Theology & Religion, University of Exeter

Today we held our first ever Theology and Religion PGR Research Showcakes (sic)! Postgraduate research students presented on their thesis topics and brought along baked items relating to an element of their research. We loved the marmalade rock cakes (on the agency, subjecthood and sacramentality of rocks and minerals), sheep cupcakes (shepherding metaphors in the New Testament), and bloodied gingerbread people (on anthropophagy, people-eating-people, in the ancient world).

Come and visit us in the Great Hall at the University of Exeter today and tomorrow 9am-4pm to hear all about BA Theology and Religion, BA Religion, Culture and Society, BA Philosophy, Religion and Ethics, and our other programmes!

Prof Susannah Cornwall is at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Austin, Texas for the 2026 Frierson Conference, “Confessing Christ in Times Like These”, with scholars from seven US seminaries and theological faculties.

Many major Christian denominations structure their practices according to a Church Calendar, making use of lectionary readings, and many different denominations follow similar yearly structures including major festivals such as Christmas. Over the past few years, meetings have been held to discuss a proposed Feast of Creation, to be held each 1st September – or the following Sunday – across as wide a range as possible of different traditions. This is building on the existing ‘Creation Day’ celebrated by many churches on 1st September each year.

One of our honorary research fellows, Dr Cherryl Hunt, participating in an ecumenical conference last summer, ‘Creation Day & The Nicaea Centenary: Crystallizing the Ecumenical Dream of the New Liturgical Feast’, discussed possible lectionary readings for the Feast. More recently, she has been part of an ‘Ecumenical Lectionary Working Group for the Feast of Creation’, exploring more deeply the most promising suggestions for the three-year cycle of the lectionary. The ecumenical nature of the process, including some who, like Cherryl, worship within a tradition which makes little use of formal liturgy, and the effort to produce resources that may be of use to a wide range of traditions, are both related to the desire to draw the Christian churches together in a celebration both of God’s act in Creation and the resulting Creation itself. And this has arisen in the context of increasing recognition that our God’s beloved Creation is badly damaged from human exploitation and greed.

https://lsri.campion.ox.ac.uk/news/new-steps-towards-feast-creation-lsri-co-hosts-ecumenical-gathering-assisi

We are delighted to have been ranked in the worldwide Top 50 in the QS World University Rankings 2026 for Theology, Divinity and Religious Studies. Prof Rebecca Langlands (Head of Department, Classics, Ancient History, Religion and Theology) says, "This is well-deserved recognition of the extraordinary talent and dynamism of our team of Theology and Religion scholars".

Today students from the THE2/3232 Living With Robots: New Technologies and Ethics in Religious and Philosophical Perspectives module visited the Engineering department to learn about the uses of AI and medical nanorobots in improving the diagnosis of colorectal cancers. We are very grateful to Prof Yang Liu and his lab team for this opportunity.

Today Theology and Religion’s Centre for Biblical Studies hosted our research seminar with guest speaker Prof Saul Olyan of Brown University (Providence, RI), who spoke on animal rights and the Hebrew Bible. Prof Olyan taught and mentored Dr Rebekah Welton during her time studying at Brown.

Our Bishop John Prideaux Lecturer for 2026 was Revd Prof Luke Bretherton, the Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology at Oxford University.

He spoke on “Imago Dei, Political Theology, and the Commons”, arguing that recovering the social practice of the commons offers a theological and practical framework for addressing today’s intertwined ecological and political crises. He suggested that by reclaiming the commons — from community gardens to digital networks and crown lands — people can cultivate forms of integral ecology that honour human dignity, renew creation, and reimagine institutions.

During his time in Exeter, Prof Bretherton is also leading a workshop on pastoral leadership as political leadership.

Prof Bretherton is pictured here with Revd Dr Mike Harrison, Bishop of Exeter, and Canon Prof Morwenna Ludlow, Professor of Christian History and Theology and Canon Theologian at Exeter Cathedral.

The Prideaux Lecturers are a partnership between the University of Exeter, Diocese of Exeter, and Exeter Cathedral.

‘I Remember: Exeter’s Memory of the COVID-19 Pandemic’, 19.30-21.00 on Tuesday 3 March at Exeter Phoenix. This event focuses on public memories of the COVID-19 pandemic in Exeter. It will play sections from an online audiobook that draws together various public memories, and the creators will discuss their work on pandemic memorialisation more broadly. Participants will also be invited to offer their own memories of the event – covering experiences of lockdown, health, education, childcare, bereavement, and other issues. REGISTER FOR FREE VIA: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/exeters-memory-of-the-covid-19-pandemic-tickets-1983460364343?aff=oddtdtcreator