POP
CULTURE A guide to experts on religion and pop culture
From films and
television to music and technology and more, pop culture has become an important
forum for reflecting, questioning and debating religious beliefs and issues.
ReligionLink offers an extensive source guide to experts around the country
who specialize in studying different areas of religion and pop culture.
You will find more
background and sources on specific pop culture issues by referring to individual
issues of ReligionLink which are linked under Pop
Culture in our archives.
If you would like
to suggest a source to add to this guide, please email pop@religionlink.org.
Please include the source’s name, title, area of expertise, web page if
there is one, phone number and email.
• George
Aichele is a professor of philosophy and religion at Adrian College in Adrian,
Mich., where he has written about connections between Scripture and film, and
about culture, entertainment and the Bible. He says recent religiously themed
films are "not just Bible movies" but have become a place where modern theology
is expressed. Contact 517-265-3959, gcaichele@comcast.net.
• Roy
Anker is a professor of English at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich.,
and author of Catching Light: Looking for God in the Movies (Eerdmans,
2004).Contact 616-526-6530, anker@calvin.edu.
• Diane Apostolos-Cappadona is an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown
University in Washington, D.C. She is an expert on images of women in contemporary
religious film. Contact 202-687-0289, apostold@georgetown.edu.
• Alice
Bach is an associate professor of Catholic studies at Case Western Reserve
University in Cleveland. She has written about the Bible in popular culture
and its translation into Hollywood films. Contact 216-368-1637, ahb5@case.edu.
• Gregory D. Black is a professor of communication studies at the University
of Missouri, Kansas City. He is the author of two books on Catholics and film,
including Hollywood Censored: Morality Codes, Catholics and the Movies
(Cambridge University Press, 1994). Contact 816-235-1338, gdblack@cctr.umkc.edu.
• The Rev. Richard A. Blake is co-director of film studies at Boston College,
a film historian and author of Afterimage: The Indelible Catholic Imagination
of Six American Filmmakers (Loyola, 2000). Much of his writing has centered
on religious themes and imagery in mainstream filmmaking. Contact 617-552-4295,
blakeri@bc.edu.
• David S. Cunningham is the author of Reading Is Believing: The Christian
Faith Through Literature and Film (Brazos Press, 2002), in which he argues
that reading books and seeing movies can lead Christians to a deeper faith.
He is a professor of religion at Hope College in Holland, Mich. Contact 616-395-7320,
cunningham@hope.edu.
• Greg Garrett is an English professor at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.
He is author of The Gospel According to Hollywood (Westminster John Knox,
2007) and Holy Superheroes! (NavPress, 2006). Contact 254-710-6879, Greg_Garrett@baylor.edu.
• Reg
Grant is a professor of pastoral ministries at Dallas Theological Seminary.
He can discuss the Star Wars film series' Buddhist-style philosophy in
the context of traditional Christian doctrine. Contact via Giles Hudson, A.
Larry Ross Communications, 972-267-1111 ext. 223.
• Amir Hussain is a professor in the religious studies department at California
State University, Northridge, but during the 2005-06 academic year, he is teaching
in the theological studies department at Loyola Marymount University in Los
Angeles. He teaches courses on Islam and religion and film. Contact 818-677-2741,
amir.hussain@csun.edu.
• Robert
K. Johnston is a professor of theology and culture at Fuller Theological
Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., and an expert on film and faith who has written
Reel Spirituality: Theology and Film in Dialogue (Baker Book House, 2000).
He is director of Fuller's Brehm Center's Reel
Spirituality Institute for Moving Images. Contact 626-584-5607, johnston@fuller.edu.
• Christopher
Jordan is an assistant professor of film, video and media studies at Pennsylvania
State University in University Park. He is the author of Movies and the Reagan
Presidency: Success and Ethics (Praeger, 2003). Contact 814-865-2177, cjj6@psu.edu.
• John
C. Lyden is a professor of religion at Dana College in Blair, Neb., and
the author of Film as Religion: Myths, Morals and Rituals (New York University
Press, 2003). Movies, he says, can function religiously, providing a ritualized
form of "meaning-making activity" through stories that express values
and beliefs about the world. Contact 402-426-7247, jlyden@dana.edu.
• Jeffrey
Howard Mahan is a professor of ministry, media and culture at the Iliff
School of Theology in Denver. He contributed an article called "Celluloid Savior:
Jesus in the Movies" for the Journal of Religion and Film in 2002. Contact
303-765-3183, jmahan@iliff.edu.
• John R. May is a professor of philosophy and religious studies at Louisiana
State University in Baton Rouge and editor of New Image of Religious Film
(Sheed & Ward, 1997) and Image & Likeness: Religious Visions in American
Film Classics (Paulist Press, 1992). Contact 225-578-3129, jmay2@lsu.edu.
• Eric
Michael Mazur is an associate religion professor at Bucknell University
in Lewisburg, Pa. He is editor of the forthcoming Encyclopedia of Religion
and Film (Greenwood, expected 2006). Contact 570-577-3525, mazur@bucknell.edu.
• Conrad Ostwalt Jr. is a professor of philosophy and religion at Appalachian
State University in Boone, N.C. He has written extensively about religion in
the movies, with an emphasis on depictions of the Apocalypse, and is the author
of Secular Steeples: Popular Culture and the Religious Imagination (Trinity
Press International, 2003). Contact 828-262-3089, ostwaltce@appstate.edu.
• S.
Brent Plate is an assistant professor of religion and visual arts at Texas
Christian University who has written about religion, art and visual culture.
His most recent book is Blasphemy: Art That Offends (Black Dog Publishing,
2006) in which he discusses the religious fervor sparked by works of art ranging
from the 14th to the 21st centuries. Contact 817-257-6444, b.plate@tcu.edu.
