[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 57 (Tuesday, May 6, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E844-E845]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        IN HONOR OF NINIAN SMART

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. WALTER H. CAPPS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 6, 1997

  Mr. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, as the world becomes smaller, and as 
globalization becomes more and more a fact of life, it behooves us to 
know as much as we can about a multiplicity of cultures and the 
religious traditions that inform them. Today, May 6, 1997, the 
University of California, Santa Barbara, is celebrating Ninian Smart 
Day to recognize the extraordinary achievements of one of its faculty 
members in stimulating, extending and deepening cultural and religious 
understanding.
  During a lifetime of service to academic communities on virtually 
every continent on the globe, Professor Smart has worked proficiently 
and diligently to increase knowledge about the nature and function of 
religion in human experience. Professor Smart is the only person to 
have served as a department chair in exemplary universities in both the 
United States (the University of California) and in England (Lancaster 
University). In addition, he has probably trained more Ph.D.'s serving 
throughout the world than any other scholar. And the books he has 
written, together with his television documentaries, have been widely 
acknowledged and highly praised. Mr. Speaker, Ninian Smart's 
contribution to scholarship as well as his personal contribution to 
increased religious understanding is truly remarkable.
  On this day, his 70th birthday, greetings will come his way not only 
from appreciative colleagues and students within the United States,

[[Page E845]]

but also from Great Britain, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. 
Today, on his birthday, I too wish to pay my respects to him, thank him 
for his superlative work and continuing friendship, and trust that he 
has some sense of all that he has done to bring the religious and 
cultures of the world together in a manner that is harmonious, 
constructive, and congruent with a hopeful human future. On this 
special day, I too wish to sing happy birthday to my esteemed and dear 
friend.

                          ____________________