Templeton Religion Trust

How can we build a religiously plural community on campus in times of global division? Ten years on from the LSE Faith Centre’s opening, Grantee James Walters reflects on three lessons learned:

Grantee Sarah Snyder, Founding Director of Rose Castle Foundation, recently spoke at the 2024 Templeton Annual Meeting on how hospitality can bridge divides. Watch the full video here: https://lnkd.in/d_96u-a4

Grantee Gregory Mitchell, Founder of IRF Secretariat, has been bringing people of different faiths together to work cooperatively to advance religious freedom for all for the past 12 years. IFR is distinctive in both its ideology and tactics. Instead of simply discoursing about religious freedom as a lofty ideal, its focus is down-to-earth, here-and-now efforts that unite people of all faiths – as well as none – across their differences. The results can be profound: stronger relationships, religious freedom, social cohesion, stability, peace, and prosperity. Learn more: https://bit.ly/41189KD

Does religion make you more compassionate? Grantee Patty Van Capellen recently spoke at the 2024 Templeton Annual Meeting on her work on the science of religious practices. Watch the full video here: https://lnkd.in/ga7yn7FR

The Database of Religious History is a free online quantitative and qualitative encyclopedia that collects and codes information about religious behaviors and beliefs throughout world history. No question, data alone can’t replace the creative and insightful human analysis that is an indelible feature of high-quality religious scholarship. However, if the DRH database can continue to grow and keep pace with rapidly expanding scholarship, it can prove itself as a reliable and valuable resource for anyone interested in the role of religion in human experience and cultural evolution. Learn more: https://bit.ly/43n7hzb

What might be learned if we studied collective explorations of art in the moment they occur? And what if we used the tools and methods of neuroscience to measure it? Learn more: https://bit.ly/46rFA8i

Figuring out one’s purpose in life is not often an easy task. Research suggests it can be anxiety-provoking and stressful. Grantee Kendal Cotton Bronk, Claremont Graduate University, is exploring how young adults perceive the role of patience in the search for purpose. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3N2hf1F

Grantee Tina Ramirez recently spoke at the 2024 Templeton Annual Meeting on why peacemaking often fails and how we can become better at it. Watch the full video here: https://lnkd.in/gE9R2uQF

“When we study paratexts and all their variety, we study how people from the ancient world read these traditions, how they understood them, and what they did with them. Now, in our current project, we’re attempting to use today’s technologies to understand how people from the past and today process and approach sacred traditions through paratext,” Grantee Garrick Allen, University of Glasgow, details. “This collaborative approach embodies a new way to do theological and philological scholarship, offering the opportunity to embed science-informed approaches in the discipline. We’re plotting a new course in empirical theology, one that gives us new evidence for old questions.” Learn more: https://bit.ly/43idVH5

Do experiences with art make people think in a more elevated and abstract way?