Jacob N. Kinnard The Iliff School of Theology 2201 South University Blvd. Denver, Colorado 80210-4798 303-765-3164 [email protected]

Current Position

Professor of Comparative Religions, Iliff School of Theology.

Education

1996 University of Chicago, the Divinity School, Ph.D.

1989 University of Chicago, the Divinity School, Master's Degree.

1987 Bowdoin College, Brunswick Maine, Bachelor of Arts Degree.

Academic Positions

2013- Professor of Comparative Religions, Iliff School of Theology.

2006- Director, Masters of Arts Program, Iliff School of Theology.

2006-13 Associate Professor of Comparative Religious Thought, The Iliff School of Theology.

2004-06 Assistant Professor of Comparative Religious Thought, The Iliff School of Theology.

2003-04 Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy and Religion, James Madison University.

2000-03 Assistant Professor, Department of Religion, College of William and Mary.

1998-2000 Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of Religion, Northwestern University.

1996-98 Mellon Post-Doctoral Fellow, Department of Religion, Northwestern University.

1993-96 Instructor, DePaul University, Religious Studies Department.

Editorial and Professional Association Positions

2013- Regional Coordinator, Rocky Mountains/Great Plains Region, American Academy of Religion.

2011-12 President, Rocky Mountains/Great Plains Region, American Academy of Religion.

2010-11 Vice President, Rocky Mountains/Great Plains Region, American Academy of Religion.

2008-09 Vice President of Content, Patheos.com.

2003-13 Publications Committee, American Academy of Religion.

2003-13 Editor, Religion, Culture, and History Series, Oxford University Press.

2004-09 Advisory Committee, Center for Religion and Public Life at the University of Denver.

2002-07 Editorial Advisory Board, Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Routledge Press.

2000- Manuscript Reviewer: University of Chicago Press, Routledge Press, Columbia University Press, SUNY Press, Oxford University Press.

1990-95 Editorial Assistant, History of Religions Journal.

Fellowships, Grants, Awards

2013 Wabash Technology Grant.

2008-09 ATS Faculty Governance Grant.

2007 Wabash Teaching Grant.

2006 Wabash Teaching Grant.

2003 Summer Research Grant, College of William and Mary.

2002 Freeman Foundation, Curriculum Development Grant.

2001 Summer Research Grant, College of William and Mary.

1996-98 Mellon Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Department of Religion, Northwestern University.

1994-96 Committee on South Asian Studies Dissertation Fellowship, University of Chicago.

1994-95 Eiji Asada Dissertation Research Fellowship (for dissertation research in India).

1993-94 Junior Fellow, Institute for the Advanced Study of Religion, University of Chicago.

1993 Passed with Distinction Ph.D. Qualifying Examinations, the Divinity School, University of Chicago.

1988-92 Century Fellowship, University of Chicago.

1987-88 Fulbright Fellowship, Sri Jayawardenapura University, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

1987 High Honors, Bowdoin College English Department; graduated magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa.

1984 Edwin Acorn Prize, best essay on religion, Bowdoin College Religion Department.

Publications

Books

In Process The Blackwell Companion to Comparative Religion, editor (Wiley-Blackwell).

At Press Places in Motion: The Fluid Identities of Temples, Images, and Pilgrims (Oxford University Press).

2011 The Emergence of Buddhism: Classical Traditions in Contemporary Perspective (Fortress).

2006 The Emergence of Buddhism (Greenwood).

2003 Constituting Communities: Theravada Traditions in South and Southeast Asia, edited with John C. Holt and Jonathon Walters (State University of New York Press).

1999 Imaging Wisdom: Seeing and Knowing in the Art of Indian Buddhism, Critical Studies in Buddhism Series (RoutledgeCurzon; reprint, Motilal Banarsidass, 2001).

Articles and Chapters

In Process “Comparing Spaces,” The Blackwell Companion to Comparative Religion.

In Process “Editor’s Introduction,” The Blackwell Companion to Comparative Religion.

