Picture of  Christopher Hrynkow

Christopher Hrynkow Professor, Religion and Culture; Director of the Centre for Faith, Reason, Peace, and Justice

Address
STM 330

Research Area(s)

  • Religion and Science
  • Cultural and Social Sustainability
  • Religion and Ecology
  • Ecojustice
  • Peace and Social Justice
  • Nonviolent Activism
  • Catholic Social Teaching
  • Ecological Ethics
  • Transformative Learning
  • Catholic Studies
  • Cross-Cultural Education
  • Religion and Politics
  • Green Living

Education

  • ThD, Christian Ethics (Specialization in Ecological Ethics), awarded conjointly by the University of Toronto, University of St. Michael’s College, and Toronto School of Theology (2016)
  • PhD, Peace and Conflict Studies, Arthur V. Mauro Centre for Peace and Justice, St. Paul’s College, University of Manitoba (2013)
  • MTS, Systematic Theology, awarded jointly by the University of St. Michael’s College, the Toronto School of Theology, and the University of Toronto (2009)
  • STM, Historical and Contemporary Theology, University of Winnipeg (2009)
  • MEd, Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education, University of Manitoba (2006)
  • MA, Contemporary Theology in the Catholic Tradition, Heythrop College, University of London (2003)
  • BD (Honours), Heythrop College (International Programme), University of London (2017)
  • BSc (Honours), Politics and International Relations, London School of Economics and Political Science (External Programme), University of London (2008)
  • BA (Advanced), Religion and History, University of Manitoba (2002)
  • BEd, History and Geography, University of Manitoba (2000)

Research Projects

  • The People’s Priest, Politician, and Peace Activist: Revisiting the Life of “Father Bob” Ogle (book in process)
  • Catholicism, Nonviolence, and JustPeace: Vatican Diplomacy, Papal Teaching, and Peacebuilding Since 1846 equal co-author with Maria C. Power (book under contract with Routledge for their New Critical Thinking in Religion, Theology and Biblical Studies series, in process)
  • Deepening Connection in Pursuit of Environmental Sustainability: Assessing a Promising Lever for Shifting Assumptions of Separation (co-applicant, successful SSHRC Insight Development Grant with MJ Barrett, Darlene Chalmers, Collen Dell and Carolyn Hoessler)

Selected Publications and Presentations

Edited Peer-Reviewed Book

Sole Editor for Spiritualities, Ethics, and Implications of Human Enhancement and Artificial Intelligence, Vernon Press, 2020 available at 24% discount (using code CFC166265506 on checkout): https://vernonpress.com/book/887.

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

30. “A True Ecological Approach Always Becomes A Social Approach”: A Green Theo-Ecoethical Lens, Pope Francis’ Teaching, and Integral Social Justice, Heythrop Journal, Vol. 60, No. 4 (July 2019), pp. 585-599.

29. “Nothing but a False Sense of Security”: Mapping and Critically Assessing Papal Support for a World Free from Nuclear Weapons, Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament, Vol. 2, No. 1 (2019), pp. 51-81. Available from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/25751654.2019.1610932.

28. Transforming the Center: Inter-Religious Dialogue, Contemporary Popes, and a Faith-Inspired Path for Peacebuilding equal co-author with Maria C. Power, International Journal of Peace Studies, Vol. 23, No. 2 (Winter/December 2018), pp. 33-48. Available from https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=ijps.

27. “Different Faiths, Common Action”: Religions for Peace’s Multi-Track Diplomacy, International Journal on World Peace, Vol. 25, No. 4 (December 2018), pp. 37-51.

26. A Critical Reading of Christian Peacemaker Teams’ International Accompaniment and Solidarity Work through a Peace and Conflict Studies Lens, The Review of Faith & International Affairs, Vol. 16, No. 3 (2018), pp. 34-47. A limited number of e-prints available free of charge from https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/BMMK2Xxr92FtTry2CcAk/full?target=10.1080/15570274.2018.1509282.

25. Pope Francis and Respect for Diversity: A Mapping Employing a Green Theo-Ecoethical Lens, New Blackfriars, Vol. 99, No. 1083 (September 2018), pp. 601-620.

