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About This Journal

Call for papers

Volume 45, Issue 1 (2024) of Consensus: A Canadian Journal of Public Theology will focus on “Finding Common Ground in a Time of Polarization,” and will be guest edited by John Milloy.

Polarization is a growing challenge in Canada and elsewhere. Over the past several years there have been new and deepening divisions as we increasingly group people into “us” and “them” often fueled by social media and other technologies. We see it in political debates and discussions around public policy with racism and religious intolerance representing some of its ugliest manifestations.

How do we respond constructively in the face of disagreement? How can we maintain an open and pluralistic society where different voices are welcome to contribute to a vibrant public sphere? How can voices of spirituality, faith and religion be a source of insight to address these challenges?

From May 9 – May 11, 2023, Martin Luther University College in partnership with the Canadian Interfaith Conversation hosted a special conference on this topic, hearing from a wide variety of speakers and presenters representing Canada’s faith communities, civil society, and academia.

The January 2024 edition of Consensus will build upon this conference. As well as including conference proceedings we would welcome contributions from scholars from around the world that address the issue of polarization and the role that faith and faith communities can play in building bridges and healing divisions.

Contributors are invited to consider the role that spirituality, faith and religion can play in addressing polarization within various current contexts, including but not limited to:

  • The current landscape of polarization in Canada (and elsewhere) including geographical divisions such as those between Quebec and the rest of Canada (e.g., Bill 21)
  • Inter-religious and intra-religious polarization
  • Advancing Indigenous Reconciliation
  • Racism and religious intolerance including Islamophobia and anti-Semitism
  • Populism and far-right extremism
  • The struggle of members of the LGBTQ2SI community
  • The dominant role of social media as well as the changing nature of more traditional forms of media
  • Living in a “post-truth” world

We also welcome contributions that reflect upon the way in which people of faith and faith communities have divided society and contributed to polarization as well as submissions that consider the limitations of spirituality, faith and religion in addressing divisions within society.

Please contact our Guest Editor John Milloy (jmilloy@wlu.ca) with any of your ideas or questions.

The deadline for submission is October 15, 2023. Please send your submissions as an MS Word attachment to John Milloy. Submission rules and requirements are outlined on http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/policies.html

Consensus (ISSN 2369-2685) is the theological journal published since 1985 by Martin Luther University College and Lutheran Theological Seminary, two institutions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC). Prior to that it was a forum of the Canadian Lutheran Merger Commission of the late 1970s which led to the formation of the ELCIC.

  • ISSN: 2369-2685 (Online)
  • ISSN: 0317-1493 (Print)

Indexed in Atla Religion Database (Atla RDB).