Theology and Ethics/Science and Religion

Mondays, 4:10pm-5:30pm. All in the Martin Hall and online unless otherwise stated.

All welcome. Everyone is welcome to attend any of our seminars – please spread the word and invite those who might be interested. We use an email list to keep attendees informed of upcoming events and to send reminders and updates about seminars – please get in touch if you want to be added to the list.

We record most of our events; recordings are only available to members of the University.

Enquiries

For enquiries regarding these seminars, please contact either Rachel Muers (rachel.muers@ed.ac.uk) or Shoaib Malik (shoaib.malik@ed.ac.uk).

Semester 1: Autumn 2026

Instructions for joining online will be circulated early in the semester and at regular intervals – we’ll use the same link every time!

Date SpeakerTopic
28 SeptemberDr Bethany Sollereder (Associate Professor in Science and Religion, University of Oxford)'Hope and Climate Change'
12 OctoberDr Leon van Ommen (Co-Director of the Centre for Autism and Theology, University of Aberdeen)'The Senses, Liturgy, and Neurodiversity: Interdisciplinary Research and Theological Questions'
26 OctoberTBCTBC
9 NovemberDr Michael Fuller (Edinburgh)'Artificial Intelligence: A Provocation'
16 November 

Book launch event for Professor David Bebbington’s Denominations: A Cultural History of Anglo-American Christianity (Baylor, 2026)

Joint with the History of Christianity seminar

23 November

5:30-6:30pm

Martin Hall and Online

 

Centre for Theology and Public Issues presents a panel discussion and workshop on ‘Theology, Race and Nation’

Registration and Further information

Additional Seminars and Events in Semester 1

Research events in the School and beyond that are likely to be of interest to members of this seminar.

Date SpeakerTopic

11 September

4:15pm, Martin Hall

Dr Tracy Wietecha (Max Planck Institute, Berlin)

Albertus Institute Lecture

‘Albert the Great on Becoming Fully Human: Virtue, Judgement, and Perfection’

Further information

23 September

1:30-2:30pm, Elizabeth Templeton Lecture Theatre

Dr Alex Chow, Dr Kirsty Murray, Dr Paul Fuller, Prof Paul Foster

Cross-School seminar 'Religion and Mission'

Registration

20 October

5pm, Edinburgh Futures Institute

Professor Steven Shapin (Harvard)

Gifford Lectures ‘Beyond the Series’

‘The Edible Complex: Food and the Moral Order, Past & Present'

Registration

Semester 2: Spring 2027

Instructions for joining online will be circulated early in the semester and at regular intervals – we’ll use the same link every time!

Date SpeakerTopic
18 JanuaryDr Anna Blackman (Lecturer in Catholic Religious Education, University of Glasgow)TBC
1 FebruaryDr Katie Harling-Lee (Edinburgh)TBC
22 FebruaryTBCTBC
8 MarchTBCPostgraduate student presentation session
22 MarchDr Selina Stone (Edinburgh)TBC

Other activities for semester 2 to be announced.

Tuesdays 1pm-2pm, in the Baillie Room and online, unless otherwise stated. The group is open to all students and staff – please contact Wilson Chak, wilson.chak@ed.ac.uk, if you plan to join these sessions. The theme for the semester is Theological Humanism and the list of readings below is provisional.

22 September: TBC

29 September: David Klemm and William Schweiker, "The Logic of Christian Humanism" in Religion and the Human Future: An Essay on Theological Humanism

13 October: Jennifer A. Herdt, "Reclaiming Dialogical Humanism," Political Theology 22, no. 7 (2021): 597-610.

27 October: Anthony B. Pinn, "Community as Centering Category," in The End of God-Talk: An African American Humanist Theology

10 November: Linn Tonstad, "Bodies that Speak," in Beyond the Doctrine of Man: Decolonial Visions of the Human, eds. Joseph Drexler-Dreis and Kristien Justaert

24 November: Chad Wrigglesworth, "Theological Humanism as Living Praxis: Reading Surfaces and Depth in Margaret Edson's Wit," Literature & Theology 22, no. 2 (2008): 210-222.


And please note that everyone is encouraged to attend other seminars in the School, especially in weeks when there is no Theology and Ethics / Science and Religion seminar!

 

Semester 1: Autumn 2025

Instructions for joining online will be circulated early in the semester and at regular intervals – we’ll use the same link every time!

Date SpeakerTopic
29 SepetmberRachel Muers, Joshua Ralston, Alex Chow (Edinburgh)Presenting Modern Christian Theology in ‘Ford’s The Modern Theologians’ 4th Edition – Editor and Authors
13 OctoberDavid Tombs (University of Otago)Alone and Naked: Representing the Torture of Jesus Alongside the Torture of Miriam Leitão

13 October

5:30pm

 Book Launch sponsored by CTPI: Selina Stone (Edinburgh) discusses her new book A Heavy Yoke: Theology, Power and Abuse in the Church (SCM Press, 2025) with Prof Tombs and other panellists
27 OctoberAndrew Loke (Hong Kong Baptist University)Natural Theology: A Reassessment
10 NovemberSheena Orr (Church of Scotland)Prisons, Criminal Justice and the Churches
24 November Showcasing Science and Religion at Edinburgh – student and staff papers to be confirmed

Additional Seminars and Events in Semester 1

Please note that these events will usually have different online links – consult the School of Divinity weekly newsletter for details.

Date SpeakerTopic

Thursday 18th September, 

4:10-5:30pm, Martin Hall and online

 Cross-School interdisciplinary seminar: Religion and Place, with Pedro Feitoza, Nuam Hatzaw, Gaurav Rajkhowa and Peter Atkins (all Edinburgh).

Thursday 25th September, 

4:10pm-5:30pm, Martin Hall and online

Bruce Gordon (Yale)Discussion of his book The Bible: A Global History (Basic Books, 2024)

Theology and Ethics Reading Group

The Theology and Ethics Reading Group is a student-led group, meeting regularly during the semester, and all are welcome to attend. The group is meeting on alternate Tuesdays in room 1.02 (Dr Selina Stone's office) at 1pm. This term’s theme is ‘eschatology’. For further details contact Wilson Chak: Wilson.chak@ed.ac.uk

Please find the dates and readings below: 


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