At Press “The Ambiguities of Preservation: Bodhgayā as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,” Meaningful Spaces, edited by Mark George and Daria Pezzoli-Olgiati.

At Press “Property,” Companion to Law and Buddhism, Cambridge University Press.

2013 “It Is What It Is (Or Is It?): Further Reflections on the Buddhist Representation of Manuscripts,” in Iconic Books and Texts, edited by James Watts (Quinox Press), pp. 151-64.

2011 “Park51 and Ground Zero: Indeterminate Sacrality and the Subjectivity of Sacred Space,” Material Religion 7.2: 275-77.

2010 “It Is What It Is (Or Is It?): Further Reflections on the Buddhist Representation of Manuscripts.” Postscripts 6: 101–115.

2009 “Faculty Vocation and Governance: Report from Iliff School of Theology, ” with Ann Graham Brock, Theological Education 44.2:.

2008 “Amaravati as Lens: Envisioning Buddhism in the Ruins of the Great Stupa,” in Buddhism in the Krishna River Valley of Andhra, edited by Sree Padma and Tony Barber (State University of New York Press), pp. 81-103.

2004 "The Field of the Buddha’s Presence," in Embodying the Dharma: Buddhist Relic Veneration in Asia, edited by Kevin Trainor and David Germano (State University of New York Press), pp. 117-43.

2003 “When the Buddha Sued Visnu,” in Constituting Communities: Theravada Traditions in South and Southeast Asia, edited with John Holt and Jonathon Walters (State University of New York Press), pp. 85-106.

2003 “Introduction,” co-written with John C. Holt, in Constituting Communities: Theravada Traditions in South and Southeast Asia, edited with John Holt and Jonathon Walters (State University of New York Press), pp. 1-7.

2002 “On Buddhist ‘Bibliolaters’: Representing and Worshiping the Book in Medieval Indian Buddhism,” The Eastern Buddhist 34.2: 84-105.

2000 “The Polyvalent Padas of Visnu and the Buddha,” History of Religions 40.1: 32-57.

1999 “When is the Buddha not the Buddha? The Hindu/Buddhist Battle over Bodhgaya and the Buddha Image,” Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 66.4: 817-839.

1997 "Reevaluating the Eighth-Ninth Century Pala Milieu: Icono-Conservatism and the Persistence of Sakyamuni," Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, 20.1: 281-300.

Encyclopedia Articles

2009 “Hinduism,” Patheos.com (roughly 18,000 words).

2007 “Ajanta and Ellora,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 23-24.

2007 “Angkor,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 29-30.

2007 “Art, Buddhist,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 45-52.

2007 “Art, Buddhist Presence In,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 52-54.

2007 “Art, Gupta,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), p. 54.

2007 “Art, Mauryan,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), p. 55.

2007 “Art, Pala,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 56-57.

2007 “Art and Ritual,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 57-58.

2007 “Art and Zen,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 58-60.

2007 “Art as Ritual,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 60-61.

2007 “Art in China,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 61-63.

2007 “Art in Sri Lanka,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 63-64.

2007 “Art in Thailand,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 64-65.

2007 “Bodhisattvas,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp.81-83.

2007 “Borobudur,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 91-92.

2007 “Gandhara,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 374-75.

2007 “Pagan,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 582-83.

2007 “Stupas of Sanci, Bharhut, and Amaravati,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 719-21.

2007 “Tibet: An Expanded Pantheon,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 742-45.

2007 “Tibet: Mandalas,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Damien Keown and Charles Prebish, eds. (Routledge), pp. 754-56.

2006 “Buddhism,” Worldmark Encyclopedia of Religious Practices (Thomson Gale), pp. 47-100.

2004 “Buddhist Iconography,” Encyclopedia of Religion, second edition (MacMillan), pp. 4327- 31.

2003 “Divinites,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Robert Buswell, et. al., eds. (Macmillan), pp. 233-35.

