Shaping Practical, Scriptural Imagination in Communities of FaithAmanda Pittman (Duke University Divinity School)Research Interest Group. [
Paper] In Acts 10, Peter experiences an imaginative conversion with regard to the inclusion of the Gentiles. I suggest that educators interested in the imagination's role in Christian formation can glean profitable insights from Luke’s account of this event. The first section compares theories that primarily situate imagination at either the conscious or preconscious level, ultimately suggesting that the theories are complementary. After analyzing the biblical text through this pedagogical lens, I move toward suggestions for reading biblical narratives for imaginative formation.
Playing for Love’s Sake: Imagining and Embodying God’s New Creation Through ClowningCourtney Goto (Boston University School of Theology)Research Interest Group. [
Paper] Christian religious educators are charged with teaching the practice of loving as Jesus did--enacting radical, life-giving ways of being with one another. In contrast to traditional approaches, the author presents playing as a liberative pedagogy to help adult learners imagine and embody God’s new creation. The session explores a video of seminary students experimenting with playing by clowning. In mimicking “fools for Christ,” they surprise themselves by loving. The video is analyzed through interdisciplinary perspectives, drawing on D.W. Winnicott, Jürgen Moltmann, Maria Harris, and others.
