C. Shelby Rooks Lecture & Award with Rev. Dr. Lee H. Butler

Chicago Theological Seminary is pleased to welcome back Rev. Dr. Lee H. Butler for the 2026 C. Shelby Rooks Lecture.

This year’s lecture will be offered in a hybrid format. Please note our 2026 location: Catholic Theological Union (5416 S Cornell Ave, Chicago, IL 60615)

2026 C. Shelby Rooks & Award
4:30 PM Reception
6:00 PM Lecture – From Revolution in Zion to Singing the Lord’s Song in a Strange Land – Rev. Dr. Lee H. Butler

The Rev. Dr. Lee H. Butler, Jr. has had a distinguished career as a theological educator that spans more than three decades.  He currently serves as the 17^th President and CEO and the Bishop Henry White Warren and Elizabeth Iliff Warren Professor of Africana Pastoral Theology at the Iliff School of Theology.  He is the first Baptist to lead this school.  Before Iliff, he served as the Vice-President of Academic Affairs and Academic Dean, and the William Tabbernee Professor of the History of Religions and Africana Pastoral Theology at Phillips Theological Seminary, Tulsa, OK.  For a period, he led Phillips as Interim President.  He was the first African American to lead that school.  Before Phillips, he was the Distinguished Service Professor of Theology and Psychology at Chicago Theological Seminary, Chicago, IL.  He was the first African American to be promoted to the rank of full professor, a former director of the Master of Divinity program, a former Acting Vice-President for Academic Affairs and Academic Dean, the founder of the Center for the Study of Black Faith and Life at Chicago Theological Seminary, and inaugurated the C. Shelby Rooks Lectureship at Chicago Theological Seminary.  Before Chicago, he served as Assistant Academic Dean and Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology at Lancaster Theological Seminary, Lancaster, PA.  He is a past president of the Society for the Study of Black Religion, a member of the American Academy of Religion, the Society for Pastoral Theology, the Institute for Signifying Scriptures, Society for Process Consulting, the Association of Black Psychologists, and a Board Member of the John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation.  He holds a PhD and Master of Philosophy in Psychology and Religion from Drew University; a Master of Theology in Pastoral Theology from Princeton Theological Seminary; a Master of Divinity with a concentration in Pastoral Care and Counseling from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary; and a BA in Religion from Bucknell University. He is the author of Listen, My Son: Wisdom to Help African American Fathers (Abingdon Press, 2010), Liberating Our Dignity, Saving Our Souls (Chalice Press, 2006), A Loving Home: Caring for African American Marriage and Families (Pilgrim Press, 2000), and numerous articles on the subject of pastoral psychology.