Theology Research News Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies (KU Leuven)

The online conference ‘Dialogue in the Dungeon’ focused on the Disputatio Raimundi Christiani et Hamar Saraceni by Ramon Llull. It highlighted a key aspect of Ramon Llull’s writing: his view on Islam and on the dialogue and encounter with this religion, all in the broader framework of 13th century Christian-Muslim relations in general.

In a world in which many societies put in jeopardy both the lives of the most vulnerable people and all future generations as well, it seems inevitable that we must acknowledge, agree upon, and adhere to certain limits. Even so, the notion of “green growth”, unattended by arduous change, is often invoked as the preferable path to environmental sustainability. Talk of limitation or sufficiency remains as unpopular as it is necessary.

Although young people are often committed to environmental protection, educational structures may not support their concerns, which are frequently intermingled with socio-economic concerns. During the recent Liberation Theology Workshop: Doing Climate Justice (October 22-24, 2020), Prof. Dr. Claudia Gärtner (TU Dortmund University) gave a brief but rich presentation on the opportunities and challenges that education for sustainable development (ESD) presents in religious educational contexts.

In this interview Dr. Daniel Galadza, a byzantinist and liturgical theologian, discusses trends in Byzantine studies, talks about his recent book Liturgy and Byzantinization in Jerusalem (OUP, 2017), and reflects on the challenges and opportunities of being both an academic theologian and a deacon in the Eastern Catholic Church. He was in Louvain for a conference he and Prof. Dr. Joseph Verheyden convened at KU Leuven on the liturgy and literature of the Lavra of St. Sabas (Image: Communion of the Apostles)

Prof. Dr. Hans Wiersma, specialist in Lutheranism and Reformation history is spending the year at KU Leuven to write a book in which he argues that 1520, as opposed to 1517 (Wittenberg) or 1521 (Edict of Worms), can be considered the pivot point in the Reformation. In this interview Wiersma talks about the idea behind the book, highlights the central role that the Louvain theologians played in the dispute with Luther, and introduces the cinematic cast of characters—from Luther to Erasmus to Pope Leo X—that made 1520 so crucial – Image: Martin Luther and his wife, Katharina von Bora.

While Prof. Dr. Paul van Geest writes his latest book on Augustine and fear, he is spending time as a Visiting Professor of History of Church and Theology at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven. In this lively interview, he discusses what brought about the idea to write this book, why he chose to do it in Louvain, what got him into theology in the first place, and his role as a public theologian in the Netherlands and beyond – Image: Tapestry detail with Saint Augustine, Saint Stephen, and an angel.