Global Christianity
The Global Christianity path is designed to equip PhD students with the competencies needed for scholarship related to the study of Christianity as a global phenomenon uniquely expressed in a multiplicity of contexts around the world. While Global Christianity scholarship is all encompassing—no region of the world or historical period is excluded—it is particularly attentive to indigeneity and marginality as well as the transnational, multidirectional, strands or movements constitutive of the globalization of Christianity. It also favors a bottom-up analytical framework. As an area of academic study and research, Global Christianity is inherently interdisciplinary and utilizes a variety of models, methods and theoretical constructs (that typically expose the limitations of, or transcend, the Western intellectual tradition). The field of study remains strongly oriented towards historical, social scientific, and theological approaches, but this is neither preclusive nor policed. The Global Christianity path will enable candidates to acquire and master theories, models, new rationalities, and methodologies (including intercultural critique and ethnographic study) that are central to the field of study and maximize access to the cross-disciplinary resources their research agenda requires. Students will have ample opportunity for collaborations with students and faculty in other paths, such as South Asian Religions, Africana Religions, Practical Theology, and Religions in the Americas. In addition to coursework, directed study, and exams, students in the Global Christianity path will gather in regular colloquia for scholarly engagement and community formation.
Path Advisor
D.W. and Ruth Brooks Professor of World Christianity
Jehu Hanciles
Director of World Christianity Program 