How did pious medieval Muslims experience health and disease? Rooted in the prophet’s experiences with medicine and healing, Muslim pietistic literature developed cosmologies in which physical suffering and medical interventions interacted with religious obligations and spiritual health. Ahmed Ragab discusses his recent publication, Piety and Patienthood in Medieval Islam. Ragab is Richard T. Watson Associate Professor of Science and Religion at Harvard Divinity School. Respondents: Mark Jordan,...
Oct 26, 2018•53 min
Religion was fundamental to the development of both slavery and race in the Protestant Atlantic world. For slaveholders, Christianity was a sign of freedom, and most believed that slaves should not be eligible for conversion. Meanwhile, Protestant missionaries arrived in the plantation colonies in the 1670s and were appalled that most slave owners rejected the prospect of slave conversion. Over time, missionaries increasingly used the language of race to support their arguments for slave convers...
Oct 22, 2018•1 hr 24 min
This event features three unique voices from several different traditions and life experiences: Mary Ashu, a forest ranger from Cameroon; Prathima Muniyappa, a researcher at the MIT Media Lab exploring the use of space technology to advance issues of social justice; and Stacy Bare, a war veteran, National Geographic Adventurer, and co-founder of the Great Outdoors Lab. More event info here: https://goo.gl/6Pkk4Z Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and ...
Oct 17, 2018•1 hr 36 min
It is commonplace today to group the three monotheistic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—under the category of the “Abrahamic.” Scholars have investigated the roots, ancient and modern, for this category, and continue to debate its contemporary merits. Meanwhile, practitioners are doing significant work in the wider world under the aegis of the “Abrahamic.” This panel will explore the public practice of the Abrahamic Religions. Panelists will reflect on their work in light of this cate...
Oct 15, 2018•1 hr 51 min
Anglican church leaders in sub-Saharan Africa have a vision of a malaria-free world. Join us for a panel discussion on the role of faith and learn how religious leaders and communities are working to end malaria for good. Panelists: The Right Rev. Andre Soares, bishop of the Diocese of Angola and vice-president of the Council of Christian Churches in Angola The Right Rev. David Njovu, bishop of the Diocese of Lusaka (Zambia) The Right Rev. Cleophas Lunga, bishop of the Diocese of Matebeleland (Z...
Oct 15, 2018•1 hr 14 min
Cornelia Holden, MDiv ’03 discusses her experiences as a spiritual innovator and founder of Mindful Warrior and the Core Leadership California at Ministry Colloquium. Cornelia works with large companies, universities, secondary schools and athletic teams to develop mental stability, resilience, presence and authenticity to empower them to make values-driven decisions regularly and under pressure. Her work is grounded in spiritual principles, experiential education in body-centered approaches to ...
Oct 15, 2018•54 min
By bringing together scholars from across Harvard, this panel discussed the importance of a critical, nuanced, and interdisciplinary understanding of refugee, asylum, and immigrant issues, while highlighting activist efforts. The discussion took place October 11, 2018. It was moderated by HDS's Francis Clooney, S.J., and organized by MTS '19 candidate Shannon Boley. More event info here: https://goo.gl/gpL6ys Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and ser...
Oct 11, 2018•1 hr 25 min
Anna Sun, 2018–19 WSRP Visiting Associate Professor, delivers the lecture "Turning Ghosts into Ancestors: Ritual, Gender, and the Afterlife in Contemporary Urban China." Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at http://hds.harvard.edu/.
Oct 04, 2018•1 hr 19 min
On October 3, 2018, André Aciman, author of "Call Me by Your Name," and writer Benjamin Balint will discuss themes of exile and homecoming, of time, place, identity, and art across Aciman’s works of fiction and nonfiction. André Aciman is the author of Enigma Variations, Call Me by Your Name, Out of Egypt, and False Papers, and is the editor of The Proust Project (all published by FSG). He teaches comparative literature at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He lives with his...
Oct 03, 2018•1 hr 24 min
Panel 3 of the Thinking Islam Within Religious Studies: Methods, Histories and Futures conference Panelists include Diana Eck, Ali Asani, and Roy Mottahedeh. Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at http://hds.harvard.edu/.
Sep 26, 2018•1 hr 25 min
Panel 2 of the Thinking Islam Within Religious Studies: Methods, Histories and Futures conference Panelists include Ahmed Ragab, Charles Stang, and Guy Stroumsa. Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at http://hds.harvard.edu/.
