Volume 4 Number 2
| December 2010
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 Greetings!
As we enter the time of year infamous for creating stress, anxiety, and overspending, we are reminded of one of the central themes discussed at our "Interfaith Summit on Happiness" in October: material wealth does not lead to happiness.
"The consumer society is constantly tempting us to spend money we don't have, to buy things we don't need, for the sake of a happiness that won't last," Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks told more than 4,000 people who came to see him in conversation with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, and distinguished Islamic scholar Professor Seyyed Hossein Nasr.
Find out what these religious leaders say does lead to happiness. Proceedings from the Summit and our day-long academic conference, "Happiness in Interreligious Perspective," are available on YouTube/DVD and summarized in numerous articles written about this historic event.
While happiness has been a major focus of the CSLR these past five years, the role of religion in all aspects of society continues to be the full scope of our study. Read about our soon-to-be-launched digital collection of Harold J. Berman writings, groundbreaking just-published books, new LLM and SJD degree programs, roster of distinguished visiting scholars, and outcome of a recent European lecture tour.
We have much to celebrate in this festive season, and we look ahead to the New Year with hope and the promise of increased understanding about the causes and conditions of happiness -- and unhappiness -- in our world today.
May peace be with you.
Sincerely,
John Witte, Jr . Frank S. Alexander
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 Faith Leaders Agree We Should Pursue Happiness
The American Declaration of Independence proclaims the pursuit of happiness, along with life and liberty, as an unalienable right. But many of us have been taught that happiness is a selfish or superficial emotion. Is there a place for happiness amid good works and worship? Should we seek to be happy even when others are suffering? What do the world's major religious traditions have to say on the subject? READ MORE |
 'Pursuit' Scholars Offer Perspectives on Happiness
CSLR senior fellows who served on the Pursuit of Happiness Project came together immediately following the "Interfaith Summit on Happiness" featuring His Holiness the Dalai Lama to further discuss happiness from a variety of religious and academic perspectives. This "Reflections on the Summit" event took place October 17 at Emory Law. READ MORE |
 'Happiness' Draws Vast Crowd, Media Coverage Four thousand people learned about the meaning of happiness from the Buddhist, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faith traditions during the CSLR's "Interfaith Summit on Happiness," October 17. The sold-out event featured His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, and Islamic expert Professor Seyyed Hossein Nasr of George Washington University. Krista Tippett of the public radio program On Being moderated the two-hour discussion and featured it on her show. Several media outlets carried articles about the event, including USA Today and The Huffington Post. READ MORE |
 Happiness Events Available on YouTube, DVD
Video recordings of the "Interfaith Summit on Happiness," "Happiness in Interreligious Perspective," and "Reception and Reflections on the Summit" are now available on YouTube and for purchase as DVD sets. READ MORE |
European Lecture Tour Sparks 'Earnest Discussion'
CSLR Director John Witte, Jr. has just completed a three-week, nine-city lecture tour in Europe where he initiated conversations on the contentious issues of law and religion explored in his most recent books, and drew packed audiences and substantial international media coverage. READ MORE |
 Superior Court Judge Robert Castellani Joins CSLR
DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Robert J. Castellani, who retires from the bench this month after more than 26 years of service, joins CSLR January 1 as Spruill Family Senior Fellow in Law and Religion. READ MORE |
 Australia's Evans, Italy's Pin Pay Fall Visit to CSLR
Professors Carolyn Evans and Andrea Pin joined CSLR during October and November to pursue their research interests in law and religion. Evans, professor of law and newly named dean of Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne, focused on constitutional law, human rights, and religious freedom. Pin, professor of constitutional law and public comparative law at the University of Padua, further explored Islamic issues, Middle Eastern constitutionalism, and law and tradition. Pin also visited in fall semester 2009 and will return to the CSLR fall semester 2011. |
 CSLR to Open Digital Collection of Harold J. Berman Writings
CSLR and the Robert W. Woodruff Library will unveil a digital collection of published and unpublished non-book writings of Harold J. Berman (1918-2007), Emory's first Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Law, February 2 at Emory Law. Considered the father of the modern field of law and religion study, Berman published 25 books, more than 400 articles, and also left numerous unpublished works, including two nearly complete book manuscripts. READ MORE |
Shari'a Project Launches Blog
 CSLR Senior Fellow M. Christian Green has started a blog, "Shari'a, Family, and Democracy in Nigeria and Beyond," as part of a larger project that examines how Western democracies with Muslim minorities can have a productive conversation with Muslim countries that implemented Shari'a, particularly on issues of marriage and family law.The project is funded by the Social Science Research Council and led by principal investigators Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na`im, John Witte, Jr., and Green. READ MORE
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 CSLR Offers New SJD, LLM Degree Programs
CSLR is now offering two advanced degree programs: the Master of Laws (LLM) and the Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD). These new degree programs supplement the three joint degree programs already available: The Juris Doctor/Master of Theological Studies (JD/MTS), the Juris Doctor/Master of Divinity (JD/MDiv), and the Juris Doctor/Doctor of Philosophy (JD/PhD). READ MORE |
 Ministers of the Law Jean Porter
(Eerdmans Publishing, 2010)
CSLR Senior Fellow Jean Porter breaks new ground in Ministers of the Law: A Natural Law Theory of Legal Authority by arguing that natural law provides a foundation for the authority of law as expressed through the conventions of legal systems. READ MORE |
 God and the Art of Happiness
Ellen T. Charry
( Eerdmans Publishing, 2010) CSLR Senior Fellow Ellen T. Charry's God and the Art of Happiness, the newest outcome of the CSLR's Pursuit of Happiness Project, explores the idea of happiness within the Christian tradition. She discovers through practical theology that the notion of flourishing is often overlooked in the Christian tradition. READ MORE |
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 Christianity and Human Rights: An Introduction
John Witte, Jr. and Frank S. Alexander, eds.
(Cambridge University Press, forthcoming)
Combining Jewish, Greek, and Roman teachings with the radical new teachings of Christ and St. Paul, Christianity helped to cultivate the cardinal ideas of dignity, equality, liberty and democracy that ground the modern human rights paradigm. Christianity also helped shape the law of public, private, penal, and procedural rights that anchor modern legal systems in the West and beyond. This collection of essays explores these Christian contributions to human rights through the perspectives of jurisprudence, theology, philosophy and history, and Christian contributions to the special rights claims of women, children, nature and the environment. READ MORE |
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 The Methodist Experience in America: A History
Russell E. Richey
(Abingdon Press, 2010)
CSLR Senior Fellow Russell E. Richey and co-authors Kenneth Rowe and Jean Miller Schmidt take an important look at the history of American Methodism in their new book, The Methodist Experience in America: A History. It comes as a companion to The Methodist Experience in America: A Sourcebook. READ MORE
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 Building Cultures of Trust
September 11 and conspiratorial thinking, the economic crisis, banks and lenders, mistrust of government as a rescue agency, mortgage-lending to foreclosures, retirement accounts, the exploited and exploitable public. All of these are points of mistrust within our cultures today. In his new book, Building Cultures of Trust, CSLR Senior Fellow Martin E. Marty addresses this pressing issue and looks at practical ways we can begin to rebuild trust. READ MORE |
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"We usually look outside for the causes of happiness. Unfortunately, our control of the outer world is limited, temporary and often illusory."
- Venerable Matthieu Ricard
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 Request or download aCSLR brochure.It provides information on the joint degree program, research projects, senior fellows, publications, and more. |
Search CSLR's faculty to find an expert in human rights; the pursuit of happiness; history of marriage law; Islamic, Jewish, and Christian law; religious liberty; and much more. Go HERE. |
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