http://www.aarweb.org/meetings/Annual_Meeting/Past_and_Future_Meetings/2001/highlights.asp
2001 Program Highlights
Plenary & Presidential Addresses
A Map to the Next World (A25)
Saturday, 11:30 am-12:30 pm
Joy Harjo, Honolulu, HI
Renowned poet, writer and musician, Joy Harjo was born in Tulsa and is
an enrolled member of the Muscogee Nation. She has published six books of
poetry, numerous articles, and made several CDs. Her most recent book of
poetry is entitled A Map to The Next World (W.W. Norton), which
will also be the theme of her plenary address.
Her presence in Denver at the AAR Annual Meeting will bring Ms. Harjo back to her musical beginnings as it was there she took up the saxophone. Her band, Joy Harjo and Poetic Justice, combines poetry with music involving elements of tribal musics, jazz, and rock. Ms. Harjo has attended the Institute of American Indian Arts and the Anthropology Film Center, and earned degrees from the University of New Mexico and the University of Iowa (creative writing). She has taught at Arizona State University, Santa Fe Community College, the Institute of American Indian Arts, the University of Colorado, the University of Arizona, and the University of New Mexico.
Presidential Address: Beyond the Founding
Fratricidal Conflict: Scholarship of Religion and a Renewed Public Academy
(A80)
Saturday, 7:15 pm-8:30 pm
Rebecca S. Chopp, Yale University
Rebecca S. Chopp is a 1974 graduate of Kansas Wesleyan University. She
received her Master of Divinity in 1977 from St. Paul School of Theology
and her Ph.D. from the University of Chicago Divinity School, where she
was an Assistant Professor of Theology from 1982-1986. In 1986 she moved
to Emory University where she has held many roles. Culminating in 1997,
when she became Acting Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at
Emory, a position which became permanent in 1998, and through which she
has acquired wide-ranging experience in all areas of university
administration. In Fall of 2001 she became the first female dean of Yale
University Divinity School.
Her area of expertise is contemporary theology and culture, with a focus on feminist theology. Among her books are The Praxis of Suffering: An Interpretation of Liberation and Political Theologies and The Power to Speak: Feminism, Language, God. She is a member of many editorial boards, including those of Religious Studies Review, Religion and Ideology, The Quarterly Review, and Journal of Religion.
Theology's Great Sin (A164)
Sunday, 7:15 pm-8:15 pm
James H. Cone, Union Theological Seminary, New York
James Cone attended Shorter College (1954-56) and holds a B.A. from
Philander Smith College (1958). He received his B.D. from Garrett
Theological Seminary (1961); the M.A. and Ph.D. from Northwestern
University (1963 and 65, respectively). Dr. Cone has been conferred eight
honorary degrees, including a Doctor of Divinity (2000) from Garrett
Evangelical-Theological Seminary. He is also an ordained minister in the
African Methodist Episcopal Church. His research and teaching are in
Christian theology, with special attention to Black theology and the
theologies of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, as well as twentieth-century European-American theologies.
He is the author of eleven books and over 50 articles and has lectured at more than 800 universities and community organizations throughout the United States, Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. He is best known for his groundbreaking works, Black Theology and Black Power (1969) A Black Theology of Liberation (1970), God of the Oppressed (1975) and Martin and Malcolm and America: A Dream or a Nightmare (1991). His most recent publication is Risks of Faith (1999).
Liberation Theology and the Twenty-First Century: Celebrating Past,
Present, and Future (A250)
Monday, 7:15 pm-8:15 pm
Gustavo Gutiérrez, Instituto Bartomé de Las Casas, University of Notre
Dame; James H. Cone, Union Theological Seminary, New York City; Letty
Russell, Yale University; Orlando Espin, University of San Diego; and Kwok
Pui Lan, Episcopal Divinity School
On the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the publication of
Gustavo Gutiérrez's A Theology of Liberation, the AAR invites our
member to celebrate the work of liberation theology in the field and in
society.
Special
Topics Forums
The AAR has arranged two open forums in response to the September 11 terrorist attacks:
The Teaching and Study of Religion post September 11, 2001 (A271)
Saturday, November 17, 2001
1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Brief remarks will be made by: Catherine L. Albanese, University of
California, Santa Barbara; Rebecca S. Chopp, Yale University; Vasudha
Narayanan, University of Florida; Robert A. Orsi, Harvard University;
Peter J. Paris, Princeton Theological Seminary; and Lawrence Sullivan,
Harvard University. Discussion with audience to follow.
September 11, 2001 and Islam (A272)
Sunday, November 18, 2001
1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Brief remarks will be made by: Mark Juergensmeyer, University of
California, Santa Barbara; Ebrahim Moosa, Duke University; Zayn Kassam,
Pomona College; and Bruce Lawrence, Duke University. Discussion with
audience to follow.
Please also see the AAR's Statements on September 11, 2001 page.
The Study of Religion Counts: What We Know (and What We Don't) About
the Shape of the Field (A28)
Saturday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Sponsored by the Academic Relations Task
Force
James B. Wiggins, Syracuse University, Presiding
From September 2000 to April 2001, department chairs and program heads
in religion and theology at fully accredited colleges and universities
across North America responded to the AAR's Census
of Religion and Theology Programs supported by a grant from the Lilly
Endowment. This special topics forum includes a report on what has been
learned from the census about programs, faculty, and enrollments at the
undergraduate level; a summary of the research design and data collection
strategies deployed; reflections on what the data reveal about the state
of the field; and a discussion of measures needed for filling lacunae in
our knowledge. Questions from the floor will be especially invited.
