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Explore free-to-read book chapters, case studies, and articles on themes including climate change, abortion politics, gender and sexuality. All linked with the annual AAR/SBL conference in November 2023.
All chapters are hosted on T&T Clark Jesus Library, Eerdmans Bible Commentaries: New Testament, or Bloomsbury Religion in North America, three online collections on Theology and Religion Online, which brings together primary and secondary material along with a range of pedagogical resources.
Related chapter:
Working together to address the climate crisis by Erin Lothes Biviano
In The Theological and Ecological Vision of Laudato Si’: Everything is ConnectedErin Lothes Biviano explores how our actions as members of society, both direct and indirect, have a profound ethical meaning. She argues that climate change is not merely an economic, technological, or political issue to be conducted in the trenches of the culture wars. Rather, it is a human issue, and most profoundly of all, it is a summons to faith.
AAR/SBL session: A19-140, Religion and Ecology Unit, Religion and Human Rights Unit, and Women of Color Scholarship, Teaching, and Activism Unit, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Book chapter:
Sanders, E. P. (b. 1937) by Mark A. Powell
In Jesus: The Complete Guide
In this chapter, Mark A. Powell examines the life and work of renowned American scholar E. P. Sanders. In particular, Powell focuses on Sanders' famous biographical study of Jesus that was published in the mid 1990’s, which portrayed Jesus as an exponent of Jewish restoration eschatology, a prophet who declared that God was going to act decisively and soon to restore Israel to unsurpassed greatness.
Related chapter:
The Development of Johannine Theology: Eschatology by Urban C. von Wahlde
In The Gospel and Letters of John, Volume 1: Introduction, Analysis, and References
This chapter, available through the Eerdmans Bible Commentary series, outlines eschatology in relation to Johannine theology. It discusses three key elements: when does eternal life begin; does the eschaton involve spiritual immortality or bodily resurrection; and does the eschaton involve a judgment that occurs in the present or does it refer to a future judgment at the end of time.
AAR/SBL session: A19-111, Comparative Theology Unit, Sunday, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Book chapter:
Rock Me Sexy Jesus?: Gender and Sexuality in Biblical Films by Rhiannon Graybill
In T&T Clark Companion to the Bible and Film
The role of sexuality and gender in biblical films is examined in this chapter by Rhiannon Graybill. She argues that the depiction of gender and sexuality in such films are both highly traditional, and reflect notions from their moment of cultural production. Using case studies such as Jesus Christ Superstar, Monty Python’s Life of Brian, and Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ Graybill explores the various depictions of masculinity, femininity, and sexuality, and how they are connected to wider culture and tradition.
AAR/SBL session: Religion and Popular Culture Unit and Religion, Film, and Visual Culture Unit, Monday, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Case Study:
On Christians and the Abortion Divide/Debate in North America by Kristy L. Slominski
In Case Studies
From the Great Depression to Roe v. Wade, Kristy L. Slominski maps out the abortion debate in North America and the role Christianity has played within it. Examining the socio-political and religious landscape that has set the background on North America’s turbulent relationship with abortion rights.
AAR/SBL session: A19-222, History of Christianity Unit, Sunday, 12:30 PM - 2:30 PM
Article:
Islam and Gender by Shehnaz Haqqani
In Islam: The Basics, part of Bloomsbury Religion in North America
This article highlights some of the key themes in the study of women, feminism, sexuality, and masculinity as an introduction to the field of gender and Islam. Shehnaz Haqqani covers a wide range of sources, such as the Quran, the hadith, Islamic law, and the lived realities of Muslims.
AAR/SBL session: A18-112, Books under Discussion, Contemporary Islam Unit, Saturday, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Article:
Religion and Nature in North America by Laurel Kearns and Whitney A. Bauman
In Religion and Nature in North America, part of Bloomsbury Religion in North America
How do religious ideas shape the ways that humans interact with the rest of the natural world? In particular, how has the history of religious ideas and actors in North America shaped human-human and human-earth relations? In this article, Laurel Kearns and Whitney A. Bauman present a brief environmental history of the ways in which religions have shaped the socio-political and ecological landscapes of North America.
A18-148, North American Hinduism Unit and Secularism and Secularity Unit, Saturday, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Article:
Section Overview: Latin American and US Latinx Religion by Lloyd D. Barba
In Latin American and Latinx Religions in North America, part of Bloomsbury Religion in North America
Lloyd D. Barba explores religion in Latin American and Latinx contexts of North America, against the background of nation, language, class, race, and culture. This overview article offers historical perspectives and periodizations, and outlines three areas of study: Indigenous Roots and Persistence; Transgressive Sites of Religious Mixing and Minority Religious Traditions; and Christianity.
AAR/SBL session: A18-123, Latina/o Religion, Culture, and Society Unit, Saturday, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Article:
Jesus and Masculinity by Colleen M. Conway
In T&T Clark Jesus Library
Colleen M. Conway explores the intersections between the figure of Jesus and cultural construction of masculinities, with a particular focus on texts written in the first-century Greco-Roman world, including the New Testament Gospels. Through the lens of masculinity studies, Conway discusses how the New Testament writers shaped their stories of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus in relation to cultural assumptions about men and manliness.
AAR/SBL session: A18-428, Men, Masculinities, and Religions Unit, Saturday, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
