Harvard Divinity School

On this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from second year MTS students Becca Leviss and Rucha Modi sharing the story of their early HDS friendship as a source for inspiration. Transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2025/04/30hope-podcast-featuring-becca-leviss-and-rucha-modi-mts-candidates

On this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from third year MDiv candidate Matta Zheng who teaches us about the interconnections between justice, the mundane, and hope. Transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2025/04/29/hope-podcast-featuring-matta-zheng-mdiv-candidate

For Episode 13 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome Shannon Taggart, an American photographer, writer, researcher, and curator known for exploring how photography can navigate boundaries between the seen and unseen. Her book, Séance (Fulger Press, 2019), offers hundreds of photographs documenting contemporary Spiritualism across the U.S. and Britain. We discuss what sparked Shannon's interests in Spiritualism, the intersecting histories of photography and Spiritualism, ectoplasm, what inspires people to become mediums, and the techniques she developed for photographing the invisible.

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from 2nd year MDiv candidate Paula Ortiz. Together we discuss the Andes mountains, being awestruck, and seeing hope in the present.

You're listening to Harvard Divinity School's Praxis Podcast, where I, Maddison Tenney, interview HDS students about what brought them here, what they study, and where they hope to go next. This week's guest, Kristin Maples, MDiv '24, explores end of life care and the sacred practice of watching horror films. Full transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2025/03/25/end-life-care-and-horror-scholarship-praxis-podcast-featuring-kristen-maples-mdiv-24

When is peace not peace? When does pluralism only seem like pluralism from the perspective of the people in power? Christianity famously took form during the Pax Romana—an era of celebrated stability in the Roman empire—even as its message about the dawn of the messianic age and the coming of the kingdom of God resonated among those who saw the same age, instead, as a time of political oppression, cosmic upheaval, and eschatological unraveling. Likewise, to the degree that the Roman empire can be characterized by terms like ethnic “diversity” and religious “tolerance,” it was in a manner marked by massive erasures—both of knowledge and ways of knowing, pertaining to whole peoples. Arguably, a parallel dynamic marks Christian approaches to Jews and so-called “heretics” and “pagans,” with consequences for memory, forgetting, and archival amnesias especially with the empire's Christianization—and with rippling effects that continue to shape our present. In this session of "Religion and Just Peace | A Series of Public Online Conversations," Annette Yoshiko Reed, Krister Stendahl Professor of Divinity and Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity, reflected upon the perennial questions above using examples from these ancient religions and empires. This is the second event of a five-part series of online public conversations with members of the HDS faculty to explore what an expansive understanding of religion can provide to the work of just peacebuilding. This event took place on February 3, 2025. Full transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2025/02/03/video-empire-and-epistemicide-historical-perspectives-rhetoric-peace-and-its-erasures

Although the sectarian labels of Sunni and Shi'a are widely used today to cover a range of identities and beliefs held by Muslims across the Islamic World, there are many foundational questions remaining over the origins of sectarian identity in Islam as well as its implications across time. The field has largely understudied theories of sectarianism and the precise applications of Sunni and Shi'a labels, including the content of their beliefs and the boundaries between them, largely remain an open debate to historians, political scientists, and others alike. This discussion covered some of the main theoretical, methodological, and thematic issues relating to the study of sectarianism, Shi'a and Sunni identities, and the challenges in understanding what these labels mean over time and in the larger field of Islamic and Middle Eastern studies. Speakers: Dr. Ahmed El Shamsy, Professor of Islamic Thought, University of Chicago Dr. Mohammad Sagha, Lecturer in the Modern Middle East, Harvard University. Moderator: Dr. Mohsen Goudarzi, Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies, Harvard Divinity School. This event took place on November 14, 2024. Full transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/11/14/exploring-sectarian-identity-islam

"Christian Nationalism in Global Perspective," a conversation with David Hempton and one of the 2024-25 Yang Visiting Scholars, Nilay Saiya. This event took place on February 27, 2025. Full transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2025/03/05/video-yang-scholars-2025-christian-nationalism-global-perspective

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, first-year Marty Martinage explains how storytelling, representation, and even silly stickers can help guide us to hope.

