2026 Thomas H. Lake Lecture
The Samaritan, the Levite, and Innkeeper: Three Approaches to the Ethics of Philanthropy
Lake Institute on Faith & Giving presents the 2026 Thomas H. Lake Lecture with Notre Dame Professor, Meghan Sullivan, PhD. Join the event on Thursday, September 3 at 4:30 pm ET.
In this talk, Meghan will focus on “The Samaritan, the Levite, and Innkeeper: Three Approaches to the Ethics of Philanthropy.” What does it truly mean to love humanity? Long before it became associated with modern nonprofits and foundations, the nature of philanthropy was up for fierce philosophical debate in the ancient world. Dive into one of history’s most famous stories—the Parable of the Good Samaritan—and look at it through a fresh lens. Explore the ethical frameworks embedded in the story and what it can teach about different approaches to giving and caring for others. You’ll walk away with meaningful insights to help guide your own thinking about how we practice philanthropy today.
Meghan Sullivan is the Wilsey Family College Professor of Philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. She serves as Director of the University-wide Ethics Initiative and is the founding director of Notre Dame’s Institute for Ethics and the Common Good. Sullivan is deeply interested in the ways philosophy contributes to the good life and the best methods for promoting philosophical thought. In 2022, Sullivan published The Good Life Method with Penguin Press (co-authored with her teaching collaborator Paul Blaschko) based on a wildly popular introductory philosophy course she developed at Notre Dame called “God and the Good Life.” Since 2016, “God and the Good Life” has accompanied thousands of Notre Dame students through the process of developing a philosophical plan for their lives. Sullivan is currently working on a book about the role of love in our moral lives. Learn more here.
This event is free and open to the public. The in-person lecture will take place at Hine Hall Auditorium, 875 W North St, Indianapolis, IN 46202. The lecture will begin at 4:30 pm Eastern and will be available on livestream, too.
For questions, please contact lfi@iu.edu.