Academics Faith & Spirituality | March 2, 2021

Rabbi Rachel Mikva will be interviewed about her recently published book “Dangerous Religious Ideas: The Deep Roots of Self-Critical Faith in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam” in a webinar at 11:45 a.m. Tuesday, March 23.

This event, jointly sponsored by the Jay Phillips Center for Interfaith Learning at Saint John’s University and the Jay Phillips Center for Interreligious Studies at the University of St. Thomas, is free and open to the public.

The link to join the webinar, which will last one hour, can also be found on the webpage for this event.

John Merkle, CSB/SJU professor of theology and director of SJU’s Jay Phillips Center, will conduct the interview and moderate a question-and-answer session open to viewers.

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Hans Gustafson | UST Newsroom | February 12, 2021

Nicholas Black Elk is being considered for sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church, and some are on a mission to shed light on his life story. Damian Costello, Ph.D., internationally recognized expert on the life and legacy of Nicholas Black Elk and author of Black Elk: Colonialism and Lakota Catholicism, will deliver a two-part series to the St. Thomas community, covering “The Vision and Legacy of Nicholas Black Elk” and “Indigenous Sources for Christian Worldviews and Ways of Living” respectively on Feb. 16 and 23 at 11:45 a.m. These sessions will be live online.

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Jean Hopfensperger, published 02 August 2019, Star Tribune:

What is Ramadan? What religion is most associated with yoga? What is one of Buddhism’s Four Noble Truths? If you can’t answer these questions correctly, you’re not alone. Most Americans have some knowledge of Christianity but a limited grasp of other faiths, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center. Read More…

Brittany Stojsavljevic March 5, 2018

“We stand together and bring that hope, that together we can bring beautiful diversity to the rest of the sick world and give them a model of standing together and working cooperation.”

“We relied on oral tradition, and that brings me here today,” Bob Klanderud said to the standing-room-only crowd on the St. Thomas campus as he shared stories of culture, belief and modern-day realities of Dakota and Lakota people, particularly in Minnesota. To an audience that included undergraduates, community members and seminarians, Klanderud made what can seem to be a simple request: to listen.

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St. Thomas Newsroom | 10 November 2017 12:59 PM

Chris Stedman, author of Faitheist: How an Atheist Found Common Ground with the Religious, will speak on “Encountering Secular Humanism” on Nov. 16 at noon in the Anderson Student Center, Iversen Hearth Room.

The Star Tribune reports that Stedman’s story “calling for civil discourse between atheists and the religious couldn’t come at a better time,” and Christian Century magazine declares that Stedman’s “story needs to be heard and engaged.” Read more…

St. Thomas Newsroom | 14 October 2017 3:06 PM

Rabbi Rachel Sabath Beit-Halachmi, president’s scholar and national director of recruitment and admissions at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, will present the Rabbi Max A. Shapiro Lecture at Monday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m. at Temple Israel, 2323 Fremont Ave. S., Minneapolis. Read More…

St. Thomas Newsroom | 13 October 2017 3:02 PM

Dr. Murphy Pizza, cultural anthropologist and president of the Upper Midwest Region of the American Academy of Religion will speak on “Encountering Contemporary Paganisms” on Oct. 19 at noon in the Anderson Student Center, Iversen Hearth Room. Read more…

09 October 2017 2:52 PM

The University of St. Thomas, in collaboration with Augsburg University and Bethel University, received a grant from the Interfaith Youth Core to hold the upcoming conference Interfaith Storytelling for a Vibrant Democracy: Engaging the Diverse, the Devout, and the “Nones” on February 23-24 at UST.

The conference will provide training in, and a forum for, storytelling and story- listening across differences in core commitments. Students from all perspectives and institutions are invited to attend and to refine their skills in dialogue on their campuses and in their wider communities.

The grant was written and submitted by Tanden Brekke (Bethel), Sarah Farnes (St. Thomas), Hans Gustafson (St. Thomas), Marion Larson (Bethel) Dominic Longo (St. Thomas), Matt Maruggi (Augsburg), Marta Pereira Vindas (St. Thomas), Amy Poppinga (Bethel), Sara Shady (Bethel), and Martha Stortz (Augsburg).

UST sponsoring offices include the Jay Phillips Center for Interfaith Learning, the Muslim Christian Dialogue Center, and the Office for Spirituality