Supported by the Henry Luce Foundation, the Berkeley Democracy and Public Theology Program (BDPTP) is a multifaceted, three-year project initiating the second phase of BCSR’s Religion in the World initiative.
Building upon the Luce Berkeley Public Theology Program, the first phase of Religion in the World, BDPTP aims to advance both academic and public understanding of public theology, religion, and democracy, creating mutually beneficial conversations among them.
What is the relationship between theology and a democratic way of life? How does theology influence democratic practices?
As older boundaries between sacred and secular are transforming, we need to develop new ways of thinking about religion in public life and a new engagement with theology in the interests of exploring the possibilities of a common democratic future. Democracy and theology have shared a long, entwined, often conflictual, and above all vastly under-researched and rarely discussed history. How (and if) they might forge a constructive relationship now is essential to meet our new realities.
The goal of this new Program is to coordinate and concentrate both the unique academic and scholarly resources of UC Berkeley and its public reach on the question of how theology has shaped and continues to shape democratic thought and practice in the US and around the globe. By bringing our collective attention to the often conflicted relationship of theology and democratic life, we hope to transform assumptions about religion, secularity, and public culture common not just to our campus, but also nationally.
The Berkeley Public Theology Program was inaugurated in 2016 with generous funding from the Henry Luce Foundation. The one-million-dollar funding supported a four-year initiative that integrated robust academic research, student engagement, public programming and public outreach. The grant’s programming activities can be found in the following PDF: Berkeley Public Theology Program Summary.
About the Henry Luce Foundation
The Henry Luce Foundation seeks to enrich public discourse by promoting innovative scholarship, cultivating new leaders, and fostering international understanding. Established in 1936 by Henry R. Luce, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Time, Inc., the Luce Foundation advances its mission through grantmaking and leadership programs in the fields of Asia, higher education, religion and theology, art, and public policy.