Together for the common good: conference, 6-8 September 2013

For more details about this conference, please click here.

SYMPOSIUM: POLITICAL RELIGION IN SECULAR AUSTRALIA

Dr Michael Hoelzl speaks at this Symposium, to be held on 22-23 July 2013 at the University of Newcastle, Australia.

For more information, please click here.

Lincoln Theological Institute Work-in-Progress Meeting

Researchers associated with the Lincoln Theological Institute met at the University of Manchester on Monday 1st July for a work-in-progress afternoon.

Susannah Cornwall, LTI postdoctoral research associate, reported on the work of the Intersex, Identity, Disability project, including the production of four briefing papers, and the forthcoming publication of papers in Theology and Practical Theology drawing on her interviews with intersex Christians in Britain.

John Rodwell, LTI honorary research fellow, shared progress on the book forthcoming from the Belonging and Heimat project, entitled At Home in the Future: Place and Belonging in a Changing Europe. He also discussed other work in progress, including his leading of a workshop for DEFRA to consider overlaps between spiritual and aesthetic accounts of place and environment.

Anne Marie Sowerbutts, LTI honorary research fellow and leader of The Common Good project, shared developments arising from the project among community groups in Wythenshawe, including discussions about provision for elderly people, leading to the convening of a local support and friendship group. Anne Marie also noted the recent publication of her paper in Christian Bioethics 18.2 entitled "Germ-line Genetic Engineering in Light of the Theology of Marriage", and her work with a group of Carmelites.

LTI honorary research fellow Paul Vallely shared updates on his own work, including the forthcoming publication of his biography of Pope Francis (Pope Francis: Untying the Knots, Bloomsbury, August 2013), and his involvement with the development of an MA in Theology, Media and Communication at the University of Chester.

LTI students Charlie Pemberton, Rohan Gideon and Scott Midson gave updates on their PhD projects: a theological critique of Christian charities' work with homeless people; a developing account of agency in Child Theologies in India; and a theology of the cyborg.

LTI Director Peter Scott reported on the work of other LTI projects, including Systematic Theology in a Changing Climate (a multi-authored systematic theology of climate change); the ongoing conferences in the A Shaking of the Foundations? Reconsidering Civil Society strand, including Churches, Communities and Society (25th-26th October 2013); and the launch of a new project, Theology, Plurality and Society.

At the conclusion of the meeting, Director Scott commented: "It's been great to review the range and depth of the work going on at LTI--some truly remarkable theological work is going on here, and I'm delighted by these achievements." 

Lectureship in the Department of Religions and Theology, the University of Manchester

A lectureship is now being advertised. If you are interested, please click the linksbelow.

Buddhist Thought and Practice--closing date 8 July 2013

Conference: The Postcolonial Church: Theology, Identity and Mission, 28-30 May 2014

Part of the Divinity After Empire project, this conference is hosted by St Paul's University, Limuru, Kenya, and organised by St Paul's and Postcolonial Networks.

The organizers welcome Decolonial and Postcolonial papers in the areas of Biblical Studies, History, Mission, Public Theology and Religious Conflicts. 

 

Interested persons are requested to submit a 250 word abstract by 1st September 2013 via email to Esther Mombo (dvcacademics@spu.ac.ke) and Joseph Duggan (nyclaman@gmail.com).

Forthcoming talks and presentations

Forthcoming talks and presentations by Susannah Cornwall:

4th May 2013, 10am-3.30pm, Lang Cafe, 65 West 11th Street, New York, NY. Queering Christianities Conference, New School, New York City: "Queering Susanna: Art, Liturgy and Queer 'Emptiness'"

19th May 2013, 1pm, Captain's Cabin, 4 Norris Street, London SW1Y 4RJ. Vagabonds group, St James' Piccadilly, London: "Intersex"

"1 in 2,500 people has an intersex condition, meaning that their body cannot be unproblematically categorized as male or female. Theological accounts of sex, gender and sexuality often assume sex is binary and stable, but what if this is not the case? In this session, we'll discuss some of the specificities of intersex conditions, learn what intersex Christians have said about the interactions between their intersex identity and their Christians identity, and explore what the implications might be for people of faith."  

1st June 2013, Hidden Perspectives / LaDIYfest Sheffield festival: "Hidden in Plain Sight: Intersex, the Bible, and Social Assent"

"Hidden Perspectives is a large-scale pioneering public engagement project that aims to open up interpretations of biblical narratives to underrepresented groups. The project is a jointly organised by Dr. Katie Edwards at The University of Sheffield and LaDIYfest Sheffield.

Hidden Perspectives encourages inclusive discussion on dominant interpretations of biblical texts and narratives found in scholarship and mainstream culture. Working with groups and individuals from range of faith and non-faith backgrounds, this ambitious project aims to foster an atmosphere of inclusivity and diversity in which biblical texts can be interpreted."

26th July 2013, The Bible and the Social Sciences conference, University of Manchester: “Reading Bodies: Intersex, Homelessness, and ‘Marginal’ Interpretation”