Canon Andrew White to Speak at 2012 Commencements

Wheaton College is pleased to announce that The Reverend Canon Dr. Andrew White will address graduates of both the College and the Graduate School in the May 2012 Commencement ceremonies.

Canon White will address candidates for the master’s and doctoral degrees from the Wheaton College Graduate School at 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 5, and candidates for the bachelor’s degree in the arts, sciences, and music education at 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 6, 2012.

Canon White is the Chaplain of St George’s Anglican Church in Baghdad, Iraq, which he has led since 1998. He is also the founder and president of the Foundation for Relief and Reconciliation in the Middle East. The organization exists to support Canon White’s unique work at St George’s by providing a spiritual home, medical care, humanitarian relief and the promotion of reconciliation amongst different religious groups in the heart of Baghdad’s Red Zone.

Canon White is the recipient of numerous awards and international recognitions for his dedication to the pursuit of peace, which has included years of service in Israel and Palestine. Canon White negotiated the end of the Bethlehem siege in 2002. In Iraq, he conducted peace talks between opposing sectarian factions that led to the first joint Sunni/Shia fatwa against violence.

In 2010, he received the Train Foundation Civil Courage prize, which is awarded to people who have placed themselves at great risk in order to resist evil. He is the author of several books, including Faith under Fire and The Vicar of Baghdad. When not in Baghdad, or traveling, his home base is in the UK with his wife and two sons.

The ceremonies, as well as the 7:30 p.m. Festival of Faith concert Friday May 4 and the traditional Baccalaureate Service at 9 a.m. on Sunday May 6, will be broadcast live on WETN (88.1 FM) and Comcast Cable (Channel 72 in Wheaton, Channel 17 in Warrenville and Winfield, and Channel 10 in West Chicago). Audio and video will be available online at www.wetn.org.

For further information about Commencement services at Wheaton College, call the Media Relations Office at 630.752.5015.