John Butt presents keynote address of Asian Studies Residency

The Rev. John Butt presents the keynote address of the 2007 Asian Studies Residency at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14 at Pellegrene Auditorium, Saint John’s University.

Butt’s speech, entitled “A Christian Looks at Buddhist Religion,” is free and open to the public. His speech will address the perils and promise on inter-religious dialogue in today’s volatile world.

Butt is a senior advisor at the Institute for Religion, Culture and Peace, Payap University, Chiang Mai, Thailand. He is also a professor at the university’s McGilvary College of Divinity.

He has spent over 30 years living in Thailand also serving as a mission worker for the Presbyterian Church. About 94 percent of Thailand’s population is Buddhist, followed by 5 percent Muslim and about 1 percent Christian.

Butt received his bachelor’s degree from Rhodes College, Memphis, Tenn., and two master degrees from Harvard Divinity School. He was also associated with Harvard University’s Center for the Study of World Religions. He is an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).