Events
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Satellite Ministries: The Rise of Christian Television in the Middle East
Bunche Hall 10383In this book talk, Febe Armanios (Middlebury College) will present on her recently-published monograph Satellite Ministries, which explores how modern expressions of faith, technology, and political power intersected and clashed across the Global South and beyond through the analysis of sixteen Christian television channels in the Middle East. In 1981, a satellite television station called...
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Between Discordant Shores: Dante’s Francis, the Book of Islam and the Orient
Kaufman Hall Room 101(Image: Coppo di Marcovaldo, St. Francis before the Sultan,” Sultan Malek al-Kāmil and his philosophers, Bardi Altarpiece, c. 1260s, Basilica di Santa Croce, Florence.) Marking the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’s death in 2026, this talk draws on Morosini’s recent study Dante, Moses and the Book of Islam (2024) to explore Dante’s Francis and their shared...
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A Multifaith Conversation on Justice, Forgiveness and Compassion
UCLA California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) 570 Westwood PlazaIn our deeply fractured world, religion serves both to connect and offer wisdom and to foster conflict and division. Over the course of centuries, it has been frequently invoked to justify brutal violence, but can it be an effective tool to advance justice? To explore different perspectives on the topic of faith, forgiveness, and justice,...
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Who are the Tanguts and why do they matter? Writing, Religion, and Cultural Exchange in the Xia Kingdom
Royce 243The Tangut Xia kingdom flourished in the Ordos region and the Gansu Corridor between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. This talk will provide an introduction to the Tangut Xia kingdom, its unique writing system, and its dynamic religious traditions, highlighting the complex Chinese and Tibetan cultural interactions that shaped its historical development. By integrating elements...
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EVENT POSTPONED: The Complex Interplay of Religion, Law and Politics in Israel
Bunche Hall 10383We regret to inform you that this March 9th on-campus event featuring Orly Erez-Likhovski as been postponed, as the speaker is unable to fly to us from Israel due to the war with Iran. We will notify you when/if we can host this event in the future. ______________________________ Without the protections of a written constitution...
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The Dread Heights: Tribulation and Refuge after the Syrian Revolution
Bunche Hall 10383Muslim charities and community organizations have assumed a significant role in refugee support since the Syrian catastrophe: in Jordan and Canada, as elsewhere, they deliver food aid, house orphans, and organize remedial education. But Islam is more than just a resource for humanitarian projects. The Dread Heights details how the Islamic tradition guides refugees, relief...
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Music and Religion in Popular Culture: The Case of Orthodox Jews and Christian Contemporary Music
Kaplan 365Since the 1960s religious practitioners have created their own music to express their beliefs and values to shield the community from popular culture. The Irony is they use the popular culture that they reject from American culture in their music. This presentation by Mark Kligman (UCLA) will highlight important composers and groups with audio and...
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Gods and the Abyss: Encountering Oceanic Agency at the Edge of the Ancient World
Kaplan 365This presentation examines how coastal communities in antiquity conceived of the sea not merely as a physical environment, but as a powerful, living force endowed with agency. Such perceptions became especially vivid in the aftermath of coastal catastrophes. The Gulf of Cádiz, on the southwestern edge of the Iberian Peninsula, serves as the primary case...
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(De)medicalization and the Dying Body: Sallekhanā, Kinship, and the Limits of Liberal Bioethics
Royce Hall 306In this talk, Miki Chase (U of Wisconsin-Madison) explores how trajectories of illness and care, such as terminal cancer or anticipated cognitive decline, are reinterpreted through Jain doctrinal frameworks in the narratives of adult children of women who undertake the Jain ritual fast to death (sallekhanā or santhāra). Drawing on ethnographic accounts of women’s deaths...
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Study of Religion Welcome Reception
Royce Hall 306Lift a glass to the new academic year and meet friends old and new! Welcome remarks by Dean Stern and Professor Bakhos at 4:30p. RSVP required by October 11. See you there!