• Joseph
L. Price is a professor of religious studies at Whittier College in Whittier,
Calif. He teaches a course
on religion and film. Contact 562-907-4803, jprice@whittier.edu.
• Theresa
M. Sanders is an associate professor of theology at Georgetown University in
Washington, D.C., and author of Celluloid Saints: Images of Sanctity in Film
(Mercer University Press, 2002). Contact 202-687-6106, sanderst@georgetown.edu.
• Chris
Seay is pastor of Ecclesia,
a Christian community in Houston. Greg
Garrett is an English professor at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and
author of Holy Superheroes! (NavPress, 2006). Together, they are the
authors of The Gospel Reloaded: Exploring Spirituality and Faith in 'The
Matrix' (Pinon Press, 2003). Contact Seay at chris@ecclesiahouston.org
and Garrett at 254-710-6879, Greg_Garrett@baylor.edu.
• W.
Barnes Tatum is a professor of religion and philosophy at Greensboro College
in Greensboro, N.C., and the author of Jesus at the Movies: A Guide to the
First Hundred Years (Polebridge Press, 1997). Contact 336-272-7102 ext.
299.
• Richard
Walsh is a professor of religion at Methodist College in Fayetteville, N.C.,
and the author of Reading the Gospels in the Dark: Portrayals of Jesus in
Film (Trinity Press International, 2003), which compares Jesus films to
the canonical Gospels. Walsh argues that Jesus films tell as much about the
changes in American culture as they do about Jesus. Contact 910-630-7077, rwalsh@methodist.edu.
• Joyce Antler
is a professor of American Jewish history and culture at Brandeis University
in Waltham, Mass. She has written about images of Jewish women on television
and in popular culture. Contact 781-736-3036, antler@brandeis.edu.
• Jeremy
Biles wrote a paper about ritual and salvation in the television show The
Swan while doing doctoral work in religion and literature at the University
of Chicago Divinity School. He teaches philosophy at the Illinois Institute
of Art. Contact 773-656-7479, jbiles@uchicago.edu.
• Judith
Mitchell Buddenbaum is a professor emerita of journalism and technical communication
at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. She specializes in religion and
mass media, especially radio and television news broadcasts. Contact 970-491-6469,
judith.buddenbaum@colostate.edu.
• Lisle Dalton
is an assistant professor of religious studies at Hartwick College in Oneonta,
N.Y. He has written about religion and The Simpsons. Contact 607-431-4936, daltonl@hartwick.edu.
• John Ferre is a professor of communications at the University of Louisville
in Kentucky. He is the editor of Channels of Belief: Religion and American
Commercial Television (Iowa State University Press, 1990). Contact 502-852-6976,
jpferr01@gwise.louisville.edu.
• Tona
Hangen is a visiting professor in American studies at Brandeis University
in Waltham, Mass. She is the author of Redeeming the Dial: Radio Religion
and Popular Culture in America (University of North Carolina Press, 2002).
She is an expert on the roots of religious broadcasting. Contact 781-736-3031,
tjhangen@brandeis.edu.
• Suzanne
Holland is an associate professor and chairwoman of the department of religious
studies at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash. She has written about
television and radio as public confessionals in the shows of Judge Judy and
Dr. Laura. Contact 253-879-3750, sholland@ups.edu.
• Wendy Martin is a professor in the department of classics and religious
studies at the University of Ottawa in Ottawa, Ontario. In 2004, she presented
a paper
on how television shows depicting the supernatural influence people's belief
systems. Contact wendymartin@yahoo.com.
• Kathleen Lowney is a professor of sociology at Valdosta State University
in Valdosta, Ga. She has written about television talk shows and morality. Contact
229-333-5487, klowney@valdosta.edu.
• Jay
Newman is a professor of philosophy at the University of Guelph in Ontario,
Canada, and the author of Religion vs. Television: Competitors in Cultural
Context (Praeger Publishers, 1996). Contact 519-824-4120 ext. 53198.
• The Rev. Lesley A. Northup, associate professor of religion and culture
at Florida International University, is an expert on religion and broadcasting.
He says television shows in general confirm some of the more simplistic ideas
rampant in religion - for example, that miracles will happen if you are good.
Contact 305-348-2956, Northupl@fiu.edu.
• Leonard Norman Primiano is an associate professor of religious studies
at Cabrini College in Radnor, Pa., who has written about the portrayal of the
supernatural on American television. He has also served as a consultant for
the CBS television show Touched by an Angel. Contact 610-902-8330, primiano@cabrini.edu.
• Sharon
Pucker Rivo is executive director of the National
Center for Jewish Film at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., and an
associate professor of Near Eastern and Judaic studies who teaches a course
on Jewish film. Contact 781-736-8600, rivo@brandeis.edu.
• Quentin Schultze
is a professor of faith and communication at Calvin College in Grand Rapids,
Mich. He has written about the relationship of Christianity and evangelicals
to mass media, including television and computers. Contact 616-526-6290.
• Elijah Siegler is an assistant professor of religious studies at the
College of Charleston in Charleston, S.C. He contributed "God in the Box: Religion
in Contemporary Television Cop Shows" to the book God in the Details: American
Religion in Popular Culture (Routledge, 2001). Contact 843-953-3910, sieglere@cofc.edu.
• Glenn Sparks is a communications professor at Purdue University in Indiana
and has studied how television in the 1990s influenced people's belief in UFOs
and alien abductions. Contact 765-494-3316, gsparks@purdue.edu.
• Michael Suman is a communications professor at the University of California,
Los Angeles, and editor of Religion and Prime Time Television (Praeger
Publishers, 1997). Contact 310-825-3303.