For the 12th episode of Pop Apocalypse, Matt Dillon welcomes the philosopher, artist, and musician Haela Ravenna Hunt-Hendrix. Haela is best known as the songwriter and singer for the black metal band, Liturgy, which has released six full albums and one EP. We discuss Haela's early relationships to Christianity and metal music, her philosophical training, and her recent conversion to Orthodox Christianity. Along the way, we explore her philosophical system of Transcendental Qabalah and how it informs records such as H.A.Q.Q., Origin of the Alimonies, and 93696.

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from Joyce Cheng, a first year MTS student. This in episode we discuss Joyce's idea of hope, her faith, and what brings her to HDS.

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we sit down with second year MDiv candidate Ivy Wang. Together we talk about her journey through different Harvard schools and what it may feel like to find a new home in beauty and mystery.

Creative practice and religious experience overlap in this week's Praxis podcast with Jack Tripp, MTS' 25. In sharing about his artistic practice, Jack offers his perspective on the surrender required for his ceramics and his spiritual life.

In this long read from Harvard Divinity Bulletin, a 'Divine Comedy' reading group with two artist friends deepens the author's understanding of Dante's transcendent friendship with Virgil. This is a special audio version of "On Assignment, Virgil Rescues Dante from the Wilderness," a feature written and read by Diane Mehta and appearing in the Autumn/Winter 2024 issue of Harvard Divinity Bulletin. Read or follow along on the Harvard Divinity Bulletin website: https://bulletin.hds.harvard.edu/on-assignment-virgil-rescues-dante-from-the-wilderness/

This week's Praxis episode features Rebecca Oreskes, who recently graduated HDS with her Master of Theological Studies degree. After a 25 year career in the forest service, she decided to return to school to become a chaplain, focusing on end of life care. A full transcript is forthcoming.

For Episode 11 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome Jennifer Higgie. Jennifer is the author of several books, including Bedlam, a novel about the artist Richard Dadd; The Mirror and the Palette, a history of women's self-portraits; and The Other Side: A Story of Women in Art and the Spirit World, a beautiful and personal study of the relationship between spiritual experience and art in the lives of modern women. In this career-spanning chat, Jennifer and I discuss her early career in painting, what inspired her to write Bedlam, and how the art world changed during her time at Frieze magazine. Then we dive into Jennifer's latest book, The Other Side: A Story of Women in Art and the Spirit World. We discuss the spiritual and artistic lives of women like Georgiana Houghton, Hilma af Klint, Ithell Colquhoun, and Hildegard of Bingen. Along the way, we touch on topics like fairies, Spiritualism, gardening, Carl Jung, spiritual ecology, Theosophy, ascended masters, angels, and much else.

Each year the HDS Women's Studies in Religion Program brings scholars in gender from around the country to enrich the experience of HDS students. 2024 Orientation offered students the opportunity to hear from the 2024–25 WSRP visiting faculty, who shared their thoughts on the ethical responsibility of scholars to be engaged in the study of gender. Speakers: S. Zahra Moballegh, Visiting Assistant Professor of Women's Studies and Islam Wendy Mallette, Visiting Assistant Professor of Women's Studies and Theology Ashley L. Bacchi, Visiting Assistant Professor of Women's Studies and Jewish History Ghazal Asif Farrukhi, Visiting Assistant Professor of Women's Studies and Anthropology Erminia Ardissino, Visiting Associate Professor Emerita of Women's Studies and Literature Moderated by Ann Braude, Director of the Women's Studies in Religion Program Full transcript forthcoming.

Part of the "Symposium on Religion and American Democracy," held September 27, 2024. The Importance of HBCUs in the Making of American Democracy Speakers: -Jelani M. Favors, Henry E. Frye Distinguished Professor of History, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University -Tony Frazier, Assistant Professor of History, The Pennsylvania State University -Crystal R. Sanders, Associate Professor of African American Studies, Emory University -John Silvanus Wilson, Jr., MTS '81, EdM '82, EdD '85, Managing Director, Open Leadership Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology -Moderated by Dean Marla F. Frederick Full transcript forthcoming.

At Harvard Divinity School's 209th Convocation ceremony, HDS Dean Marla F. Frederick delivered the address "And, Yet...We Hope" to the HDS and Harvard community, friends, alumni, and distinguished guests. This event took place on September 26, 2024. Full transcript forthcoming.

