Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, a religious leader, philosopher and author of more than 30 books delivered the 2017 Terry Sanford Distinguished Lecture, "Not in God's Name: Confronting Religious Violence" at the Sanford School of Public Policy March 28, 2017. Sacks, a member of the British House of Lords and winner of the 2016 Templeton Prize in recognition of his "exceptional contributions to affirming life's spiritual dimension," served as Chief Rabbi of the British Commonwealth from 1991 to 2013. He currently serves as the Ingeborg and Ira Rennert Global Distinguished Professor at New York University. Sacks' most recent book, "Not in God's Name: Confronting Religious Violence," examines the concept of "altruistic evil" and identifies the roots of faith-based violence in misreadings of key biblical texts. Sacks was brought to the Duke campus by the Morris B. Abram Distinguished Residency, which is made possible by a gift to Duke from the Abram family in honor of the late civil rights activist, attorney and president of Brandeis University.
The Terry Sanford Distinguished Lecture was endowed by a gift to Duke University by the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust.