Paul Farmer, left, and Rev. Gustavo Gutiérrez, O.P.
A pioneer in global health and a path-breaking theologian explore their common option for the poor in a new book drawn from their respective writings, using as a springboard public and private conversations hosted by the at the University of Notre Dame.
Ҡ(Orbis Press, 2013) will have its public launch at 7 p.m. Nov. 19 (Tuesday) in McKenna Hall Auditorium on the Notre Dame campus. The book discussion is open to the public and will be available by . Students at dozens of colleges and universities across the country are planning to attend remotely.
“What is really exciting about this book is that it features a dialogue between two giant figures in their fields — Farmer in global health and Gutiérrez in liberation theology,†said Kellogg Institute Executive Director . “It offers those who know of the work of one the opportunity to learn about the work of the other. Both have so much to teach us about human development.â€
The book came about in no small part because of a fortuitous encounter on the Notre Dame campus.
When Farmer accepted the on behalf of Partners In Health in spring 2011, he had the opportunity to reconnect with one of his heroes — , the John Cardinal O’Hara Professor of Theology and a Kellogg Institute faculty fellow, whose work had long inspired his own.
That fall, Farmer returned for a public dialogue with Gutiérrez arranged by the Kellogg Institute, “.†That discussion, which continued in the days that followed, forms the core of the new work.
Introduced by University President , Farmer will present the book at the launch with commentary by Gutiérrez, Orbis Books editor-in-chief Robert Ellsberg and Ophelia Dahl, the executive director and cofounder, with Farmer, of Partners In Health. (See speaker biographies .)
The book launch is not the end of Farmer and Gutiérrez’s collaboration. They will also take part in a workshop for scholars and practitioners of international development to discuss Farmer’s concept of “accompaniment†as the guiding principle for engagement with the poor around the world. A future book, tentatively titled “From Aid to Accompaniment,†is planned.
Contact: Steve Reifenberg, Kellogg Institute Executive Director, 574-631-0517, sreifenb@nd.edu