Panelists include Edward R. Gray, American Academy of Religion; Lance
Selfa, National Opinion Research Center; Jonathan Z. Smith, University of
Chicago; and Linell E. Cady, Arizona State University.
"If I Knew Then What I Know Now": Lessons From the First
Year on the Job (A52)
Saturday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Sponsored by the EIS Advisory Panel
Richard A. Rosengarten, University of Chicago, Presiding
Former users of the EIS Center reflect
on and offer advice about the first year on the job during this special
topics forum. Panelists will speak to their wisdom and missteps as they
contended with developing new courses, teaching new students, completing a
dissertation, balancing career and family life, and learning the local
cultures of their new department, institution, and locality. Panelists
include Faith Kirkham Hawkins, Gustavus Adolphus College; Michael J.
Brown, Emory University; and Thomas Pearson, Muhlenberg College.
Identity, Scholarship, and Teaching: Studying Religion
Cross-Culturally and Ethnically (A53)
Saturday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Sponsored by the Committee on the Status of
Racial and Ethnic Minorities in the Profession
Karen Baker-Fletcher, Claremont School of Theology, Presiding
As students of religion, we often have to teach courses broadly,
cutting across religious traditions and cultures that are not our own. The
purpose of this panel is to examine the issues, problems, and strategies
involved in studying and teaching religion across racial, ethnic, and
cultural boundaries. For example, what are the problems and issues of a
non-black person studying and teaching African American religion or a
non-Muslim doing the same for Islam? Similarly, what issues does a Muslim
professor encounter on a largely Christian campus? In recent years, we
have also heard about some Native American groups refusing access to
non-Native scholars. What are the moral responsibilities of scholars of
religion? What strategies have been employed in teaching and scholarship
to deal sensitively with racial, ethnic, and cultural boundaries? The
following panelists will share their experiences and insights on these and
related issues: José I. Cabezón, Iliff School of Theology; Laura
Donaldson, Cornell University; Chris Jocks, Dartmouth College; Lawrence
Mamiya, Vassar College; and Amina Wadud, Virginia Commonwealth University.
Diana L. Eck will respond.
Interested persons are invited to a reception hosted by the AAR's
Comittee on Racial and Ethnic Minorities in the Profession directly
following this session.
Introduction to the AAR (A77)
Saturday, 5:00 pm-6:15 pm
Sponsored by the Student Liaison Group
Edward R. Gray, American Academy of Religion Presiding
This session provides an orientation to AAR structures, publication
programs, and services. A brief presentation will be given and ample
opportunity for questions and general discussion will follow.
CANCELLED
Law Enforcement, the Media, and Religious Groups in Crisis
Situations: A Simulation (A89)
Sunday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Sponsored by the Committee on the Public
Understanding of Religion
Eugene V. Gallagher, Connecticut College, Presiding
The prolonged negotiations between agents of the FBI and members of the
Branch Davidian community at the Mount Carmel Center from February 28 to
April 19, 1993 highlighted the complex nature of such interactions and
raised questions about how law enforcement agents interpret religious
statements and actions, how religious groups interpret the intervention of
law enforcement, how media reports shape crisis negotiation situations,
and how all involved can work to achieve peaceful conclusions such
standoffs. In this special session agents from the FBI will present an
extended simulation of a crisis simulation, respond to questions and
comments from the panelists, and engage in open discussion with the
audience. Panelists include Michael Barkun, Syracuse University; Mary
Walsh, CBS News; and Catherine Wessinger, Loyola University, New Orleans.
CANCELLED
Crossing Boundaries and Creating Connections: Religion and the
Research University (A113)
Sunday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Sponsored by the Program Committee
Rebecca S. Chopp, Yale University, Presiding
President emeritus of Georgetown University, Leo J. O'Donovan, and president of Columbia University, George Rupp sit down together to discuss contemporary U.S. higher education; its challenges; and implications for the study of religion and theology.
Religion and Society After the Aum Affair (A138)
Sunday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Sponsored by the Committee on
International Connections
Manabu Watanabe, Nanzan University, Presiding
After the Aum affair in 1995 a number of changes happened inside and
outside of Japan. It is especially necessary for us to reflect on the
relationship between religion and society in the new context of active
control by the government over new religious movements. Panelists include
Yoshihide Sakurai, Hojjaido University and Robert Kisala, Nanzan
University. Catherine Wessinger, Loyola University, New Orleans and Irving
Hexham, University of Calgary will respond.
Digital Culture: Critical Implications of Technology for Religious
Studies Teaching and Research (A139)
Sunday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Sponsored by the New Technologies Task
Force
David Suiter, Regis College, Presiding
This session will focus on critical issues that new technologies pose
for religious studies scholars in their research, teaching, and other
professional activities. Presenters include Carl Raschke, University of
Denver; Anne Foerst, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Harold W.
Anderson, Iliff School of Theology; Alfred Benney, Fairfield University;
and Brenda E. Brasher, Mount Union College.
