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Global Faculty Initiative
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Dialogues

How Dialogues Work

Nicholas Wolterstorff

Yale University

Justice

Encounters a theology of justice and rights grounded in scripture and the Christian tradition, extending it to scholarly fields and academic practices, and into society for the common good.

74 writings

Miroslav Volf

Matthew Croasmun

Ryan McAnnally-Linz

Flourishing I

Offers a framework and opens lively exchanges on what it means for individuals, communities, and societies to live well, so that flourishing reaches all scholarly inquiry and practices.

34 writings

Tyler VanderWeele

Harvard University School of Public Health

Flourishing II

Invites scholars into conversation across disciplines on the theology and empirical science of holistic flourishing, where all aspects of a person’s life are good, including the contexts in which they live. Dialogue in progress.

1 writings

Nigel Biggar, CBE

University of Oxford

Created Order

Opens a theology of God’s objective moral order for dialogue on freedom and hierarchy, order and disorder, across scholarly fields, into the academic vocation and the needs of society for moral guidance.

41 writings

Jennifer Herdt

Yale Divinity School

Virtues

Builds upon the Christian tradition to open wide-ranging discussions on how the virtues shape moral character to enable personal flourishing, and reaches to the whole academy and all social institutions.

50 writings

Oliver O’Donovan

University of Edinburgh

Love

Presents an account of Christian love, showing its dynamism in all moments of life, and its expression in the fine arts, literature, health, markets, society, natural sciences, history, and the academy. Dialogue in progress.

45 writings

How Our Dialogues Work

Our academic dialogues bring theologians and disciplinary scholars into conversation on great themes of the Christian faith that easily fit within the discourse of secular universities. Each dialogue follows a structured format designed to foster meaningful cross-disciplinary exchange.

Theologians write accessible Theology Briefs on a key theme. Scholars respond with Disciplinary Notes and Briefs that connect the theology to their research, opening wider conversations, and stimulating cross-disciplinary awareness on the common ground of faith.

Dialogue Stages and Writings

  1. Theology Brief Preview

    Initial theological framing shared by a theologian with disciplinary scholars to gather early feedback and refine the approach.

  2. Preview Response

    Disciplinary scholars provide initial reactions and questions to help shape the final Theology Brief.

  3. Theology Brief

    The refined theological position paper, accessible to scholars across disciplines.

  4. Disciplinary Brief

    In-depth scholarly responses exploring links between the theology and specific research areas.

  5. Disciplinary Note

    Brief reflections from scholars on connections between their work and the theology.

  6. Theology Brief Postscript

    Concluding reflections by the lead theologian that integrate and synthesize insights from the dialogue.