SIGNATURE EVENTS
Lectures, Conferences, Seminars and Colloquia
Throughout the course of the year the Department of Theology and聽Religious Studies hosts a variety of opportunities for students, faculty, theologians and often the public, to attend lectures and events on popular topics.
LECTURES AND CONFERENCES
Religion is central to our understanding of complex issues such as culture, politics, race and gender relations, historical events, law, science and technology, and environmental responsibility and sustainability to name a few. We offer an invitation to hear the dialogue among theology, religion, and culture that are intertwined through important issues of our time, both locally and globally. Expect them to be provocative topics where faith and culture intersect.
The Positions lecture series is sponsored by the Department of Theology and Religious Studies. Series speakers discuss contemporary themes in the fields of theology and religion. Prior Positions lectures may be viewed on our .
The Positions lecture series is sponsored by the Department of Theology and Religious Studies. Series speakers discuss contemporary themes in the fields of theology and religion. Prior Positions lectures may be viewed on our
Spring 2025 Positions Lecture Series
鈥淎ny Objects To Bless?鈥�: The Curious Agency of Things and Icons
Dr. H茅ctor M. Varela Rios
February 12, 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Driscoll 134
Christians and other believers affirm that objects (e.g., artifacts, such as bread and wine) can mediate grace after becoming consecrated, yet are there ways to think about this agency as also emerging from the object itself? Recognizing the personhood and excess in objects as things, we will explore the thinly material influence that, in some cases, affords transformation into icons.
鈥淚s Progressive Christian Activism Antisemitic? Prophecy, Law, and Competing Claims to Biblical Justice.鈥�
Dr. Ethan Schwartz
March 25, 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Driscoll 132 Auditorium
The valorization of biblical prophecy by progressive Christians as the sole voice of biblical justice, although well meaning, often involves anti-Jewish theological motifs because of how it positions law and ritual鈥攚hich Christians often associate with Judaism鈥攊n opposition to justice. Dr. Schwartz will review some illustrative examples of this, show how biblical law and ritual are also deeply concerned with social justice, and offer some case studies in how politically progressive Jews use law and ritual, not prophecy, as the religious framework for their justice work. The upshot is that while progressive Christians should certainly feel empowered to claim prophecy as one important biblical conception of social justice, they should also be open to other such conceptions if they are serious about resisting antisemitism.
Prominent experts from around the world have joined the conversation here at 无码专区 to better understand the root causes of the crisis and how to keep children safe from abuse. Details about the Task Force can be found on the Office of the President website. Recordings and descriptions of prior lectures offered through this series are also available.
In the fall of each year, Kevin Hughes, PhD, Theology and Religious Studies Department chair and professor of historical theology, assembles keynote speakers and scholars from around the world and across the country to join in a three-day conference which has been held since the mid-1970s 鈥� it is a true tradition of scholarship. Learn more about this year's theme, call for papers, and the history of this enduring conference. View previous lectures of plenary speakers on the .
SYMPOSIA and COLLOQUIA
These forums offer an opportunity for graduate students and faculty to hear the research of our department members and the lively exchange of ideas that ensues. Conversations and guest speaker presentations open to the community will be posted here.
Please revisit this section for Fall 2024 programming in September.
CENTER for POLITICAL THEOLOGY
The 无码专区 Center for Political Theology brings Christian theologians into dialogue with humanities scholars and social scientists to explore the intersection of religion and politics, while also helping students understand and participate in those conversations. TRS faculty member Vincent Lloyd, PhD, is the director.To opt-in for the CPT newsletter, please email the CPT coordinator.
Visit , a blog begun by Lloyd through the Political Theology Network, with sponsorship by 无码专区鈥檚 Center for Political Theology. The blog鈥檚 topics address Catholic and Catholic-adjacent thought and practice as it relates to grassroots social movements, critical theory, questions of race, gender, class, colonialism and much more.