The Women's Studies in Religion Program (WSRP) at Harvard Divinity School was delighted to host Erminia Ardissino as she presented on biblical exegesis in Renaissance Venice aimed at rehabilitating the image of Eve. Ann D. Braude, Director of WSRP and Senior Lecturer on American Religious History at Harvard Divinity School, introduced Ardissino. Erminia Ardissino is Professor Emerita of Italian Literature at the Università di Torino. She received her MA in romance languages at the University of Georgia in Athens, a PhD at Yale University, and a doctorate at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan. She has also taught as visiting professor in several universities across Europe and North and South America. Full transcript forthcoming.

“Political Futures,” featured RPL Organizing Fellow, Josh Wolfsun, and RPL Arts and Popular Culture Fellow, Angélique Roché. Assistant Dean for Religion and Public Life, Hussein Rashid, served as moderator. Moving from the exigencies of the moment, this conversation focused on creating new communities, generating solidarity, imagining different economies, and asked how we can make the politics of the possible a reality. This was the first of four sessions in the Religion and Democratic Ideals series. This series focused on where religion intersects with democratic ideals and institutions. Sponsored by Religion and Public Life Full transcript forthcoming.

In Zionism: An Emotional State, author Derek J. Penslar demonstrated how the energy propelling the Zionist project originates from bundles of feeling whose elements have varied in volume, intensity, and durability across space and time. Penslar examined the emotions that have shaped Zionist sensibilities and practices throughout the movement's history. Featuring Derek J. Penslar, William Lee Frost Professor of Jewish History at Harvard University Moderated by Shaul Magid, HDS Visiting Professor of Modern Jewish Studies Full transcript forthcoming.

“Media, Religion, and the Nation,” featured Zeba Khan, San Fransisco Chronicle, Jesse Holland, George Washington University, and Syreeta McFadden, Borough of Manhattan Community College. Assistant Dean for Religion and Public Life, Hussein Rashid, served as moderator. For decades, news media in the U.S. has been critiqued as reproducing structures of power and exclusion, including those in religions. While entertainment media has worked towards more inclusive storytelling recently, historically all media has been inconsistent in representing and engaging marginalized communities. This panel examined how media framing creates our understanding of what the United States is and how we can be more literate media consumers. This was the second of four sessions in the Religion and Democratic Ideals series. This series focused on where religion intersects with democratic ideals and institutions. Sponsored by Religion and Public Life Full transcript forthcoming.

On October 1, 2024, HDS hosted a celebration of "Hindu and Catholic, Priest and Scholar: A Love Story," the new memoir from HDS Professor Francis X. Clooney, S.J. Joining Prof. Clooney on a panel of respondents were: Rajeev Persaud, MTS '24, Andrea Bischoff, MTS '24, and Jonathan Makransky, multireligious ministry initiatives coordinator at HDS. The event was introduced by Kerry Maloney, Chaplain and Director of Religious and Spiritual Life. Sponsored by the Office of the Chaplain and Religious and Spiritual Life and by the Office of Ministry Studies. Full transcript forthcoming.

“Reproductive Healthcare Access and White Nationalism,” featured founder of Funky Brown Chick, Twanna Hines, and Melissa Deckman, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI). Assistant Dean for Religion and Public Life, Hussein Rashid, served as moderator. Access to reproductive healthcare engages with explicitly religious language. This session positioned that language in the broader framework of white nationalism, which is often undergirded by Christian nationalism. The session tied together structures of patriarchy and race, and offered ways of possible solidarity to create a more just future. This was the third of four sessions in the Religion and Democratic Ideals series. This series focused on where religion intersects with democratic ideals and institutions. Sponsored by Religion and Public Life Full transcript forthcoming.

In their book, “Safety Through Solidarity: A Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism,” Shane Burley and Ben Lorber, two activist journalists, present a progressive, intersectional approach to the vital question: What can we do about antisemitism? Using personal stories, historical deep-dives, front-line reporting, and interviews with leading change-makers, Burley and Lorber help us break the current impasse to understand how antisemitism works, what's missing in contemporary debates, and how to build true safety through solidarity, for Jews and all people. Featuring co-authors Ben Lorder and Shane Burley Moderated by Shaul Magid, HDS Visiting Professor of Modern Jewish Studies This is the first event in RPL's Religion, Conflict, and Peace 2024-25 Book Series. Full transcript forthcoming.

