Mapping Source-Places and the Roots of Religion

Business Insider recently shared a thought-provoking video on the spread of religion around the world. Producer Alex Kuzoian used a spinning globe to map the spread of Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam in under three minutes. A timeline of the last five millennia progresses in correspondence with the changing domains of each religion. Annotations … Continue reading Mapping Source-Places and the Roots of Religion

Technology Won’t Make You a Better Teacher! and other professional development insights

Few teachers want to spend their much deserved summer breaks in a professional development workshop. But the faculty at Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences are hardcore. Their team invited me to lead a session on using third screen (or mobile devices) in the college classroom. And we had a blast!

Reads, Misreads, and Religion Statistics

To be clear, I'm not against statistics. We can qualify "religion." We can quantify "religion." But words and numbers represent human relationships (and thus, politics). Religious studies is about striving to see them more clearly. The discipline doesn't have a monopoly on this. But it is our intellectual burden, and we take it seriously.

Reflections on the ISS- Scriptures at Their Root

The Institute for Signifying Scriptures is an independent research organization focused on investigating the dynamics associated with "scriptures." The conversation takes serious the category's development and deployment in Western cultural politics, working to surface the very assumptions that it belays. Founded by Vincent L. Wimbush, the collaborative enterprise  has as its mission the "excavation of … Continue reading Reflections on the ISS- Scriptures at Their Root

Wabash Center for Teaching & Learning in Religion & Theology

The Wabash Center is a premier space for professional development for educators in Religious Studies and Theology. Through workshops, consultations, a journal, and a number of social media projects, the center has played a substantial  part in the development of best practices and best practitioners. At the 2015 Reception for New Teachers, I was invited … Continue reading Wabash Center for Teaching & Learning in Religion & Theology