Proceedings of the North American Academy of Liturgy 2020

Ecology and Liturgy Convener: Lisa E. Dahill, Professor of Religion at California Lutheran University Members in Attendance: Deborah Appler, Joseph Bush, Lisa E. Dahill, Carol Frenning, Paul Galbreath, Mary E. McGann, Lawrence Mick, Ellen Oak, Susan M. Smith, Benjamin Stewart, Samuel Torvend, John West Visitors in Attendance: Martin Marilin, Mat Verghese Description of Work: This year’s seminar sessions contained a rich mixture of papers by six members (Joseph Bush, Ben Stewart, Paul Galbreath, Mary McGann, Lisa Dahill, and Samuel Torvend) over four sessions, along with two sessions centering on dance and liturgical innovation. The dance session was led by John West, featuring improvisational movement in relation to the four elements of creation, including discussion of dance as a means of fostering connection to the natural world. The liturgical innovation session was an opportunity for members to lead prayers or other ritual elements they have written or encountered, for discussion. We hosted the Advent Project Seminar for one session as well.

Papers and Presentations: • Joe Bush, “Turning to the Children: Ecological Threat and Hope in Advent,” and “Turning to the Children: Advent Wreath Liturgies,” chapters from Worshiping in Season, Rowman & Littlefield, under contract (with the Advent Project Seminar).

• Ben Stewart, “Silence at the Sanctus: The Liturgical Guild and the Ecological Crisis.”

• Paul Galbreath, “In Praise of Living Water: Ritual Experimentation in Times of Ecological Crisis.”

• Mary McGann, Chapters 8 and 9, The Meal that Reconnects (forthcoming, Liturgical Press).

• Lisa E. Dahill, “Eating and Being Eaten: Interspecies Vulnerability as Eucharist.”

• Samuel Torvend, “Early Medieval Monastic Commitments to Environmental Conservation.”

Other Work and Plans for the Future: We discussed the possibility of starting a website to feature our seminar’s work, in hopes of reaching a wider readership than publication in journals alone allows.