Feature

A Metadiscourse on Remembering Religion and the Troubles in Belfast By: Stephanie Downing, MTS2 “Ireland, the continual past.”[1] This stage direction sets the stage for Northern Irish playwright Stewart Parker’s masterpiece Northern Star. There is perhaps no better setting for a play written in 1984 about the… Read More

by Jonathan Redding, PhD Candidate’17 Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel In the spring 2016, the students studying Hebrew Bible from the Vanderbilt University Graduate Department of Religion visited Princeton, New Jersey to explore the Princeton Theological Seminary library archives. Below are pictures of some beautiful old bibles,… Read More

It was the spring of 1998. Europe was in the final stages of agreeing on a single currency, the euro. The Good Friday Accord had just been reached in Northern Ireland. Back in the United States, the President was embroiled in a White House sex scandal. And… Read More

As my yearlong research leave from the Divinity School was winding down this past summer, I found myself imagining how I might put some of the resources in my endowed chair to work for the benefit of our school and the wider community. The notion… Read More

The National Conference for LGBT Equality: Creating Change is an annual event. It’s truly a one-of-a-king organizing and skills-building event for the LGBTQ community and allies. The 28th annual Creating Change conference was held in Chicago, Illinois, this year. Vanderbilt Divinity School student delegates Shakiya Canty, Levi Dillard, Sarah Jordan,… Read More

“This is my symbol of trauma.” Photo by Rev. Sue Park-Hur. Used with permission. I snapped open the blue container containing the mouth guard that my dentist had crafted specifically for my nighttime teeth grinding. After a few explanatory sentences I placed my container on the… Read More

On Thursday, June 18, 2015, Pope Francis released Laudato Si’, in English Praise Be to You: On Care for Our Common Home. This encyclical is the first to address the sweeping consequences of anthropogenic climate change, and it presents Pope Francis’ pastoral commitment to the integral flourishing of all… Read More

Bishop Joe E. Pennel, Jr,  Professor of the Practice of Leadership, writes about his concern for the chaos in today’s world and his attempt to understand the source as informed by the faith that gave birth to the Church. Fear is a sign of our time in history. Fear… Read More

The long quiet has settled in the halls of the Divinity School. Students depart to visit family and friends across town and around the world. Faculty retreat to cozier spaces to grade papers and prepare for the new term. Around our building, the staff is keeping the lights on, holding… Read More

My first Thanksgiving in the United States of America coincided with my first 100 days at a time in this country. Perfected timing. I too joined the chorus of Americans in celebration of this day. What am I thankful for this year? November 26, 2015, as I sit around… Read More