• Robert J. Thompson heads the Center
for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University in New York.
He has said religion is the most "dramatic ground for storytelling," so it is
only natural that we should expect to see it appear in popular culture. Contact
315-443-4077, tvcenter@syr.edu.
• Carl Jeffrey Wright is the author of God's Vision or Television: How
Television Influences What We Believe (Urban Ministries, 2004), about African-Americans,
television and religion. He is the president and CEO of Urban Ministries Inc.
Contact via Julia Shaw, 917-501-6780, shawlit@aol.com.
WEB
SITES / PUBLICATIONS
• William L. Blizek is the founding editor of the Journal
of Religion and Film at the department of philosophy and religion at
the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Contact 402-554-3347, wblizek@mail.unomaha.edu.
• Phil
Boatwright is a Christian movie critic whose work has appeared on his web
site, The Movie Reporter.
He is based in Tonganoxie, Kan. Contact 913-845-2020.
• David Bruce is the webmaster of Hollywood
Jesus. An ordained minister, he offers critiques and essays on films from
a Christian viewpoint. Contact david@hollywoodjesus.com.
• Peter
Gilmour is on the faculty of the Institute of Pastoral Studies at Loyola
University in Chicago, where he teaches a graduate course on Jesus in the movies.
Gilmour maintains a web site of resource information called Jesus:
Real to Reel, together with Richard
Ascough, an associate professor at Queen's Theological College at Queen's
University in Ontario, Canada. Contact Gilmour at 773-508-2320, pgilmou@wpo.it.luc.edu.
Ascough can be reached at Queen's Theological College, Kingston, Ontario, 613-533-6000
ext. 78066, rsa@post.queensu.ca.
• Mark Goodacre
is a theology professor at the Duke University in Durham, N.C., where he maintains
a web site called Celluloid
Jesus with resources and information. Contact 919-660-3503, Goodacre@duke.edu.
• Steven
D. Greydanus is a film critic for the National Catholic Register and
a member of the Faith
and Film Critics Circle. He runs Decent
Films, a web site of Christian film criticism. He is based in New Jersey.
Contact via his web
site.
• Charles
Henderson is a Presbyterian minister who operates GodWeb,
a Christian search engine, which includes an essay on "Why
Movies Matter" and pages
of reviews, criticism and essays about religion in film. He is also president
of the Society for the Arts,
Religion and Contemporary Culture. Contact 212-864-5436.
• Steve
Lansingh is editor of JoyOfMovies.com,
which examines movies as a means of enriching spirituality. The site contains
a link to an essay
he wrote for Campus Life magazine about his spiritual quest in the movie
theater. He is based in Seattle. Contact steve@joyofmovies.com.
• The
Rev. Ed McNulty is a retired Presbyterian minister in the Cincinnati area and
publisher of Visual
Parables, a journal that examines faith in films. Contact 859-493-0286,
mcnulty@fuse.net.
GENERAL
/ CROSS-DISCIPLINARY •
Ted
Baehr is chairman of the Christian Film & Television Commission, a ministry
that has been publishing and broadcasting Movieguide: A Family Guide to Movies
and Entertainment since 1985. He has a web
site. Contact his home office in the Los Angeles area at 805-383-2000, Office@MovieGuide.org,
or his office in Atlanta, run by Sandra Bell, at 800-883-3883 or 770-825-0084.
• The Rev. Kenda
Creasy Dean is an associate professor of youth, church and culture at Princeton
Theological Seminary in Princeton, N.J. She has written about young people's
spiritual interface with mass media, including television and film. Contact
609-497-7910, kenda.dean@ptsem.edu.
• William
Dean is a professor emeritus of constructive theology at the Iliff School
of Theology in Denver. He is the author of The American Spiritual Culture
and the Invention of Jazz, Football and the Movies (Continuum, 2002). Contact
303-744-1287 or 303-759-5237, wdean@iliff.edu.
• David Fairchild and Drew Goodmanson are elders at Kaleo
Church in San Diego. The church emphasizes the intersection of religion
with pop culture in many of its services and events. The church's web site contains
a section on
culture, including movie, music and book reviews. Contact 619-741-8153.
• Barbara
Nicolosi is executive director of Act
One, a nonprofit that trains Christians for careers in mainstream film and
television. It is in Hollywood, Calif. Contact 323-464-0815, info@actoneprogram.com.
• Sister
Rose Pacatte is a Daughter of St. Paul and director of the Pauline
Center for Media Studies in Boston. The center maintains a web
page of reviews of movies and books and essays on film. She moderates a
Yahoo group of Catholic communications professionals interested in film and
other media. Contact RosePacatte@aol.com.
• Christopher
Partridge is professor at the University of Chester in the United Kingdom.
He teaches and has written in the area of alternative spiritualities in the
West and is interested in the expression of spirituality in popular culture,
including film, music, and cyberspace. He is co-director of the Research Centre
for Religion, Film, and Contemporary Culture and the author of numerous books,
including The Re-Enchantment of the West: Understanding Popular Occulture,
vols. I & II (Continuum International Publishing Group - T & T C, 2005 and
2006). Contact trs@chester.ac.uk.
• Stephen
R. Prothero is associate professor of religion and philosophy at Boston University
and author of American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon
(Farrar Straus & Giroux, 2003), which looks at popular images of Jesus in film,
television and print. Contact 617-353-4426, prothero@bu.edu.
• William
Romanowski is a professor of communication arts and sciences at Calvin College
in Grand Rapids, Mich. He is the author of Pop Culture Wars: Religion and
the Role of Entertainment in American Life (InterVarsity Press, 1996). Contact
616-526-8527, romw@calvin.edu.
