Center for the study of religion
Events
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The Paradox of Pointless Suffering
Royce Hall 306Why do we suffer? Why do people die young? Is there any point to our excessive pain, physical or emotional? This talk explores the ways that we have tried to minimize or eliminate suffering, and examines people’s attempts to find ways to live with pointless suffering. Ultimately, to be fully human—and to have healthy culture—means...
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D. T. Suzuki: Letters, Lectures and Legacies
Charles E. Young Research Library, Main Conference Room 280 Charles E Young Dr N, Los Angeles, United StatesThis Workshop explores the cultural, religious, and intellectual legacy of Daisetsu Teitaro (D. T.) Suzuki (1870–1966), the preeminent figure who introduced Zen and Mahayana Buddhism to the modern Western world. This event brings together scholars, curators, and practitioners to discuss and reflect on Suzuki’s polymath contributions and their enduring, cross-cultural impact. Discussions will span a...
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Upheavals of Faith: Deconversion, Value Conflict, and Grief
Kaplan 365Why do people grieve a faith they have chosen to leave? If they no longer believe, what exactly have they lost? Ultimately, leaving a religion is rarely the simple loss of a world. Recent philosophical work has argued that deconversion can be an occasion for grief, comparable to bereavement in its power to unsettle one’s...
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Idol Talk: False Worship in the Early Christian World
314 Royce HallAre idols real? Do gods or demons dwell in them or around them? Or are they empty, devoid of existence except in the mind of the idolater? Ancient Christians and Jews gave very different answers to these questions. RSVP for this in-person event. Sonja Anderson (UCLA, B.A.; University of Notre Dame, M.T.S.; Yale University, M.A.,...