Publications
PEER REVIEWED ARTICLES
“Body and Spirit Together: Theatre of the Oppressed, Pragmatist Semiotics, and Practical Theological Method.” ARTS: Society for the Arts in Religious and Theological Studies. Forthcoming.
The power of Theatre of the Oppressed and other embodied critical pedagogies is best understood though Pragmatist semiotics, which refines and transforms “hermeneutical” models of method in Practical Theological. Explorations in classroom and parish-based ministry suggest how Pragmatist semiotics can make faith discourse more accessible and more responsive to crises of today.
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“Peirce, Pragmatism, and Religious Education: Participating More Deeply in God’s Imagination.” Religious Education (REA 2015 Annual Conference issue) 111.4, July/September 2016.
Approaching Christian education in light of Charles Sanders Peirce’s Classical Pragmatism can help catechists make Christian tradition more intelligible to present-day North Americans; it can provide them with a rich framework for pedagogical practices; and it can help them offer a compelling vision of deeper participation in the Trinitarian life of God. A Peircean pedagogy of religious education emphasizes attentiveness, discernment, creativity, artistry, and the key role of the Holy Spirit.
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"Training Lay People to 'Practice' Scripture Rhetorically: A Pedagogical Model with Biblical Precedent and Warrant from the Gospel of Matthew." Journal of Adult Theological Education 13, no 1 (2016): 4-17.
Teaching Bible to empower believers for Christian ministry is best done from a “situated” perspective that is contextual, rhetorical, artistic, and reasoned. A situated pedagogy integrates “transformative learning” into broader practices of Christian faith and formation. This kind of training is rhetorical: it pays attention to the ways that words function in Scripture, in life, in church, and in the world. It is artistic: it treats Scripture, scholarship, and social analysis as raw materials or as “points of departure” for creative re-workings of the Christian tradition. It primes students to turn scriptural knowledge into specific, Scripture-based interventions that are fit for purpose. It also encourages and equips them to discern whether these re-workings align with the will of God’s Spirit. An emic rationale for this pedagogy is constructed by analyzing the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus calls his disciples to rework and re-purpose scriptural texts, and the Gospel writer, Matthew has put these instructions into practice in the text. This rationale is ecumenical in that it rests equally well on critical-grammatical and critical-historical readings of its supporting biblical texts. Suggestions are offered for parish-based adult educators who want to approach the Bible in this contextual, rhetorical way.
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PASTORAL REFLECTIONS
"Apocalypse, Forgiveness, Letting Go," 14 Nov 2021. Breath of the Spirit (reflections for LGBTQ+ Catholics and their friends) | Download PDF |
"Tangled Up in Love," 23 Jan 2022. Breath of the Spirit (reflections for LGBTQ+ Catholics and their friends) | Download PDF |
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
“Do Not Quench the Spirit: Rainbow Ministry and Queer Ritual Practice in Catholic Education and Life,” in Christine Firer Hinze and J. Patrick Hornbeck II, eds., More than a Monologue: Sexual Diversity in the Catholic Church, Volume I: Voices of Our Times. New York: Fordham University Press, 2014. 114-123.
Co-author (with Daniela Zsupan), Credo Series Course III: The Promised One: Servant and Savior. Catholic high school textbook series. Westerville, OH: Veritas, 2012.
“More Than A Monologue: Sexual Diversity And The Catholic Church.” Huffington Post. 27 Sept 2011.
“The Catholic Church and Sexuality: If Only the Hierarchs Would Listen and Learn.” Huffington Post. Nov 14, 2011.
“How Can DignityUSA Members Welcome and Engage Young Adults?” QV: Quarterly Voice of DignityUSA. 9, no. 3 (3rd Quarter, 2010): 7-8. “Metalogue” [reflective contribution] in Elisabeth Schüssler-Fiorenza, Democratizing Biblical Studies: Toward an Emancipatory Educational Space. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2009. 184-187. In conjunction with the publication of this text, WJK also posted papers from metalogue contributors. Mine was “Situated Learning and Biblical Jazz: Biblical Studies, Democratic Transformation and the High School Religion Classroom.” http://www.wjkbooks.com/democratizingbiblicalstudies/StudentPapers.aspx
A critical introduction and edited excerpts from Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, in “Just Readings: A Loyola University Chicago On-Line Social Justice Reader,” ed. by Michael J. Maher and Daniel Hartnett, S.J. 31-41. http://blogs.luc.edu/socialjustice/files/2012/02/JustReadings.pdf
REVIEWS
“The One World Schoolhouse: Education Reimagined” by Salman Kahn. Religious Education 108, no. 3 (May-June, 2013).
“Teaching the Faith, Forming the Faithful: A Biblical Vision for Education in the Church” by Gary A. Parrett and S. Steven Kang. Religious Education 106, no.1 (January 1, 2011).
“Artisanal Theology: Intentional Formation in Radically Covenantal Companionship” by Lisa M. Hess. Religious Education 105, no. 4 (July 1, 2010).
ACADEMIC PRESENTATIONS (SELECTED)
“Participating in God’s Imagination: Classical Pragmatism, Trinitarian Theology, and Religious Education.” Religious Education Association Annual Meeting. November 2015.
“A Pedagogy for Training Respons-able Lay Public Theologians.” British and Irish Association for Practical Theology Annual Conference. July 2015.
“Charismatic Jesuit Meets Critical Theory: American Pragmatism, Classroom Pedagogy, and a Catholic Technology of the Self.” Post-Graduate Study Day, Durham University, April 2014.
“Pragmatic Public Theology: Drawing Up Pluralist Insights from Neglected Freirean Wells.” Association of Practical Theology Biennial Conference. March 2014.
“Goodbye to Gadamer? Classical Pragmatist Resources for the Philosophy of Religious Education in a Pluralist Age.” Religious Education Association Annual Meeting. November 2013.
“Creative Ritual and Empowerment.” Redeeming Power Project: Overcoming Abuse in Church and Society. St. Mary’s University College, Twickenham, London. September 2012.
“Critical Christian Discipleship as a Type of Improvisational Performance: Catechesis and ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’.” Theatrical Theology Conference. St. Andrews University, Scotland. August 2012.
“‘The Well Trained Scribe:’ Matthew’s Scribal Practices as Clues for Contemporary Engagement with the Bible.” Association of Practical Theology Biennial Meeting. April 2012.
“A Performative Aesthetics for RE: Theater of the Oppressed and Neuroscience.” Religious Education Association Annual Meeting. November 2011.
“Wise Practice and Class Habitus in Practical Theology.” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting. October 2010.
WORK IN PROGRESS
“Visceral Pedagogies and Embodied Reflection in Liberation-oriented Religious Formation.”
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