• Erin
Runions is an assistant professor of religious studies at Pomona College
in Claremont, Calif. Runions has written about, and teaches a course on, the
Bible, religion and film. Contact 909-607-0479, Erin.Runions@pomona.edu.
• Linda
Seger has a master's degree in religion and the arts and is a Hollywood
script consultant who has consulted on more than 2,000 projects, including more
than 30 produced television projects and 50 completed feature films. She has
been a keynote speaker at conferences on religion and the media and is a recipient
of a Candlelight award from Regent University for being "a light to the entertainment
industry." Contact 719-684-0405 or 719-684-0406, lsseger@aol.com.
• Dick
Staub is a radio show host who runs Staublog,
a blog in which he rates films, television and other forms of entertainment
for its religious and moral value. He is based in Seattle. Contact dss@dickstaub.com.
• Doug Adams
is professor of Christianity and the arts at the Pacific School of Religion
in Berkeley, Calif. He wrote The Prostitute in the Family Tree: Discovering
Humor and Irony in the Bible (Westminster/John Knox Press, 1997) and Humor
in the American Pulpit: From George Whitefield Through Henry Ward Beecher (The
Sharing Company, 1975). Contact 510-848-0528, dadams@psr.edu.
• Peter L. Berger is professor emeritus of sociology and theology at Boston
University, where he also acts as director of the Institute on Culture, Religion
and World Affairs. He wrote Redeeming Laughter: The Comic Dimension of Human
Experience (Walter De Gruyter, 1997). Contact 617-353-9050, isec@bu.edu.
• Donald
E. Capps is a professor of pastoral psychology at Princeton Theological
Seminary in Princeton, N.J. He is the author of A Time to Laugh: The Religion
of Humor (Continuum, 2005). Contact 609-497-6442.
• Robert Darden is editor at The
Wittenburg Door, a religious satire magazine that takes special pleasure
in skewering televangelists. Darden is an English professor at Baylor University
in Waco, Texas. Contact 254-710-6891, Robert_Darden@baylor.edu
or dooreditor@earthlink.net.
• Buzz Dixon is the author of Serenity:
Bad Girl in Town(Barbour, 2005), a comic book whose publisher believes
it is the first Christian-themed manga, a form of Japanese comic book. Contact
via Barbour publicity, 1-800-852-8010.
• Greg
Garrett is an English professor at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and
author of Holy Superheroes! (NavPress, 2006). Contact 254-710-6879, Greg_Garrett@baylor.edu.
• Mark
Graham is an assistant professor of religious studies at the College of Wooster
in Wooster, Ohio. He has written a paper on comedy and religious criticism.
Contact 330-263-2138, mgraham@wooster.edu.
• Jean
Graybeal is a professor at the Gallatin School of Independent Study at New York
University. She wrote a chapter called "Cathy on Slenderness, Suffering, and
Soul" for God in the Details: American Religion in Popular Culture (Routledge,
2001). Contact jean.graybeal@nyu.edu.
• John
Heeren is a professor of sociology at California State University, San Bernardino.
He has written about religion in the funny papers. Contact 909-537-5556, jheeren@csusb.edu.
• Joel
Kilpatrick is editor and writer of LarkNews.com,
a Christian satire web site in the style of The Onion. He is the author
of A Field Guide to Evangelicals and Their Habitat (HarperSanFrancisco,
2006). Contact 805-494-0104, joelkilpatrick@hotmail.com.
• Kathleen
S. Lowney is professor of sociology at Valdosta State University in Valdosta,
Ga. She co-wrote "What Waco Stood For: Jokes as Popular Constructions of Social
Problems" for the book Perspectives on Social Problems Vol. 8 (JAI Press,
1995). She analyzed what is called a "sick joke cycle," all the jokes about
the Branch Davidian siege in Waco that were posted to online humor sites. She
then sorted the jokes and analyzed their meanings. Contact 229-333-5487, klowney@valdosta.edu.
• Fedwa
Malti-Douglas is a professor of gender studies at Indiana University, Bloomington.
She co-wrote Arab Comic Strips: Politics of an Emerging Mass Culture
(Indiana University Press, 1994). Contact 812-855-0101, fmaltido@indiana.edu
or gender@indiana.edu.
• John
Morreall is a former professor of religious studies at the University of South
Florida in Tampa. He is nationally known for his expertise in religious humor
and now runs Humorworks
in Virginia, a company that provides seminars and workshops on humor for corporations,
universities and religious organizations. He says humor is used in all situations
to overcome stress emotions, such as fear and anger. He wrote Comedy, Tragedy
and Religion (SUNY Press, 1999). Contact 757-259-0029, morreall@humorworks.com.
• Alex
Riggle is a devout Greek Orthodox from the Tacoma, Wash., area and creator
of The Onion Dome,
which pokes fun at Orthodox Christianity. Contact webmaster@theoniondome.com.
• Rabbi
Joseph Telushkin is spiritual leader of the Synagogue for the Performing Arts
in Los Angeles. He wrote Jewish Humor: What the Best Jewish Jokes Say About
the Jews (HarperCollins, 1992). Contact 310-472-3500, sftpa2@aol.com.
• Steven
Walker is a professor at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He wrote the
article "Humor in the Bible" for the journal Perspective (autumn 2003).
He has also spoken extensively on the subject. Contact 801-422-3203, Steve_Walker@byu.edu.
Children's
literature and media
• Russell
W. Dalton is an associate professor of Christian education at Brite Divinity
School in Fort Worth, Texas, and the author of Faith Journey Through Fantasy
Lands: A Christian Dialogue With Harry Potter, Star Wars and The Lord of the
Rings (Augsburg, 2003). Contact 817-257-6812, r.dalton@tcu.edu.
