Plenary Speakers:

Peter Berger
Sociology
Boston University

Iain Wallace
Geography
Carleton University

Graham Ward
Theology
Manchester University

In our current climate—in an “age of terror” and in the wake of September 11, 2001—much popular and journalistic attention has been given to the relationship and tension between globalization and religion. While much of this has focused on links between religion and violence, there have also been attendant considerations of the role of religion in a world of globalized capitalism. And as the work of Philip Jenkins and others has pointed out, Christianity itself has been globalized. No longer a “Western” religion, the center of gravity of global Christianity has shifted to the southern hemisphere.

Two different paradigms seem to have emerged: the first, deeply rooted in modernity, posits a logical trajectory from democracy to globalized free markets, and sees secularization as necessary for realizing this telos. But an alternative “postmodern” paradigm calls into question the necessary link between democracy, secularity, and capitalist configurations of the market. Thus contemporary theory has sketched a post-secular paradigm that emphasizes community, particularity, affectivity, and embodiment, while also encouraging new networks of international and trans-national relations. In both paradigms, religion plays a critical role in discerning the way forward.

What resources do our religious traditions offer for critical reflection on globalization? How would a theological account of globalization affect given paradigms in the social sciences? How do the arts resist the globalization of the market? In what way is the Church, as a transnational Body, a resource for thinking global community? What does the Gospel have to say to and through the academy in a post-secular world? And do our colleges and universities reflect these global concerns and shifts? Do we too quickly accept “secular” paradigms in our disciplines? What would it mean to prepare students for a post-secular, globalized world?

This interdisciplinary conference presents an opportunity for scholars, particularly those at religious institutions, to engage in critical academic reflection on these questions of secularization, globalization, and religion and their direct relevance to public policy and practice.

Schedule in pdf format

Presenter Biographies

Presenter Abstracts

Working Bibliography

For further information contact:
Seminars in Christian Scholarship
Calvin College
1855 Knollcrest Circle SE
Grand Rapids MI 49546-4402
616.526.8558
fax 616.526.6682
seminars@calvin.edu