May 2013
16 posts
24 tags
A Plea for Seeing Ourselves as Strange (and...
Seeing yourself through the eyes of others can be transformative, but only if you let their critiques lead you to serious self-reflection rather than dismissal or denial.
A few days ago, Christena Cleveland - the Center for Diversity and Reconciliation keynote speaker at the recent Subverting the Norm II conference - wrote a post in her blog series “Diversity Repellent” (a series...
12 tags
John Reader reflects on the first Philosophy and... →
John Reader’s post at the Philosophy and Religious Practices blog about the first network workshop, The Humanities and Lived Religion: Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact Agenda (May 9th 2013, hosted by the University of Liverpool).
10 tags
Malabou and Lived Religion (link) →
Link to the text of Liam Jones‘ talk on Catherine Malabou, plasticity and lived religion, presented at the first workshop from the Philosophy and Religious Practices network, “The Humanities and Lived Religion: Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact Agenda” (May 9th 2013, hosted by the University of Liverpool).
12 tags
Rebecca Catto, Research on Religion and Public... →
Rebecca Catto summarises her talk on Religion and Public Policy, presented at the first workshop from the Philosophy and Religious Practices network, “The Humanities and Lived Religion: Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact Agenda” (May 9th 2013, hosted by the University of Liverpool).
9 tags
Roger Trigg, The Privatisation of Religion - Is... →
Roger Trigg summarises his keynote talk, “The Privatisation of Religion: Is Philosophy of Religion to Blame?”, presented at the first workshop from the Philosophy and Religious Practices network, “The Humanities and Lived Religion: Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact Agenda” (May 9th 2013, hosted by the University of Liverpool).
9 tags
Report on The Humanities and Lived Religion... →
“The Humanities and Lived Religion: Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact Agenda” was the first workshop of the Arts and Humanities Research Council funded network, Philosophy and Religious Practices. It brought together over 50 delegates from a variety of disciplines working in universities throughout the UK, as well as many non-academics with a vested interest in religion from...
5 tags
IoG13 Reflections Round-up
Links to the reflections I posted after Pete Rollins’ The Idolatry of God retreat (Apr 23-26 2013), Belfast:
Reflection 1: From Intellectual to Existential Doubt
Reflection 2: From Information to Transformation, Or, On the Need to Ingest Ideas
Reflection 3: In The End, I Failed
Reflection 4: Positioning Pyrotheology (Part 1)
Reflection 5: Positioning Pyrotheology (Part 2)
...
9 tags
WatchAs I was reflecting yesterday, I’m often scared of speaking to the churches, as well as of speaking in more informal situations where I can’t rely on a paper that I’ve written in advance. For example, I’ve had a few conversations with Tripp Fuller from Homebrewed Christianity about being interviewed for his podcast, but it scares me. I wish I was braver than I am. But in response to my reluctance,...
18 tags
The Idolatry of God – Reflection 6: Can I speak to...
I posted a few more personal reflections on last week’s The Idolatry of God retreat in Belfast (here and here), which turned out to be more professional (i.e. academic) than I thought because, on reflection, I failed in trying to move from the intellectual to the existential and from information to transformation. But, as Jen summarised in a great comment on one of those earlier posts, ‘We are all...
25 tags
The Idolatry of God - Reflection 5: Positioning...
I posted yesterday about the first part of my talk, ‘Positioning Pyrotheology’, which focused on some of the radical theology, atheology and a/theology that has influenced Pete Rollins’ wider theological project.
Photo of Ikon’s 2009 Greenbelt performance, ‘Pyrotheology’, from pyrotheology website.
Talking later with someone at the retreat, they asked me why they needed to know this background,...
7 tags
WatchVideo of Ikon’s 2009 Greenbelt transformance art piece, ‘Pyrotheology’, taken by Steve Collins. For the text that Cary and Pádraig are performing, see here.
2 tags
30 tags
The Idolatry of God - Reflection 4: Positioning...
I was asked to take part in Pete Rollins’ Idolatry of God retreat as an academic that could ‘address the wider cultural, political and religious significance of Pyrotheology’ because of my ‘in-depth understanding’ of Pete’s work ‘and the new collectives that it calls for’ (see Pete’s introduction to me on his blog). Having made a few more personal reflections on the retreat (here, here and here),...
17 tags
The Idolatry of God - Reflection 3: In The End, I...
I’ve already written about two related challenges that I faced at Pete Rollins’ The Idolatry of God retreat in Belfast last week. Because of my religious background and my role as researcher, these were the challenges of moving from intellectual to existential doubt and of moving from information to transformation.
