Professor chose a life of service

It would be easy for Sam Thomas to isolate himself from the world, studying arcane church history that matters to only a few other scholars like himself.

But Thomas, a religion professor at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, has chosen to live a life of service, reflecting the Benedectine philosophy he absorbed in college as well as the Lutheran approach to education.

"I wanted my work to have some impact in the world," he said. "I wanted to do something that mattered to people. ... I can't subsist on being alone in my office, looking at finely detailed theological questions."

That's why Thomas has gotten involved in environmental and social justice issues both at CLU and in the surrounding community. At CLU, he is associate director of the Center for Equality and Justice. He's also co-chairman of the school's sustainability task force.

"He helps students see the connection between the Bible, religious thinking and our responsibilities as citizens of the world, especially for the environment," said Joan Griffin, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at CLU.

Aminah Hassoun, 20, is a religion and political science major at CLU because of an environmental ethics class she took as a freshman with Thomas. Since then, she's also taken three semesters of Biblical Hebrew with him. In class, Thomas treats students as intellectual peers, encouraging discussion and interaction, Hassoun said.

"He teaches students in a way that pushes them to take control of their own education," she said. "He gets students to take some meaning out of it into their own lives."

In the community, Thomas is involved with providing local, organically grown produce to faculty, staff and students at CLU as well as other families.

"He's a calm, positive, solid presence that's really hard to come by," said Julie Morris, a coordinator with Join the Farm, which provides the boxes of produce. "He's able to integrate his scholarly work with practical applications."

Thomas originally planned to become a doctor, majoring in biology in college. But before going to medical school, he decided to volunteer at a hospital in Israel. While living there, he became fascinated with the interaction of different religions and cultures in Jerusalem.

When he returned to the United States, Thomas knew he wanted to go to graduate school to study religion. At Yale University Divinity School, he studied early Judaism and Christianity. His scholarly work now focuses on the Dead Sea Scrolls, including a book published in 2009 and several articles. He's dedicated to the work but also recognizes its limitations.

"That work is isolating and tedious," he said. "It's not the most life-giving kind of work."

Now he's writing an entirely different sort of book, one for a wider audience that will be about paying attention in living one's life. The book will be divided into three areas that matter to him: the Benedictine tradition of hospitality and serving others, his own passion for woodworking, and the wilderness.

"In our age of information and distraction, we can benefit from reminders to practice the art of attention," he said. "For me personally, the Benedictine tradition, woodworking and wilderness provide three different vehicles for thinking about what it means to pay attention - to other people, to our work and to our environment."

Sam Thomas

Occupation: Professor of religion at California Lutheran University; associate director of the Center for Equality and Justice at CLU.

Age: 39.

Education: Bachelor's degree in biology, St. John's University, Minnesota; master's of divinity, Yale University Divinity School; doctorate, University of Notre Dame, program in Christianity and Judaism in Antiquity.

Residence: Camarillo.

Personal: Married; two children.

Last book read: "Let the Great World Spin," Colum McCann.

Favorite movie: "The Mission."

Other interests: Cooking, building furniture, traveling, reading and writing, hiking and camping.

Favorite quote: "My life is not this steeply sloping hour, in which you see me hurrying," Rainer Maria Rilke.

 

--- Published in the Ventura County Star on Jan. 7, 2011