By James N. Hoke. I ponder this scenario often: a student comes to my “Introduction to Biblical Studies” class wearing a t-shirt that says “God Hates F***”.[1] Do I make them remove or cover it, leave the classroom? Do I drop my lesson plan and engage it right there? Do I let it be—to see how others […]
By Alison L. Joseph. I am a textual and historical scholar. I work on the Hebrew Bible. I often joke when anyone talks about things medieval and beyond, they are “current events.” My work rarely has a contemporary connection. I was invited to give a paper at the San Antonio SBL in November on the topic […]
Professors across the land are preparing to return to the classroom, beginning with the all-important discussion on first day: setting the ground rules. Sometimes I ask the class to generate guidelines, beginning with their top list of classroom dos and don’ts. And inevitably, after “listen to others,” “don’t dominate the conversation,” and “respect other views,” […]
By Rosemary Carbine. The Workgroup on Constructive Theology recently produced a video titled Fear Not!, which encourages Christians to respond in faith to the dangerous public discourse of the current U.S. political season, which has featured prominent public figures who endorse Islamophobia, racism, anti-immigration policies against refugees, and so forth on religious grounds. Inciting a […]
We are happy to announce the arrival of the newest issue of JFSR: Volume 32, Number 1 (Spring 2016). This issue is packed with exciting new material, including a Roundtable on Women of Color in the Religious Studies Classroom, and two Across Generations interviews with Inés Talamantez and Judith Plaskow! To learn more about the issue, please visit the Volumes page to […]
By Sarah Emanuel. Socio-narratologist Arthur Frank writes that “stories animate human life” (see Letting Stories Breathe). They tell us how to make sense of our surroundings, how to develop relationships with those around us, and how to decide what—and who—matters. In fact, we as a species have been able to develop and diversify at such […]
By Arminta Fox. The risks are great for online feminists, as Megan Goodwin’s recent blog post argues. In some circles, adding religion to the conversation makes it riskier, even if being undone by the feminist religious other is desirable. The risks for feminists of color and non-cisgender feminists, who face multiplicative levels of oppression, can […]
At the beginning of every semester, I start classes by asking my students to introduce themselves. I ask them to answer several questions which vary by semester. What does not change is a practice I began in my first semester teaching undergraduate students at Occidental College. I ask my students to give me their preferred […]
What should feminist scholars in religious and theological studies do about the recent developments related to Title IX? After all, even the federal government is currently involved in trying to eliminate sexual harassment and sexual assault from US-American colleges and university. The situation is indeed dire, as a survey of September 2015 indicates. The responses […]
I saw the movie WAR ROOM and for the rest of that day I was on fire – not with anger, but with a renewed love for God. Before you dismiss this review, let me explain. I’ve since deleted my Twitter and FB posts raving about the movie because after reading a review about the dangers […]