24. Situating Earth Democracy: Vandana Shiva on Agroecology, Contemporary Politics, and Resilience, Political Studies Review, Vol. 16, No.3 (August 2018), pp. 205-216.

23. Faith-Filled Visions for a Vital Earth Community: Deep Sustainability, Theo-Ecoethics, and Laudato Si’, Religious Studies and Theology, Vol. 37, No. 1 (June 2018), pp. 47-65.

22. “It Cannot be Emphasized Enough how Everything is Interconnected”: Ecological Wisdom, Cross-Cultural Insight, and Pope Francis’ Social Teaching, The Trumpeter: Journal of Ecosophy, Vol.34, No.1 (2018), pp. 36-60. Available from http://trumpeter.athabascau.ca/index.php/trumpet/article/download/1508/1739.

21. “If You Want Peace, Work for Justice”: Assessing Pope Paul VI as a Peacebuilder on the Levels of Insight and Action, Peace and Conflict Studies, Vol. 24, No. 2 (2017), Article 2 (35 pages). Available from http://nsuworks.nova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1378&context=pcs.

20. Educating Men-and-Women-for-Others: Jesuit and International Educational Identity Formation in Conversation, Engaged Scholar Journal: Community-Engaged Research, Teaching, and Learning Vol. 3, No. 1 (2017), pp. 37-61. Available from http://esj.usask.ca/index.php/esj/article/download/239/89.

19. The Pope, The Planet, and Politics: A Mapping of How Francis is Calling for More Than the Paris Agreement, Journal of Church and State, Vol. 59, No. 3 (Summer 2017), pp. 377-408. Available from https://academic.oup.com/jcs/article/59/3/377/2669486/The-Pope-The-Planet-and-Politics-A-Mapping-of-How.

18. Fostering Cultures of Encounter: Framing Papal Teaching on Dialogue as Multi-Track Peacebuilding equal co-author with Maria C. Power, Journal of Social Encounters, Vol. 1, No.1 (2017), pp. 24-36. Available from http://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1002&context=social_encounters.

17. Essential Recovery, Rural Resilience, and Energizing Communities from St. Peter’s Abbey in Muenster, Saskatchewan, lead author with Brigid Ward and Caitlin Ward, Historical Studies, Vol. 83 (2017), pp. 67-88. Available from http://cchahistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/hs-83.pdf.

16. Greening God? Christian Ecotheology, Environmental Justice, and Socio-Ecological Flourishing, Environmental Justice, Vol. 10, No. 3 (June 2017), pp. 81-87.   

15. In Search of an Authentic Pax Gaia: Connecting Wonder, the Moral Imagination and Socio-Ecological Flourishing equal co-author with Simon Appolloni, Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture and Ecology, Vol. 20, No. 2 (2016), pp. 103-124.

14. Wisdom Traditions, Ecology and Peace: Mapping Some Wellsprings of Integral Connectivity, lead author with Stephanie Westlund, Journal for the Study of Peace and Conflict (2015), pp. 26-48. Available from http://www.uwsp.edu/cols-ap/WIPCS/Documents/Journals/j15.pdf.

13. Putting your Capital Where Your Mouth Is: Cultures of Peace, Fossil Fuel Divestment, and Post-Secondary Educational Institutions’ Ethical Investing Policies, Peace Research: The Canadian Journal of Peace and Conflict Studies, Vol. 47, Nos. 1-2 (2015), pp. 143-178.

12. Catholic Social Teaching Bearing Fruit in the Case of Sister Cyril Mooney and Loreto Day School Sealdah lead author with David Creamer, S.J., International Studies in Catholic Education, Vol. 7, No. 2 (October 2015), pp. 222-237. A limited number of e-prints available free of charge at https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/cCCeWZr2EeMnSFIN97bp/full?target=10.1080/19422539.2015.1072960.

