Program Unit Annual Meeting 2024

Sacred Texts, Theory, and Theological Construction Unit

Call for Proposals

For 2024, the unit Sacred Texts, Theory and Theological Construction will be offering two themed and one “open” session. The first themed session will be an invited panel of scholars responding to the recently published book by Robert Seesengood, American Standard: The Bible in U.S. Popular Culture. This session is currently closed to submission.

STTTC will co-sponsor with the SBL section Religion, Theory and the Bible for an invited panel offering overview and celebration of the journal Bible & Critical Theory in recognition of its 20th year in publication. This session is closed to submission.

For our third, and final panel, we invite the submission of any papers (or even entire panels) which resonate with the general interests and mandate of STTTC. As always, Sacred Texts, Theory and Theological Construction is keenly interested in presenting innovative and exploratory work that engages Critical Theory (broadly defined) and Continental Philosophy intersecting with either Sacred Text (including, but by no means limited to Jewish and Christian writings) and Theology (ideally projects that touch on all these elements).

Statement of Purpose

This Unit works with the unique intersection of sacred texts, contemporary theory, and theological construction. We call for papers engaged in contemporary constructive theology that think in innovative ways with sacred texts and contemporary biblical studies. We encourage dialogue between constructive theologians and biblical scholars from AAR and SBL, dealing with themes of interest to both academic disciplines in the wake of postmodernity. Topics range from theological hermeneutics to the value of theology, interrogations of our new theoretical contexts to constructive theological proposals, and from the use of sacred texts by contemporary theorists to the use of those contemporary theorists in constructive theology. This unit encourages and is receptive to creative proposals that work at the intersection of biblical studies, contemporary philosophy, theory, and theology.

Chair Mail Dates
Karen Bray karen.bray@gmail.com - View
Robert Seesengood, Albright College rseesengood@albright.edu - View
Review Process: Participant names are anonymous to chairs and steering committee members during review, but visible to chairs prior to final acceptance/rejection