John L. Bell, an ordained minister and hymnodist of the Church of Scotland, will deliver the Ray Frank Robbins Lecture at Samford University Thursday, March 31.  Bell, who resides in Glasgow and serves The Iona Community, will speak on “Social Justice in the Name of Jesus” at 10 a.m. in Reid Chapel.

            The Robbins Lecture, inaugurated in 2008 by Samford’s department of religion, honors the longtime professor of New Testament at New Orleans Baptist Seminary who began his academic career at Samford.  The lectureship focuses on the intersection of scholarship and Christian living.

            Bell is an international preacher, lecturer, hymn writer and author with a passion for congregational song.  He has received fellowships from the Royal School of Church Music and the Hymn Societies of both the United States and Canada. He holds a doctorate from the University of Glasgow.

            In addition to delivering the Robbins Lecture, he will speak at Beeson Divinity School in Hodges Chapel Tuesday, March 29, at 11 a.m. and will lead a musical event entitled “Justice and Peace at God’s Request” at Samford’s School of the Arts in Brock Recital Hall Tuesday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m.

            He will also speak to students in Brock Forum Wednesday, March 30, at 3 p.m. on “Bible and Spirituality” in a University Fellows program.