The first annual conference by the Global Network for Digital Theology will be held online 14-16 July 2021. For program and registration visit Eventbrite.
Three broad areas will be investigated.
1. How digital theology alters/augments theology
Digital technology is today a major cultural force which has significant bearings on human societies and identities. Theological thought and reflection is always historically situated, inevitably shaped by socio-political and even technological dynamics. Thus, how does digitality change the cultural conditions in which theological thought and texts are constructed, and what are the implications for the content of these?
2. The future of seminaries and theology departments and of theological dissemination
Beyond such contextual consideration, the impact of digital technology on theological dissemination is already being felt. Digital technology not only changes the way that theology is taught and disseminated, it impacts where theological conversations take place and who can participate in them. What effect does this have on traditional theological institutions such as seminaries, theology departments and publishers, and how can they accommodate these changes?
3. Digitality and theological method
At a minimum, the very fact that most theologians write on laptops or desktops evidence the impact of digital technology on theological method. Beyond this, digital technology provides new tools for biblical interpretation, and for the analysis of church and world. How does digitality change the methods of theological enquiry?
Over the last few decades a growing number of theologians have reflected on impact of digitization and its implications for religious faith and practices. They have approached this from different perspectives, using a range of methodologies, covering a multitude of topics. More recently there has been a concerted effort through the Global Network for Digital Theology to bring these scholars together to survey the research to date and to encourage future studies.
These articles, published in Cursor_, are a part of this effort. They expand on a panel titled ‘Defining Digital Theology’ at the 2019 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion. They are important contributions to digital theology as an emerging discipline, both in defining/discerning the discipline as a whole, and by providing sustained reflection on how theology and digitality intersect and mutually critique each other.