Lee Sends Representatives to Southeast Conference on Christianity and Literature
Cleveland, TN (11/03/2026) — Lee University English students, alumni, and professors recently traveled to Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, to present academic research at the Southeast Conference on Christianity and Literature (CCL).
"Attending this conference with my professors and my peers helped me grow by providing me the opportunity to experience professional presentations within the English discipline," said Olivia Divel, senior English literature and writing double major. "I was able to see how scholars who have already been in the field for a long time present their research."
The Southeast Conference's annual theme was "Transformative Language: Literacies of Mind, Body, and Soul." Jason Baxter, director of the Center for Beauty and Culture at Benedictine University, provided the keynote address.
Undergraduate student presenters included Ana Brewster, Madelyne Carr, Divel, and Alia Serrano. Brewster presented "Margery Kempe: Making Mystical Mayhem"; Carr presented "Know God, Know Love, No God, No Love"; Divel presented "The Feminine Reception of Mystical Vision in Julian of Norwich's Revelations of Divine Love"; and Serrano presented "Honored Above the Trees of the Forest: The Cross as a Mary Figure in The Dream of the Rood."
"These age-old texts that we study remain relevant today because of their exploration of what it means to be human," said Carr, senior English literature major. "Studying them not only reveals aspects of ourselves, but inspires us to collaborate with others, furthering our understanding of the world within and the world beyond."
Alumni presenters included Garrett Mikulka, Elliana Shaffer, and Hallie Wielfaert. Mikulka presented "Incarnate Language: John 1:14 and Lancelot Andrewes's 1611 Christmas Day Sermon"; Shaffer presented "Seeing Through Feeling: Cordelia and Edgar as Interpretive Guides in King Lear"; and Wielfaert presented "Jacopone da Todi and the Kenotic Function of Mystical Poetry."
The students and alumni were accompanied by Dr. Ashley Mulligan, associate professor of English, and Dr. Chad Schrock, professor of English. Mulligan presented "A Knight and A Poet: William Wordsworth's Chaucerian Rehabilitation" and Schrock presented "Doctor Donne and the End of Joy."
"Every year I try to take several of our students who've written papers for our classes that fit the CCL's mission and vibe and deserve a wider audience," said Schrock. "It is a highlight of my year to introduce my students to and celebrate them with my long-time colleagues and friends in the region."
The CCL is an interdisciplinary society dedicated to exploring the relationships between Christianity and literature. Organized formally in 1956, the CCL is dedicated to both scholarly excellence and collegial exchange and includes hundreds of members from a variety of academic institutions and religious traditions from the United States, Canada, and more than a dozen other countries.
To learn more about the CCL, visit christianityandliterature.com.
For more information about Lee's Department of Language and Literature, call (423) 614-8210.
Media Attachments
Student and alumni presenters are shown here outside the Samford University library during the Southeast Conference on Christianity and Literature.
