This lecture will address how inter-religious dialogue in our century has become an essential context of formation for ministry for a new generation of theological students and their teachers.

The Rev. Dr. Robert Cathey is Professor of Theology, McCormick Theological Seminary, Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is an ambassador for the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions (CPWR).

His current research is focused on how critical issues in Lebanon and the Middle East have global ramifications for inter-religious dialogue.

With the sponsorship of McCormick Theological Seminary, he co-designed a traveling seminar for theological students from Chicago who attended the 2004 Parliament of the World's Religions in Barcelona.

With the sponsorship of the Henry Luce Foundation, he participated in an inter-religious faculty that accompanied theological students from Chicago who attended the 2009 Parliament of the World's Religions in Melbourne. The Luce Foundation sponsored one hundred students and faculty from fifteen theological institutions in the USA to attend the 2009 Parliament as part of the program "Educating Religious Leaders for a Multi-Religious World."