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Old News From MC RELS Department


Faculty in the Religious Studies Department at Manhattan College have been busy this Fall, what with Papal visits, conferences, Ben Franklin statues, and warm, gentle breezes in the Bahamas. They've done TV interviews, presented at gatherings, eaten vegan Philly cheese steaks, and swum with the dolphins. Here's a few glimpses:

Natalia Lee

“This fall I did some media for the papal visit to the Americas. NY1 interviewed me about the relationship between Pope Francis and Cuba. Then, when the pope came to the US I was on CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" and on MSNBC's "Weekends with Alex Witt" (twice there) to talk about the impact of Pope Francis's visit on New York, on American Catholics, and also to talk about some issues in American Catholicism like the role of women.”

Mehnaz Afridi

I was very excited to share in the interfaith 9/11 Memorial Museum Prayer with Pope Francis on September 25th. I also traveled to Berlin, Germany for the launch of a book, which includes my response to The Sunflower, written by Simon Wiesenthal in 1970.

In addition, I've participated in the following events:

  • The Holocaust and Muslims on Oct. 6 at Kol Ami Women’s Oasis Program in White Plains, N.Y.

  • Holocaust and Interreligious Education on Oct. 15 at The World Parliaments of Religion in Salt Lake City on a panel sponsored by United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

  • On Oct. 18 at the Reform Temple of Westchester in Scarsdale, N.Y., to discuss Jewish-Muslim relations.

  • A panel at Drew University on Antisemitism and Islamophobia.

  • Presentation on Reconciliation between Jews and Muslims Through the Holocaust at The Dalton School in New York City.

Claudia Setzer

I presented a paper and participated on a panel review at the Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting in November.

  • Panel review of David Balch, Contested Ethnicities and Images: Studies in Acts and Arts.

  • Paper entitled, "Sinai, Covenant and Innocent Blood Traditions in Matthew's Blood Curse (27:25)" in the Early Jewish-Christian Relations section.

I also published an article in an edited volume:

  • "(Mark 7:28) 'Even the Dogs Under the Table Eat the Children's Crumbs': Women, Food, and Learning" in The Gospels in First Century Judea edited by R. Steven Notley (Brill, 2016).

Kevin Ahern

  • Recently spoke with Al-Jazeera America about Pope Francis’ stance on climate change.

  • Analyzed Pope Francis’s first visit to New York City, an evening prayer service at St. Patrick's Cathedral.

  • Reflected on the papal visit in America Magazine and the French Bishops Conference’s website.

  • Was interviewed by NY1 on Sept. 20.

  • Participated in a roundtable discussion on the papal visit and current issues affecting the Catholic Church, after Pope Francis celebrated Mass in Cuba.

  • Appeared on NY1's Inside City Hall on Sept. 23 and discussed the Pope’s trip thus far, his background and his influence on the Church, especially in Latin America.

  • Quoted by PoliticoNewYork in a Sept. 18 article.

  • Visited Rome and attended a meeting at the Generalate of the Brothers of the Christian Schools to discuss how to enhance the Lasallian connections with the movements of Catholic students and intellectuals.

  • Presented at Pope Francis And The Future Of Global Governance at the Pax Romana Colloquium.

Stephen Kaplan

Relaxed in the Bahamas. Actually he lead the second group of veteran-Manhattan College students to the Sivananda Ashram and Yoga Retreat on Paradise Island, the Bahamas. The trip was part of a new initiative at Manhattan College to offer incoming veteran-students, who enroll in particular sections of RELS 110 (The Nature and Experience of Religion), the opportunity to participate in a program run by the non-profit organization called Warriors at Ease.

Robert Geraci

Presented a few things recently:

  • “Narendra Modi and the Revelation of Vedic Technology” at the annual meeting for the American Academy of Religion, November 22, 2015.

  • “Narendra Modi and the Revelation of Vedic Technology” at the annual meeting for the Society for the History of Technology, October 10, 2015.

  • “A Tale of Two Futures: Techno-eschatology in the U.S. and India” at the annual meeting for the International Society for the Sociology of Religion, July 3, 2015.

Published essay:

“Religion and Technology.” In The Handbook of Science and Technology Convergence (eds. William S. Bainbridge and Mihail C. Roco). Dordrecht, Switzerland: Springer.

Philip Francis

I am a Fellow in the Humanities at the Penn Humanities Forum at the University of Pennsylvania for the 2015-16 year. Which means everywhere I turn there is another statue of Benjamin Franklin staring at me. I've presented two papers at Penn this Fall: "Sex Versus Certainty" and "Ethnographies of Sex". And a paper at the American Academy of Religion in November: "The Extraordinary Ordinary; Or, A Conversation with Brent Plate and Norman Girardot While Floating in a Sensory Deprivation Tank."

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