• John
Granger of Port Hadlock, Wash., is the author of Looking for God in Harry
Potter (Tyndale, 2004). Contact 360-379-5740, wow@olympus.net.
• Alan
Jacobs is an English professor at Wheaton College in Illinois. An evangelical
Christian, he wrote about how Harry Potter's magic fits with faith in a January
2000 essay in First Things. Contact 630-752-5784, Alan.Jacobs@wheaton.edu.
• Connie
Neal is the author of The Gospel According to Harry Potter: Spirituality
in the Stories of the World's Most Famous Seeker (Westminster John Knox
Press, 2002) and What's a Christian to Do With Harry Potter? (Waterbrook
Press paperback, 2001). She also helps churches start Harry Potter Book &
Bible Clubs for kids and youth, along with education for their parents. Contact
916-752-7805.
• Evelyn
J.P. Weston, co-pastor of First Lutheran Church in Renville, Minn., serves under
the screen name "HogwartsChaplain" as volunteer chaplain and prefect
moderator at Chamber of
Secrets Forum, a Harry Potter message board. Read her article "Religious
Aspects of Harry Potter," published in 2002 by Concord: A Journalistic
Ministry of Students at Luther Seminary. Contact eweston@ecunet.org
(plain text only) or eweston@luthersem.edu.
Literary
fiction and science fiction
• David S.
Cunningham is the author of Reading Is Believing: The Christian Faith Through
Literature and Film (Brazos Press, 2002), in which he argues that reading
books and seeing movies can lead Christians to a deeper faith. He is a professor
of religion at Hope College in Holland, Mich. Contact 616-395-7320, cunningham@hope.edu.
• Lisle
Dalton is an assistant professor of religious studies at Hartwick College
in Oneonta, N.Y. He has written about science fiction and religion and is interested
in examining what science fiction says about the relationship between religion
and science in American culture. Contact 607-431-4936, daltonl@hartwick.edu.
• Barbara Jane Davy holds a PhD in religion from Concordia University,
Montreal, and is interested in the intersection of speculative fiction and contemporary
paganism. She has written about the influence of authors Neil Gaiman and Charles
de Lint on pagan ideas about "other" and the idea of "the otherland."
She is also the author of Introduction to Pagan Studies (2006), and has
published in the areas of religion and ecology, environmental ethics. She lives
in Ottowa, Canada. Contact 613-722-3821, barbdavy@sympatico.ca.
• Andrew
Flescher is a professor of religious studies at California State University,
Chico. He teaches a course
on religion in literature. Contact 530-898-5534, aflescher@csuchico.edu.
• Bruce
David Forbes is a professor of religious studies at Morningside College in Sioux
City, Iowa. He has written about the Left Behind series of books. Contact 712-274-5185,
forbes@morningside.edu.
• Benedict
Giamo is an associate professor of American studies at the University of
Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Ind. He has written about the spiritual in the works
of Jack Kerouac and teaches a course about Kerouac and other Beat writers. Contact
574-631-7142, giamo.1@nd.edu.
• Jeanne
Halgren Kilde is a visiting assistant professor in the department of religion
at Carleton College in Northfield, Minn. She has written about the Left Behind
series of books. Contact 507-646-4232 ext. 5953, jkilde@carleton.edu.
• Matthew
Hedstrom is a Lilly Fellow in the Humanities and the Arts at Valparaiso
University in Valparaiso, Ind. He wrote his dissertation on the search for spirituality
in mass-market books. Contact 219-464-6840, matt.hedstrom@valpo.edu.
• John
Lardas is a visiting assistant professor of religion at Haverford College in
Haverford, Pa., and the author of The Bop Apocalypse: The Religious Vision
of Kerouac, Ginsberg and Burroughs (University of Illinois Press, 2001).
Contact 610-896-1029, jlardas@haverford.edu.
• Darren
Middleton is an associate professor in the department of religion at Texas Christian
University in Fort Worth. He has written about religion in the literature of
Nikos Kazantzakis. He says more non-Christian publishers are producing books
with religious themes and material. He calls this the "Mel Gibson-Dan Brown
effect," but also says it moves into the non-Christian religions in diaspora
by showing up in the work of authors such as Jhumpa Lahiri and Chitra Banerjee
Divakaruni. Contact 817-257-6445, D.Middleton2@tcu.edu.
• James
F. McGrath is an assistant professor of religion at Butler University in
Indianapolis, where he teaches a course called "Religion
in Science Fiction." Read the syllabus
and introduction,
bibliography and links. Contact 317-940-9364, jfmcgrat@butler.edu.
• Joseph
L. Price is a professor of religious studies at Whittier College in Whittier,
Calif. He teaches a course
on faith in Southern literature. Contact 562-907-4803, jprice@whittier.edu.
• Erin
Smith is a graduate student at the University of Texas at Dallas. She has spoken
on the subject of religious book clubs at a conference on religion and the culture
of print. Contact erins@utdallas.edu.
• Ralph
Wood is a professor of theology and literature at Baylor University in Waco,
Texas. He has written about the religious themes of writers such as Flannery
O'Connor, Walker Percy, P.D. James and others. Contact Ralph_wood@baylor.edu.
• Ronnie Christian
runs Christian Cowboys
and Friends, a cowboy ministry through country music, in Blanco, Texas.
Contact 830-796-7027, rcrodeo@christiancowboy.org.
• James
Cone is a professor of systematic theology at Union Theological Seminary.
He is an expert on black liberation theology and has written about the blues
as an expression of African-American spirituality. Contact 212-280-1369, jcone@uts.columbia.edu.
