The new Scottish Religious Cultures Network (SRCN) has launched a website. SRCN is based at the University of Glasgow, but includes collaborators from across the UK and Ireland. It is funded by the Royals Society of Edinburgh’s research networking … Read more...
Category: Secularisation
The Deconstructed Church: Understanding Emerging Christianity–Going to Press …
My latest book, The Deconstructed Church: Understanding Emerging Christianity (Oxford University Press), co-authored with Gerardo Marti, is well and truly ‘in press.’ We have received the cover image and the endorsements, and expect the finished product to be available in … Read more...
Evangelical Journeys: Book Review by Patrick Mitchel in Evangelical Quarterly
Another review of my book, co-authored with Claire Mitchell, Evangelical Journeys: Choice and Change in a Northern Irish Religious Subculture (UCD Press, 2011), has been published in Evangelical Quarterly (Vol LXXV, No. 3, p. 287).
The review is written … Read more...
‘The Last Stop: Understanding the Emerging Church Movement’ Interview with Gladys Ganiel & Gerardo Marti Published in Bearings
An interview with Gerardo Marti and me, ‘The Last Stop: Understanding the Emerging Church Movement,’ has been published in the Collegeville Institute’s Bearings magazine.
The interview begins on page nine and is based in large part on our forthcoming book, … Read more...
The Emerging Church: What is it, and Why Does it Matter? Seminar at UCC, 18 November
I am looking forward to giving a seminar on ‘The Emerging Church: What is it, and Why Does it Matter?’ on Monday 18 November, 1-2 pm, for the Study of Religions Department at University College Cork, the O’Rahilly Building, Room … Read more...
Down & Connor’s Living Church: Encouraging Lay Participation?
At the end of September, Down and Connor’s Diocesan Congress in Belfast included the launch of a ‘Pastoral Plan,’ a culmination of the efforts of the ‘Living Church’ programme over the last few years.
While I am not Catholic, my … Read more...
Gordon Lynch on the Irish Industrial Schools – Were Irish Children Sacrificed for the ‘Nation’?
Recently I reviewed Gordon Lynch’s The Sacred in the Modern World: A Cultural Sociological Approach (Oxford, 2012). I agreed with Lynch’s argument that a broadly defined ‘sociology of the sacred’ can help us to identify what’s of utmost importance morally, … Read more...
The Emerging Church Movement as a Response to the Crisis of Modernity? Presentation Thurs 29 August at ESA Conference in Turin
On Thursday I’ll be presenting a paper at the 11th Conference of the European Sociological Association in Turin, co-authored with Gerardo Marti, ‘The Deconstructed Church: The Emerging Church Movement as a Response to the Crisis of Modernity.’
The theme … Read more...
Merriman Summer School–Sectarianism and the Challenges of Reconciliation–Part II
Yesterday I posted the first part of the talk I gave at the Merriman Summer School in Lisdoonvarna, Co. Clare, titled, ‘The Challenges of Reconciliation.’ The theme of the Summer School was ‘Ireland: North and South – Two Societies … Read more...
Merriman Summer School–Protestantism and the Challenges of Reconciliation (Part I)
Last week the Merriman Summer School in Lisdoonvarna, Co. Clare, explored the theme of ‘Ireland: North and South – Two Societies Growing Apart?’ The programme featured a range of academic, poetic and musical contributions, including my own on ‘The … Read more...
