Ethics

2026 Call for Papers

John Allen, Central Catholic High School (PA), jallen@centralcatholichs.com

A.J. Hoy, University of Providence (MT),  aj.hoy@uprovidence.edu

Tom Leininger, Regis University (CO),

tleining@regis.edu  

This year’s convention theme, “Reclaiming Faith Amid Christian Nationalism” prompts the Ethics Section to interrogate the relationship between religious identity and nationalistic fervor. We invite proposals for papers that thoughtfully and creatively engage the 2026 conference theme in some of the ways suggested below, or perhaps in a way not yet considered: 

 

Question 1: How have nationalist ideologies co-opted and conflated theological symbolism and rhetoric in ways that perpetuate racial and social injustice? 

 

Question 2: How can theological ethicists challenge or problematize the underlying assumptions of Christian nationalism about Christianity? 

 

Question 3: How can theological ethicists best conceptualize or categorize the phenomenon of Christian Nationalist movements? 

 

Question 4: What moral practices might best embody a lived response to Christian nationalism? What concrete actions are theological ethicists called to enact in response to Christian Nationalist movements? 

 

Question 5: Given Christian nationalism's emphasis on virtues and family, how can theological ethics present an authentic and compelling vision or counternarrative of the Christian moral life? 

 

The Ethics Section aims to cultivate a space for theological-ethical reflection that resists ideological distortion and prioritizes the integrity of the Christian moral tradition. We are particularly interested in papers that critically examine how theological ethics can contribute to the dismantling of exclusionary ideologies, while also reclaiming Christian identity as a source of justice, peace, public witness, and Christian moral life and formation. We encourage engagement with a wide range of ethical methodologies, including virtue ethics, liberationist approaches, qualitative research, ecclesial ethics, and public theology, as well as historically grounded and contextually responsive scholarship. Submissions that bring forward voices often marginalized in theological discourse—Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian, feminist, queer, or interreligious perspectives—are especially welcome. As always, the Ethics Section invites proposals that attend to the interdisciplinary, ecumenical, or interreligious context of contemporary ethical inquiry into this theme, particularly in collaboration with scholars of the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion.  

 

Submission Requirements:   

·       Conference presenters must be members of the College Theology Society 

·       Ph.D. candidates must be ABD to submit a proposal.  

 

Submission Information Details:  

Please submit a proposal of 300 words and a brief list of the 3-5 most centrally significant sources for this paper in the body of an e-mail message directed to all conveners by December 15, 2025. Please also include your institutional affiliation (if any), current professional role, contact information, and current status (Assistant, Associate, PhD. Candidate) along with your proposal.