KU Leuven
Global Catholicity
How can theology contribute to understanding and reformulating the possible connections of various local ecclesial and religious contexts with the global Catholic Church? What types of sources and data are needed and should be accessed and studied at a time when the local and the global increasingly influence each other? These questions are topical in the light of ecclesiastical developments in which forms of catholicity, synodality, collegiality and democratization are high on the theological agenda. As the political and contextual consequences of overreaching globalization become clear, the interdisciplinary study of the history, current affairs and future of local church communities and their theologies is becoming increasingly important for the global church.
Prof. Stephan van Erp
The chair holder of the Ladies of Bethany Chair is Stephan van Erp, Professor of Fundamental Theology. He is also the Coordinator of the Research Group for Fundamental and Political Theology, the Director of the Interfaculty Centre for Catholic Thought, and the Founding Director of the KUL-AdMU Centre for Catholic Theology and Social Justice in Manila, the Philipines. Currently, he is developing a research project on 'Theologies of Catholicity' in collaboration with the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry of the Australian Catholic University, where he is a Professorial Fellow. Stephan van Erp is an editor of Concilium: International journal for Theology, Editor-in-chief of Brill Research Perspectives in Theology, Series Editor of T&T Clark Studies in Edward Schillebeeckx (Bloomsbury Press) Louvain Monographs in Theology and Religious Studies and of Studies in Philosophical Theology (Peeters Publishers), and on the editorial boards of Philippiniana Sacra and of Crossing: The INPR Journal. He is also the organiser of the annual Edward Schillebeeckx Lecture.
Research
Our research focuses on historical and systematic theology. Currently, our researchers are: Willy Gaut, Anitha Kondaveti, Kim Mendoza, Linta Kuriakose, Shenali Perera, Simi George Pulikkottil, Arputha Lilly Anthony and Vini Paul.
Connecting Catholicities
Over the last few decades, theology has shown a strong interest in the study of local contexts and histories. In the age of globalisation, there is also growing attention to the global connections between local contexts. Migration and climate change are two clear examples that require attention that goes beyond the local context, particularly in theology, offering insights into changing ideas about creation, incarnation and charity and can therefore contribute substantially to social debates. At the same time, research into the history of specific contexts and cultures remains essential to better understand the ex-change between those contexts and cultures. To this end, new theological methods have been developed in recent years, such as contextual and intercultural theology. These involve the study of one particular context, or the relationship between two cultures. Such theological developments have led to an increased awareness of the particularity of local contexts and their histories. It has meant, however, that the question of how such local contexts relate to the global context and the worldwide church have somewhat faded into the background. That is the reason why this research will, by means of individual projects, try to find models and instruments for research that will allow for the description, comprehension and promotion of contemporary exchanges between local church communities and the worldwide church. The individual projects can be performed within the context of a particular theological sub-discipline, particularly in the History of Church and Theology and Missiology, and in Systematic Theology, but they can also be interdisciplinary.
Education
Students who obtain a Ladies of Bethany scholarship at KU Leuven first enrol in the Research Master program of the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies. The goal of the Research Master is to facilitate independent academic research in the domains of theology and religious studies. The chosen major is reinforced with a highly specific research curriculum and a research master’s thesis, preparing students for continued research at doctoral level. Students receive intensive research skills training and are encouraged to combine the in-depth research of their thesis subject with an all-round theological formation. Upon successful completion of their studies, they have received a broad formation, rather than a training specialising exclusively in one area.
More information on the Leuven Research Master in Theology and Religious Studies can be found here.
Scholarships
The scholarship made available by the Ladies of Bethany in Leuven will be utilised as follows:
a) For the financial support of students (religious and non-religious) from Africa and Asia.
b) Students will mainly be found in close consultation with foreign universities the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies at KU Leuven has cooperation agreements with, or among the bachelor and master students who have already been admitted to the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies at Leuven and whose research would promote new collaborations with foreign universities with a view to an increase in capacity.
c) Students will receive a scholarship for the Research Master (one or two years, depending on their previous training) at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven. If after that period, they can show satisfactory results (in accordance with the standards set by the Faculty), they will be admitted to the doctorate program and granted further financial support for their doctoral studies for a duration of four years at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven, in close cooperation with a university level theological institute in their home country.
d) The doctoral projects that are supported, will form part of the main project ‘Connecting Catholicities: Sources for Solidarity between Church Communities in Different Global Contexts’, directed by Prof. Stephan van Erp and Prof. Dries Vanysacker. Students will have to have their master thesis approved by this project team in case it is supervised by another colleague at the faculty who has the specific expertise needed for the object of study. The purpose of this approval is to ensure as early as during their master studies that the student’s proposed object of study will match the theme of the general research project.
e) Apart from support for the students, this project also encompasses the financial support for international seminars and conferences, organised in close cooperation with the foreign universities involved.