Sep 26, 20180
Panel 1 of the Thinking Islam Within Religious Studies: Methods, Histories and Futures conference Panelists include Mohsen Goudarzi, Jane McAuliffe, Shady Nasser, and Walid Saleh. Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at http://hds.harvard.edu/.
Sep 25, 2018•2 hr 8 min
How is the comparative scholarship on Judaism, Christianity, and Islam possible? What are its presuppositions, and what does it entail? How can the history of religions help interfaith understanding? These are some of the questions this lecture addresses. Lecture by Guy Stroumsa, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Oxford University; response by Jon Levenson, Harvard Divinity School; opening remarks by Charles Stang, Harvard Divinity School, and Adam Afterman, Tel-Aviv University Held Wednesd...
Sep 25, 2018•1 hr 22 min
Abigail E. Disney delivers the keynote address of the Religious Literacy and Business: Media & Entertainment Symposium. This symposium brings together media professionals and scholars of media, religion, and business to assess the state of religious literacy in the field and the role of entertainment media in shaping the public understanding of religion. Our aim is to foster critical reflection and collaborative relationships between scholars and media professionals in order to improve the r...
Sep 19, 2018•1 hr 28 min
Panel 1 of the Symposium on Religious Literacy and Business: Media & Entertainment, moderated by Sarabinh Levy-Brightman and featuring panelists John L. Jackson, Jr., Mik Moore, Joanna Piacenza, Sheila Murphy, and Christopher White. This symposium brings together media professionals and scholars of media, religion, and business to assess the state of religious literacy in the field and the role of entertainment media in shaping the public understanding of religion. Our aim is to foster criti...
Sep 19, 2018•2 hr 16 min
Panel 2 of the Symposium on Religious Literacy and Business: Media & Entertainment moderated by Diane L. Moore and featuring panelists Lorraine Ali, Sarah Hammerschlag, Rhon S. Manigault-Bryant, and Anthony Petro. This symposium brings together media professionals and scholars of media, religion, and business to assess the state of religious literacy in the field and the role of entertainment media in shaping the public understanding of religion. Our aim is to foster critical reflection and ...
Sep 19, 2018•1 hr 22 min
Panel 3 of the Symposium on Religious Literacy and Business: Media & Entertainment moderated by Stephen Prothero and featuring panelists CarolAnne Dolan, Geralyn Dreyfous, Amir Hussain, and Gordon Quinn. This symposium brings together media professionals and scholars of media, religion, and business to assess the state of religious literacy in the field and the role of entertainment media in shaping the public understanding of religion. Our aim is to foster critical reflection and collaborat...
Sep 19, 2018•1 hr 24 min
Panel 4 of the Symposium on Religious Literacy and Business: Media & Entertainment moderated by Lauren R. Kerby and featuring panelists Mario Cader-Frech, Bruno del Granado, Kerida McDonald, and Ross Murray. This symposium brings together media professionals and scholars of media, religion, and business to assess the state of religious literacy in the field and the role of entertainment media in shaping the public understanding of religion. Our aim is to foster critical reflection and collab...
Sep 19, 2018•1 hr 21 min
Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad presented "Hindu View of Life: Speaking For and Against Oneself" on Monday, September 17, at the Center for the Study of World Religions at HDS. By reflecting on three key textual passages, Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad engaged with the intersectional nature of his Hindu identity. This examination of Hinduism and intersectionality offered a new perspective on how identity is creatively and constantly reconfigured by the textual lessons and the lived reality of religious traditi...
Sep 17, 2018•1 hr 28 min
Religious traditions insist on the importance of cultivating our faculty of attention, whether it be attention to ourselves, others, our environment, or the presence of the divine in any of these three. This panel will explore whether and how the practice of writing, especially fiction writing, helps us cultivate this art of attention. What is it about writing, and the imagination and patience required, that helps us learn how better to attend? The panelists are Stephanie Paulsell, Susan Shallcr...
Sep 13, 2018•1 hr 26 min
Panel 5 of West Africa and the Maghreb: New Intellectual Connections Panelists: Mansour Kedidir, CRASC Algeria, “Connections of Intellectuals in the Maghreb and Sub-Saharan Africa: Trajectories and Representations” Fatima Harrak, Institute of African Studies, Rabat Morocco, “Research on Moroccan-African Relations at the Rabat Institute of African Studies” Robert Parks, CEMA, Algeria, “American Research Centers in North Africa and Sahara-Sahel Studies” Ebrima Sall, Trust Africa, Senegal “CODESRIA...
