The Political Theology Network invites proposals for seminar streams to be featured at sixth biennial conference, which will be held in Nashville, Tennessee, from April 29 to May 2, 2027.
As part of our ongoing effort to experiment with conference structure and format, we will accept proposals in two stages: proposals for seminar streams (deadline: October 31, 2026) and proposals for individual papers to be included within the selected streams (anticipated deadline: Dec 15, 2026).
A seminar stream is a thematic cluster area that structures discussion and engagement during the conference. Themes should be broad enough to invite interdisciplinary engagement but specific enough to focus conversation among 10-20 participants. Examples of past streams include: “Indigeneity and (Im)migration: Dispossession, Borders, and the State,” “Political Theologies of Care,” “Willing Slaves? Theology, Law, Race,” and “Up/Rootedness: Practices, Ontologies, and Metaphors of Place and Migration”
Each stream proposal should include at least two, and no more than three, convenors. Convenors take leadership in reviewing and accepting individual paper proposals and facilitating group programming. Conference registration fees will be waived for convenors. Subsidized accommodations may be provided, on a case-by-case basis, for convenors in precarious positions of employment or without institutional support.
SEMINAR STREAM PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS
To propose a stream, please email [email protected] with “PTNCON27 Stream Proposal” in the subject line. Please include the following information:
- Title of seminar stream and names of facilitators
- 250–350-word proposal and rationale. This might include questions or problems your stream seeks to address, discussion of the stakes of this focus, or reflections on method. All proposals should spend some time addressing how the stream relates to broader themes in political theology (conceived very widely as an interdisciplinary conversation on the intersection between religious and political ideas and practices).
- Proposed format. Please indicate your ideal number of sessions and describe how you expect to use the time allotted to your stream. For the 2027 conference, we aim to generate more cross-pollination between streams. If you anticipate holding sessions that are not centered on the presentation and discussion of papers, please describe how these would allow for attendance and participation by other conference participants.
- 150-word draft abstract for a potential CFP for individual paper proposals (you can see examples of these abstracts from previous conference CFPs here and here).
- Short biographical statement for each co-facilitator.
We especially welcome proposals that engage non-Christian and/or non-Western contexts as well those engaged with feminist/queer theory, anti-colonial frameworks, Black studies, critical ethnic studies, Native studies, and critical pedagogy. Committed to supporting knowledge production both within and beyond the formal academy, PTN welcomes contributions and participation from scholars, critics, and organizers situated across institutional contexts.
Once streams have been determined, we will release an open call for individual papers. We anticipate releasing this call November 9, 2026, with an expected deadline for paper proposals of December 15, 2026.
The conference will include stream-specific breakout sessions, opportunities to attend other streams, plenary sessions, and social events. Anyone may propose a stream or paper, but current membership in PTN is required for conference registration. Become a member here!
Questions? Email the conference team leads, Lucia Hulsether and Alex Dubilet, at [email protected].