Yesterday, I used Ikon’s transformance art event The End as an example of a moment...
7 tags
23 tags
The Idolatry of God - Reflection 2: From...
On the Monday night, during one of the first conversations that I had with other participants at this retreat, I was asked, ‘What’s your background?’ and I said, ‘Religious Studies’. But that wasn’t what the person asking the question meant. She wanted to know more about me and my life, specifically about my religious background, so that she could put some of the ideas about the nature of faith...
April 2013
17 posts
21 tags
The Idolatry of God - Reflection 1: From...
Last week, I was in Belfast for Pete Rollins’ Idolatry of God retreat, named after his fifth book, The Idolatry of God: Breaking our Addiction to Certainty and Satisfaction. The four-day event was designed to enable participants to explore Pete’s work in the city where his theology and practice took shape.
I was asked to give a presentation positioning Pete’s project of ‘pyrotheology’ within a...
9 tags
5 tags
STN2 Reflections Round-up
Links to the four reflections that I posted about Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology Live in the Churches? (Apr 5-6 2013, Drury University, Springfield, Missouri):
Reflection 1 - On the Conference Format
Reflection 2 - On Diversity
Reflection 3 - On Politics
Reflection 4 - On the Emerging Church
See also the abstracts for my two presentations:
Atheism as a Contemplative...
20 tags
6 tags
Strange Encounters (link) →
A post by Steve Shakespeare over at the new Philosophy and Religious Practices network blog on putting philosophy and religion into dialogue.
30 tags
Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology...
I’ve been posting reflections (here, here, and here) on STN2, held at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri at the beginning of the month (Apr 5-6 2013). This has also provided an opportunity to reflect on the development of Subverting the Norm as a conference series as a whole, to look ahead to STN3, and to look back to compare STN2 with STN1. So in this post I want to talk a bit about...
30 tags
Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology...
I thought that posting the programme schedule for the first Subverting the Norm conference (Oct 15-16 2010) might help those at STN2 put the conference in the context of its development from STN1.
On Saturday, I asked how our intended aim of bringing together academics and practitioners had been reflected in the format of both STN1 and STN2, looking ahead to what STN3 might look like in...
8 tags
WatchA video for Springfield’s Center for Diversity and Reconciliation, who sponsored a Straight for Equality track at ‘Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology Live in the Churches?’ (Apr 5-6 2013, Drury University, Springfield, Missouri). See this post on STN2 and diversity.
6 tags
30 tags
Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology...
Yesterday, I posted some reflections about the format of last weekend’s STN2 conference held at Drury University, Springfield, Missouri. Since this is a conference series that aims to bring together academics and scholars (a problematic division, I know), I was reflecting on how that aim is embodied in the format that it takes. We were intentional about trying to invite contributions from within...
25 tags
Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology...
In 2010, Drury University (Springfield, Missouri) hosted what many of its participants imagined to be the first conference bringing together theologians, philosophers and church practitioners (themselves problematic categories, I know) to explore the relationships between postmodern philosophy, radical theology, and church practice. Many ‘emerging’ and ‘progressive’ Christian events often try to...
7 tags
4 tags
Introducing the Network... Katharine Sarah Moody... →
The third in a series of posts over at the Philosophy and Religious Practices blog, introducing those closely involved with this new research network. This one is about me.
18 tags
Subverting the Norm II
On Tuesday, I got back from Springfield, Missouri, where I’ve been for a conference organised by Phil Snider and hosted by Drury University - Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology Live in the Churches? (Apr 5-6 2013). Having slept all day Tuesday and been away visiting family on Wednesday and Thursday, I’ve finally got a little time (with my husband going away for a stag...
11 tags
Jim and Jes Kast-Keat’s...
20 tags
The Bad Will to Understand: Tony Jones is a...
I’ve been reflecting on Tony Jones’ “non-response” to Jack Caputo at last night’s Subverting the Norm keynote. Tony was invited to respond to Jack’s talk, ‘Can Postmodern Theology Live in the Churches? Perhaps’. And many of us were left feeling disappointed that Tony didn’t appear to spend any of the time he had actually responding to...
5 tags
Introducing the Network... Chris Baker (link) →
The second in a series of posts over at the Philosophy and Religious Practices blog, introducing those closely involved with this new research network.
March 2013
13 posts
4 tags
Introducing the network... Daniel Whistler (link) →
The first in a series of posts over at the Philosophy and Religious Practices blog, introducing those closely involved with this new research network.
