News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will feature David Turnbloom, theology, as he presents “Sacramental Justice and the Mission of Holy Cross” on Thursday, September 19, at 7:15 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. Turnbloom will examine the relationship between sacraments and justice using the constitution of the Congregation of Holy Cross as a guide.
For more information or ADA accommodations contact theology at x7274 or mackinno@up.edu.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will be “The Johannine Apocalypse: Icon of Liturgy,” by Fr. George Gray, theology, on Thursday, April 4, 7:15 p.m., in Franz Hall Room 120.
Take a guided tour of the Book of Revelation with Fr. George Gray. View the Apocalypse through the lens of worship and liturgy in order to gain a new, (yet ancient) experience of the extraordinary and timeless vision of John the Theologian. Please bring your Bible.
For ADA accommodations or more information contact Deborah MacKinnon, theology, at x7274 or mackinno@up.edu.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will be “Kids, Persistent Toxins, and Catholic Social Teaching,” by Russ Butkus, theology, and Steve Kolmes, environmental studies, on Thursday, February 21, 7:15 p.m., in Shiley Hall room 319.
Recently there have been some disturbing developments at the Environmental Protection Agency regarding public health and in particular the health of American kids. This presentation will address the special vulnerability of children to the bioaccumulation of persistent toxins, and address the ensuing negative health effects. The presentation will also provide a brief summary of current environmental legislation (2016 Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act) and conclude with the argument from Catholic social teaching that children exposed to environmental toxins is a violation of their human right to bodily integrity and health.
For ADA accommodations or more information contact Deborah MacKinnon, theology, at x7274 or mackinno@up.edu.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will be presented by Jon Stanfill, visiting instructor of theology, on Thursday, November 1, at 7:15 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. Stanfill’s talk, titled “The Body of Christ’s Barbarian Limb: John Chrysostomos Theology of Ethnic Diversity,” will explore how John Chrysostom, bishop of Constantinople, challenged prevailing ethnic prejudices of late Roman Empire times and provocatively argued for a more inclusive Christian faith.
For more information or ADA accommodations, contact the theology office at x7274 or mackinno@up.edu.
Theology professor Will Deming will present “How Does A Parable Mean,” the first Theology Thursday Lecture of the fall 2018 semester, on Thursday, September 20, at 7:15 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. His talk is free and open to all.
Deming, who specializes in New Testament interpretation, will explore how the Gospel writers’ description of Jesus as a teller of parables was meant to be understood.
For more information or ADA accommodations contact theology at x7274 or mackinno@up.edu.
University of Portland professors Rebecca Gaudino, Barb Braband, and Anissa Rogers will present the next Theology Thursday lecture, “Preparing Students to Encounter the Suffering of Grief and Loss,” on Thursday, April 5, at 7:30 p.m., in the Terrace Room. The lecture is free and all are welcome.
Gaudino, Braband, and Rogers make up an interdisciplinary research team and will present their award-winning interview and Photovoice project as well as a pedagogical model that has emerged from their research into how to teach students to accompany people who have experienced loss.
For more information contact the theology department at x7274 or theol@up.edu.
Rachel Wheeler, theology, will present “Greening the Desert: Reading the Desert Fathers and Mothers in a Time of Ecological Crisis” on Thursday, February 15, at 7:15 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. Her talk is free and open to all. Wheeler will be sharing stories and teachings from the late antique Christians known as desert mothers and desert fathers. Their stories and teachings reveal profound experience of God, commitment to specific and experimental forms of Christian discipleship and spiritual companionship, and a response to the natural world characterized by curiosity and love. By interpreting their stories and teachings in light of contemporary ecological crisis, Wheeler will demonstrate how “greening the desert” results in a reevaluation of, and deepened appreciation for, the virtuous qualities these individuals’ lives disclose—qualities such as attentiveness, restraint, perseverance, and hopefulness.
For more information contact the theology department at theology@up.edu.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will be held on Thursday, September 28, 7:15 to 8:30 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. Carol J. Dempsey, OP, theology, will present “Climate Change and the Prophetic Vision.”
Climate change is the most significant challenge facing the world today. It raises questions about the way people live and the way they ought to live. Dempsey will examine these questions from biblical, theological, and philosophical perspectives.
For more information contact the theology department at x7274 or mackinno@up.edu.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will feature Simon Aihiokhai, theology, as he presents “New Perspectives for Interfaith Dialogue in the 21st Century” on Thursday, April 6, at 7:15 p.m., in Franz Hall 120. The event is free and open to all.
Arguing for the place of religious truths in the era of globalization, this talk explores how African indigenous religions appropriate a pragmatic approach discerning the relevance of religious truths that inspire the flourishing of communal life.
Aihiokhai is a Nigerian-American theologian, currently a visiting assistant professor of systematic theology at the University of Portland. His research and publication engage religion and identity in Islam, Christianity, and African religions. His articles have appeared in Journal of Ecumenical Studies, Black Catholic Theological Symposium Journal, International Journal of African Catholicism, and in several edited books. Aihiokhai continues to be an active interlocutor in the ongoing Christian-Muslim dialogue in Nigeria and the Roman Catholic/African religions dialogue. He worked as a missionary among many cultures in Nigeria for ten years and continues to reflect on the rich experience he gained from his encounters with people of the Muslim and African religious faiths.
For ADA accommodations or event information contact Deborah MacKinnon, theology, at mackinno@up.edu or x7274.
The next Theology Thursday lecture will be presented by senior theology major Jessica Brown and Sr. Kathleen McManus, OP, theology, on Thursday, March 31, at 7:30 p.m., in the Terrace Room. The lecture is free and open to all.
Brown and McManus will present “The Global Suffering of Women: An Ethical Imperative for the Church.” While the Catholic Church exercises incomparable influence for good throughout the world, they posit, the Church’s inherent patriarchal structure functions to reinforce oppressive social and cultural attitudes, thus contributing to the suffering of women.
The lecture came about with support of the Dundon-Berchtold Institute, which provided the research grant that has allowed Brown and McManus to collaborate on their project during this past academic year.
For ADA accommodations or event information contact Deborah MacKinnon, theology, at 7274 or mackinno@up.edu.