New Publication

Biblical studies. Siobhán Jolley has published the entry for Pontius Pilate in Visual Art for the Encyclopaedia of the Bible and its Reception, which is available online now ahead of the physical publication of Volume 24 in the autumn. Further information.

International Conference Papers

Asian Religions. Erica Baffelli will be presenting at the XXIII IAHR Congress in Kraków in August 2025, chairing a roundtable on “Recentring Fear in the Study of Religion: Theorising from Asia” and as discussant on two panels  “The Religious Aesthetics of Intense Devotion in the Ancient World” and "Methodologies in Global Religious History: Is there "Esotericism" in Japan?". Further information.

Going Beyond Belief Highlights

Public resource. Many A level RS students don’t get the opportunity to learn about the way that technology is influencing ideas about religion and humanity and vice versa in the modern world. On our resource, Going Beyond Belief, Dr Scott Midson has created an activity page on Roboethics that provides just such an opportunity! In it he helps to show how many of the ethical issues that A level students study as part of their RS syllabus are, in fact, crucial for thinking about big questions to do with AI and robotics. You can find a link to Scott's pages here.

New Publication

Religion and the Environment. Peter Scott has published the entry on "Ecology and the Environment" (June 2025) in The Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion at Oxford University Press. Further information.

New Publication and Conference Panel

Practical Theology. The volume Resisting Theologies and the Everyday: Addressing Inequalities in Constructive, Practical, and Liberative Approaches, edited by Wren Radford has just been published. Wren also provided the introduction to the volume which charts the possibilities of engaging with ‘the everyday’ in practical, constructive, and liberative theologies, alongside a chapter stemming from their own qualitative research, titled ‘Caring Hurts: The Everydayness of Navigating Poverty in the UK’. The collection includes a range of contributions ranging from different theological and global contexts. There was a panel for the volume at the International Association of Practical Theology (IAPT) Conference in June in Sakatoon, where Wren presented on the volume on their chapter, alongside Néstor Medina (La Lucha, Lo Cotidiano, and Fiesta: On Decolonial Theoethical Insights in Latina/o/x Theologies) and Heather Walton (Everyday Extremes: Encountering the Wild in Theological Discourses of Everyday Life) presenting on their respective chapters.

Manchester Graduate Talent (MGT) 2025 programme is open

For graduates. Our Manchester Graduate Talent (MGT) scheme sources paid graduate-level opportunities for 2024 and 2025 graduates. Find out more here.

International Workshop

Early Christian Studies. On 5–6th August, Sarah Parkhouse is participating in "Longing for Home: Exploring the Contemporary Significance of Late Antique Christian Notions of 'Home' in the Chester Beatty Collections", hosted by Dublin City University and the Chester Beatty Museum and funded by Research Ireland. Sarah will be working on the significance of "home" in Coptic martyr and monastic texts held in the Museum. Further information.

Conference Presentation

Pedagogical approaches. Wren Radford presented at the University’s Teaching and Learning conference at the start of July, facilitating a workshop ‘Fragile, Messy, Slow, Fun: Interdisciplinary Inclusive Education’, which drew on participatory research with students on the Liberal Arts programme. The workshop used design cards collaboratively created with students that present a mix of images, experience-based quotes, and academic readings to promote reflection on practices of inclusion and interdisciplinarity in teaching and learning.

PhD Success

Religion and Theology. Warm congratulations to Al Lowe, who has successfully completed his part-time doctoral studies and graduated in July. His thesis title is "A Critical Theological Appraisal of Discipleship in the Fresh Expressions Literature, 2000-2023: Exploring Concept, Formation and Practices". His supervisors were Peter Scott and Scott Midson.

John Heywood Thomas, 1926–2025

Philosophy of Religion. The department is saddened by the news that John Heywood Thomas has passed away at the age of 98. Professor Heywood Thomas was a lecturer in Philosophy of Religion at the University of Manchester between 1957–65, where he published his seminal book interpreting and critiquing his own teacher Paul Tillich, alongside a number of important journal articles. You can read 'Paul Tillich: An Appraisal' here. Following his time at Manchester, John became a Reader in Divinity at Durham (1964–74) and Professor and Head of the Department of Theology at Nottingham University (1974–92). In retirement, John held an honorary professorship at the University of Wales. Robert Pope has published an obituary in the Guardian.

Faith on Failure Workshop

Religious studies. Erica Baffelli was one of the invited speakers at the “Faith on Failure: The 2025 Heythrop Institute Workshop” (July 17-18). Further information.

New Publication and Launch Event

Philosophy. Alex Samely has published "Philosophising While Reading Texts Across Cultures" in Doing Metaphysics in a Diverse World: How We Make Sense of Things Across Cultures, edited by Stephen Green and published by Bloomsbury. The book was launched by an event at the British Academy on 25 June, which at the same time served as the launch event of the Intercultural Philosophy Association, of which Alex is a founding member.

