In June 2019, in the case of American Legion v. American Humanist Association, the United States Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that a World War I memorial cross could remain on public land without violating the Establishment Clause. The Court sought to produce a ruling focusing specifically on the historical context and motivations for construction of…[Read more]

My intention in this brief monograph is to stimulate a re-assessment of laïcité by philosophers and theologians, particularly within the Anglophone academic world. Often the term is understood by Anglophones not quite as accurately as its French advocates intend. The translated texts are copied from the official French Government website, as i…[Read more]

My intention in this brief monograph is to stimulate a re-assessment of laïcité by philosophers and theologians, particularly within the Anglophone academic world. Often the term is understood by Anglophones not quite as accurately as its French advocates intend. The translated texts are copied from the official French Government website, as i…[Read more]

Laïcité: Some Catholic readers may be familiar with Giuseppe Alberigo’s understanding of the term as outlined in “Facteurs de laïcité au Concile Vatican II” in Revue des Sciences Religieuses, tome 74, fas. 2, 2000, in which he writes in a footnote: “Ce mot est utilisé dans le sens du processus de ‘déclericalisation’ à l’interieur de l’É…[Read more]

Laïcité: Some Catholic readers may be familiar with Giuseppe Alberigo’s understanding of the term as outlined in “Facteurs de laïcité au Concile Vatican II” in Revue des Sciences Religieuses, tome 74, fas. 2, 2000, in which he writes in a footnote: “Ce mot est utilisé dans le sens du processus de ‘déclericalisation’ à l’interieur de l’É…[Read more]

In a groundbreaking endeavour to triangulate three important traditions of our collective cultural heritage, the Arkeologisk Museum of the University of Stavanger presents Eden and Everything After, a conceptual exhibition organised around notions of the loss of – and slim hope of reconnection with – the lost paradise. Mirroring the boldly exp…[Read more]

This conference paper presents a new analysis of Martin Luther’s treatise “The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows”. This treatise has long been interpreted as Luther’s utter rejection of monasticism. However, upon closer inspection we find that Luther’s treatise is not simply a reactionary writing dealing solely with his utter conte…[Read more]

This conference paper presents a new analysis of Martin Luther’s treatise “The Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows”. This treatise has long been interpreted as Luther’s utter rejection of monasticism. However, upon closer inspection we find that Luther’s treatise is not simply a reactionary writing dealing solely with his utter conte…[Read more]

Slides for a Q&A session about the Coherence-Based Genealogical Method (CBGM) with staff at the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM).

Slides for a Q&A session about the Coherence-Based Genealogical Method (CBGM) with staff at the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM).

English abstract: ‘Verses of Love’, an Islamic film on the extended couple, features a melodramatic plot in which love triumphs after many difficulties, and the virtuous protagonists Fahri and Aisha are happy in their marriage, having shown the value of their Islamic faith amidst the trials of life—accepting these with sumbission, which is the s…[Read more]

The economic system is the cornerstone of social development. Its economic system has remained at the root of the progressive development of human civilization. A country, society or caste; Social, political and cultural upliftment is mainly based on the progress of its economic resources and facilities. In a country without these facilities,…[Read more]

Spanish abstract: Comentarios sobre la guerra desde un punto de vista etológico y evolucionista, sugeridos por el libro de Javier Falgueras ‘Somos Hijos de la Guerra’. _________________________________________________________________________________ English abstract: Disquisitions on war from an ethological and evolutionary perspective, suggested…[Read more]

Poland has been recognized as important in the widespread migration of the Vikings, yet subject to little theoretical inquiry. I became particularly interested in the ways in which the Vikings in Poland understood and negotiated their world. To my knowledge, nobody has drawn together the pan-European evidence about the image of the two mythical…[Read more]

In the first few centuries of Islam, Middle Eastern Christians, Muslims, and Jews alike all faced the challenges of preserving their holy texts in the midst of a changing religious landscape. This situation led Syriac, Arabic, and Hebrew scholars to develop new fields of linguistic science in order to better analyse the languages of the Bible and…[Read more]

The dual curriculum model ubiquitous to Orthodox Jewish day schools in North America typically bifurcates into religious (Judaic) studies and general studies. While most classes generally fit into one of those two halves of the curriculum, some classes are not intuitively categorized as wholly belonging to one part over the other. One of those…[Read more]

This essay explores Maimonides’ explanation of the Bible’s rationale behind the ritual sacrifices, namely to help wean the Jews away from idolatrous rites. After clearly elucidating Maimonides’ stance on the topic, this essay examines his view from different angles with various possible precedents in earlier rabbinic literature for such an under…[Read more]

This essay explores Maimonides’ explanation of the Bible’s rationale behind the ritual sacrifices, namely to help wean the Jews away from idolatrous rites. After clearly elucidating Maimonides’ stance on the topic, this essay examines his view from different angles with various possible precedents in earlier rabbinic literature for such an under…[Read more]

This essay explores Maimonides’ explanation of the Bible’s rationale behind the ritual sacrifices, namely to help wean the Jews away from idolatrous rites. After clearly elucidating Maimonides’ stance on the topic, this essay examines his view from different angles with various possible precedents in earlier rabbinic literature for such an under…[Read more]

This essay explores Maimonides’ explanation of the Bible’s rationale behind the ritual sacrifices, namely to help wean the Jews away from idolatrous rites. After clearly elucidating Maimonides’ stance on the topic, this essay examines his view from different angles with various possible precedents in earlier rabbinic literature for such an under…[Read more]