Sep 12, 2018•2 hr 4 min
Panel 4 of West Africa and the Maghreb: Jihadi Ideology: What is New, What is Not? Panelists: William Miles, Northeastern University, “Jihadism in Muslim West Africa in Historical Perspective” Abdulbasit Kassim, Rice University, Jihadi-Salafism and the Vocabulary of Takfīr in the 21st Century Hausaland and Bornu” Zekeria Ould Ahmed Salem, Northwestern University Evanston, “Assessing the Salafi Current in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania” Anouar Boukhars, McDaniel College, “The Strategic Incent...
Sep 12, 2018•1 hr 54 min
Panel 3 of West Africa and the Maghreb: Re-evalutating the Historic Core Curriculum Panelists: Ismail Warcheid, CNRS France, “Scholarly Networks, Legal Debates, and Territorial Integration” David Owen, Harvard University, “Of Radd and Sharḥ and Ṭurra: The Long and Late Dynamism of the African Commentary Tradition on Akhḍarī's Sullam on Avicennian Organon Logic” Alexis Trouillot, Université Paris VII, “The Study of Mathematics in the Sahel from the 15thto the 20th C.” Abubakar Abdulkadir, Univers...
Sep 12, 2018•56 min
Panel 2 of West Africa and the Maghreb: Prayers, Invocations, and the Talismanic Tradition Panelists: James C. Riggan, Florida State University, “Qur’anic Exorcism in North and West Africa” Zachary Wright, Northwestern University Qatar and Adam Larson, Weill Cornell University – Qatar,“Genealogy of Prayer Manuals 18th Century to the Present” Paul Anderson, Harvard, “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered: A Reconsideration of the Evil Eye and Ruqyah through Ethnographic Analysis” Oludamini Ogunnaike...
Sep 12, 2018•1 hr 52 min
Panel 1 of West Africa and the Maghreb: Reassessing Intellectual Connections in the 21st Century Panelists: Armaan Sidiqi, Harvard University, “Perspectives on “Politicized Sufism”: A Case Study of the ṭarīqa QadīrīBoutchichiyya” Jaison M. Carter, Harvard University, ”Black Muslimness Mobilized: A Study of West African Sufism in Diaspora” Ariela Marcus-Sells, Elon University, “Technologies of Devotion in the works of Sidi Mukhtar al-Kunti” Christine Thun-Nhi Dang, New York University, “The Polit...
Sep 12, 2018•2 hr
As part of the efforts to promote the study of Islam in Africa at Harvard, an Islam in Africa conference series was initiated under the sponsorship of HDS, NELC, CAS, AAAS, and the Hutchins Center with the goal to convene an international symposium every year to facilitate intellectual conversation between junior and senior scholars involved in cutting edge research in the field. In line with the mission of the Alwaleed Chair in Contemporary Islamic Religion and Society, this conference series i...
Sep 12, 2018•1 hr 18 min
Women’s Studies in Religion Program (WSRP) 2017–18 Research Associates discuss their research and share their thoughts on the ethical responsibility of scholars to be engaged in the study of gender. Each year, WSRP brings five scholars in gender from around the world to pursue research on women and religion and to enrich the experience of our students. Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at www.hds.harvard.edu.
Aug 29, 2018•54 min
Dr. Frank Rogers delivers the keynote for "Cultivating Resilience Through the Peaks and Valleys of Chaplaincy" conference. The conference focuses on resiliency practices upheld by seasoned chaplains from the major fields of chaplaincy. Rogers is the Muriel Bernice Roberts Professor of Spiritual Formation and Narrative Pedagogy and the co-director of the Center for Engaged Compassion at the Claremont School of Theology and the author of Practicing Compassion. Learn more about Harvard Divinity Sc...
May 24, 2018•1 hr 9 min
Francisca Cho proposes that Buddhist epistemic frameworks regarding the nature of ritual apparitions offer an account of the religious possibilities of film that is absent in Western phenomenological conversations on the same topic. Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at http://hds.harvard.edu/.
May 23, 2018•1 hr 29 min
Congratulations to the Harvard Divinity School class of 2018, who received their diplomas during the HDS Diploma Awarding Ceremony on May 25, 2017. Lindsey Franklin, MDiv ’18, and Denson Staples, MDiv ’18, gave the student address. Learn more about Harvard Divinity School and its mission to illuminate, engage, and serve at http://hds.harvard.edu/.
May 23, 2018•1 hr 20 min
