Peter Slade on Racial Reconciliation in Mississippi

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20141022 Peter Slade headshot web readyOn November 5, 2014, Ashland University Professor and U.Va. alum Peter Slade delivered a lecture at U.Va. entitled, “Open Friendship in a Closed Society: Racial Reconciliation in Mississippi after the Civil Rights Movement.” The event included discussions on theological drama and historical narrative, the ministry and church dynamics in Mississippi, and his research, including readings from his 2009 dissertation. Dr. Slade analyzed the idea that a theology of reconciliation can foster a harmonious community out of a racist and socially stratified society. Those in attendance contributed to the discussion with their own ideas and inquiries.

“A young white businessman…had this idea, he called it a vision, of the black and white ministers raising the cross together. If they gathered in repentance around the cross, this was a great symbol of unity. And so this rather odd thing happened on the playing field at Memorial Stadium, where all these guys in blazers raised the cross like they were on Iwo Jima. And this was one of the center points of the rally.”

To watch a recording of Slade’s lecture, click here.

Organization spotlight: Solidarity Ignite

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20141118 solidarity ignite logo webready“We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly …before you finish eating breakfast in the morning, you’ve depended on more than half the world. This is the way our universe is structured. This is its interrelated quality. We aren’t going to have peace on Earth until we recognize this basic fact of the interrelated structure of all reality.” -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Solidarity Ignite is an organization that brings together labor and consumer groups to hold corporations accountable to uphold human rights by changing industry-wide market incentives. They believe that by increasing transparency between workers and consumers, encouraging large-scale support of fair working conditions, and pressuring corporations to respect human rights on the job through real financial consequences, dignified workplaces can be achieved.

The organization has several programs to which interested students may now apply, including a solidarity immersion trip to the Dominican Republic over winter break and a social justice conference in New Orleans in early Spring of 2015.

To find out more about Solidarity Ignite or their opportunities for involvement, explore their website here.

Faith and Doubt in the Modern World

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20141114 CM headshot webreadyIs belief in God a product of wishful thinking? Does religion promote violence? On what basis do some intelligent people argue that belief in God is rational and others that belief in God violates reason? What are the implications for people of faith?

In spring 2015, Charles Marsh will be teaching a course entitled, “Faith and Doubt in the Modern World.” The class will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:00-3:15 p.m. with a separate Thursday night discussion section.

This course introduces undergraduates to seminal writings in modern Western thought that explore and question the meaning, truthfulness, and uses of religious belief. The goal is to develop a multi-storied narrative of the variety of interpretations given to the idea of God in modernity and to clarify the conditions of responsible religious belief in a pluralistic world. The class will explore works by Albert Camus, C.S. Lewis, Sigmund Freud, David Bentley Hart, David Hume, Friedrich Nietsche, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, George Eliot, and Wim Wenders, among others.

For class times and locations, visit Lou’s List here. The course’s identification code is RELG 2380 and the course number is 19644.

 

PLT Summer Interns Reflect

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CHIL 473The final papers of the Project on Lived Theology’s 2014 summer interns are now available online. This year’s interns include Claire Constance and Peter Hartwig, two U.Va. undergraduate students who, with the guidance of a mentor, studied with the partnering institution of their choice for the summer. Claire traveled to Limpopo, South Africa to train community health workers in child development assessment and intervention, while Peter taught a 10-week course on American religious autobiography at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail. Both students blogged regularly for the Project throughout the summer reflecting on their experiences.

The Summer Internship in Lived Theology complements the numerous existing urban and rural service immersion programs flourishing nationally and globally by offering a unique opportunity to pursue service as a theological activity. The internship further encourages students to interpret moral action in its differing religious contexts.

Read Claire’s paper here. Read Peter’s paper here. To learn more about the Summer Internship in Lived Theology and past interns, click here.

Charles Marsh to speak at AAR Conference

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20141105 web readyOn Sunday, November 23, Charles Marsh will conduct a theological biography session on Dietrich Bonhoeffer as part of the American Academy of Religion Conference. Held at the San Diego Convention Center, the lecture will begin at 1:00 pm and be followed by a Strange Glory book signing. Registration is required.

The 2014 Annual Meetings of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) will take place from November 22-25 in San Diego, California. Considered the largest annual event in the fields of religion and theology, the AAR meetings attract thousands of scholars, students, authors, publishers, religious leaders, and interested community members to a variety of lectures and meetings that provoke innovative thought and intellectual perception. The meetings are co-hosted with the Society of Biblical Literature, and the public is encouraged to register and attend any of the academic sessions.

For more information on the AAR meetings and registration, click here.

The Last Bookstore hosts Charles Marsh

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20141028 CM at Last Bookstore4 web readyOn July 10, 2014, Charles Marsh led a discussion on Strange Glory at The Last Bookstore in Los Angeles. Along with reading excerpts from his book, Marsh examined the life of Bonhoeffer including his relationships, faith, and perception of the church.

“And a question [Bonhoeffer] asked that haunts me to this day is, are we still of any use?”

To watch the video recording of this event, click here. To get more information on past and future book events, including pictures, click here.

PLT website now device-responsive

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20141029 responsive website web readyThe Project’s website was recently updated to make the site fully responsive. The layout of livedtheology.org now adjusts to the size and capabilities of your device to ensure optimal viewing and eliminate the inconveniences of endless scrolling, searching, and resizing. To see the design firsthand, check out the website on your smartphone, tablet, and computer.