27 languages.
Recognized for excellence in teaching and scholarship, Ehrman has received numerous awards, including the Religious Liberty Award from the American Humanist Association and the John William Pope Center Spirit of Inquiry Teaching Award. He was a National Humanities Center Fellow in 2009-2010 and was awarded a Bowman and Gordon Gray Professorship for 1998-2001 at UNC-Chapel Hill.
“Misquoting Jesus with Bart Ehrman,” his popular weekly podcast with host Megan Lewis, explores lesser-known facts about the New Testament. His daily blog, “The Bart Ehrman Blog: The History & Literature of Early Christianity,” has raised a million dollars for charitable organizations. In addition to multiple online courses, he has also produced nine acclaimed courses for The Great Courses, an engaging collection of audio and video lectures by some of the world’s best professors and experts.
Featured widely across television, radio, and print media, Ehrman has also served as an editor, co-editor, or editor-in-chief for scholarly collections and academic journals such as Vigiliae Christianae: A Review of Early Christian Life and Language; New Testament Tools, Studies, and Documents; and Journal of Early Christian Studies, among many others.
After receiving a B.A. from Wheaton College in 1978, Ehrman earned a Master of Divinity in 1981 and a doctorate in 1985 from Princeton Theological Seminary. Prior to UNC-Chapel Hill, he taught at Princeton Theological Seminary and at Rutgers University, and served as an adjunct professor at Duke University.
During this second event in the 2026 Wittenberg Series, Wittenberg President Christian M.M. Brady will welcome all those in attendance, and Travis Proctor, dean of the newly formed School of Arts, Communication, and Cultural Foundations at Wittenberg, assistant professor of religion, and chair of the University’s department of history, will formally introduce Ehrman.
Ehrman will also attend a class with students and a lunch-and-learn with faculty during his time at Wittenberg. In addition, there will be a Q&A following his keynote address, and his books will be available for sale at the event’s conclusion.
The William A. Kinnison Endowed Lecture in History was established under the auspices of the Board of Directors of Wittenberg University with the assistance of numerous benefactors to honor Dr. Kinnison on the occasion of his retirement as president of the University in 1995, following 25 years of service to his alma mater.
Now celebrating its 42nd season, the Wittenberg Series offers a selection of cultural activities available to students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the community. Created in 1982 during President William A. Kinnison’s tenure, the Wittenberg Series has featured Nobel Laureates, scientists, significant literary figures, most of America’s foremost modern dance companies, as well as hundreds of prominent psychologists, educators, economists, writers, theologians, urban planners, and historians since its inception.
All events of The Wittenberg Series are open to the public free of charge. Doors open 30 minutes prior to the beginning of each lecture or performance.
For more information on the Wittenberg Series, click here. To make special arrangements or become a friend of the Wittenberg Series, contact the Office of University Communications at ucomm@wittenberg.edu.
