CONF: Re-Describing the Sacred/Secular Divide: The Legal Story II

University of Buffalo Law School, 1-2 May 2009

Conference: "Re-Describing the Sacred/Secular Divide: The Legal Story II"

"For the walls collapse and the spaces which were once distinct intermingle and penetrate each other, as in a labyrinthine architecture of light." (Carl Schmitt, Political Theology II)

This conference brings together scholars of law, humanities and the social sciences for a sustained conversation regarding contemporary relations between law and religion. Public policy in this area is being reconsidered at every level of government in many parts of the world, and the boundaries between the "sacred" and the "secular" seem very much in play in a variety of contexts and traditions. The conference seeks to diagnose and re-describe our current environment and to deepen understanding of the dynamics connecting law and religion.

www.law.buffalo.edu/baldycenter/sacredSecularDivide09.html

Panel II on 1 May, 1-3 pm, is particularly concerned with "Law and Political Theology":

- Paul Kahn (Yale Law School): "Why Political Theology Again"
- Robert Yelle (History, University of Memphis): "Moses' Veil: Secularization as Christian Myth"
- Leonard Kaplan (Law, University of Wisconsin): "The Political as Prior: Arendt, Schmitt and Strauss"
- Bruce Rosenstock (Religious Studies, University of Illinois, Urbana): "Sovereign Impunity: The Theologico-Political Horizon of the International Criminal Court"

Two papers from Panel VI "Sacrifice" on 2 May, 3-5 pm:

- Banu Bargu (Politics, New School for Social Research): "Stasiology: Political Theology and the Figure of the Sacrificial Enemy"
- Thomas Blom Hansen (Sociology and Anthropology, University of Amsterdam): "Cool Passion: The Political Theology of Modern Conviction"

Abstracts of all papers can be found on the conference website.

Registration is open for both Friday and Saturday, 1 and 2 May. Register for the conference by sending your name, address (including institutional affiliation), email address, and telephone number to Anita Mazurek: amazurek@buffalo.edu

Indicate whether you will attend on Friday, Saturday, or both days. There is no registration fee, but registration is required as space is limited.