This special HDS Buddhist Ministry Initiative event commemorated Dhamma Chakra Day, the anniversary of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's conversion to Buddhism along with 500,000 of his followers. Dr. Ambedkar's peaceful, egalitarian, and grassroots movement of social liberation left an indelible mark on Indian society, embracing Buddhism as a powerful method for marginalized people to denounce the caste system and to gain true equality and dignity. Moderated by Buddhist Ministry Initiative Post-Doctoral Fellow Dr. Santosh Raut, this program included a presentation by Professor Charles Hallisey and a panel discussion on Dr. Ambedkar's legacy as it resonates with Isabel Wilkerson's "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents," featuring Dean Melissa Bartholomew and Professor Stephanie Sears. Full transcript forthcoming.

"Rematriation, Land, and Healing," featured co-founder of Women of Bears Ears, Cynthia Wilson, and board member of Women of Bears Ears, Doreen Bird. Assistant Dean for Religion and Public Life, Hussein Rashid, served as moderator. How we steward our land—and the lands of others—brings up essential questions of belonging, indigeneity, and spiritual and political governance. How do different types of stewardship impact how we enact democracy in and with the land we occupy? This session examined how we relate to the natural world around us and the possibilities—and obstacles—for strengthening those relationships through our democratic institutions. This was the fourth of four sessions in the Religion and Democratic Ideals series. This series focused on where religion intersects with democratic ideals and institutions. Sponsored by Religion and Public Life Full transcript forthcoming.

There was a presentation and brief film screening with Eileen Moncoeur, Executive Director of HRDC Sabal Foundation in Nepal, which harnesses global support so that the poorest children with disabilities in Nepal can access surgery, rehabilitation, and loving care. Eileen guided us through an exploration of the ways in which global principles of compassion can be put into action on the ground in community settings, using the Sabal Foundation's work as a case study. HDS Buddhist Ministry Initiative instructors Chris Berlin and Dr. Santoshkumar Raut offered a response and commentary. Full transcript forthcoming.

Naomi Saks, MDiv '10, Chaplain at University of California, San Francisco Medical Center offered remarks via Zoom about her new book, "Intentionally Interprofessional Palliative Care." Naomi was joined by one of her co-authors Chaplain Paul Galchutt. Sponsored by the Office is Religious and Spiritual Life Full transcript forthcoming.

Stephanie Paulsell delivered a moving lecture about her life in scholarship before her retirement in December 2024. Paulsell has been a member of the HDS faculty since 2001. She is the author of "Religion Around Virginia Woolf" (2019), co-editor (with Davíd Carrasco and Mara Willard) of "Goodness and the Literary Imagination" (2019), and has served as a regular columnist for The Christian Century since 2007. Full transcript forthcoming.

For episode 10 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome the musician, composer, and producer Trey Spruance. We discuss Trey's early musical and occult explorations and how reading the philosopher Henry Corbin changed the course of his life. Trey then takes us through the esoteric dimensions of Secret Chiefs 3 and how albums like Book M and Book of Horizons are filled with correspondences to Kabbalah, astrology, Hermetic magic, and Pythagorean musicology. Along the way, we touch on Trey's work with Jim Zorn and Kronos Quartet, his conversion to Eastern Orthodox Christianity, and the afterlives of Saint Cyprian the Mage.

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from Taylon E. Lancaster, a third-year MDiv candidate at HDS and pastor at Third Baptist Church in Springfield, MA. We discuss his pursuits as a drum major for justice, the role of rest, and what hope looks like in community. Learn more about religion and spiritual life at Harvard Divinity School here: https://hds.harvard.edu/community-life/religious-and-spiritual-life Transcript forthcoming.

In our second episode of Praxis, we meet Marisol Andrade Muñoz, a Master of Theological Studies student, graphic designer, and historian, whose archival research looks at the relationship between time and people in Central Mexico. Join us as we look deeper into the student experience at Harvard Divinity School. Full transcript: https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/11/20/from-visual-storytelling-to-historical-imagination-featuring-marisol-andrade-munoz

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from Eve Schwartz, a third-year MDiv candidate at HDS. We discuss blending the personal and the academic, building community, and the power of ritual. Learn more about religion and spiritual life at Harvard Divinity School here: https://hds.harvard.edu/community-life/religious-and-spiritual-life Transcript forthcoming.

