Research
The research agenda of the Center for Global Christianity is driven by the interests of the people who are part of its community. Reports about their ongoing work will be posted from time to time.
Christianity and Innovation
The Historical Society received funding from the John Templeton Foundation to explore Religion and Innovation in Human Affairs. Research in various fields was conducted from 2011 to 2014, and the results were often counterintuitive. Counter to popular images of religion as a conservative force that regularly inhibits creativity, scholars described a more dynamic religious impulse. Dana Robert, Director of the Center for Global Christianity & Mission, participated in the project, arguing that Protestant missions were a major source of social innovation and democratic nationalism at the beginning of the twentieth-century. A preview of her research and that of others, may be found in: What Connection is There, More
Partnering to Study the Korean Diaspora in Boston
The Center for Global Christianity & Mission has partnered with the East Rock Institute to uncover the stories of the Korean diaspora in Boston. As the partnership enters its third year, scholars have pieced together a number of fascinating stories. Topics range from the education of Yi Ku, the last prince of the Chosen dynasty to the involvement of Koreans in the Boston marathon. The East Rock Institute has recently released a newsletter about some of its other projects.
Immigrant Indian Christianity
The American Academy of Religion has sponsored research into how the social composition and identity of Christians in India differs from that in the diaspora. The project is ongoing, but the second workshop convened on September 20th at Boston University to review and consider what has been learned thus far. Scholars from India and the United States, as well as a number of delegates from Greater Boston's various Indian churches met together to hear and interact with the findings. Thomas Thangaraj, from Boston University, offered the keynote address. In addition, Jesudas Athyal, a visiting researcher at the Center for Global Christianity... More
Identity & Social Distinctions among Indian Christians at Home and in the Diaspora
A major study project on changes in gender and caste social distinctions among the Indian diaspora Christian communities in the United States will be sponsored by Center for Global Christianity & Mission. The project will compare what has happened in the United States with ethnic and religious identity negotiations in India. The study has been facilitated by a Collaborative International Research Grant under the American Academy of Religion’s International Connections Committee. This study emerged from the realization that the Christians of India are an important element in the resurgence of Christianity in the Southern hemisphere as well as in the emergent... More
Korean Diaspora Progress Reported
The team of researchers who have been working to construct the ground floor of a project to understand the establishment and growth of the Korean Diaspora community in Boston in the 1950s and 1960s presented the results of their work to date at CURA, the Institute for Culture, Religion and World Affairs on April 8. Dr. Dana Robert introduced the project and briefly described a meeting with Dr. Hesung Koh who helped inspire it and advanced a working relationship between the Center for Global Christianity and Mission and the East Rock Institute which is located in New Haven, CT and is... More