Reconfiguring Religious Education: Liberating Interdependence in a Post-Institutional Age

ABSTRACT

[Objective] This article interprets the current disruption in theological education as a moment of reconfiguration rather than decline, examining how widespread disaffiliation and the rise offluid spiritual ecologies are reshaping religious formation.[Contents] Drawing on a case study of the Iliff School of Theology, it analyzes how dialogical pedagogy, public theology initiatives, and justice-centered curricular practices model new forms of theological learning suited for plural and post-institutional contexts. Engaging Musa Dube’s postcolonial feminist theology and Thich Nhat Hanh’s concept of interbeing, the article proposes liberating interdependence as a constructive framework for guiding formation that is relational, accountable, and publicly engaged.[Conclusions] It concludes that theological education can thrive in this era by cultivating communities of mutual transformation capable of addressing the moral and spiritual challenges of a reconfigured world.