For episode nine, we welcome to the show Diana Pasulka, professor of Religious Studies at UNC – Wilmington. Her books American Cosmic: UFOs, Religion, Technology and Encounters: Experiences with Nonhuman Intelligences are both classics in the field of Religion and Technology studies. We discuss how Pasulka's early work on Catholic purgatory led her to the study of UFOs, the spiritual practices of experiencers, and the role of government (dis)information and popular culture in the rise of UFO religion. On the way, we touch on A.I., revelations, St. Teresa of Avila, sleep paralysis, and the perils and possibilities of new technologies. Full transcript forthcoming.

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from Hiatt O'Connor, a second-year MDiv student at HDS. He discusses his journey from a Christian upbringing to Zen Buddhist practices, reading the Tao Te Ching, and his relationship with Quakerism. Learn more about religion and spiritual life at Harvard Divinity School here: hds.harvard.edu/community-life/re…nd-spiritual-life Transcript forthcoming.

Terrence Johnson, Charles G. Adams Professor of African American Religious Studies at HDS, interviews Corey Brettschneider about his new book, "The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought To Defend It." Brettschneider is professor of political science at Brown University, where he teaches constitutional law and politics, as well as a visiting professor at Fordham Law School. Editor's note: We experienced a microphone issue during the interview recording, so our apologies for the inconsistent audio quality from 4:34 to 9:10. Full transcript forthcoming.

We are excited to launch our new podcast Praxis, which looks deeper into the student experience at Harvard Divinity School. This episode featuring Amy Sexauer, MDiv ‘26, explores being a veteran and mother while attending HDS. More episodes are coming!

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from Jordan Ahmed, a first-year MDiv student at HDS. We discuss his relationship to Islam, community organizing, and the joy of embodied practice.

In this episode of the Hope Podcast, we hear from Nicole Marie, a third-year MDiv student at HDS. We discuss her relationship to hope, imagination, and mystery.

For our eighth episode, CSWR Research Associate and Pop Apocalypse host Matthew J. Dillon welcomes author Eric Wargo to the show. Eric is perhaps the world's foremost expert on precognition. His most recent book, "From Nowhere," examines precognition in its relationship to creativity in the lives of major authors and artists. They discuss the nature of time, dreamwork, memories from the future, and the four-dimensional brain. Along the way, they discuss figures like Virginia Woolf, Philip K. Dick, Andrei Tarkovsky, Sigmund Freud, and the sculptor, Michael Richards. Eric Wargo has a PhD in anthropology from Emory University and works as a professional science writer and editor in Washington, D.C. He is the author of three books on precognition: "From Nowhere," "Precognitive Dreamwork and the Long Self," and the acclaimed "Time Loops." In his spare time, Wargo writes about science fiction, consciousness, and parapsychology at his popular blog, "The Nightshirt." Full transcript forthcoming.

This year, HDS is hosting two Hindu Swamis, Swami Chidekananda of the Ramakrishna Order, and Swami Sachidananda of the Arsha Vidya Gurukul. Both Swamis quickly became cherished members of our community, in the classroom, in community activities, and at religious services. During this event, participants heard the two swamis talk personally about their choice for monastic life, sharing with us insights into their personal journeys as swamis, and reflecting on what it means to be a monastic in the twenty first century. This event took place March 20, 2024. Full transcript: https://hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/03/20/video-being-hindu-monastic-personal-journeys