Who Says My Degree Isn't Practical? Careers in Religion Publishing
and Writing (A161)
Sunday, 4:30 pm-6:00 pm
Sponsored by the American Academy of Religion, Publisher's
Weekly, and the Society of
Biblical Literature
The concept of public scholarship has become increasingly important to
today's academics, in religion as in other fields. One of the primary ways
religion academics become "public scholars" who help shape the
wider culture is by writing books for general audiences. In the past
decade, as public interest in religion and spirituality has risen, many
such books have enjoyed notable commercial success. This year's special
session features a panel discussing the topic alternative careers in
writing and publishing with a degree in religion, theology, and/or Bible.
Faith Based on What? Feminist Scholars of Religion Speak Out About
Public Policy and the Bush II Administration (A175)
Monday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Sponsored by the Committee on the Status of
Women in the Profession
Janet R. Jakobsen, Barnard College, Presiding
Religion has been much in the news in 2001, mainly because of President
Bush's proposal to establish an office for faith-based social service
provision. This session will expand the public debate by raising a number
of related issues that have been identified and analyzed by feminist
scholars of religion who focus on the intersections among issues, but
rarely touched upon in the press. Public debates have rarely included
discussion of the implicit way the word "religion" in U.S. law
and policy refers to enlightenment Protestantism or the way in which the
rhetoric of "faith-based initiatives" identifies morality with
(the Christian) religion, and only with certain (conservative)
understandings of religious morality and charity. As a result, the
rhetoric around "faith-based initiatives" can undermine public
discussion about issues of social justice, social responsibility and the
role of government in the creation of the common good, while ignoring the
public voices of religious persons and groups that are not those commonly
identified with conservative morality. For example, questions of religious
freedom have been central to discussions of faith-based initiatives, but
have rarely moved beyond the now requisite recitation of Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam. Such discussions almost never include the
fundamental question of religious freedom for Native Americans where
religious freedom is tied to issues such as land rights and the
environment. These and other issues, such as environmental racism, will be
discussed by panelists Rita Nakashima Brock, Harvard University; Mary
Churchill, University of Colorado at Boulder; Joan Martin, Episcopal
Divinity School; Mary Hunt, Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and
Ritual; and Judith Plaskow, Manhattan College.
Religion in the Schools Day (A176)
Monday, 9:00 am-10:00 am
Sponsored by the Religion in the
Schools Task Force
Edward R. Gray, American Academy of Religion, Presiding
The Religion in the Schools Task Force sponsors this program bringing a
corps of religious studies scholars to Denver area public schools
throughout the day (Monday, November 19, 2001.) These visits, arranged in
cooperation with Denver area teachers, highlight areas of "natural
inclusion" of the study of religion into existing high school
curricula. Members of the visiting corps will meet at this time for
orientation. Guests interested in this project and other AAR initiatives
in promoting teaching about religion in the schools are welcome at this
session; visitors may observe certain projects. For more information about
this session, or to volunteer to take part, please email Edward R. Gray,
Director of the Academic Relations Program in the AAR Executive Offices at
egray@aarweb.org.
Ethnic and Religious Pluralism in the Classroom: What Can We Learn
from the British Experience? (A201)
Monday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Sponsored by the Committee on Teaching
and Learning, Wabash
Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion; and the Leeds
Learning and Teaching Support Network, Philosophical
and Religious Studies Subject Centre.
Michael Battle, Duke University, Presiding
Universities in Britain have experienced a remarkable increase in
ethnic and religious diversity in religious studies classrooms similar to
that in North America. Colleagues from Britain will describe the context
and missions of their departments and both the theoretical issues they
have engaged and the practical applications in teaching and learning they
have developed responding to that pluralism. The goal will be to learn
more about best practices of teaching and learning in classes of
ethnically and religiously diverse students by comparisons and contrasts
between the British and North American experiences. Participants in the
discussion from Britain will be Hugh Pyper, University of Leeds; David
Jasper, University of Glasgow; Ann Loades, University of Durham; and
Chakravarti Ram-Prasad, Lancaster University. Participants from North
America will be Michael Battle, Duke University, Presider; Carol Duncan,
Wilfrid Laurier University; and Raymond B. Williams, Wabash College.
Ninian Smart and the International Study of Religion (A225)
Monday, 3:45 pm-5:45 pm
Sponsored by the Committee on
International Connections, the University of California, Santa Barbara
and the University of Lancaster
Mary McGee, Columbia University, Presiding
This panel honors Ninian Smart, late past president of the American
Academy of Religion, and his contributions to internationalizing the study
of religion. Panelists will examine Smart's academic legacy as well as how
his contributions move us forward in shaping the academic study of
religion in the twenty-first century. Panelists include Deborah Sawyer,
Lancaster University; Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad, Lancaster University; Juan
E. Campo, University of California, Santa Barbara; Gavin Hyman, University
of Lancaster; Ursula King, University of Bristol; John Sawyer, Lancaster
University; and Richard D. Hecht, University of California, Santa Barbara.
A brief remembrance service will immediately follow this session in the
same room.
Pre-Conference Programs
Please note, some pre-conference workshops require separate registration.
Chairs Workshop (A1-A5)
Friday, 8:00 am-4:00 pm
Sponsored by the Academic Relations Program and the Strengthening College
and University Religion and Theology Programs, an initiative supported by
a grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc.
