Events programme, Manchester Wesley Research Centre

Christian Studies. The MWRC has close ties to the Department and is headed by Geordan Hammond, an honorary research fellow. It is one of the most important centres for the study of Methodism in the world, not least because of the important collections in the University library. For details of its coming activities and events, see further information.

Die Presse, Liberal Arts

Liberal Arts. In this edition of the Austrian daily newspaper, Scott Midson sets out the benefits of the Liberal Arts degree programme, which at Manchester collaborates closely with Religions & Theology. He observes that the program is very flexible and that "Students can draw from a full range of disciplines and choose courses from the fields of theology, Egyptology, linguistics and disaster management, to drama and digital humanities." Die Presse, 6 May 2022. Further information.

Public Lecture, Oxford University

Jewish Studies. Philip Alexander will give a lecture to celebrate the launch of the book The Mishnaic Moment: Jewish Law among Jews and Christians in Early Modern Europe (2022). Exeter College, Oxford. 23 June 2022.  Further information.

Research funding, AHRC standard grant

Christian theology and environmentalism. Congratulations to Peter Scott (Director, Lincoln Theological Institute) who has been awarded funding as principal investigator for the 3-year project ’Religion, Theology and Climate Change’ (£700,940). The research team includes co-investigators Dr Celia Deane-Drummond (Laudato Si Research Institute, Oxford University) and Dr Gemma Edwards (Sociology, Manchester University). The project will investigate on-the-ground theologies in support of climate adaptation, mitigation and responsible action, in conversation with the project’s partners: the Dioceses of Manchester, Oxford and Salford; Christian Climate Action and Operation Noah; and aid agency CAFOD.

Postdoctorate funding, Leverhulme

Political philosophy and religion. Congratulations and a warm welcome to Samuel O'Connor Perks who has been awarded a 36-month Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship (£114,000) for a project entitled "Radical Conversions: Catholicism, Welfare and Labour in the 20th Century". This project examines the role of religion in 20th century political theory and praxis through the theoretical lens of conversion. By analysing the intellectual frameworks of four activist-thinkers, it pursues two overlapping aims. First, to test the notion that conversion narratives can produce a hermeneutic framework for analysing the nature of 20th century radical politics. Second, to investigate to what extent the act of conversion subverts the boundary between politics and religion, and can therefore throw new light on 20th century welfare and labour politics. In doing so, it offers a wider historiographical contribution by questioning prevailing narratives of secularisation. Samuel will be joining the Department in Sept 2022.

Postgraduate funding, SALC studentship

Jewish Studies. Congratulations to Kerry McCall who has been awarded a SALC PhD studentship (School of Arts, Language and Cultures) for full tuition fees and £16k p.a. maintenance. The topic of her thesis is 'Experiences of Anti-Semitism among Jewish Women in Interwar Britain' (supervisor: Daniel Langton, co-supervisor Charlotte Wildman).

International Day for Biological Diversity

Religion and Technology. To celebate International Day for Biological Diversity (22 May) see... Scott Midson, 'Un/natural Creation(s): Posthumanism, Biotechnology, and Exploring the (Place in) Nature of Humans and Artificial Life' in Keogh G, ed, The Ethics of Nature and the Nature of Ethics (Lexington Books. 2017), 87-101, and Scott Midson, 'More or Less Human, or Less is More Humane? Monsters, Cyborgs, and Technological (Ex)tensions of Edenic Bodies’ in Beal E, Greenaway J, eds, Horror and Religion: New Literary Approaches to the Theology of Fear (University of Wales Press. 2019).

World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

South Asian Studies. To celebrate World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development (21 May) see... Jackie Suthren Hirst, 'Refutation or dialogue? Śaṃkara’s treatment of the Bhāgavatas’ in Dialogue with Classical Indian Traditions: Encounter, transformation and interpretation, Black, B. & Ram-Prasad, C., eds. (New York & London: Routledge, 2019), 51-65, and John Zavos, Green N (ed), Searle-Chatterjee M, (ed.). 'Dialogues on Religion and Violence at the Parliament of the World’s Religions, 2004’ in Religion, Language and Power (New York: Routledge, 2008), 27-41.

Public Lecture, HSU, Hamburg

Political theology. Michael Hoelzl is giving a public evening lecture at the Helmut-Schmidt-Universität / Universität der Bundeswehr (HSU). This keynote lecture is on "Decision making in a State of Emergency - Helmut Schmidt's Marburger Speech 2007" and is part of a lecture series within the context of the current exhibition at the HSU on 'Extreme Situations, Swift Decisions'. Hamburg, Germany, 21 June 2022. Further information.

Exhibition, Mémorial de la Shoah, Paris

Jewish Studies. CJS honorary research fellow and Gerda Henkel research fellow Ion Popa contributed with two edited texts on Churches in Romania and the Holocaust for an exhibition that will open in June at the Memorial de la Shoah in Paris. The exhibition is entitled "'By the Grace of God': The Churches and the Holocaust." 17 June 2022 - 26 Feb 2023, Mémorial de la Shoah, Paris. Further information.

