Kennedy Lecture 2025

25th Annual Kennedy Lecture at St. Peter

A Conversation with Fr. Agbonkhianmeghe E. Orobator, S.J., dean of the Jesuit School of Theology at Santa Clara University in California.

Come hear an internationally acclaimed theologian and author speak on the Synod in Rome (he was there), how women are a great gift to a changing church, the growth of Catholicism in Africa, and much more.
 
You will enjoy a probing conversation and interview by our own Tim Funk with a Catholic convert who has become a leading voice in the Church — and a favorite of his fellow Jesuit, Pope Francis.
 
Fr. Orobator grew up in Benin City, Nigeria, where he first practiced traditional African religion. But, after visiting the local Jesuit parish as a teen for Easter vigil Mass, he became enamored with Catholicism and the Jesuit order. He was ordained in 1998. Fluent in four languages, with a PhD in theology and religious studies from the University of Leeds in England, he is a past president of the Jesuit Conference of Africa and Madagascar. 

His books include “Theology Brewed in an African Pot” and “The Pope and the Pandemic: Lessons in Leadership in a Time of Crisis.”

Photo Credit: Santa Clara University 

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