Dr. Charmain Jackman (she/her), founder and CEO of InnoPsych, delivered the closing keynote at the Black Religion and Mental Health Symposium. Professor Ahmad Greene-Hayes (Harvard Divinity School) and Professor George Aumoithe (FAS, History and African and African American Studies) proposed this two-day interdisciplinary symposium, integrating mind, brain, and behavior insights into the exploration of Black religious practices and their impact on mental health. They questioned how Black religious spaces can enhance mental health outcomes, considering their dual role as sanctuaries and potential impediments to open discourse. The symposium brought together experts from history, public health, psychiatry, African American studies, religious studies, and civic society, focusing on understanding the neurobiological and socio-behavioral dynamics contributing to mental health stigmatization within Black communities. The symposium aimed to illuminate how societal stressors, such as racism, influence brain function and behavior, thereby affecting mental health, while also exploring resilience mechanisms among Black religious communities. This project aligns with the Harvard Mind Brain Behavior Interfaculty Initiative's mission of facilitating interdisciplinary collaboration to address complex issues, contributing to a broader understanding of the interplay between mind, brain, and behavior in the context of Black mental health. This event took place on March 1, 2024. For more information: https://hds.harvard.edu Full transcript: https://hds.harvard.edu/news/video/2024/03/01/black-religion-and-mental-health-symposium-closing-keynote-dr-charmain-jackman

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and legendary gospel artist Twinkie Clark talked about her musical journey and performed music from her catalog of over 350 songs. Scholars Charrise Barron, Assistant Professor of Music at Harvard University, and Damien Sneed, Associate Professor in the Department of Music at Howard University, facilitated the conversation with Twinkie Clark which illuminated the motivations and milestones of her music career and explored key elements of her signature sound. The evening culminated in a recital in which Twinkie Clark, a Hammond Organ Hall of Fame member, performed on the Hammond B-3 organ. This event took place April 10, 2024. Learn more: https://hds.harvard.edu/ Full transcript: https://hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/04/22/video-evening-twinkie-clark

Each spring, the Office of Ministry Studies organizes the Billings Preaching Prize Finals, an annual preaching competition open to all HDS students who have not previously won. Congratulations to MDiv candidate Auds Jenkins, the 2024 Billings Preaching Prize Competition winner, and to finalists Nicole Marie and Eve Woldemikael for their incredible talents. The event also featured readings from Solomon Kwaghko, the Massachusetts Bible Society scripture reading winner, and Ivy Wang, the OMS reading prize winner. This event took place April 17, 2024. Learn more: https://hds.harvard.edu/ Full transcript: https://hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/04/17/video-2024-billings-preaching-prize-competition

Full title: Battle of Siffin: The Intrigues Against Imam Ali's Statebuilding Project & Its Legacy in the Modern Middle East This talk explores the politics and legacy of the Battle of Siffin — a foundational moment in the early political memory and history of Islam that pitted Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib against a rebellion in Syria led by Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan. As the first Shi'a Imam and fourth Sunni Caliph, the figure of Ali looms large in the consciousness of Muslims from the very early Islamic period until today. The talk is divided into two sections. The first explores the dialogue and politics between Ali and the diverse battle factions in his army at the Battle of Siffin. It analyzes Imam Ali's state building project, the interests of various elite generals and divisions within Imam Ali's army, the context behind internal Muslim conflict and the political order of the early Islamic state, and the distinctions made by Ali regarding the roots and reasons behind internal civil conflict within the Muslim body politic. The second section analyzes how contemporary thinkers and scholars in the modern Middle East have interpreted the legacy of Imam Ali, the Battle of Siffin, and the "First Muslim Civil War” as a lens through which to understand the intersection between early Islamic history and modern political theology as well as debates over governance and statecraft in contemporary Islamic intellectual thought. Speaker: Dr. Mohammad Sagha, Lecturer in the Modern Middle East, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC), Harvard University This event took place on April 29, 2024. For more information: https://hds.harvard.edu A full transcript is forthcoming.

Sahar Shahid, MDiv '17, and the members of the HDS Alumni/Alumnae Council are pleased to invite fellow graduates and the School community to celebrate Peter J Gomes STB '68 Distinguished Alumni Honors and our theme of Journeys of the Soul. This year, we seek to honor those who, across various systems of belief, delve into the soul's journey in this life and beyond and are committed to practices that foster connection with the transcendent. Read about this year's honorees here: https://hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/04/22/journeys-soul-hds-recognizes-awe-inspiring-alumni-2024-gomes-distinguished-honors This event took place on May 9, 2024. For more information, visit https://hds.harvard.edu/ A transcript is forthcoming.

