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Kristina García
News Officer
klg@upenn.edu
Religious Studies
Who, What, Why: Max Johnson Dugan’s research on halal food
Who, What, Why: Max Johnson Dugan’s research on halal food
A doctoral candidate in religious studies, Dugan focuses on halal consumption: “What we make, what we wear, what sort of things that we eat, what we do with our bodies.”
Donovan Schaefer says there is no division between thinking and feeling
Donovan Schaefer says there is no division between thinking and feeling
In his new book, “Wild Experiment: Feeling Science and Secularism after Darwin”, the assistant professor of religious studies posits that thinking and feeling are intertwined.
Jolyon Baraka Thomas on curiosity and contentment
Jolyon Baraka Thomas on curiosity and contentment
For Jolyon Baraka Thomas of the School of Arts & Sciences, the route to religious studies was the same one that led him away from faith.
Justin McDaniel on life, death, religion, and his latest book
Justin McDaniel on life, death, religion, and his latest book
In his new book, “Wayward Distractions,” the School of Arts & Sciences’ Justin McDaniel compiles articles on art and material culture spanning his 20-plus years of scholarship.
In These Times: Fear and loathing and science
In These Times: Fear and loathing and science
Season three of the School of Arts & Sciences podcast explores scientific ideas that get big reactions.
Religious freedom as a tool for American occupation
Religious freedom as a tool for American occupation
Jolyon Thomas, an associate professor of religious studies, discusses his award-winning book, ‘Faking Liberties: Religious Freedom in American-Occupied Japan.’
The Divine Comedy’s ‘universal message’
The Divine Comedy’s ‘universal message’
Seven centuries years after Dante Alighieri's death on Sept. 14, 1321, his “Divine Comedy,” a poem in which an autobiographical protagonist journeys through hell, purgatory, and paradise, is still widely influential.
Archiving empire with religious studies’ Megan Robb
Archiving empire with religious studies’ Megan Robb
A long-unseen archive centered on an 18th-century Mughal woman will soon be publicly accessible, thanks to the work of religious studies professor Megan Robb of the School of Arts & Sciences and a team of Penn students.
Nationalism, American evangelicals, and conservatism
Nationalism, American evangelicals, and conservatism
Historians Anthea Butler and Heather J. Sharkey and political scientist Michele Margolis share their thoughts on the history of American evangelicals in politics, Trump’s appeal, and what it means for the future of the GOP.
Integrating tough questions about the intersection of race, religion, and politics
Integrating tough questions about the intersection of race, religion, and politics
Through student discussions and outside lectures, one SNF Paideia Program course examined the Jewish experience, the history of prejudice, and intersectionality in Jewish identity, among other topics.
Media Contact
In the News
USA Today
How protests in Iran over Mahsa Amini’s death ‘forever moved the debate’ over women’s rights
Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet of the School of Arts & Sciences discusses Iran’s long history of mandating what women can wear and the power employed by its “morality police.”
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U.S. News & World Report
Iranian woman push back against compulsory hijab
Firoozeh Kashani-Sabet of the School of Arts & Sciences says that Iranian society still struggles with how much of a role religion has played in its pre- and post-revolutionary eras.
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The Washington Post
The truth about the history education wars in 2022
Jonathan Zimmerman of the Graduate School of Education writes that political battles over education have secularized, shifting focus from religion to American history and identity.
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The Conversation
At 75, Pakistan has moved far from the secular and democratic vision of its founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah
Farah Jan of the School of Arts & Sciences writes that ideology and religion are divisive forces in modern-day Pakistan, far from Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s dream of a secular democratic homeland with equal rights for all.
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The Conversation
Afghanistan’s war rug industry distorts the reality of everyday trauma
Jamal J. Elias of the School of Arts & Sciences wrote about the war rug market in Afghanistan, arguing that collectors and journalists tend to mistakenly view the weavings as reflections of the creator’s worldview. Instead, said Elias, it’s the rug brokers and dealers who determine the motifs. “Ultimately, Afghan war rugs are produced for the market,” he wrote.
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The Washington Post
Gina Stewart becomes first woman elected to lead US Black Baptist organization
Anthea Butler of the School of Arts & Sciences commented on Gina Stewart’s selection as president of the Lott Carey Baptist Foreign Mission Society. “I think it is significant, important, and past time for a woman to be in leadership in Black Baptist circles, missions or otherwise,” said Butler. “Women are the fundraisers and foundation of the church.”
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