Edward Gray, American Academy of Religion, Presiding
Virtually every department and program in religion assesses faculty
teaching performance. Some do it effectively while others do not. This
interactive workshop led by Peter Seldin, a nationally recognized expert
on teaching and evaluation, will focus on new lessons learned about
evaluating teaching to help chairs and other program leaders develop the
knowledge and skill needed to more successfully use different techniques
and approaches to assess and improve teaching. Participants will learn to
develop more effective means of evaluating teaching; how to use available
data for improved performance and tenure/promotion decisions; and what to
do and what not to do in the process.
See the Evaluating
and Advancing Teaching in the Religious Studies Department: An Annual
Meeting Chairs Workshop page for a full description and registration form. Separate registration required.
Religion and Media Workshop (A7-A11)
Friday, 9:00 am-5:00 pm
Sponsored by the Committee on Public
Understanding of Religion; Religion
and Popular Culture Group; Religion,
Film, and Visual Culture Group; Religion,
Culture and Communication Consultation; and SBL's Bible
in Ancient and Modern Media Section
Stewart M. Hoover, University of Colorado at Boulder, Presiding
What do media and religion have to do with each other? How do we study
these complex cultural phenomena and their intersections? This one day
pre-conference seminar will bring together AAR and SBL members interested
in conversation about the many relationships between media and religion.
The program will include a lunch time key note address by Lynn Neary,
senior correspondent on the culture desk at National Public Radio who
covered their religion beat for six years. Other presenters from within
AAR and SBL and generous time for guided conversations will provide the
opportunity to think together about: 1) the breadth and range of the
phenomena that fit under the "media and religion" umbrella; 2)
the theories and methods which help to relate and analyze religion and
media; 3) creating an interdisciplinary conversation which can bring
together participants with varied backgrounds, interest and fields; and
finally 4) addressing issues in teaching religion and media.
Separate registration required. See the registration form in the
Program Book or download a registration
form (requires PDF).
Women's Caucus Workshop (A12)
Friday, 12:00 pm-5:00 pm
Young Lee Hertig, United Theological Seminary, Presiding
This annual workshop sponsored by the Women's Caucus includes updates
from the AAR and SBL's Status of Women in the Professions Committees, and
information about grant writing and interviewing strategies. There there
will also be an opportunity to network with other women in the field. This
year panelists include Laurel Scheimder, Chicago Theological Seminary;
Elizabeth A. Say, California State University, Northridge; and Linda A.
Moody, Mills College.
EIS Center Orientation (A13)
Friday, 7:00 pm-9:00 pm
Edward R. Gray and Emily Noonan, American Academy of Religion, Presiding
At this year's orientation, there will be a "how-to" tour of the
EIS
Center. In addition a recently successful EIS Center candidate
and employer will lead a discussion on how to make the most use of the EIS
Center.
Arts Series Presentations & Tours
Injustice in the Landscape of North Denver: Local Snapshots of
Environmental Racism (A20)
Saturday, 8:30 am-11:30 am
Sponsored by the Religion
and Ecology Group, CLAASP, and COPEEN
The landscape of Denver contains both liberative beauty and stifling
oppression. Even though we live in a multicultural democracy, continuing
barriers of race and class provide challenges to those of us who help
students reflect on the roles of religion in contemporary society. This
"Toxic Tour" will include a number of sites in North Denver, and
can be used as an experiential model for both campus/community
collaboration and teaching about issues of eco-social context.
Your guides are Beth Blissman, Oberlin College and Loraine Granado,
co-founder of COPEEN
(Colorado People's Environmental and Economic Network) and Michael
McClain, Rhodes College. There is a US$15
fee for this tour. See the registration form in the Program Book or
download a registration form
(requires PDF).
Museo de las Américas (A21)
Saturday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Sponsored by the Native
Traditions in the Americas Group; Religion
in Latin America and Caribbean Group; and U.S.
Latina/o Religion, Culture, and Society Group
The Museo de las
Américas is the first museum in Colorado that is dedicated to
educating the public about the artistic and cultural achievements of
Latinos in the Americas on a continuing basis. The purpose and mission of
the museum is to foster understanding of and appreciation for the
achievements of the Latino people of the Americas by collecting,
preserving and interpreting the diverse art, history, and cultures of this
region from ancient times to the present.
Your guide is a member of the museum staff. There is a US$10 fee for
this guided tour. See the registration form in the Program Book or
download a registration form
(requires PDF).
CANCELLED
Arts Series Performance: Baritone, Robert Gardner (A163)
Sunday, 5:45 pm-6:45 pm
Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Georgetown University, Presiding
Robert Gardner began his musical studies in a family of fifteen musicians
in Denver, Colorado. His first apprenticeship with the Santa Fe Opera
yielded further vocal training with Doris and Richard Cross and Sherrill
Milnes at Yale University. Mr. Gardner is a 2001 Pro Musicis International
Award winner, the 2000 winner and 1999 second place winner of the Denver
Lyric Opera Competition, recipient of the 1999 William Matheus Sullivan
Foundation award and a 2000 Gerda Lissner Foundation award. The 1998 Amici
Competition winner, he was a 1998 nominee for a Richard Tucker Foundation
grant. Last summer, Mr. Gardner appeared for his second season in a major
role at Spoleto Festival USA, for whom he also repeated his unique
interpretation of the National Anthem at Opening Ceremonies, then sang at
the Ravinia Festival in Chicago, and finally in Seoul, Korea in Orff’s Carmina
Burana with the Taejun Symphony. This season, Mr. Gardner’s
engagements include two concerts in Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall
singing Carmina Burana and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony among
other U.S. regional engagements.
