Over April 7-9, 2021 a symposium of 13 scholars on a virtual platform over the course of three days in order to discern the theme of gratitude toward God or the divine. These scholars will gather again on October 27-29, 2021. Many scholars will focus upon religious sacred narratives as the departure for their study. Why this focus? Early narratives reveal the first imperative of the human being moving toward God or the divine in gratitude. These texts are the seedbeds for the formation of richly imbued values that continue to guide billions of human beings to this day.
The Center will convene the second symposium on gratitude on a virtual platform over the course of three days -October 27-29, 2021 – with study and dialogue on the theme of gratitude toward God. The human experience is replete with contradiction, suffering, trauma, cruelty, and incalculable calamity, upon which gratitude to God is reimagined and re-calibrated. Scholars will conclude their effort with papers that reflect the inclusion of gratitude within literature and the response or recalibration of gratitude to God or the divine, in light of the complexities and contradictions within even daily existence. Throughout, scholars will draw heavily on rich reserves across religious traditions in the world, on the theme of gratitude to God.
The Center is committed to advancing the interdisciplinary study of themes that increase religious literacy and respond to the challenges of the world around us. The current study – Gratitude, Injury and Restoration in a Pandemic Age – has begun this year, with virtual symposia of 13 Center Scholars scheduled for April 7-9 and October 27-29, 2021. Center Scholars include expertise in religious studies, theology, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and anthropology. Based on these symposia, The Center will be creating educational resources available to faculty and to local communities. A peer-reviewed book will also be published in the year ahead.
To learn more about the progress of the study, or to provide suggestions to the Center Advisory Council on resource development, please contact the Director of the Center, Dr. Michael Reid Trice at tricem@seattleu.edu .
The Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement includes the Religica Theolab Podcast. The podcast interviews local to international leaders on topics of shared value and wisdom to the listener.
