Celebrating St Francis of Assisi: Jon Sweeney

Name: Celebrating St Francis of Assisi: Jon Sweeney
Start: 2026-02-23T09:15:00-05:00
End: 2026-02-23T10:00:00-05:00
Location: 1350 King College Road, Bristol, TN, United States, Tennessee 37620

Schedule

Mon Feb 23 2026 at 09:15 am to 10:00 am

UTC-05:00

Location

1350 King College Road, Bristol, TN, United States, Tennessee 37620 | Bristol, TN

King University’s Institute for Faith & Culture (IFC) speaker series, “Equipped for Every Good Work,” continues on February 23rd, 2026, with two lectures by author Jon M. Sweeney. These events celebrate the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi, about whose life and example Sweeney is widely published.
Sweeney will speak at King University’s Memorial Chapel at 9:15 a.m. on “What Does a Medieval European Saint (Francis of Assisi) Have to Do with Your Life Today?” with a reception to follow in the Tadlock House. At 7:00 p.m. at Central Presbyterian Church in Bristol, Virginia, he will explore “Why Francis of Assisi Matters Especially Now,” followed by a reception and book signing. Both events are free and open to the public.
The author or co-author of over 40 books, Sweeney has written on St. Francis, Thomas Merton, Phyllis Tickle, Meister Eckhart, Mother Teresa, Nicholas Black Elk, and a memoir of his own upbringing, among others. He’s been interviewed on CBS Saturday Morning, Fox News, CBS-TV Chicago, Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, and on the popular program Chicago Tonight. His popular medieval history, The Pope Who Quit, on Celestine V, was published by Image/Random House and optioned by HBO. It was a selection of the History Book Club and received a starred review in Booklist. His book, When Saint Francis Saved the Church, received a 2015 award for excellence in history from the Catholic Press Association.
“St. Francis of Assisi has inspired Christians for hundreds of years, across the globe,” said Martin Dotterweich, Director of the King Institute for Faith & Culture. “On the 800th anniversary of his death, we’re delighted to welcome Jon Sweeney, whose writing has covered not only Francis’s life, but also the ways in which he informs our faith today. Jon brings deep knowledge of the ways in which writing and history are resources for the church, and we look forward to rich conversations with him during his visit.”
Currently serving as Associate Publisher and Religion Editor for Monkfish Book Publishing, Sweeney has previously worked as Editor-at-Large for Orbis Press, Executive Editor for Ave Maria Press, and Publisher and Editor-in-Chief at Paraclete Press. Jon is also the editor of Living City magazine, published by Focolare Media. He is the father of four children, and married to his wife Michal, an ordained Reconstructionist rabbi. The family lives in Middlebury, Vermont.
The IFC spring speaker series continues on March 23rd as historian Aaron Griffith discusses the history of incarceration in the United States, followed by theologian John Arthur Nunes, James Byrd on the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, King’s own Abigail Cutter, writer Christina Bieber Lake, and a final event with Amy Peeler and Jessica Hooten Wilson.
Since 2007, the King University Institute for Faith & Culture has welcomed widely recognized thinkers, authors, musicians, scholars, and philosophers to interact with students and a regional audience in a welcoming environment that catalyzes growth and understanding. The Institute serves as the standard bearer of the University’s Christ-animated exploration of the liberal arts, in conjunction with King’s mission of equipping students to answer the call of service and character inherent in the Christian faith.