Thomas Forsthoefel is a professor of

religious studies Religious studies, also known as religiology or the study of religion, is the study of religion from a historical or scientific perspective. There is no consensus on what qualifies as ''religion'' and definition of religion, its definition is h ...

at Mercyhurst University in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pen ...

, as well as a

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

.Biography
Dalai Lama film He has a special interest in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

and has written on both

new religious movements A new religious movement (NRM), also known as a new religion, is a religious or spiritual group that has modern origins and is peripheral to its society's dominant religious culture. NRMs can be novel in origin, or they can be part of a wider re ...

and established traditions within these faiths, while his own background is

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

. He is married to Beth Gylys, professor of English and Creative Writing at

Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is al ...

and a fellow poet.

Biography

In 1999, Forsthoefel met the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

while attending a conference of scholars in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. In 2008 he edited an anthology of the Dalai Lama's writings and contributed to a documentary film on him. In 2010, Forsthoefel was named Poet Laureate of Erie County, Pennsylvania. He said that he was going to use that position to promote a program to introduce poetry to people incarcerated in local prisons.Forsthoefel named Poet Laureate
Mercyhurst College His tenure as poet laureate was renewed for 2011. In 2011, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' quoted Forsthoefel concerning the high school from which he had graduated, Fordson High School of

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, and its overnight football practices to accommodate Muslim students fasting for

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

Published works

Forsthoefel's published books include:Google Books
/ref> *''Four charismatic thinkers on violence and non-violence: analysis and evaluation'' ( Loyola University of Chicago, 1987) *''Epistemologies of religious experience in medieval and modern Vedānta'' ( University of Chicago Divinity School), 1998) *''Knowing beyond knowledge: epistemologies of religious experience in classical and modern Advaita'' ( Ashgate, 2002) *''Gurus in America'' co-editor with Cynthia Ann Humes (

SUNY Press The State University of New York Press (more commonly referred to as the SUNY Press) is a university press affiliated with the State University of New York system. The press, which was founded in 1966, is located in Albany, New York and publishe ...

, 2005) *''Soulsong: Seeking Holiness, Coming Home'' ( Orbis Books, 2006) *''The Dalai Lama: essential writings'' editor ( Orbis Books, 2008)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forsthoefel, Thomas American male poets Living people Religious studies scholars Researchers of new religious movements and cults American male non-fiction writers Year of birth missing (living people)