Interreligious Studies and Secondary Education—Book Featuring Contributions by ICJS Staff and Fellowship Alumni
Interreligious Studies and Secondary Education
Pedagogies and Practices for Living and Learning in a Religiously Plural World
Edited by Christine Gallagher (ICJS), Lucinda Mosher, and Axel Takacs
Interreligious Studies and Secondary Education: Pedagogies and Practices for Living and Learning in a Religiously Plural World is a groundbreaking collection of essays exploring the role of interreligious studies in public, private, and parochial secondary education. Edited by Lucinda Mosher, Axel M. Oaks Takacs, and Christine Gallagher, the volume is divided into four parts: Theory, Practice, Religiously Affiliated School Settings, and Beyond Secondary Education. Contributors—including several alumni of the ICJS Teachers and Nonprofit and Civic Professionals Fellowships—offer insights into religious literacy, the impact of Christian privilege, and the transformative power of interfaith dialogue and experiential learning. Practical chapters present strategies for integrating interreligious studies into curricula, while others reflect on the unique challenges faced by faith-based institutions. The book also highlights youth-led initiatives outside traditional classrooms.
Each chapter ends with a list of discussion questions. Our hope is that administrators, professional learning communities, teacher educators, and more can use these essays as a way to begin conversations in their own schools.
Contributions by ICJS Staff and Fellowship Alumni*
Christine Gallagher, ICJS | “Education Eradicates Ignorance: The Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies Teachers Fellowship.”
Chase de Saint-Felix, Cristo Rey Jesuit High School | “Embracing Theological Mess: Two Rules for Teaching Religion.”
Brendan O’Kane, Loyola Blakefield High School | “With Unapologetic Humility: Why it is Important for Religious Schools to Commit to Interreligious Learning and Dialogue.”
Eleni Lampadarios, Friends School of Baltimore | “Holy Envy, Interreligious Engagement, and Reconciliation: One Orthodox Christian’s Perspective.”
Travis Henschen, Friends School of Baltimore | “Confessions of a Religious “None” Educator: A Call for Dialogue and Engagement.”
Kathleen St. Villier Hill, Elijah Cummings Youth Program in Israel | “Learning Beyond School Walls:Baltimore, Israel, and the Elijah Cummings Youth Program.”
Heather Miller Rubens, ICJS | Afterword—”Teachers and Preachers: The Contested Role of Educators in the Classroom.”
*Affiliations during participation in ICJS fellowships
Book Spotlight: Educator Brendan O’Kane on Unapologetic Humility
Brendan O’Kane, formerly an administrator at Loyola Blakefield High School and an alum of the ICJS Fellowship for Teachers, relates how he came to recognize why it is important for religious schools like Loyola Blakefield, a Catholic high school, to commit to interreligious dialogue and learning.