8 tags
The Pervert's Guide to Ideology (link) →
The makers of The Pervert’s Guide to the Cinema return with The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology. Philosopher Slavoj Zizek and filmmaker Sophie Fiennes use their interpretation of moving pictures to present a compelling cinematic journey into the heart of ideology – the dreams that shape our collective beliefs and practices.
24 tags
Irish Research Council Funding Application
I’m in the middle of completing a funding application for an Irish Research Council (IRC) post-doctoral research fellowship (2 years), based at the Belfast campus of Trinity College Dublin’s Irish School of Ecumemics. The project brings back together a more philosophical study of the suspension and potentiality of being of my research interests (which I focused on here for this...
7 tags
Preliminary Schedule for the Idolatry of God Event... →
Pete Rollins has posted a preliminary timetable for the Idolatry of God event that he’s curating in Belfast next month (Apr 23-26). It features, among others, me, Jay Bakker, Duke Special, William Crawley, and (remotely) Kester Brewin. I’m really looking forward to meeting everyone who’s going.
9 tags
75 Reasons to Subvert the Norm
Tripp Fuller gave you 7 reasons. Tony Jones gave you 10. I give you 75 reasons to attend the upcoming conference on postmodern philosophy, radical theology and church practice, Subverting the Norm II: Can Postmodern Theology Live in the Churches? (Apr 5-6 2013, Drury University, Springfield, Missouri):
Adam Braun
Adam Moore
Andrea Folds
Andrea Stephenson
Barry Taylor
Bo Eberle
Bo...
8 tags
Pyrotheology Website (link) →
Being listed as an important thinker for pyrotheology (here) has lifted my spirits a little today after yesterday’s disappointing news about my Phd in Philosophy application. Shame that doesn’t help me get a job, though. Not unless a load of pyro(theology)maniacs want to get together and fund my research!
17 tags
Bad News / (Potentially) Good News about PhD in...
I heard today that my funding application for a PhD in Philosophy at Oxford Brookes was unsuccessful. I’d been so hopeful that I’d be able to have a nice three year chunk of time to study continental philosophy, philosophical interpretations of Saint Paul, the notions of suspension and potentiality, feminist philosophy of religion, and critiques of identity politics. Not to mention...
6 tags
Homebrewed Christianity podcast with Jack Caputo.
2 tags
8 tags
Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact...
How can philosophy of religion address its historical disregard of reality? What might a philosophy of material, lived or everyday religion look like?
Call for Papers for a one-day workshop on Philosophy, Religious Studies and the Impact Agenda (abstract deadline March 11 2013), hosted by the Philosophy and Religious Practices Network at the University of Liverpool on May 9th 2013.
18 tags
Saint Paul and the Philosophy and Politics of...
To celebrate three years of unemployment since I finished my PhD in Religious Studies, I’m applying for a second doctorate, this time in Philosophy, in the History, Philosophy and Religion department at Oxford Brookes University. While this is obviously an attempt to fund my work any way I can, I’ve thought hard about how a PhD in Philosophy will enable me to position myself as a...
3 tags
3 tags
Slavoj Zizek, “A Reply to my Critics”...
February 2013
20 posts
18 tags
“The overarching difference between the other contributors [to the book...”
– John D. Caputo, “On Not Settling for an Abridged Edition of Postmodernism: Radical Hermeneutics as Radical Theology” in J. Aarson Simmons and Stephen Minister, eds, Reexamining Deconstruction and Determimate Religion: Toward a Religion with Religion (Duquesne University Press, 2012), pp....
15 tags
“…my “two cheers” approach [to postmodernism] is meant to be a...”
– James K.A. Smith, “The Logic of Incarnation: Towards a Catholic Postmodernism” in Neal DeRoo and Brian Lightbody, eds, The Logic of Incarnation: James K.A. Smith’s Critique of Postmodern Religion (Wipf and Stock, 2009), pp. 6-7.
6 tags
“We have to get over the idea of a ‘global christianity’ and perhaps consider...”
– Barry Taylor (via adammooreblog)
12 tags
Review of book about John D. Caputo →
Review by Neal DeRoo of J. Aaron Simmons and Stephen Minister’s edited collection about the work of Jack Caputo, Reexamining Deconstruction and Determinate Religion: Toward a Religion with Religion (Duquesne University Press, 2012), from Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews, 2013.02.27.
The book as a whole is critical of Caputo’s Derridean ‘religion without religion’, but...