CANCELLED
Arts Series Performance: The Colorado Choir (A165)
Sunday, 8:15 pm-9:30 pm
Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Georgetown University, Presiding
The Colorado Choir, founded in 1976, is one of the most dynamic influences
in the Colorado music scene. In its history, it has presented more than
fifty performances with the Denver Symphony Orchestra. Today the choir
specializes in performing compositions for a cappella choir. In 1995, the
choir performed with the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra in McNichols
Arena in Denver and shortly thereafter was invited to perform with pop
star Celine Dion at Red Rocks outdoor amphitheater. The choir has sung the
National Anthem to open games for the Denver Broncos and Colorado Rockies.
While principally an a cappella choir, the group does perform accompanied
works as well as occasional major works with orchestra.
Walking Tour of Denver's Religious and Civic Sites (A200)
Monday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Sponsored by the North American Religions Section
This year's tour will be a walking tour of religious and civic sites in
downtown Denver and the adjoining Capitol Hill district. Featured will be
two classic auditorium churches, Trinity United Methodist and Central
Presbyterian. The tour may be left at any time. There is no fee.
Your guides are Jeanne Halgren Kilde, Macalester College and Peter W.
Williams, Miami University.
See the registration form in the Program Book or download a registration
form (requires PDF).
Arts Series Performance: Middle Eastern Dance (A251)
Monday, 8:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Georgetown University, Presiding
Suzanna Del Vecchio is an Oriental Dance Artist whose work is
celebrated internationally. She has been involved in the art of dance
since 1975. She teaches and performs internationally as well as nation
wide. Her choreographies have been selected by members of the Colorado
Dance Alliance to be included in their Colorado Choreographers' Showcase
for three consecutive years. In February of 1998 she was invited and
participated in the University of Wyoming's dance department's national
Dance Festival as a Master Teacher. In December of 1997 she was awarded
"Best Choreography" for her dance entitled "Passion"
from the G.A.M.A.L. Academy Awards of Middle Eastern Dance, and in August
of 1998 she was awarded "Choreographer of the Year" from the
International Academy of Middle Eastern Dance. Her performances are
soulful and always artistically presented.
Films
Princess
Mononoke (A14)
Friday, 7:00 pm-9:30 pm
Sponsored by the Religion,
Film, and Visual Culture Group
Randal Lee Cummings, California State University, Northridge, Presiding
Although many avoid animation as a simplistic form of story-telling, Hayao
Miyazaki, a great animator, has been able to create a drama of deep
humanism in Princess Mononoke. It tells an epic story set in
medieval Japan, at the dawn of the Iron Age, when humans were still
capable of living in harmony with nature, while others were trying to tame
and defeat it. More complex than a tale about good and evil, this story
shows how humans, forest animals and nature gods all fight for their place
in the new emerging order. There is much that can be drawn from this film
for ecology and religion scholars. The story begins with a disturbance in
nature. Ashitaka, a prince, comes to the defense of his village which it
is attacked by a boar-god. The prince is infected with an incurable
disease by this god turned monster. The prince sets off to the lands of
the West to find a cure and to understand why nature has been disturbed.
He eventually finds himself in the middle of a battle between the animal
inhabitants of the forest and an iron mining town that is exploiting and
killing the forest. Leading the forest animals in the battle is a human
raised by wolves, a young woman known as Princess Mononoke (her real name
being San). Japanese animation has found wide appeal for its technical
brilliance and cultural synthesis of both Western and Eastern images. This
fantasy world has strong parallels in the real world of human interaction.
We are able to appreciate the quality of Miyazaki's artistry through the
sights and adventures of the prince. The drawings are based on the same
"clear line" complexity used by the Japanese graphic artists of
two centuries ago, who inspired such modern works as Herge's Tintin
books. Miyazaki's art directors journeyed to ancient forests to make their
master drawings, adding to the majestic quality of the movie.
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki, 1999, 133 minutes (Color, USA version).
Enemies
of War (A81)
Saturday, 8:30 pm-10:00 pm
Sponsored by the Religion
in Latin America and the Caribbean Group
Anna Peterson, University of Florida, Presiding
It's 1989 and eight years into El Salvador's civil war, a conflict fueled
by billions of dollars in aid from the U.S. government. Six Jesuit priests
lay brutally murdered, the latest casualties in a war that would claim at
least 75,000 lives. Enemies of War examines these unspeakable
murders and the story of El Salvador's people as they pick up the pieces
after incalculable losses. We meet Margarita Acosta de Alas, who fights
the repressive Salvadorian government, and Congressman Joe Moakley, sent
to investigate the truth about the murders. These compelling characters
tell the story of El Salvador's brave, yet daunting journey to peace and
democracy.
Directed by Esther Cassidy, 2000, 57 minutes, Color and Black & White,
USA.
