Application for Political Theology Network’s Dissertation Workshop, deadline extended!

Thanks to the generous support of the Henry Luce Foundation, the Political Theology Network is awarding a limited number of stipends to emerging scholars who would like to participate in a Dissertation Workshop that would allow them to connect with other graduate students and scholars in their area of study. This year, the Workshop will be held in conjunction with another PTN initiative: an article development workshop addressing the topic of (How to Do) Political Theology without Men? organized by Brandy Daniels and Karma Ben-Johanen.

As a critical discourse reflecting on the complex relationship between religion and politics, political theology is often marked by a commitment to social justice, that is, to critiquing and transforming unequal distribution of power, to fostering diversity, and to making room for a plurality of interventions in the political theological conversation. Yet despite its flexibility and self-reflective character, political theology remains a field which is unquestionably dominated by men. This year’s workshop will provide a space to consider what happens in the field when writers who are not men engage the discipline.

We are inviting applications to the workshop from graduate students in the field of political theology who identify as women or gender nonbinary. We welcome applications that fall within the broad purview of political theology and ones that may focus on the relationship between political theology and gender.

Award recipients (up to five) will be invited to participate in workshops to be held in Tempe, Arizona, April 9-10, 2022. This coincides with the third Political Theology Network Conference to be held in collaboration with the Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict at Arizona State University. Before the workshop each student participant will share one draft of a dissertation chapter, and all participants will read each other’s work in advance and prepare feedback.

The goal of the workshop is to help facilitate completion of the dissertation and to guide students in their transition to careers in academia. Program participants will have the opportunity to:

• pursue possible collaborations with fellow PhD students and/or scholars in the field
• build relationships with scholars in the field
• develop and strengthen networking skills

Eligibility: This award is available to PhD students who have completed all of their degree requirements except the dissertation (ABD) and identify as women or gender nonbinary.  Students must be actively writing their dissertations.

Amount: Each program participant will receive a $500 honorarium

Application Process: Please submit the following:

1. Completed “Applicant Information” form below.
2. CV
3. A 500-word personal statement, indicating how your research addresses the intersection of religion and politics
4. A chapter of your dissertation or a long paper related to your dissertation topic that you would like the workshop to discuss

Deadline: Please e-mail these materials to iradzins@csustan.edu by January 20, 2022 February 1, 2022!  Recipients will be notified by February 7, 2022.