St. Stephen's College Department of Theology

Overcoming Meaninglessness and Existential Depression What's the point? How do we navigate what appears to be a pointless, empty, dead-end world? We eat, sleep, work...eat, sleep, and work, day after day, but...Why? Where is this all leading? Is this going anywhere? Does it all lead to meaninglessness, to emptiness, to nothing? Let's explore.

Does Nature Ever Break the Law? - John Templeton Foundation Usted está viendo Templeton.org en español. Tenga en cuenta que solamente hemos traducido algunas páginas a su idioma. El resto permanecen en inglés.

Is There a God-Shaped Hole at the Heart of Mathematics? - John Templeton Foundation Usted está viendo Templeton.org en español. Tenga en cuenta que solamente hemos traducido algunas páginas a su idioma. El resto permanecen en inglés.

How the role and visibility of chaplains changed over the past century Chaplaincy emerged as a professional field in the mid-20th century. In the years since, their roles have evolved and they have also come to include many diverse religious traditions.

WATCH: What Do Unbelievers Actually Believe? - John Templeton Foundation Usted está viendo Templeton.org en español. Tenga en cuenta que solamente hemos traducido algunas páginas a su idioma. El resto permanecen en inglés.

The Russian Orthodox Church and the war in Ukraine, between the rock and a hard place.

Why is Russia's church backing Putin's war? Church-state history gives a clue The war in Ukraine is just the latest chapter in a long, tangled relationship between the Kremlin and the Russian Orthodox Church.

Can churches be protectors of public health? Responses to COVID-19 health guidelines have been polarized, including in churches. But religious communities have a long history of involvement in public health.

Healing division through exploration of shared values | Othering & Belonging Institute This paper develops the argument that public debate at its most polarised focuses on attitudes toward specific political programmes or policy choices, rather than the values that underpin our political convictions.

Opinion | What I Learned About Death From 7 Religious Scholars, 1 Atheist and My Father There is so much to learn from facing the unknowable.

Many scientists are atheists, but that doesn't mean they are anti-religious Two sociologists conducted interviews with atheist scientists and found that their views on religion are not as strident as the public perceives. Some even go to church.

Here is another wake-up call to all who serve human wellness.

UN chief: World is at `pivotal moment’ and must avert crises U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a dire warning that the world is moving in the wrong direction and faces “a pivotal moment” where continuing business as usual could lead to a breakdown of global order and a future of perpetual crisis. Changing course could signal a breakthrough to...

As Texas ban on abortion goes into effect, a religion scholar explains that pre-modern Christian attitudes on marriage and reproductive rights were quite different The Supreme Court declined to rule on a Texas law that bans all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. However, abortion and contraception were quite common among pre-modern Christians.

This applies to every professional in the clinical setting.

High rates of COVID-19 burnout could lead to shortage of health-care workers Rates of burnout have increased alarmingly among health-care workers during the pandemic. Unless the system provides more support to its already depleted workforce, staff shortages may get worse.

Chaplains Reflect on Afghanistan CRC chaplains who served in Afghanistan feel a range of emotions as the U.S. and its allies airlift people from the country.

Op-Ed: Why vaccination hesitancy runs deep among the religious — and what we can do to reach them Health officials should more directly address faith communities so they can effectively dispel the wild conspiracy theories swirling around the vaccines.

As pandemic restrictions ease, we need to consider ethical travel in our return As global travel resumes, now is the perfect time to establish new conversations for what ethical travel might look like.

“Am I my brother’s keeper?” It is the quintessential question asked by Cain of God after he has killed his brother Abel. It is the story of the first human death brought upon a brother by another human being. The story of Cain and Abel appears in parallel versions in Hebrew, Christian and Muslim sacred texts, and prototypes may have existed as early as 3000 years earlier in the Sumerian myths of Southern Mesopotamia. God does not even give a straight answer to Cain’s question; this is a no-brainer: Cain and Abel are brothers - duh!
The crime goes deeper than brotherly strife and jealousy. Much deeper. Yes, I am my brother – sister - neighbour’s keeper: keeper of respect, dignity and recognition of life in you.
The recent finding of more unmarked graves rips open deep wounds, and confronts everyone with serious questions. Where do we go from here? Quick answers are not adequate. Let us begin with pausing and letting this sink in deeply.
But not too long: acknowledgement followed by action is everyone’s responsibility. It is difficult not to speak of “us” and “them.” I and you. I hurt, but I do not know your pain. I need to act, but I cannot do that without you, my Indigenous brother, my sister. We are called to work through this together. Please teach me.

As I am still reeling from the latest devastating eruption of hatred by one mind-sick, misguided individual I want to direct you to a publication, available online, of a series of informative and insightful lectures by David Goa, Founding Director of the Chester Ronning Centre for the study of Religion and Public Life. In The Christian Responsibility to Muslims (https://www.davidgoa.ca/religion-and-public-life) Goa suggests us to ask new questions, looking at our Muslim neighbours through a new set of lenses, the old ones being soiled by centuries of historic –mostly unexamined – rhetoric of who we and our Muslim neighbours are. Through vignettes and stories these lectures highlight the possibility of moments, settings, a community where people experience the richness of diversity and the lifegiving power of encounter.

Religion & Public Life — David Goa David Goa focuses on deepening the capacity of the faithful to think through the gifts of the Christian tradition: the spiritual life, the theological traditions, and our responsibility to the public world.

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Religion & Public Life: In Conversation with David Goa and Dittmar Mündel. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. Join David Goa (Founding Director of the Chester Ronning Centre) and Dittmar Mündel (Founding Associate Director) as they discuss the early history of the Ronning Centre and their work at Augustana during the Centre's formative years. This webinar is part of Augustana Campus' 110 celebrations. You ...

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