2001: A
Space Odyssey (A84)
Saturday, 8:30 pm-11:00 pm
Sponsored by the Religion,
Film, and Visual Culture Group
Tony S. L. Michael, University of Toronto, Presiding
The central image of 2001: A Space Odyssey , a rectangular black
monolith, appears from the unknown and sparks a new stage in human
evolution. This classic film, based on the short story The Sentinel
by Arthur C. Clarke, inspired a new genre of science fiction and many a
religious conjecture about the meaning of this black monolith. 2001
is considered a timeless classic for many reasons, including its
scrupulous scientific accuracy, its vast reach from "The Dawn of
Humanity" to the next stage of human evolution, its unrivaled
integration of musical and visualized narrative, its meticulous and
deliberate dialogues and silences, and its still-amazing pre-digital
special effects. Beginning with God's eye-view, the film begins with a
black screen until there is light; the darkness reveals the dark side of
the moon, then the earth and the sun rising behind it. This new
perspective ignites our imagination and curiosity. It offers us life and
death, beginnings and endings. In the film, a space mission to Jupiter is
led by Bowman (Keir Dullea) and Poole (Gary Lockwood), in order to trace
signals being transmitted there by a monolith discovered on Earth's moon.
Overseeing the voyage is a supercomputer known as HAL 9000 (voice of
Douglas Rain). It should not go unnoticed that each letter of HAL's name
is exactly one before IBM. The main reason this movie still holds our
attention more than 30 years after its making, is its respect for its own
mystery. Its vision of what science-fiction authors call "first
contact," the first brush of homo sapiens with some other intelligent
species, remains disturbingly and enticingly spectral. Using the image of
the unknown monolith and its purpose, the ambiguity in 2001: A Space
Odyssey leaves us with profound questions to ponder in our own
evolution (although Clarke's other 2001 novels do offer detailed
answers to virtually all the film's questions for those who still want
them).
Directed by Stanley Kubrick, 1968, 139 minutes (Color, USA).
Andre's
Lives (A166)
Sunday, 8:30 pm-10:30 pm
Sponsored by the Religion
in Central and Eastern Europe Consultation
J. Shawn Landres, University of California, Los Angeles, Presiding
Andre's Lives explores the tension between the collective obligation to
remember and the personal need to forget. Bauhaus-trained architect Andre
Steiner saved 7,000 Slovak Jews. A member of the Jewish "Working
Group" in Tiso's nazified Slovak State, Steiner bribed German and
Slovak officials in order to build labor camps that kept Jews employed and
relatively safe. After the war, Steiner became a successful architect in
Atlanta, Georgia. He never looked back or shared his story. His silence
cost him his marriage, distanced him from his sons, and stripped him of
emotional connections. At 89, Steiner returned to Europe with his sons to
grapple with traumatic memories for the first time. He began to forge new
relationships, with his sons and his past. His resistance to exploring his
history unfolds on camera, as father and sons struggle to make sense of
the present by wrestling with the past.
Directed by Bradley Lichtenstein, 1999, 55 minutes (Black & White,
USA).
Fight
Club (A167)
Sunday, 8:30 pm-10:30 pm
Sponsored by the Religion,
Film, and Visual Culture Group
Amir Hussain, California State University, Northridge, Presiding
Directed by David Fincher, and screenplay by Jim Uhls (based on the novel
by Chuck Palahniuk), Fight Club is a complex and sometimes
disturbing film about the depths of the human psyche. Often scathing and
humorous, it makes us reconsider the consumerist value system in
contemporary society in search of something more mysterious, ambiguous,
and non-material. Sick of his anonymous life, dead end, corporate career
and disgusted with the empty consumer culture that his generation has been
doomed to inherit, Edward Norton (the unnamed Narrator of the film) is
desperate to find something meaningful. His life changes when he meets
Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) who is everything our narrator is not: Durden is
a man with a vision. After an evening of bonding brawling with each other,
they create Fight Club, an underground organization where young men and
not-so-young men meet their spiritual needs by beating each other to a
pulp. Tyler Durden, the club's founder, quickly becomes a cult hero of
epic proportions, a new messiah for a dead generation. This film is
replete with imagery and metaphor that is fertile soil for extracting
religious meaning. There have been as many interpretations of what the
essential message of this film is as there have been viewers. Punctuated
with biting humor and irony, this film offers for many a heavy critique of
corporate America while at the same time questioning the evil inherent in
the status quo.
Directed by David Fincher, 1999, 139 minutes (Color and Black & White,
USA).
Veterans
of Hope Project: Bernice Johnson Reagon: The Singing Warrior and
Andrew Young: Minister to the Beloved Community (A168)
Sunday, 8:30 pm-10:30 pm
Sponsored by the Afro-American
Religious History Group
Vincent Harding, Iliff School of Theology, Presiding
The Veterans of Hope Project: A Center for the Study of Religion and
Democratic Renewal is an experiment in creative education for humane,
spirit-grounded social change. Based at the Iliff School of Theology in
Denver, Colorado, the project sponsors courses, a videotaped interview
series, lectures, retreats and other programs addressing the connections
between religion and social transformation. The centerpiece of the work of
the Veterans of Hope Project is the development of an educational video
archive. For the archive, the project conducts public
interview-conversations with religious leaders, activists, artists,
educators and others who are veterans of struggles for peace and justice
in this country and in other parts of the world. In video taped interviews
these men and women are invited to reflect on the role of
religion/spirituality in their life and work. The films shown will be Bernice
Johnson Reagon: The Singing Warrior and Andrew Young: Minister to
the Beloved Community.