Listen to Tibetan Buddhist master H.E. Ling Rinpoche's teachings on embodying the power of compassion and wisdom to uproot discrimination and bigotry. HDS was so honored to extend this rare opportunity to the community to experience the teachings of Buddhism from a representative of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. Bio His Eminence the 7th Kyabjé Yongzin Ling Rinpoche is the reincarnation of the senior tutor of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He entered Drepung Monastery in India in 1990 and completed all of his Buddhist studies and training by 2017. He is one of the few religious figures in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition who represents His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and he travels widely around the globe giving teachings. This event took place on April 23, 2023. For more information, see https://hds.harvard.edu A full transcript is forthcoming.

A yearly tradition at HDS, the Stendahl Symposium honors the memory of former professor Krister Stendahl, who tirelessly sought to repair fractions between Jews and Christians, supported the ordination of women, and pushed for the full inclusion and participation of women and minority voices in academia and interfaith work. Opening Remarks: Given by Samirah Jaigirdar, HDSSA Academics Chair Panel 1: Conversations Across Religious Boundaries "Christian Zen: Innovative Syncretism or Cultural Appropriation?" by Jeffrey Ng "Are You My Mother: Redefining Adoptive Relationships Through a Comparative Study of Western-Christian and Neo-Confucian Ethics" by Grace Sill "They said that he was the image of Tezcatlipoca: Dress and iconography in technologies of ritual remembrance in 1500s Texcoco" by Marisol Andrade Muñoz "Humanism in the Eastern and Western Philosophy and Religion: Concerning Confucius/Mencius and Kant" by Juye Han Panel 2: Religion and the Digital Age "Meme-ing Making: Our Newest Testament" by Maddison Tenney "Religion's On Her Lips: Exploring the “Good Girl Faith” of Taylor Swift's Lyricism" by Olivia Hastie and Anna Guterman "New Media, New Narratives, New Nuns: Catholic Nuns Making a Habit of Social Media" by Lauren Tassone "The Spiritual Value of Slasher Films: Watching Horror Movies as a Sacred Practice" by Kristen Maples Panel 3: Religion and Current Affairs "From Haven to Hazard: Examining the Role of Family as Sanctuary in Mormon Discourse" by Perlei Toor ""We Are Both First Responders and Vulnerable": Religious Actors as Implementing Partners for Climate Adaptation in Kenya" by Miriam Israel "Vacation to Auschwitzland: The Commodification of Grief and Fear in Auschwitz Dark Tourism and its Implications for the Divine" by Hannah Eliason "Is QAnon a Cult? An Analysis of Religious Rhetoric in Q Drops" by Brady W Schuh "The Transformative Power of Humility: The Irony of American History and a Reorientation of American Foreign Policy in the 21st Century" by Ailih Weeldreyer Panel 4: Studying Religion "“Christian Writers on Judaism” at Harvard: Who Studies Whom in the Academic Study of Religion?" by Rachel Florman "Rassenfrage, Judenfrage, Schwarzen-frage: Liminal Identities in W.E.B. Du Bois's Prayers for Dark People" by Becca Leviss "Reimagining Religious Studies: Wilfred Cantwell Smith's Revolutionary Legacy" by Yanchen Liu Panel 5: Religion and Identity "Thus Spoke the Child " by Micah Rensunberg "Coming Out as Evangelical, Converting to Queerness" by Karina Yum "Heritage Judaism, Race Science, and the Embodied Past: Searching for the Anti-Zionist Jewish Body" by Shir Lovett-Graff "Building a Theological Home for Korean Queers: The Possibilities for Korean Queer Theology through the Eyes of Korean Christian Queers" by Jihyun Son This event took place on April 19, 2024. For more information: https://hds.harvard.edu A full transcript is forthcoming.

Students enrolled in HDS 3326 "Africana Religions and Healing in the American South," co-facilitated by Dr. Tracey E. Hucks and Dr. Melissa Wood Bartholomew, shared their experiences and takeaways from a study tour/pilgrimage the class took over Spring Break. The class traveled to the Gullah/Geechee heritage communities in the Lowcountry Sea Islands and to the historic slave sites, monuments, and former slave plantations in South Carolina and Georgia. The trip was designed to immerse students in the physical contexts they have been learning about to enhance their understanding of the spiritual technologies of practitioners and specialists and the material culture that accompanies alternative modes of spiritual healing and religious meaning for people in the African diaspora. This event took place on April 16, 2024. For more information: https://hds.harvard.edu A full transcript is forthcoming.