Religion, Culture and the Arts

Literature, music, art and popular culture are key entry points into the theological understanding of societies of all periods. To study religion, we must attend not only to discursive writing, but also to material forms, cultural expressions and embodied practices. These are the means through which any theology is performed and becomes part of human experience.  

Our research is wide-ranging, from medieval literature to contemporary digital culture. By studying an opera, a novel about vampires or the rituals of an online gaming community, we can find new insights into humanity’s deepest longings for transcendence.

Main research interests

• Dante and Victorian culture

• Environmental ethics and theology
• Horror fiction and theology
• Literary theory and Jewish messianism
• Religious approaches to media ethics

• Religion, games and gaming
• Religion and popular culture
• The Bible in music, art and literature

• Victorian female religious writers
• Wagner and theology

Key staff

• Richard Bell
• Michael Burdett
• Tim Hutchings
• Doug Ingram
• Alison Milbank