11. Transformative Praxis at Work in Loreto Day School Sealdah: A Remarkable Fostering of Positive Peace lead author with David Creamer, S.J., In Factis Pax: Journal of Peace Education and Social Justice, Vol. 9, No. 1 (2015), pp. 1-26. Available from http://www.infactispax.org/volume9dot1/HrynkowCreamer.pdf.

10. Transforming Cultures, Growing Substantive Peace: Pope Francis, St. Francis, and a Green Peace, Peace Studies Journal, Vol. 7, No.4 (December 2014), pp.25-38. Available from http://peacestudiesjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/PSJ-Vol-7-Issue-3-2014.pdf.

9. Catholic Social Teaching and Climate Justice from a Peace Studies Perspective: Tensions, Current Practice and Promise, lead author with Dennis Patrick O’Hara, New Theology Review, Vol. 26, No. 2 (March 2014), pp. 23-32. Available from http://newtheologyreview.org/index.php/ntr/article/view/997/1357.

8. Fruitful Naming?–A Case for Environmentalism as Vocation, Sciences Religieuses/Studies in Religion, Vol. 42, No. 3 (September 2013), pp. 303-308.

7. Earth Matters: Thomas Berry, The Pacifism of Religious Cosmology, and the Need for Ecojustice, lead author with Dennis Patrick O’Hara, Journal for Peace and Justice Studies, Vol. 22, No. 2 (2013), pp. 3-28. Available from https://www.academia.edu/3820279/Hrynkow_OHara_Earth_Matters.

6. The Vatican and Ecospirituality: Tensions, Promises, and Possibilities for Fostering an Emerging Green Catholic Spirituality, lead author with Dennis Patrick O’Hara, Ecozon@: European Journal of Literature, Culture and Environment, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Autumn 2011), pp. 177-197. Available from http://ecozona.eu/article/view/425/439.

5. Ecotheology and Inculturation: Implications for Theory and Practice in Peace and Conflict Studies, lead author with Sean Byrne and Matthew Hendzel, Peace and Change: A Journal of Peace Research, Vol. 35, No. 2 (April 2010), pp. 295-327.

4. Autonomy Reconsidered: Creation, God, and Relationships, The Canadian Journal of Orthodox Christianity, Vol. 4, No. 2 (Summer 2009), pp.73-86. Available from http://www.cjoc.ca/pdf/Vol4-S-2Hrynkov.pdf.

3. Christian Peacemaker Teams, Solidarist Nonviolent Activism and the Politics of Peace: Peace Witness that Challenges Militarism and Destructive Violence, Peace Research: The Canadian Journal of Peace and Conflict Studies, Vol. 40, No. 1 (2009), pp.111-134.

2. Symbiotic Strength: The Value of an Ecological Metaphor for Ecumenical Theological Education, Ecumenism, No. 166 (June 2007), pp. 29-32.

1. Responding to the “New Story”: Catholic Social Teaching and the Ecological Crisis, feature article in Perspective: A Semi-Annual Examination and Application of Catholic and Ignatian Thought, Vol. 7, No. 2 (March 2005), pp. 4-17.

Peer-Reviewed Book Contributions

14. Embodiment Matters: Integral Ecology, Science, The Promises and Challenges of Radical Life Extension, and Socio-Ecological Flourishing in Spiritualties, Ethics, and Implications of Human Enhancement and Artificial Intelligence. Edited by Christopher Hrynkow. Vernon Press (2020), pp. 159-185.

13. A Sustainable City Upon a Hill? A Berryite Perspective on US Cultural Examples and American Innocence, Natural Communions: Religion and Public Life. Edited by Gabriel Ricci. Routledge (2019), pp. 139-159.

12. An Integral Vision of Peace? Assessing Catholic Social Teaching’s Contribution to Contemporary Green Cultures of Peace from Vatican II to Benedict XVI in Turning to the World: Social Justice and the Common Good since Vatican II. Edited by Gertrude Rompré and Carl Still. McGill-Queens Press (2018), pp. 140-163.

11. Players or Pawns? Protest, Participation, and Principled Nonviolence at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Conflict Transformation, Storytelling and Peacebuilding: Research from the Mauro Centre for Peace and Justice. Edited by Laura Reimer, Katerina Standish, and Chuck Thiessen. Lexington Press (2018), 195-219.

