Papers Session Annual Meeting 2023

Theology, Community, and Disaffiliation

Saturday, 1:00 PM - 3:30 PM | Marriott Riverwalk-Alamo Ballroom,… Session ID: M18-200
Abstract for Online Program Book (maximum 150 words)

Traditionally, theology is in service to a religious community. Theology Without Walls has an audience, but does it have a community? The SBNRs, Mark Heim noted at our first planning meeting, may be an audience, but are they a community? Can Theology Without Walls be done successfully if it does not have a community? Is there still a purpose for it to serve? Linda Mercadante is conducting a follow-up study to her classic on SBNRs that will shed light on that question. Might Theology Without Walls become at least a theological community? Francis Clooney once remarked that engaging in comparative theology can cause friction with one’s home community, but it also creates something of a new community. This panel will explore these and other related questions.

Papers