Promotion

Biblical Studies. Hearty congratulations to Dr Holly Morse who has been promoted to Senior Lecturer (in Bible, Gender and Culture), starting 1 Aug 2022. It is very well deserved -- for a sense of her wide research interests, teaching successes, and enormous energy, see some of Holly's activities over the past few years.

Paper, UK Rabbinics Network Workshop

Jewish Studies. Alex Samely will lead a workshop session entitled 'Reading Juxtaposition in Rabbinic Texts' as part of the UK Rabbinics Network Workshop series, which is a forum for scholars conducting research and teaching in the field of Rabbinics to present and study challenging texts or ongoing research problems, with a focus on work-in-progress. For further information please contact the co-convenors: Dr Tali Artman and Dr Laliv Clenman. 2:00-3:30pm, Thu 26 May 2022.

New publication

Christian studies. Peter Nockles, 'The Rise and Fall of High Church Anglicanism in the Life and Thought of John Henry Newman', in Answerable to Our Beliefs: Reflections on Theology and Contemporary Culture Offered to Terrence Merrigan. Edited by Peter De Mey, Kristof Struys, and Viorel Coman (Leiden: Peeters, 2022), 3-41. Further information.

Careers service news

Opportunities and events. Future Fortnight is an immersive two-week programme (Mon 13 June - Fri 24 June) aimed at final year students and recent graduates (although all students are welcome!) and is designed to support you if you are planning your transition from university to the working world or further study. Check out our Future Fortnight page for a programme of events, which includes our Grad Fair on Tues 14 June.

International Day of Living Together in Peace

Peace and interfaith studies. To celebate International Day for Living Together in Peace (16 May) see... Michael Hoelzl and A Zwitter, 'The Augustinian Legacy of Divine Peace and Earthly War' in Peace and War: Historical, Philosophical, and Anthropological Perspectives, Morgan, Guilherme, Cham, eds (Palgrave Macmillan 2020); Alex Samely, 'On Cohesion: Could Religious Tradition be the Antidote to Fundamentalism?' in Policy@Manchester (11 June 2018); David Law, 'The Prophethood of Jesus and Religious Inclusivism in Nursi’s Risale-i-Nur' in Australian Journal of Islamic Studies 2:2 (2017); Reuven Silverman, Daniel Langton, eds, Jews and Christians: Perspectives on Mission (Woolf Institute, 2011); Daniel Langton, 'Relations between Christians and Jews, Post-WWI' in Cambridge History of Christianity: World Christianities c.1914–c.2000, ed by H. McLeod, vol.9 (Cambridge University Press, 2006).

International Day of Families

Jewish Studies.  To celebrate International Day of Families (15 May) see... Bernard S. Jackson, 'How Jewish is Jewish family law?’ in Journal of Jewish Studies 55:2 (2004), 201-229. Further information. 

Postgraduate funding, AHRC

Political philosophy and religion. Congratulations to first-year PhD student Adam North who has been awarded an AHRC studentship for tuition fees and maintenance for 2 years. The topic of his thesis is non-discursive bodily acts as critiques of structural racism (supervisor: Michael Hoelzl; co-supervisor: Alex Samely).

Launch, online catalogue and digital exhibition

Hebrew and Jewish Studies. Join us at the John Rylands Research Institute and Library to celebrate the launch of the online catalogue  and digital exhibition ('Many Faces, Many Places') of the Library’s manuscripts in Hebrew script, signifying the culmination of a project which began in 1992. The John Rylands Research Institute and Library conserves one of the world’s treasured collections of Hebrew and Jewish manuscripts, archives and printed books. This rich and diverse collection draws a picture of Jewish life and its many aspects. Featuring Hebrew script in many languages – Hebrew, Aramaic, Judeo-Arabic, Judeo-Persian, Judeo-Spanish, Judeo-Provencal, Judeo-German, and Judeo-Turkish, the texts spring from all over the Jewish world – Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, India, and even China. They range from magnificent illuminated Passover Haggadot to the only known manuscript copy of a 17th-18th century Purim play from southern France, composed in the local vernacular. 27 Jun 2022, 14:00 BST at The John Rylands Research Institute and Library. For more information and to register for this free event, see Eventbrite. 

Conference paper, Chicago

Christian Studies. Sarah Parkhouse is the panel organiser for "Local Expressions of Early Christianity" North American Patristics Seminar, Chicago, USA. She will also present a paper entitled "The Carthaginian Amphitheatre from a Local Perspective". 26-28 May 2022.

Research paper, Glasgow University

Biblical Studies. Sarah Parkhouse is presenting a paper entitled "Fatal Charades and the Religious Imagination" at the Glasgow Biblical Interpretation seminar on 19 May 2022.

World Migratory Bird Day

Dead Sea Scrolls. To celebrate World Migratory Bird Day (9 May) see... Hon. Research Fellow in the Centre for Biblical Studies Helen Jacobus, 'Flood calendars and birds of the ark in the Dead Sea Scrolls (4Q252 and 4Q254a), Septuagint and ancient Near East texts' in Opening heaven's floodgates: The Genesis Flood narrative, its context and reception, Silverman, JM. (ed.). vol 12 (Gorgias Press 2013), 85-112. Further information.