To be able to laugh, to have humor and to be foolish are all tremendous forms of resistance, of showing love/compassion and affirming life in a time where depression, anger, sadness and disasters are mounting. This course follows a Christian Russian tradition called Sacred Fools and intends to be a practical-theoretical way of engaging humor, laughter and foolishness through play in worship and preaching forms. The course will take on several resources of laughter, humor and foolishness. Together, we will engage play as a fundamental way of living our faith and daily lives in our communities.
Cláudio Carvalhaes is an Associate Professor of Worship at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. A much sought after speaker, writer, performer, and consultant, Dr. Carvalhaes has preached at Wild Goose Festival, Festival of Homiletics, Forum for Theological Education, Child Defense Fund – Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry, Academy of Homiletics and many other places. He has given lectures at the Liturgy Symposium Series at Yale Divinity School, Princeton Theological Seminary, the Buddhist-Christian Conference at Denison University, the 7th Aasta Hansteen Lecture on Gender and Religion in Oslo, Norway, the Jubilee 800 Order of Preachers of the Dominican Order at the Vatican, Italy, Societas Liturgica in Belgium, Liturgical Conference in Germany, and the International Academy of Practical Theology in Brazil. He led worship for the All African Council of Churches in Mozambique, taught at the Global Institute of Theology of the World Communion of Reformed Churches and leads worship and teaches at the Hispanic Summer Program since 2013.
Recently he has been working on a global project called Re-Imagining Worship As Acts Of Defiance And Alternatives In The Context Of Empire. With a grant from the Council of World Mission, he is leading a workshop on liturgy amidst the poor with scholars, pastors and students in four continents: Asia, Africa, Americas and Europe.