Research Supervisor Accreditation

Department news. Katja Stuerzenhofecker has been awarded accreditation as Recognised Associate Research Supervisor by the UK Council for Graduate Education.

Grant Success

Environment and Religion. Congratulations to Peter Scott and Finlay Malcolm on a successful application to the UKRI’s Impact Accelerator Account. This funding supports the secondment of Finlay to the Diocese of Salford for six months to embed some of the findings in ecotheology from Peter Scott’s AHRC project, Religion, Theology and Climate Change (2022-25).

Career Support and Mentoring for Graduates

Employability. Did you know that the University Careers Service is available to you for two years after graduation? Find out more here. Career mentoring for graduates is open to students graduating in summer or winter 2025, and our student mentoring programme matches 2025 graduates with industry professionals. Find out more here. Applications close: Thursday, 31 July.

The Conversation - Biblical Women Ageing Disgracefully

Biblical studies. Siobhán Jolley has written with Dawn Llewellyn (University of Chester) "Biblical Women Ageing Disgracefully: artist Sarah Lightman reimagines characters battling midlife, motherhood and menopause" – reflections on the exhibition now on at Chester Visual Arts, Grovesnor Shopping Centre. Read it here on The Conversation.

Student Success Story - Emerging Leaders Academy

Student activities. Second-year R&T student Niamh Hardman has recently been accepted onto USPG and the Anglican Communion Youth Network's Emerging Leaders Academy due to her excellent work in children's ministry in Hulme and her position as a trustee for Greater Together Manchester. This summer/autumn, she'll be going to Kenya for 3 weeks for a cross-cultural training residential in contextual theology.

New Publication

Biblical studies. Kent Brower (NTC) has recently published "'Am I my brother's keeper?:' Reflections on Identity and Love in Romans 14:1--15:13," Neotestamentica 58.2 (2024): 227-247. Further information.

International Conference Paper

Christian Studies. Steve Wright (NTC) is chairing the panel "Modern Transformations of Prayer" at the European Academy of Religion in Vienna (8-12 July) where he will also present the paper "Prayer at the Far Edge of Humanity: Finitude, Anxiety, and Prayer in Schleiermacher and Kierkegaard." Further information.

British New Testament Society at Manchester

Biblical studies. The University of Manchester will host the British New Testament Society annual meeting 2025, Monday 1 September - Wednesday 3 September 2025. Register for the conference here.

New Publication

Biblical studies. George J. Brooke has co-edited a volume "Missing Pieces: Essays in Honour of Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar" along with Arjen F. Bakker, Bärry Hartog, Hindy Najman, Mladen Popović, and Pierre Van Hecke. This collection of essays is dedicated to Eibert Tigchelaar. Individual studies engage with new approaches to materiality, hermeneutics, digital humanities, and philology in the context of biblical research. The articles reect on reading practices, methodological innovation, textual criticism, and ancient fragments. Particular attention has been given to new approaches to the material aspects of ancient manuscripts. There are also extensive treatments of translations and reconstructions across Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic biblical traditions. Overall, the essays honour the work of Eibert Tigchelaar in the ways they build on his incisive insights and exemplary contributions. George's chapter is titled: "Probing the Principles of Principal Editions of the Dead Sea Scrolls". It has been published by Brill. Further information.

Student Prize Winner - European Association of Biblical Studies

Biblical studies. Kengoro Goto (NTC; PhD candidate) was awarded the EABS student price 2025 for his paper "Introduction of Four External Benchmarks for the Assessment of the Regional Association of Biblical Texts." Congratulations Kengoro! Further information.

Planetary Humanity & Theological Inquiry Video

Religious Traditions. Peter Scott was interviewed for a film called “Planetary Humanity: Astrobiology’s Invitation to the Humanities”. The dialogue captured by the film was part of a research project organized by the Centre of Theological Inquiry in Princeton. A collection of essays from the project Astrobiology, Religion, and Society: Considering Life on a Planetary Scale is forthcoming from Cambridge University Press. Watch it here.

International Conference

Biblical studies. Thanks to a grant from Nijmeegs Fonds voor Feminisme en Religie, Siobhán Jolley and Tom de Bruin (Radboud University) hosted the "Liberating Biblical Women? Feminist Afterlives of the Bible in the 21st Century" symposium on 1 July 2025. From Manchester, Siobhán presented "Feminist Afterlives: A Haunting", and Holly Morse presented "Eve: The Fantasy and the Fear".

New Publication

Biblical studies. HRF Mary E. Mills has published "Transmutational spaces in Isaiah: between picture postcard and void" in Literature and Theology. Further information.