10. “Let us Not Leave in Our Wake a Swath of Destruction and Death”: Evangelii Gaudium and Socio-Ecological Flourishing in Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium, and the Renewal of the Church. Edited by Duncan Dormor and Alana Harris. Paulist Press (2017), pp. 274-307.

9. No to War and Yes to So Much More: Pope Francis, Principled Nonviolence, and Positive Peace in Advancing Nonviolence and Social Transformation: New Perspectives on Nonviolence Theories. Edited by Heather Eaton and Lauren Michelle Levesque. Equinox (2016), pp. 135-152.

8. Catholics, Socio-Ecological Ethics and Global Climate Change: Incarnations of Green Praxis, lead author with Dennis Patrick O’Hara in Emergent Possibilities for Global Sustainability Intersections of Race, Class and Gender. Edited by Phoebe Godfrey and Denise Torres. Routledge (2016), pp. 221-233.

7. Holistic Christian Ecojustice and Peace: Considerations for a Green Political Theology in Towards A Global, Christian Movement for Eco-Justice: Young Voices from North America (Prepared by World Student Christian Federation). Edited by Shantha Ready Alonso. Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (2015), pp. 24-46.

6. The New Story, Transformative Learning and Socio-Ecological Flourishing: Education at Crucial Juncture in Planetary History in Sustainable Well-being: Concepts, Issues, and Educational Practices. Edited by Frank Deer, Thomas Falkenberg, Barbara McMillan, and Laura Sims Education for Sustainable Well-Being Press (2014), pp.105-120. Available from http://www.eswb-press.org/uploads/1/2/8/9/12899389/sustainable_well-being_2014.pdf.

5. Conscientious Objection in Religion and Violence: An Encyclopedia of Faith and Conflict from Antiquity to the Present, M.E. Sharpe (2011), pp. 206-212.

4. Rene Girard, Theories of Mimetic Violence and Scapegoating in Religion and Violence: An Encyclopedia of Faith and Conflict from Antiquity to the Present. Edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross. M.E. Sharpe (2011), pp. 310-316.

3. Redemptive Violence in Religion and Violence: An Encyclopedia of Faith and Conflict from Antiquity to the Present. Edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross. M.E. Sharpe (2011), pp. 609-614.

2. Spiral of Violence in Religion and Violence: An Encyclopedia of Faith and Conflict from Antiquity to the Present. Edited by Jeffrey Ian Ross. M.E. Sharpe (2011), pp. 709-714.

1. Inculturation and Intervention in Afghanistan: A Contextual Theological Perspective in War, Human Dignity and Nation Building: Theological Perspectives on Canada’s Role in Afghanistan. Edited by Gary D. Badcock and Darren C. Marks. Cambridge Scholars Publishing (2010), pp. 117-139.

Teaching Responsibilities

  • INTS 112 Introduction to Peace Studies
  • RLST 112 Western Religions in Society and Culture
  • RLST 229 Religion and Sport
  • RLST 412/802 Christian Ecological Ethics and Transformative Change

Administrative Responsibilities

  • Department Head, Religion and Culture, St. Thomas College, University of Saskatchewan, (encompassing Religious Studies for the whole university along with Anthropology, Archaeology, and certain Languages for the college), start date July 1, 2019
  • Vice President and Executive Council Member, Canadian Peace Research Association (elected June 2019)
  • Communication Coordinator and Executive Council Member, Canadian Theological Society (elected June 2019)
  • Advisory Circle Member, Canadian Chapter of the Global Catholic Climate Movement (appointed February 2019)
  • Founding Chair and Steering Committee Member, Communities Inspired for Environmental Action, Saskatoon (fall 2018-present)
  • Board Member, Faith and the Common Good Foundation (elected November 2017)
  • Social Media Coordinator and Member, Saskatoon Peace Coalition Steering Collective (2017-present)
  • Faculty Representative on the Faith Leaders’ Council, University of Saskatchewan (Appointed June 2017)