Aimée
& Jaguar (A252)
Monday, 8:30 pm-11:00 pm
Sponsored by the Lesbian-Feminist
Issues and Religion Group and Religion,
Film, and Visual Culture Group
Sue E. Houchins, Harvard University, Presiding
Aimée & Jaguar is a superbly directed and acted German film
about the power of love in 1943 Nazi Germany. Based on the true story
(taken from a book written by Erica Fisher) the film is about a lesbian
relationship that developed between a mother of four, married to a Nazi
officer, and a young Jewish woman who was part of the resistance
underground. Director Max Färberböck sets the stage in modern day
Germany with the former Nazi woman Lilly (Juliane Kohler) confronting an
old friend. Told in a voice-over flashback we see how Lilly met her
lover-to-be, Felice (Maria Schrader), through a mutual friend. Lilly and
Felice strike a friendship and in time Lilly realizes that she has found
the love she has always wanted. What Lilly does not know is that Felice is
a Jewish woman disguising herself as a Nazi. An unusual and passionate
love between them blossoms despite the danger of persecution and nightly
bombing raids during WWII. Aimée & Jaguar is subtly directed,
beautiful to look at, and excellently paced. Fäberböck allows us to feel
the passion through magnificent performances and visually stunning
camerawork.
Directed by Max Fäberböck, 1999, 126 minutes (Color and Black &
White, Germany).
Sessions on Professional Practices & Institutional Location
Strengthening the profession, qua profession, is a continued focus for the Academy. This year's Annual Meeting includes new opportunities to engage a range of issues around professional practices and the relationship between institutional location and intellectual identity.
Chairs Workshop (A1-A5)
Friday, 8:00 am-4:00 pm
Religion and Media Workshop (A7-A11)
Friday, 9:00 am-5:00 pm
Women's Caucus Workshop (A12)
Friday, 12:00 pm-5:00 pm
EIS Center Orientation (A13)
Friday, 7:00 pm-9:00 pm
The Study of Religion Counts: What We Know (and What We Don't) about
the Shape of the Field (A28)
Saturday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Teaching as Autobiography: First Year Courses and Experiences (A29)
Saturday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
"If I Knew Then What I Know Now": Lessons From the First
Year on the Job (A52)
Saturday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Identity, Scholarship and Teaching: Studying Religion
Cross-Culturally and Ethnically (A53)
Saturday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Crossing Boundaries and Creating Connections:
Religion and the Research University (A113)
Sunday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Digital Culture: Critical Implications of Technology for Religious
Studies Teaching and Research (A139)
Sunday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Religion in the Schools Day (A176)
Monday, 9:00 am-10:00 am
Ethnic and Religious Pluralism in the Classroom: What Can We Learn
from the British Experience? (A201)
Monday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Books Under Discussion
North American Religions Section (A33)
Saturday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Grant Wacker, Heaven Below: Early Pentecostals and American Culture
Religion and the Social Sciences Section and Womanist Approaches to
Religion and Society Group (A97)
Sunday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Cheryl Townsend Gilkes, If It Wasn't for the Women: Black Women's
Experience and Womanist Culture in Church and Community
Theology and Religious Reflection Section (A101)
Sunday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
John Thiel, Senses of Tradition, and Terrence Tilley, Inventing
Catholic Tradition
Women and Religion Section and Lesbian-Feminist Issues and Religion
Group (A102)
Sunday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Marcella Maria Althaus-Reid, Indecent Theology: Theological
Per/versions in Sex, Gender, and Politics
Native Traditions in the Americas Group (A106)
Sunday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Vine Deloria, Jr., Singing for a Spirit; God Is Red: A Native View of
Religion; and Red Earth, White Lies: Native Americans and the Myth
of Scientific Fact
Theology and Continental Philosophy Group (A110)
Sunday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
Robert R. Williams, Hegel's Ethics of Recognition and Robert Gibbs,
Why Ethics?: Signs of Responsibility.
Chinese Religions Group (A124)
Sunday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
J. J. Clarke, The Tao of the West, Western Transformations of Taoist
Thought
Arts, Literature, and Religion Section (A140)
Sunday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Lynda Sexson, Ordinarily Sacred
Philosophy of Religion Section (A145)
Sunday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Pamela Sue Anderson, A Feminist Philosophy of Religion: The Rationality
and Myths of Religious Belief; Grace M. Jantzen, Becoming Divine:
Towards a Feminist Philosophy of Religion; and Ellen T. Armour, Deconstruction,
Feminist Theology, and the Problem of Difference: Subverting the
Race/Gender Divide
Theology and Religious Reflection Section and Kierkegaard, Religion,
and Culture Group (A208)
Monday, 1:00 pm-3:30 pm
Martin J. Matuštík, Postnational Identity: Critical Theory and
Existential Philosophy in Habermas, Kierkegaard, and Havel
North American Religions Section (A230)
Monday, 4:00 pm-6:00 pm
Diana L. Eck, A New Religious America: How a "Christian
Country" Has Become the World's Most Religiously Diverse Nation
Gay Men's Issues in Religion Group (A240)
Monday, 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Mark D. Jordan, The Silence of Sodom: Homosexuality in Modern
Catholicism
Academic Teaching and the Study of Religion Section (A254)
Tuesday, 9:00 am-11:30 am
American Association for Higher Education, Service Learning and
Religious Studies
Receptions and Breakfasts
Department Chairs Brunch (A24)
Saturday, 11:00 am-12:15 pm
Edward R. Gray, American Academy of Religion, Presiding
The AAR's Academic Relations Program invites chairs of departments to a
brunch to learn more about enrolling in the AAR's newest initiative:
Institutional Memberships. Seating is limited to the first 50 chairs,
please RSVP to chairs@aarweb.org.
