Exploring the sacred in human relations: a scholar–practitioner panel on sacred stories, arts and better futures

Thu 4 June

Faculty of Divinity

Across five years, the Fetzer Institute commissioned teams of scholars who are also practitioners of their faith tradition to retell sacred stories. The challenge was to do this in a way faithful to their tradition, but also accessible to outsiders. The hope was to generate and strengthen a shared sense of the sacred, sufficient to bring people together in pursuit of a better future for all—people and planet.
The resulting book Retelling Sacred Stories (Orbis Books 2025) has ten chapters, each using the art of storytelling to convey the values of a given tradition. To maximise inclusiveness, the opening story is offered as a shared narrative, one that may resonate with people of any faith or none. Space is also given to indigenous and interspiritual perspectives alongside major world religions.
At this event, we invite local scholar–practitioners to reflect on this approach and the potential of storytelling and the arts to connect us with a shared sense of the sacred. Can sacred connections help us toward a better shared future? In the face of seemingly intractable problems, what might tending to the sacred achieve?
Panellists
Dr Ankur Barua is University Lecturer in Hindu Studies at the University of Cambridge. His research explores Hindu traditions in South Asia and transnational contexts. He also writes historical fiction, including The Harvest of Time (2023).
Dr Giles Waller is Senior Teaching Associate and Research Associate in Christian Theology and Theology & Literature at Cambridge. His work focuses on Christian doctrine, philosophy, tragedy, and the arts.
Rabbi Dr Lindsey Taylor?Guthartz is a scholar of contemporary Jewish life and an Orthodox rabbi. She is the author of Challenge and Conformity, exploring the lives of Orthodox Jewish women.
Riya Kartha is a poet, educator, and PhD researcher in Education at Cambridge, working on spirituality, arts?based learning, and peace education. She co?chairs the Cambridge Peace and Education Research Group.
Dr William (Bill) Vendley is Secretary General Emeritus of Religions for Peace, and Senior Advisor for Religion at the Fetzer Institute, with decades of experience in multi?religious peacebuilding worldwide.
Partners
This event is organised in collaboration with the Fetzer Institute and the Faraday Institute, as part of a UK series inspired by Retelling Sacred Stories and coordinated by Mark Vernon in association with Theos.

Cost: 0

Enquiries and booking

Booking is recommended for this event.

There is a pre-event reception for those who have registered. Details with booking confirmation.

Website Email: events@interfaith.cam.ac.uk

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