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Professor Lori Brandt Hale Preaches – It Is All Too Hard

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Professor Lori Brandt Hale is the Chair of the Department of Religion and Philosophy at Augsburg University. She teaches the Religion Keystone class for graduating seniors, works with Augsburg Christensen Scholars, and is a writer and author including the 2020 publication of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Theology, and Political Resistance (Faith and Politics: Political Theology in a New Key).

Preaching this week in chapel are some of the Augsburg Religion Faculty. The weekly schedule on the Campus Ministry website and we encourage you to follow the Augsburg Campus Ministry YouTube channel for chapel services every week.

On Tuesday, Professor Lori Brandt Hale preached using the text from Micah 6:8 and Romans 12:4-8, focusing on the idea that right now in the world, “It Is All Too Hard.” Lori says, “we are living at a time that requires us to pay attention, all the time. And it is full of messes. This is such an understatement, where do we even start?” There is a global pandemic, climate devastation, racial injustice, systemic racism, and police brutality to name just a few of the things going on in the world.

She also asked, in the midst of all of these things, “is there hope?” While many students come to mind, the current Religion and TPL seniors in the Religion Keystone class are creating projects and reading books in search of their next faithful step. How is God is calling them to respond to the world and their neighbor? Given the vocational discernment and theological reflection our students are engaging in, we can confidently say, yes there is hope!

Do you know a young person interested in studying religion, going into professional ministry, or becoming a pastor? Email Adrienne Kuchler Eldridge at eldridge@augsburg.edu to talk more about ministry programs and how God might be calling you to study at Augsburg! #WeAreCalled #AugsburgUniversity #AuggiePride

Congratulations to the Class of 2020!

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Under normal circumstances, the members of the department gather at commencement to celebrate graduation. Since 2020 is not “normal circumstances,” we tried our hand at something our colleagues in other departments had tried their hand at: a video.

To make the video, members of the department (1) gathered together on ZOOM, (2) reviewed the script that our esteemed department chair had prepared, and (3) clicked record.

Did you know that putting together a slick-looking “Congratulations” video is not as easy as 1-2-3?

Anyway, here’s the result, complete with bloopers, for all to see:

Bonhoeffer Display

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Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Life/Photographs was developed for the Christensen Symposium in September 1994. That year marked the 50th anniversary of the martyrdom of Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer was courageous and one of the true heroes of the 20th century.

The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Display is no longer available for travel. Continue reading “Bonhoeffer Display” →

Experiencing faith and justice in El Salvador

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SalvadorBeliefs matter … and students taking Vocation and the Christian Faith (Religion 480) traveled with Professor Bev Stratton to El Salvador in January, 2012. Student Katelyn Danelski reflected on what they experienced—visits to churches, universities, and rural communities—and all that they learned about faith and identity in the midst of social injustice, oppression, and conflict. MORE >

Professor Hans Wiersma retraces Martin Luther’s pilgrimage

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wiersma-walkby Betsey Norgard

Scholars of the Reformation gain deep knowledge by studying the writings of Martin Luther, but for Hans Wiersma it also became experiential when he spent four days walking in the footsteps of Luther’s pilgrimage to Rome 500 years ago.

Just before fall semester classes began, Wiersma joined the project “Here I Walk,” led by Andrew and Sarah Wilson, two Lutheran ecumenical scholars, who retraced the entire 1,085-mile route walked by Luther from the monastery in Erfurt, Germany, to Rome. Wiersma walked with the Wilsons for 66 miles, from Erfurt to Coburg.

Wiersma had met Andrew Wilson at a conference, and what resulted for Wiersma was a fortunate convergence of his disciplinary interest in Reformation studies, his research focus on the early Luther and the Augustinian monks who followed him, and Wiersma’s undergraduate background and continued interest in documentary filmmaking. Continue reading “Professor Hans Wiersma retraces Martin Luther’s pilgrimage” →