Dr. Gerald Mast, professor of communication at Bluffton University, will deliver the 2011 C. Henry Smith Peace Lecture, "True Evangelical Faith and the Gospel of Peace," at 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 15, in Bluffton's Yoder Recital Hall. His presentation is free and open to the public.

In the lecture, Mast, a Bluffton faculty member since 1996, will explore how people of faith can respond without cynicism or naivet'e to the overwhelming amount of violence and human need in the world.

Mast, who received his Ph.D. in communication from the University of Pittsburgh in 1995, has written and edited six books, including the forthcoming "The Calling of Christ: Being the Church in Life and Vocation."

He is currently editing the academic book series, Studies in Anabaptist and Mennonite History, and serving on the board of The Mennonite magazine.

The C. Henry Smith Peace Lectureship honors the late professor who taught at Bluffton for 35 years, from 1913-48, after spending 10 years at Goshen College. Smith was known for his books on Mennonite history and the peace tradition of the Mennonite churches.

After his death in 1948, his estate established a trust in his name that funds projects-including the lectureship-that promote the Mennonite peace message.

The lectureship is awarded each year to a faculty member from one of the Mennonite colleges, with priority given to Goshen and Bluffton faculty. The chosen faculty member must prepare a lecture that promotes the Mennonite peace stance, then present it at Bluffton and Goshen, and at other schools and on other occasions as invited.