Scholars to Schools Luncheon (A27)
Saturday, 12:30 pm-2:00 pm
The AAR's Religion in the Schools Task Force invites secondary school
teachers to join scholars in the fields of world religions, ethics,
American religious history, Bible, and religion and literature for
conversation about the challenges and opportunities in teaching young
adult learners about religion. The luncheon will also include a progress
report on activities of the task force, the Freedom Forum, the Council on
Islamic Education, and the Council for Spiritual and Ethical Education.
Panelists include Jon Butler, Yale University; Bruce Grelle, California
State University, Chico; D. Keith Naylor, Occidental College; Katrina M.
Poetker, Fresno Pacific University; and Stephen Kaplan, Manhattan College.
Advance reservations necessary, please email ristf@aarweb.org
to express interest.
AAR Donors Reception (A78)
Saturday, 5:30 pm-6:45 pm
Individuals whose generosity has allowed us to continue many of our
special programs are invited to a reception hosted by the AAR Board of
Directors to learn about some exciting new initiatives.
Reception for Racial and Ethnic Minority Members (A79)
Saturday, 6:15 pm-7:00 pm
Interested persons are invited to a reception celebrating the
contributions of racial and ethnic minority scholars in the Academy.
AAR Members Reception (A83)
Saturday, 8:30 pm-10:00 pm
Back by popular demand, AAR members are invited to join one another at the
re-instated AAR Members Reception. This year the reception is complete
with music and dancing.
Women's Caucus Reception (A85)
Saturday, 9:00 pm-11:00 pm
The AAR's Womanist Approaches to Religion and Society Group and the
Women's Caucus invite interested persons to a reception honoring women's
contributions in the Academy.
AAR Annual Business Meeting and Continental Breakfast (A88)
Sunday, 7:30 am-8:45 am
AAR members are encouraged to join the AAR's Board of Directors for the
annual business meeting of the Academy. A light breakfast will be
provided.
Retired Members Reception (A162)
Sunday, 5:30 pm-6:30 pm
All members of the AAR who are retired from full-time employment are
cordially invited to an open house hosted by Barbara DeConcini, AAR
executive director, and Rebecca Chopp, president.
JAAR Editorial Board Reception (A169)
Sunday, 8:30 pm-10:00 pm
JAAR Editorial Board members are invited to a reception in their
honor.
Reception for Religion Scholars in Part-Time, Adjunct, Independent,
and Nonacademic Positions (A170)
Sunday, 9:00 pm-10:00 pm
This conversation and reception, hosted by Mark Lloyd Taylor of the AAR's
Board of Directors, will explore ways in which the AAR might better
support members employed in part-time, administrative, or nonacademic
positions. Planning toward a session on adjunct teaching issues within the
program of a future annual meeting will continue.
International Members Continental Breakfast (A174)
Monday, 7:30 am-8:45 am
All AAR international attendees are invited to an information session and
continental breakfast hosted by the AAR's Committee on International
Connections.
Reception for Program Unit Chairs and Steering Committee Members
(A253)
Monday, 9:00 pm-10:30 pm
AAR program unit chairs and steering committee members are invited to a
reception in their honor hosted by the AAR's Program Committee.
Especially for Students
Student Liaison Group Business Meeting (A22)
Saturday 9:00 am-10:45 am
Appointed and elected Student Liaison Group members will gather to discuss
business.
Introduction to the AAR (A77)
Saturday, 5:00 pm-6:15 pm
This session provides an orientation to AAR structures, publication
programs, and services. A brief presentation will be given and ample
opportunity for questions and general discussion will follow.
Reception for Student Members (A86)
Saturday 10:00 pm-11:00 pm
AAR and SBL student members are invited to drop by an open house hosted by
the AAR and SBL executive staffs.
Who Says My Degree Isn't Practical? Careers in Religion Publishing
and Writing (A161)
Sunday, 4:30 pm-6:00 pm
The concept of public scholarship has become increasingly important to
today's academics, in religion as in other fields. One of the primary ways
religion academics become "public scholars" who help shape the
wider culture is by writing books for general audiences. In the past
decade, as public interest in religion and spirituality has risen, many
such books have enjoyed notable commercial success. This year's special
session features a panel discussing the topic alternative careers in
writing and publishing with a degree in religion, theology, and/or Bible.
Students Talk About Teaching Luncheon: "The Transition from
Student to Teacher" (A199)
Monday, 11:45 am-12:45 pm
The Wabash
Center cordially invites AAR student members to gather for
conversation with experienced faculty about the emerging identity of a new
teacher. A light lunch will be provided. Attendance is limited to the
first 50 students who sign up. Please view the 2001
Annual Meeting Wabash Student Luncheon RSVP page to sign up.
Be sure to see the Student Pages on this website, as well.
