Dr. Jonathan Tan, the Archbishop Palul J. Hallinan Professor in Catholic Studies, has had his latest essay, “Doing Liturgy Intersectionally: Opportunities and Implications” published in Worship volume 99 (October 2025): 338-360. This essay originated as his keynote address for the Godfrey Diekmann Center Graduate Symposium at Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary in Collegeville, Minnesota on May 2, 2024.
This event will feature a short talk by Pádraig Ó Tuama on the Baker-Nord Institue’s fall theme of “encounters,” followed by a reading of some of his poems with Michele Tracy Berger, Director of the Baker-Nord Institute for the Humanites and professor of the Religious Studies Department, and Q&A with the audience. Ó Tuama is an Irish poet with interests in language, violence, power, and religion. He is the host of On Being’s, Poetry Unbound, and has published volumes of poetry, essays, a memoir and theology, including his most recent publication, Kitchen Hymns.
This event is co-sponsored by the Departments of English and Religious Studies and the CWRU Writing Program/Writers House.
Thursday, November 6th at 4:30pm
Linsalata Alumni Ctr
A book sale and signing will immediately follow the event.
Registration for this event is now closed; all seats have been claimed.
On All Saints Day, November 1st, 2025, Dr. Jonathan Tan, Archbishop Paul Hallinan Professor of Catholic Studies, was interviewed by Monsignor Kevin Sullivan on the JustLove Show on Sirius/XM Catholic Channel 129. They discussed the importance of Saints in the Catholic tradition, highlighting two recently canonized by Pope Leo XIV – Saint Carlo Acutis and Saint Peter To Rot, the first Saint from Papua New Guinea – and their relevance for the faithful today.
The episode can be found here, with Dr. Tan’s interview occurring during the second half of the show.
The Jewish Theological Seminary’s, “Upholding Human Dignity in Turbulent Times: An Interreligious Convening” will take place on Monday and Tuesday, November 17th and 18th, 2025. This two-day convening will bring together religious leaders, scholars, and activists from diverse traditions to explore the urgent imperative of safeguarding human dignity, well-being, and fundamental rights in the face of ongoing challenges.
Dr. Timothy Beal, Distinguished University Professor and Florence Harkness Professor of Religion, will lend his expertise for Tuesday’s panel, Religious Ethics and Dehumanizing Potential of Emerging Technologies.
For more information visit Upholding Human Dignity in Turbulent Times: An Interreligious Convening – Jewish Theological Seminary
Join Religious Studies faculty for a spooky and stimulating conversation! Have some candy and treats as we discuss ghosts, zombies, and monsters in religion and why we study them.
Wednesday, October 29th
4:30pm – 5:30pm
Mather 100
Halloween treats provided and counts towards Explore Credit!
Case Western Reserve University, Baker-Nord Institute for the Humanities, is seeking a qualified candidate to fill a postdoctoral fellow position. This is a one-year appointment with the possibility of renewing for an additional year.
The purpose of the BNC Postdoctoral Fellowship is to support research in the humanities by providing scholars in the early stages of their careers with the time and resources necessary to advance their work. Fellows will be affiliated with one or more of the humanities departments represented by the Baker-Nord Institute for the Humanities including but not limited to: Classics, Religious Studies, Modern Languages and Literatures, and Art and Art History. We are particularly interested in Fellows whose scholarly and/or creative inquiry engage the following areas of speculation and the speculative, global Afrofuturism(s), and/or decolonial methods and approaches.
Click here for more information and to apply for this opportunity!
The Program in Jewish Studies invites you to an Open House event. Come have a “nosh” (snack), learn about the program, and create some fun letterpress prints to share for the new year. All are welcome!
Questions? Contact Professor Barbara Mann at bem71@case.edu
Thursday, September 25th at 5pm
in the New Gutenberg Annex/Bellflower 101
Refreshments Provided
Counts as Explore Credit
The New York Times recently reached out to Dr. Deepak Sarma to be quoted in the September 25th article, What Declines in Reading and Math Mean for the U.S. Work Force. Dr. Sarma commented that “My students now, they leave high school and don’t have the capacity to read a lengthy 25-page article. They don’t know what to do with it.” The article was printed on the front page of the Times on Friday, September 26th.
Read the full article for more on this national decline.
What happens when a scholar of religion is confronted with evidence that challenges the boundaries between science, belief, and the unexplained? In this provocative talk, “When the Evidence Changed: A Humanities Professor’s Encounters with Aerospace Insiders – and How They Transformed Her Scholarship and Belief“, Dr. Diana Pasulka, professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, recounts her unexpected journey into the world of aerospace insiders and emergent technologies that blur the line between the natural and the supernatural.
Monday, September 29th
12:45 pm
TVUC Ballroom C
Boxed lunches will be provided at 12:30pm. Registration requested.
On September 4th, 2025, Dr. Deepak Sarma was featured on Ideastream’s Sound of Ideas, “Clinical trials and political will could mark new landscape for psychedelics.” The discussion centers around the landscape of psychedelics and how they’re being used in the medical sphere, clinical trials happening here in Northeast Ohio, and what mental issues are being targeted.