Dr. John Schmaltzbauer, the Blanche Gorman Strong Chair in Protestant Studies in the Department of Languages, Cultures, and Religions at Missouri State University in Springfield, will give the spring lecture at the Johnson Library & Museum in Osceola, Missouri.

The lecture has been rescheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. CDT on Thursday, May 16, 2024. A buffet dinner will precede the lecture at 6:00 p.m. This event is free and open to the public. Ample parking is available on the grounds of the library and museum complex, located at 220 Main Street in the northwest corner of Osceola. 

The title of Dr. Schmaltzbauer’s talk: “Exploring the Ozarks Religious Landscape”

Abstract: The Ozarks have been called a “buckle of the Bible Belt,” reflecting the dominance of evangelical Protestantism in the region. Along with Baptists and Pentecostals, many other groups have called the Ozarks home, including Catholics and Jews, Spiritualists and Transcendentalists, Muslims and Hindus, and Mormons and Mennonites. This presentation will provide a whirlwind tour of the religious diversity of the Ozarks.

The Johnson Library and Museum (JLM) is a multi-generational, family library located in Osceola, Missouri, founded in 1899 by the Neoplatonic bibliophile Thomas Moore Johnson (1851-1919).