APRIL 12, 2004

CULTURE
In all honesty … a culture of lies

IN THE NORTHEAST
• Bernice Lerner is the acting director of the Center for the Advancement of Ethics and Character at Boston University in Massachusetts. Contact 617-353-3262.
• John Jefferson Davis is a professor of systematic theology and Christian Ethics at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Mass. He is an expert on the theological and ethical beliefs of American evangelicals and teaches a course titled "Christian Ethics: Issues Facing the Church Today." Contact via Anne Doll, director of public relations, 978-646-4570, adoll@gcts.edu.

IN THE EAST
• Dr. M. William Howard Jr. is the senior pastor of Bethany Baptist Church in Newark, N.J., a partner in the New Jersey Character Education Partnership, which tries to instill values, including honesty, in local children. Contact 973-623-8161, mhoward@bethany-newark.org.
• John Mason is a pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City and conducts a Wall Street ministry that includes a series of sermons delivered in the financial district on weekdays. Contact 212- 808-4460 ext. 155, john@redeemer.com.
• Chris Whitehead is pastor of Christ United Methodist Church in Bethel, Pa., and has preached a sermon on deception-based reality television shows such as The Bachelor. Contact Lisa Marsh, coordinator of communications, 412-835-6621 ext. 38, publicity@christumc.net.
• Arthur B. Dobrin is the leader emeritus of the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island and a professor of humanities at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. He teaches courses in ethical education, personal ethics and religious ethics. Contact 516-463-6172, arthur.b.dobrin@hofstra.edu.
• Bernard K. Freamon is a professor of law at Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J. He specializes in Islamic jurisprudence and Islamic legal history and has an interest in ethics. Contact 973-642-8827, freamobe@shu.edu.
• Rabbi Eugene Borowitz is a professor of Jewish religious thought at the Jewish Institute of Religion at Hebrew Union College in New York, N.Y. He is author of Exploring Jewish Ethics (Wayne State University Press, 1990). Contact 212-824-2236, eborowitz@huc.edu.

IN THE SOUTHEAST
• Elizabeth Bounds is associate professor of Christian ethics and coordinator of the Initiative in Religious Practices and Practical Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga. She says she doubts there was ever a time when religious people did not lie and says religious bodies are not always adept at teaching how values should be lived out and applied in everyday life. Contact by email, ebounds@emory.edu.
• Michael I.N. Dash is associate professor of ministry and context at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Ga. He says clergy speak out about lying all the time, but it seldom makes news. He says the media get "swept away" by other issues, such as The Passion of the Christ or same-sex marriage. The challenge for organized religion is to mediate among competing claims for an authoritative voice in the church when seemingly sudden "aberrations" of widespread dishonesty occur. Contact 404-527-7762, mdash@ipc.edu.
• Bella DePaulo is a professor of psychology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. She is an expert on lying. Contact 434-924-0675, bmd@virginia.edu.
• The Rev. David Jones of Snellville United Methodist Church in Snellville, Ga., preached a sermon titled "What Would Jesus Say About … Lying?" Contact 770-972-9360, Djones@snellvilleumc.org.
• Stanley Hauerwas is a professor of theological ethics at Duke Divinity School at Duke University in Durham, N.C. He is the author of several books on Christian ethics, including The Truth About God: The Ten Commandments in Christian Life (Abingdon, 1999). Contact 919-660-3420.
• Gary Bulley is pastor at Lakeland Baptist Church, a Southern Baptist church in Cumming, Ga. One of the principles the church is grounded on is "to be rooted in truth." Contact 770-844-5993, gary@lakelandchurch.com.
• Diane M. Waryold is the executive director for the Center for Academic Integrity at Duke University. The center offers resources to help students adhere to five principles, including honesty. Contact 919-660-3045.
• John Hoad is an Ethical Culture Leader in Charleston, S.C. He is a former Methodist minister and president of United Theological College of the West Indies. Contact 843-406-0363, jkhoad@knology.net.

IN THE SOUTH
• Stan Walters, a.k.a. "The Lie Guy," is the author of The Truth About Lying: How to Spot a Lie and Protect Yourself From Deception (Sourcebooks Trade, 2000). He teaches courses in kinesic interviewing and interrogation to law enforcement officials throughout the country and has served as an expert on interview and interrogation for Johns Hopkins University. He lives in Kentucky. Contact stan@thelieguy.com.
• The Soderquist Center for Leadership and Ethics at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Ark., is devoted to fostering good business ethics. Many of the directors are former executives of Wal-Mart, which has faced lawsuits alleging that store managers routinely falsify employee timecards. Contact 479-524-7180.
• Victor Anderson is an associate professor of Christian ethics at Vanderbilt University's Divinity School in Nashville, Tenn. He has taught many courses in ethics, including one on theology and ethics in America. Contact 615-343-3973, victor.anderson@vanderbilt.edu.

IN THE MIDWEST
• Mount Zion Temple in St. Paul, Minn., recently hosted a series of talks on the Decalogue, or Ten Commandments, that attracted people from a dozen local churches and synagogues. Contact 651-698-3881, mountzion@mzion.org.
• Jean Bethke Elshtain is a professor of social and ethical politics at the University of Chicago's Divinity School in Chicago and specializes in the link between political and ethical convictions. Contact 773-702-7252, jbelshta@midway.uchicago.edu.
• Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung is a professor of philosophy at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich. She is an expert on ethics and has written on virtue and vice. She says organized religion has largely bought into the idea of religion as a private matter - something to be practiced at home and in church, but not necessarily at work or school. She also faults the way churches market themselves - as cheery places with good friends and coffee that people can opt into or out of. Contact 616-526-6418, rdeyoung@calvin.edu.
• Quentin J. Schultze is an expert on human communication and communication ethics at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich. He is author of the Habits of the High-Tech Heart: Living Virtuously in the Information Age (Baker Book House, 2004). Contact 616-526-6290, or through his web site.
• Rabbi S. Daniel Breslauer is a professor of religious studies at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. He is author of Toward a Jewish Morality: Speaking of a Postmodern Jewish Ethics (Greenwood Publishing Group, 1998).Contact 785-864-7255, barsela@ku.edu.

IN THE SOUTHWEST
• Daryl Koehn is a professor of business ethics and the director of the Center for Business Ethics at the University of St. Thomas, a Catholic school in Houston. Contact 713-942-5917, koehnd@stthom.edu.
• Charles Curran is a professor of human values at the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. He specializes in fundamental moral theology, social ethics and the role of the church as a moral and political actor in society. Contact 214-768-4073, ccurran@smu.edu.

IN THE WEST/NORTHWEST
• Mark D. Roberts is senior pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, Calif., and author of Dare To Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty (Waterbrook Press, 2003). He says when he did a series of sermons on truth and lies, many people in his church told him they were uncomfortable with the subject. He says people separate their religious convictions from their everyday lives and the challenge for the church is to teach people how to connect them. Contact 949-786-7276, roberts@irvinepres.org.
• Steve Johnson is director of character education at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, Calif. He has written numerous articles on topics in youth ethics, including cheating and lying. Contact 408-554-6802, sjohnson@scu.edu.
• Joseph Runzo is a professor of philosophy and religious studies at Chapman University in Orange, Calif. He is co-editor of Ethics in the World Religions (OneWorld Publications, 2001). Contact 714-997-6970, runzo@chapman.edu.