Who is the human? What is legitimate religion? Who is left out of these discourses? Questions of power, humanity, and alterity animate religious discourse and responses to oppression. Leveraging the Rastafari movement and interrogating religious racism this talk will allow us to grapple with 20th century Black religious discourses and their continued relevance for thinking about how to protect religious freedom in the contemporary moment. RSVP here for in-person event. Register here for Zoom link. Shamara Wyllie Alhassan is Assistant Professor of African American Studies at the University of California – Los Angeles. Alhassan comes to UCLA from Arizona State University where she was…
Imperial Foundations of the Silk Road: Persian Roads and Han Walls While the Silk Road is often celebrated as a pivotal example of early globalization, scholarship has primarily focused on the consequences of its connectivity, neglecting the crucial question of its formation and operational logistics. This lecture re-examines the origins and mechanisms of this trans-Eurasian network during the latter half of the first millennium BCE. It posits that the imperial ambitions of the Achaemenid Persian and Han Chinese dynasties were fundamental in establishing this communication network. Specifically, the Persian Royal Road facilitated movement from Central Asia to the Mediterranean, while…
Zoroastrian Hermeneutics in Late Antiquity The Sūdgar Nask of Dēnkard Book 9 is a commentary on the ‘Old Avesta’ of the 2nd millennium BCE produced in Pahlavi (Zoroastrian Middle Persian) in the Sasanian (224–651 CE) and early Islamic centuries. This commentary is a value-laden, ideologically motivated discourse that displays a rich panoply of tradition-constituted forms of allegoresis. It mobilizes complex forms of citation, allusion, and intertextuality from the inherited Avestan world of myth and ritual in order to engage with and react to the profound changes occurring in Iranian society. Despite its value and importance for developing our nascent understanding…
Present day records show an overwhelming numerical preponderance of nuns in Jain mendicant orders. Their striking presence demands that we question the androcentric models of renunciation in South Asia, as well as interrogate the commonsensical assumptions about the attraction that a lifetime of mendicancy may hold for women. By privileging the voice of the nuns, themselves, this presentation looks at how the Indic concept of liberation as spiritual deliverance (moksa) may sometimes overlap, or approximate the more this-worldly idea of women’s liberation. Register here for Zoom link. Manisha Sethi, Associate Professor, Centre for Jawaharlal Nehru Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia, New…
Even a steady rain couldn’t dampen students’ excitement for the return of the annual event.
Some of America’s most effective reformers did not just refer to the Bible, but fused their own struggles with its narratives, seeing themselves as part of a cosmic divine battle within history. Claudia Setzer will have us consider how abolitionist Frederick Douglass, Civil Rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer and others used multiple methods of biblical interpretation to make sense of their struggles and to reject despair. We will also consider contemporary activist groups that root themselves in the Bible and religious traditions. Register here for the Zoom link.
The story of Adam and Eve’s fall from innocence in the Garden of Eden is a mythical account of humanity’s broken relationship with the divine, with Earth, and with themselves. In contrast, Celtic wisdom is built on a strong bond with Earth. In the prophetic figures that author John Philip Newell draws from in his book The Great Search, the Garden of Eden represents the inner garden of our souls and the outer garden of Earth, which are seen as essentially one. To live in relation to what is deepest in us is to live in relation to the ground…
Ambroise Aubrun, violin Steven Vanhauwaert, piano “ A Journey through Europe to the USA from 1700 to 1930” invites you to an exploration of the violin and piano duo’s rich history. Each piece performed will reflect the evolving styles and cultural influences that shaped the duo’s repertoire from the baroque era to the early 20th century. The performance is complemented by engaging presentations and discussions, offering a guide to a deeper understanding of this timeless repertoire. Further details and the complete program are on the website.
Concert presented in honor of Bruce Whiteman Each visionary performance of the award-winning Borromeo String Quartet strengthens and deepens its reputation as one of the most important ensembles of our time. Admired and sought after for both its fresh interpretations of the classical music canon and its championing of works by twentieth- and twenty-first-century composers, the ensemble has been hailed for its “edge-of-the-seat performances” by the Boston Globe, which called it “simply the best.” The group recently premiered new works written for it by Sebastian Currier and Aaron Jay Kernis at recitals at Carnegie Hall, Shriver Concerts, and the Tippet Rise Art…
Participation in the Seminar consists of group discussion of pre-circulated papers, typically drafts of articles, book chapters, or dissertation chapters (with complete apparatus). Two of the papers are ordinarily by emerging scholars (including PhD students) and the other two are by established scholars. We allocate one hour per paper and presenters should anticipate substantial, and substantive, feedback. Calls for presenters are circulated via e-mail from the Center approximately two months prior to each meeting and papers are accepted on a first-come basis. More information can be found here. Register to attend in Royce 306 Register to attend via Zoom