• William
Dean is a professor emeritus of constructive theology at the Iliff School
of Theology in Denver. He is the author of The American Spiritual Culture
and the Invention of Jazz, Football and the Movies (Continuum, 2002). Contact
303-744-1287 or 303-759-5237, wdean@iliff.edu.
• Erika
Doss is a professor of art and art history at the University of Colorado
at Boulder. She has written about popular culture religious expressions involving
Elvis Presley. Contact 303-492-4483, erika.doss@colorado.edu.
• David
Fillingim is the author of Redneck Liberation: Country Music as Theology
(Mercer University Press, 2003), in which he discusses country music lyrics
as the theological expression of a marginalized group, "the Rednecks."
He is a professor at Shorter College in Rome, Ga. Contact 706-233-7316, dfillingim@shorter.edu.
• Michael
Gilmour is an associate professor of New Testament at Providence College
and Seminary in Otterburne, Manitoba, Canada. He teaches a course on religious
themes in popular music and is the author of Tangled Up in the Bible: Bob
Dylan and Scripture (Continuum, 2004). He says some people find in music
that draws on religious themes an alternative spirituality - a spirituality
without the structures of organized religion. Contact 204-433-7488 ext. 291,
michael.gilmour@prov.ca.
• Mark
Hulsether is an associate professor of religious studies at the University
of Tennessee in Knoxville. He has written about religious imagery in music videos,
especially in those made by the singer Madonna. Contact 865-974-2466, mhulseth@utk.edu.
• Maxine
Grossman is a visiting assistant professor at the Center for Jewish Studies
at the University of Maryland in College Park, where she teaches a course on
religion and popular culture. She has written about religion and contemporary
country music. Contact 301-405-4975, mgrossma@umd.edu.
• Julie Ingersoll
is an associate professor of religious studies at the University of North Florida
in Jacksonville. She has written about faith and values among Jimmy Buffett
fans. Contact 904-620-1330, jingerso@unf.edu.
• Tommy
Kyllonen, a.k.a. "Urban D," is a hip-hop artist and lead pastor at
Crossover Community
Church in Tampa, Fla. The church's ministry is to the hip-hop culture, and
worship combines music, dance, visual arts and other media. He has recorded
five albums, performs concerts and is writing his first book, about hip-hop
and the church. Contact 813-935-8887, urband@flavoralliance.com.
• Kyle
Matthews is a Dove Award-winning Christian songwriter whose works have been
recorded by top Christian artists, including Point of Grace. He lives in Brentwood,
Tenn. Contact via Christa Foss, 615-837-8624, or at kyle@kylematthews.com.
• Darren
Middleton is an associate professor in the religion department at Texas Christian
University in Fort Worth. He has written about religious expression in reggae
music. Contact 817-257-6445, D.Middleton2@tcu.edu.
• Felicia
Miyakawa is an assistant professor of musicology at Middle Tennessee State University
in Murfreesboro. She is the author of Five Percenter Rap: God Hop's Music,
Message and Black Muslim Mission (Indiana University Press, 2005). Contact
615-904-8043, miyakawa@mtsu.edu.
• Andrea
Most is the author of Making Americans: Jews and the Broadway Musical (Harvard
University Press, 2004), in which she discusses how Jews used the Broadway musical
as a means of assimilation during the second quarter of the 20th century. She
is a professor of English at the University of Toronto. Contact 416-946-8972,
andrea.most@utoronto.ca.
• The
Rev. J. Clinton
McCann is a professor of biblical interpretation at Eden Theological Seminary
in St. Louis. He has written about religion and popular music. Contact 314-918-2582,
cmccann@eden.edu.
• Kate
McCarthy is an associate professor of religious studies at California State
University, Chico. She has written about religious expression in rock music,
including the music of Bruce Springsteen. Contact 530-898-4485, kmccarthy@csuchico.edu.
• James
Perkinson is an associate professor of religious studies and philosophy at Marygrove
College in Detroit. He has written about religious expression in rap music.
Contact 313-927-1531, jperkinson@marygrove.edu.
• Rick
Recht is a pop singer and songwriter of Jewish music and secular music.
In addition to concerts, he frequently plays Friday night services at synagogues
across the country. Contact 314-991-0909, rick@rickrecht.com.
• Teresa
L. Reed is the author of The Holy Profane: Religion in Black Popular Music
(University Press of Kentucky, 2004), in which she links West-African musical
and religious cultures and religious lyrics and themes in African-American blues,
rhythm and blues, soul, funk and gangsta rap. She is an associate professor
of music at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma. Contact teresa-shelton@utulsa.edu.
• William
Romanowski is a professor of communication arts and sciences at Calvin College
in Grand Rapids, Mich. He has written about evangelicals and their use of and
relationship to Christian music. Contact 616-526-8527, romw@calvin.edu.
• David
Rosen is a professor of Jungian psychology at Texas A&M University in
College Station and author of The Tao of Elvis (Harvest Books, 2002),
a book of reflections on Elvis and Taoist principles. Contact 979-845-2530,
dhr@psyc.tamu.edu.
• Ted
Swedenburg is a professor of cultural anthropology at the University of
Arkansas in Fayetteville. He has done research on popular music, including Islamic
and Middle Eastern influences on rap and hip-hop music, and he hosts a world
music show on the radio. He can speak about the impact that Muslim young people
are having in the world of music. Contact 479-575-6624, tsweden@uark.edu.
• Robin
Sylvan is an adjunct professor of art and religion at the Graduate Theological
Union in Berkeley, Calif. He has written about religion and rave culture, popular
music, rap and hip-hop. Contact 510-338-0264.
• Charles
Reagan Wilson is the author of Judgment & Grace in Dixie: Southern Faiths
from Faulkner to Elvis (University of Georgia Press, 1995). He is a professor
of history and Southern studies at the University of Mississippi. Contact 662-915-5993.
