Seminar Description
Sensing that there is an illegitimate gap between our worship and our political life, many Christians attempt to bridge the divide by discerning the "political meaning" of the liturgy. The liturgy is seen as a symbolic activity that forms individuals in certain virtues that they then pursue in the political arena outside of the church. The problem with this approach is that, if the liturgy can be distilled down to a "meaning," the liturgy itself soon becomes a mere reminder of what we already know. In this seminar we will explore another possibility: that the liturgy gathers a different kind of community -- the church -- that is itself a "political" entity. Here we will explore related questions, such as: Can the church be called a polis? Is the church public, private, or something else? How does the liturgy form the shape of the church? Does the view of the church as itself political imply a sectarian stance toward society? How should the church relate to other public realities, such as the nation-state and the market? Do these other realities have their own formative "liturgies"? What do differences in the ways various Christian bodies worship imply for the political witness of the church?
Christian scholars from all different fields are welcome. Those with expertise in political science and liturgical studies are especially encouraged to apply.
About the Director
William T. Cavanaugh is Associate Professor of Theology at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. His degrees are from Notre Dame, Cambridge, and Duke. He is the author of the books Torture and Eucharist: Theology, Politics, and the Body of Christ (Oxford: Blackwell, 1998) and Theopolitical Imagination (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 2002), both of which have been published in French by Editions Ad Solem of Geneva. He is also the co-editor, with Peter Scott, of The Blackwell Companion to Political Theology (Oxford : Blackwell, 2004).
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
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