This course is the third in a series of six that are part of our 2025 certificate program. A limited number of seats are available for individuals not participating in the program.
Introducing World Religions through a Process-Relational Lens
Over the course of seven sessions, students will be introduced to several world religions (or ways of thinking and living) through a lens of process-relational thought. Each week will be devoted to a different tradition with several visiting teachers bringing their own expertise to the discussion.
Attend the live class sessions
or work at your own pace.
Course Summary
We live in a world marked by great diversity, and if humans are to live peaceably together, we must seek to understand each other. In this course, participants will explore various world religions, as well as indigenous/traditional ways of thinking and living, through a lens of process and relational thought. Over the course of seven sessions, we will discuss Indigenous/Traditional Ways, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity.
As we approach each tradition, we will seek to encounter its commitments and matters of ultimate concern alongside its primary practices, exploring how it may be situated within process and relational metaphysics. Through this lens, we might ask how each tradition fosters zest and enjoyment, nourishes its adherents’ spiritual and ethical lives, and knits communities together, with an eye on each tradition’s view of the proper relationship between the transpersonal or sacred and humans, as well as between humans and the earth.
“Religion will not regain its old power until it can face change in the same spirit as does science. Its principles may be eternal, but the expression of those principles requires continual development.”
–A.N. Whitehead
Course Outline
- Session 1: Course Introduction: with Leslie King, DMin
- Session 2: Indigenous Life Ways: with Chris Daniels, PhD
- Session 3: Hinduism: with Jeffery Long, PhD
- Session 4: Judaism: with Bradley Artson, PhD
- Session 5: Buddhism: with Jay McDaniel, PhD
- Session 6: Islam: with Jared Morningstar
- Session 7: Christianity: with Leslie King, DMin
About the Instructors
Rev. Dr. Leslie King is the Pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Waco. She received her BA from Kansas University (’91) and her Masters of Divinity from McCormick Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Chicago (‘94). In 2010 she completed her Doctor of Ministry at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City Missouri with an emphasis in Spirituality and Organizational Change. She began her service to First Presbyterian Church of Waco in 2012. Process Theology has been a passion since 2007 when she began her Doctor of Ministry. Since September 2020, she is a yoga instructor (RYT 200) with Spirit Bear Yoga and (RYT 500) with My Vinaysa Practice. She’s a member of Yoga Alliance. She enjoys leading yoga flows for the youth and adults of the church. Her particular interest is in Yin and Restorative yoga as it relates to spiritual well-being. Piano competency is slowly emerging and music is a source of joy. She has been married to DJ King since November of 1996 and together they enjoy watching their three young adult children, Cody, Katie and Claire make their way in the world. With a menagerie of stray animals, the Kings are glad to call Waco home.
Chris Daniels, Ph.D. has spent most of his life in the music business in Canada, but also managed to return to school and be awarded a Ph. D in Religious Studies from The University of Calgary. His focus is on Philosophy Religion/Diversity of Religions, and in particular the Philosophy/Theology of Alfred North Whitehead. His dissertation, All My Relations: A Process-Indigenous Study in Comparative Ontology, was a comparative analysis between how Indigenous scholars and Elders described their own worldviews and ways-of-knowing with the Process-Relational cosmology of Whitehead. He has taught Philosophy of Religion and Indigenous Worldviews/Spiritualities in Calgary universities and organized the Indigenous Wisdom track at the Seizing an Alternative conference in 2015. He also contributed a response to Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si' in For Our Common Home: Process-Relational Responses to Laudato Si',edited by John Cobb Jr. and Ignacio Castuera, based on Indigenous wisdom.
Jeffery D. Long, PhD, Professor of Religion and Asian Studies for Elizabethtown College, specializes in the religions and philosophies of India. He is the author of several books and numerous articles, as well the editor of the series Explorations in Indic Traditions for Lexington Books. In 2018, he received the Hindu American Foundation’s Dharma Seva Award for his ongoing efforts to promote more accurate and culturally sensitive portrayals of Indic traditions in the American educational system and popular media. He has spoken in numerous venues, both national and international, including Princeton University, Yale University, the University of Chicago, and Jawaharlal Nehru University (in India), and has given three talks at the United Nations.
Rabbi Dr. Bradley Shavit Artson holds the Abner and Roslyn Goldstine Dean’s Chair of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies and is Vice President of American Jewish University in Los Angeles. Rabbi Artson has long been a passionate advocate for social justice, human dignity, diversity and inclusion. He wrote a book on Jewish teachings on war, peace and nuclear annihilation in the late 80s, became a leading voice advocating for GLBT marriage and ordination in the 90s, and has published and spoken widely on environmental ethics, special needs inclusion, racial and economic justice, cultural and religious dialogue and cooperation, and working for a just and secure peace for Israel and the Middle East. A member of the Philosophy Department, he is particularly interested in theology, ethics, and the integration of science and religion. He supervises the Miller Introduction to Judaism Program and mentors Camp Ramah in California (Ojai) and Camp Ramah of Northern California (Monterey Bay). He is also dean of the Zacharias Frankel College in Potsdam, Germany, ordaining Conservative rabbis for Europe. A frequent contributor for the Huffington Post and for the Times of Israel, and a public figure Facebook page with about 50,000 likes, he is the author of 12 books and over 250 articles, most recently Renewing the Process of Creation: A Jewish Integration of Science and Spirit. Married to Elana Artson, they are the proud parents of twins, Jacob and Shira.
Jay McDaniel is professor emeritus of Religious Studies at Hendrix College in Arkansas, and founder of the website Open Horizons, which focuses on exploring a process outlook on life and way of living in the world. Active in the development of process thought in China, he is a consultant to the Institute for Postmodern Development of China, and the Cobb Institute. His books include With Roots and Wings: Christianity in an Age of Ecology and Dialogue; Living from the Center: Spirituality in an Age of Consumerism; and Gandhi’s Hope: Learning from Other Religions as a Path to Peace.
Jared Morningstar is an independent scholar living in Madison, Wisconsin with academic interests in philosophy of religion, Islamic studies, comparative religion, metamodern spirituality, and interfaith dialogue. His work in these areas seeks to offer robust responses to issues of inter-religious conflict, contemporary nihilism, and the “meaning crisis,” among other things. Jared graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College in 2018 with degrees in religion and Scandinavian studies and currently works for the Center for Process Studies, the Cobb Institute, and the Psychedelic Medicine Association.
Share on Social Media
Help us spread the word by sharing the course on social media.
Tag us @CIC4Process.
Only 25 seats available. Don't miss out!
Suggested Price
- Lifetime access to session recordings
- Receive early notification of future courses
- Watch live or follow your own schedule
- Interact with class members via discussion forums
- * Contribute whatever you feel the course is worth or whatever you can afford to help support this and other programs like it. No one is turned down for lack of funds.
Got questions? We've got answers. Contact Us.