Sports
and games
• Rebecca
T. Alpert is a rabbi and an associate professor of religion and women's
studies at Temple University in Philadelphia, Penn. She is currently at work
on a book about African-Americans and Jews in baseball. Contact 215-204-7712,
ralpert@temple.edu.
• William
Baker is a professor emeritus of history at the University of Maine in Orono.
He has written about Christ and the Olympics. Contact 207-581-1911, William.baker@umit.maine.edu.
• Jeremy
Biles wrote a paper about ritual and monster trucks while doing doctoral
work in religion and literature at the University of Chicago Divinity School.
He teaches philosophy at the Illinois Institute of Art. Contact 773-656-7479,
jbiles@uchicago.edu.
• Allen Bodner is a boxing historian and the author of When Boxing Was
a Jewish Sport (Praeger Publishers, 1997). His father was a professional
boxer. Bodner is an attorney in New York City. Contact 212-344-5633.
• Christina Cabeen is a doctoral student at the University of California,
Santa Barbara. She has written a paper on Las Vegas and nuns. Contact cbcabeen@umail.ucsb.edu.
• William
Dean is a professor emeritus of constructive theology at the Iliff School
of Theology in Denver. He is the author of The American Spiritual Culture
and the Invention of Jazz, Football and the Movies (Continuum, 2002). Contact
303-744-1287 or 303-759-5237, wdean@iliff.edu.
• William
Herzog II is a professor of New Testament interpretation at Colgate Rochester
Crozer Divinity School in Rochester, N.Y. He is co-editor of The Faith of
Fifty Million: Baseball, Religion and American Culture (Westminster John
Knox Press, 2002). Contact 585-271-1320 ext. 220, bherzog@crcds.edu.
• Robert J. Higgs is the author of God in the Stadium: Sports and Religion
in America (University Press of Kentucky, 1995) and co-author of An Unholy
Alliance: The Sacred and Modern Sports (Mercer University Press, 2004).
Contact via Mercer University Press, 478-301-2880.
• Allen E. Hye is the author of The Great God Baseball: Religion in
Modern Baseball Fiction (Mercer University Press, 2004). He is a professor
of Danish and German at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and a member
of the Society for American Baseball Research and the Popular Culture Association.
Contact 937-775-2739, allen.hye@wright.edu.
• Tony Ladd and James
Mathisen are professors of kinesiology and sociology, respectively, at Wheaton
College in Aurora, Ill. They are co-authors of Muscular Christianity: Evangelical
Protestants and the Development of American Sport (Baker Books, 1999). Contact
Ladd at 630-752-5748, tony.ladd@wheaton.edu.
Contact Mathisen at 630-752-5059, james.a.mathisen@wheaton.edu.
• Joseph
L. Price is a professor of religious studies at Whittier College in Whittier,
Calif. He is the author of From Season to Season: Sports as American Religion
(Mercer University Press, 2005). A new book on baseball as religion is due in
June 2006. Contact 562-907-4803, jprice@whittier.edu.
• Steven A. Riess is a professor of history at Northeastern Illinois University
in Chicago and editor of Sports and the American Jew (Syracuse University
Press, 1998). Contact S-Riess@neiu.edu.
Computers,
video games and other technology
• Brenda
Brasher is a lecturer in the sociology department at the University of Aberdeen
in Aberdeen, Scotland. She is an expert on religion as it is expressed and practiced
online. Contact +44 (0) 1224 272731, b.brasher@abdn.ac.uk.
• Robert
Geraci is an assistant professor of religious studies at Manhattan College
in New York City. He has written a paper on robotics and artificial intelligence
and the idea of the sacred. Contact 718-862-7419, robert.geraci@manhattan.edu.
• Rachel Wagner is an assistant professor of religion and philosophy at
Ithaca College in Ithaca, N.Y. She has taught courses on religion and video
games and is interested in the ways video and computer games depict rituals
and sacred space, such as churches and cemeteries. Contact 607-274-3249, rwagner@ithaca.edu.
Arts
and crafts
• Kathy Cueva
is the president of The
Prayer Quilt Ministry, commonly known as Prayers & Squares, an international
ministry that performs quilting as a form of intercessory prayer. She lives
in San Diego, Calif. Contact prayerquiltpres@cox.net.
• Barbara Brewer Davis is the co-author of With Sacred Threads: Quilting
and the Spiritual Life (Pilgrim Press, 2000) and an avid quilter. Contact
614-487-7216, barbdavis@columbus.rr.com.
• Tara Jon Manning
is a Buddhist, a knitter and the author of Mindful Knitting: Inviting Contemplative
Practice to the Craft (Tuttle Publishing, June 2004) and Compassionate Knitting:
Finding Basic Goodness in the Craft of Our Hands (Tuttle Publishing, 2006).
She holds "mindful knitting retreats" around the country. Contact info@tarahandknitting.com.
• Dr. Carolyn
Mazloomi is a quilter whose work is included in the Smithsonian Museum's
collection. She is the founder and director of the Women
of Color Quilters Network. She was the co-curator of a quilt show titled
"Threads of Faith" at the American Bible Society in New York City. She lives
in Columbus, Ohio. Contact DrMAZ4WCQN@aol.com.
• Bernadette
Murphy is the author of Zen and the Art of Knitting: Exploring the Links
Between Knitting, Spirituality and Creativity (Adams Media Corp., 2002).
She is a fiction writer and lives in Los Angeles. Contact 818-956-7522, bernadet@lafn.org.
