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| Center for Theology and Social Theory | |
|---|---|
| Name | Center for Theology and Social Theory |
| Founded | 2015 |
| Founder | Jonathan Pageau; Adrian Pabst |
| Location | University of St Andrews; Cambridge |
| Focus | Theology; Social Theory; Political Theology |
Center for Theology and Social Theory is an independent research hub that fosters interdisciplinary engagement among scholars in Theology, Political theology, Social theory, and Religious studies. It promotes collaboration across institutions such as the University of St Andrews, the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, and international partners including the University of Notre Dame, the University of Chicago, and the Pontifical Gregorian University. The center convenes scholars, public intellectuals, and practitioners from contexts linked to the World Council of Churches, the Vatican, and forums like the Hay Festival.
The center emerged from networks around conferences hosted at the Institute for Advanced Studies and gatherings associated with the Centre for the Study of Social Cohesion and the Royal Institute of Philosophy. Its founding figures include scholars with ties to the University of Cambridge, the University of St Andrews, and the Centre for Political Theology in Leuven. Early collaborators included researchers from the Kettering Foundation, the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, and the European Research Council-funded projects at the University of Oxford. The center built on precedents set by programs at the Brookings Institution, the Hudson Institute, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences while engaging debates linked to milestones such as the Second Vatican Council, the Reformation, and the Enlightenment.
The center’s mission aligns with inquiries undertaken at the Pontifical Council for Culture, the Gifford Lectures, and the All Souls College forums: to bring together perspectives from Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Locke, Karl Marx, and Max Weber toward contemporary problems. Its activities mirror collaborative models used by the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, the Royal Society of Arts, and the British Academy by hosting seminars that reference texts from the Summa Theologica, the 95 Theses, the Two Treatises of Government, Das Kapital, and The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. The center engages with cultural institutions such as the British Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Tate Modern for public humanities programming.
Research agendas intersect with scholarship from the Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Routledge, Brill Publishers, and journals like the Journal of Political Theology, the Modern Theology, and the International Journal of Philosophy and Theology. Publications draw on methodologies associated with figures such as Paul Ricoeur, Hannah Arendt, Alasdair MacIntyre, G. K. Chesterton, and Charles Taylor. The center produces monographs, edited volumes, policy briefings, and articles that dialogue with works published by the Heritage Foundation, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the Institute for the Study of Religion. Research themes engage historiographical conversations about the Council of Trent, the Westphalian system, the Industrial Revolution, and the Cold War.
Programming includes lecture series modeled on the Gifford Lectures, summer schools akin to those at the Harvard Divinity School and the Yale Center for Faith and Culture, and workshops comparable to forums at the Royal Historical Society and the British Academy. Past speakers and participants have included academics affiliated with the University of Edinburgh, the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, the Universität Zürich, the University of Toronto, the Princeton Theological Seminary, and the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales. Events have been held in venues tied to the Cambridge Union Society, the National Gallery, and the British Library and have engaged audiences linked to the Institute of Art and Ideas and the Hay Festival.
Leadership draws on scholars with appointments and fellowships at institutions such as the University of St Andrews, the Universität Regensburg, the King’s College London, and the Institut Catholique de Paris. Affiliations span partnerships with the Pontifical Council for Culture, the Acton Institute, the Cardinal Newman Society, and the Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies. The center’s advisory board has included researchers connected to the Royal Society, the British Academy, the American Philosophical Society, and the European University Institute.
Reception has ranged across academic and public spheres, with citations in publications from Oxford University Press, coverage in outlets such as The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The New York Times, and commentary in platforms like the BBC, The Economist, and National Public Radio. Scholars from the University of Notre Dame, the University of Chicago, the Loyola University Chicago, and the University of Bonn have engaged critically and constructively with the center’s work in journals including the Journal of Church and State, the Modern Intellectual History, and the European Journal of Theology. Its influence is visible in curricula adopted by departments at the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, the Yale University, and the Princeton University and in policy conversations within bodies such as the European Commission and the Council of Europe.
Category:Research institutes