As part of the Berkeley Democracy and Public Theology Program, BCSR’s Public Forum on Religion and Pandemic brings together scholars and the public to address the current pandemic and its commensurate crises.
Asking what it means to live, write, and think in the present moment, these conversations explore the intersection between religion and timely topics such as the environment, public health, elections and democracy, religious freedom, and nationalism in order to foster public dialogue and reflection.
Recorded reflections released on our dedicated events page regularly, and we have recordings of our live-online events from October 16, 2020 and October 20, 2020 available as well.
We invite you to keep an eye on your inbox for email announcements and newsletters from BCSR, and if you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for our mailing list here, and be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest updates!
Live-online event recordings:
- “Rationality, Ritual, and Democratic Decision-Making: Perspectives from Classical Athens” with Sara Forsdyke (University of Michigan) and Josiah Ober (Stanford University), Moderated by Emily Mackil (UC Berkeley, History, and Chair, Graduate Group in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archeology) and Duncan MacRae (UC Berkeley, Classics)
- “Reimagining Nationalism: Yael Tamir In Conversation with Daniel Sargent” with Yael Tamir (President, Beit-Berl College, adjunct professor, Blavatnik School of Government Oxford) and Daniel Sargent (UC Berkeley, History)
Online reflections:
- “From Providentialism to Epidemiology: Understanding Pandemics through History” with Thomas W. Laqueur (UC Berkeley, Helen Fawcett Distinguished Professor Emeritus) and John Handel (UC Berkeley, PhD candidate, History)
- “Crossing Divides in a Precarious Future: The White Working Class and the Upcoming General Election” with Arlie Russell Hochschild (UC Berkeley, Sociology) and Rachel Min Park (Berkeley Center for the Study of Religion)
- “The Textures of the Soul: Isolation Throughout History and Religion” with Niklaus Largier (UC Berkeley, German, Comparative Literature) and Nir Feinberg (UC Berkeley, PhD candidate, Group in Buddhist Studies)
- “The Work of Salvation, the Salvation of Work: Searching for Belonging in an Age of Global Precarity” with Carolyn Chen (UC Berkeley, Ethnic Studies) and Rachel Min Park (Berkeley Center for the Study of Religion)
- “Enthralled Subjects: Cults, Conversion, and Quarantine Fixations” with Poulomi Saha (UC Berkeley, English) and Grace Goudiss (UC Berkeley, PhD Candidate, History)
Download the series announcement here.
BCSR’s Public Forum on Religion and Pandemic is generously sponsored by the Henry Luce Foundation