• Linda T. Skolnik and Janice MacDaniels are the authors of the author
of The Knitting Way: A Guide to Spiritual Self-Discovery (Skylight Paths,
2005). Skolnik is the owner of Patternworks,
a knitting company, in Center Harbor, New Hampshire, and MacDaniels was the
store manager. Contact via Skylight Paths publicity, 802-457-4000.
Other
• Dane
Claussen is an associate professor in the department of journalism and mass
communication at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, Pa. He is an expert on
Promise Keepers and other "masculine Christianity" movements. Contact 412-392-3412,
dclaussen@pointpark.edu.
• Donna Freitas is an assistant professor of religious studies at St. Michael's
College in Colchester, Vt. She has written about the spirituality of dating
and chastity. Contact 802-654-2489, dfreitas@smcvt.edu.
• James Lewis is a lecturer in religious studies at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens
Point in Stevens Point, Wis. He is an expert on religion and UFOs. Contact 715-346-3803,
jlewis@uwsp.edu.
• Gordon
Lynch is professor of religion and culture in the Department of Theology
and Religion at Birmingham University in the United Kingdom. He is the author
of Understanding Theology and Popular Culture (Blackwell, 2005). Contact
G.A.Lynch@bham.ac.uk.
• Karal
Ann Marling is a professor of art history at the University of Minnesota
in Minneapolis-St. Paul. She has written about religion and Disney, the American
highway, Elvis, Christmas and the Vietnam Memorial. Contact 612-624-5595, marli001@umn.edu.
• David
Morgan is a professor of humanities and art history at Valparaiso University
in Valparaiso, Ind. He is the author of Visual Piety: A History and Theory
of Popular Religious Images (University of California Press, 1999). Contact
219-465-7839, David.Morgan@valpo.edu.
• Patrick
A. Polk is a lecturer in the Department of World Arts and Cultures at the
University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, Calif. In 2004, he was
the guest curator of an exhibit
at the Fowler Muesum on roadside religious displays found throughout Los Angeles.
Contact 310-825-8171, polk@arts.ucla.edu.
• Sally
Promey is a professor of American art at the University of Maryland in College
Park. She is at work on a book about the public display of religion in the United
States. Contact 301-405-7720, sp80@umail.umd.edu.
• Rich
Remsberg is a documentary photographer who lives in North Adams, Mass.,
and is the author of Riders for God: The Story of a Christian Motorcycle
Gang (University of Illinois Press, 2000). Contact 413-664-4516, rich@remsbergphoto.com.
Background
GENERAL
• The
Brehm Center for Worship,
Theology and the Arts at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif.,
has institutes dedicated to film, dramatic arts, music and expressions of "visual
faith." Each of the institutes has a web page with essays, reviews and
criticism.
• Damaris
CultureWatch is a U.K.-based organization that offers Christian reflection
on film, television, music, books and art.
• The
Journal of Religion and Popular Culture is a web-based peer-reviewed
journal based in Canada. It is edited by Mary Ann Beavis at the University of
Saskatchewan in Saskatoon. Contact 306-966-8948, maryann.beavis@usask.ca.
• Ministry
and Media is a web site designed to be "a storehouse of pop culture
information and programming ideas that will help youth workers use media to
relate the gospel to teenagers." It contains reviews of movies, music and
videos.
• Plugged
In online is the online version of Focus on the Family's entertainment review
magazine, which looks at film, television, books and videos from a conservative
Christian perspective.
FILM,
TELEVISION AND RADIO
• William L. Blizek edits The
Journal of Religion and Film at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
The main web site has links to many articles and authors.
• Christian
Spotlight on Entertainment is a web site that rates film, television and
other forms of entertainment for its compatibility with Christian principles.
• The Decent Films
Guide is a web site that reviews films from a Christian perspective.
• The Dove Foundation
reviews movies to see how they coincide with "the Christian worldview" and offers
warnings about those that do not meet its criteria.
• The Faith
and Film Critics Circle is an organization of Christian film critics who
want to expand the definition of "Christian criticism."
• Presbyterian minister Charles Henderson operates GodWeb,
which reviews movies.
• Maxine
Grossman is an assistant professor of Jewish studies at the University of
Maryland in College Park, Md. She can discuss the Bible as it is depicted in
current television and film. Contact 301- 405-4980, mgrossma@umd.edu.
• Hollywood
Jesus is the film review web site of minister David Bruce.
• Interfilm
is an international network of people interested in film, theology and church.
• Scot McKnight is a professor of religious studies at North Park University
in Chicago, Ill. He specializes in films about Jesus and writes a blog
about Jesus studies and the Orthodox faith, which routinely examines depiction
of Jesus in popular culture. Contact 847-362-4904, smcknight@northpark.edu.
• Intervarsity
Christian Fellowship runs 2100
Productions, a film review web site aimed at Christian college students.
• Movieguide
is "a ministry dedicated to redeeming the values of the mass media according
to biblical principles, by influencing entertainment industry executives and
helping families make wise media choices." It is published by Ted Baehr, chairman
of The Christian Film & Television Commission.
• MovieMission.com
is a web site "dedicated to helping People of Faith view their relationship
with Hollywood as a unique missionary opportunity." It asks people to go to
movies and pray for the producers, actors and directors.
• The
Movie Theology
web site lists movie reviews, movie theology blogs, film discussion groups
and articles on faith and film. It comes from Canadian Mennonite University.
• The
Pauline
Center for Media Studies maintains a web
page of reviews of movies and books and essays on film.
• The
Text This Week is a web site of resources for study and liturgy based on
the Revised Common Lectionary. It includes a movie
concordance of film scenes pastors can use to illustrate their sermons and
lessons. It is run by Jenee Woodard of Jackson, Mich.
• Read
a study
from the Parents Television
Council about the treatment of religion on television during the 2003-04
season.