2003 “Indra,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Robert Buswell, et. al., eds. (Macmillan), pp. 374-75.

2003 “Mara,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Robert Buswell, et. al., eds. (Macmillan), pp. 512-13.

2003 “Worship,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Robert Buswell, et. al., eds. (Macmillan), p. 890.

2003 “Visnu,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Robert Buswell, et. al., eds. (Macmillan), pp. 905-07.

2003 “Yaksa,” Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Robert Buswell, et. al., eds. (Macmillan), p. 911.

1999 “Bodhgaya,” Encyclopedia of Monasticism (Fitzroy and Dearborn), pp. 157-58.

Book Reviews

2010 Stephen C. Berkowitz, Juliane Schober, and Claudia Brown, editors. Buddhist Mansucript Culture: Knowledge, Ritual, and Art, Journal of Asian Studies 69.3 (2010): 933-35.

2007 Hildred Geertz, The Life a Balinese Temple: Artistry, Imagination, and History in a Peasant Village, History or Religions 46.3: 265-68.

2006 Robert DeCoroli, The Haunting of the Buddha: Indian Popular Religions and the Formation of Buddhism. Journal of Religion 86.1: 348–350

2005 John Strong, Relics of the Buddha. Religion 35.2: 203-05.

2005 Donald K. Swearer, Becoming the Buddha: The Ritual of Image Consecration in Thailand. Studies in Religion 33.3-4: 490-92.

2005 Meher McArthur, Reading Buddhist Art: An Illustrated Guide to Buddhist Signs and Symbols. Material Religion 1.1: 282-83.

2003 Glenn Wallis, Mediating the Power of Buddhas: Ritual in the Mañjushrimulakalpa. Journal of Religion 83.4: 681-83.

2000 David Kinsley, Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine: The Ten Mahavidyas, History of Religions 39.3: 310-312.

2000 Julianne Schober, ed., Sacred Biographies in the Buddhist Tradtions of South and Southeast Asia, Biography 3.1: 239-242.

1999 Kevin Trainor, Relics, Rituals, and Representation in Buddhism, History of Religions 38.4: 403-407.

1999 Lawrence A. Babb, Absent Lord: Ascetics and Kings in a Jain Ritual Culture, History of Religions 38.3: 309-312.

1998 Donald S. Lopez, Jr., Elaborations on Emptiness: Uses of the Heart Sutra, Journal of Religion, Journal of Religion 78.4: 659-662.

1997 Stephen Prothero, The White Buddhist: The Asian Odyssey of Henry Steel Olcott, Journal of Religion 77.4: 669-679.

1996 Joanne Punzo Waghorn, The Raja's Magic Clothes: Re-Visioning Kingship and Divinity in England's India, Journal of Religion 76.1: 157-159.

1995 Miranda Shaw, Passionate Enlightenment: Women in Tantric Buddhism, Journal of Religion 75.3: 455-458.

Conference Papers

2012 “Applying Bourdieu to Biblical Studies” Respondent, Regional AAR, Provo Utah.

2011 “The Ambiguities of Preservation: Bodhgayā as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,” Meaningful Spaces, International Conference, Collegium Helveticum, Zurich.

2010 “Why is it Better to See a Book than to Read It? Further Reflections on the Buddhist Representation of Manuscripts,” Iconic Books: The Ray Smith Symposium of the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University.

2008 “Troubling Preservation: The Hegemony of UNESCO,” Material Objects and Performance Events, North Carolina Center for South Asia Studies, Duke University.

2007 “Iconic Books in Buddhism,” Iconic Books: The Ray Smith Symposium of the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University.

2006 “Reevaluating Anagarika Dharmapala and the Revival of Indian Buddhism,” Center for South Asia Annual Conference, Madison Wisconsin.

2004 “Amaravati as Lense: Envisioning Early Buddhism in the Ruins of the Great Temple,” Association of Asian Studies Annual Meeting.

2003 “Locative Orientalism and the Construction of One Buddhism,” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

2003 “Orchestrated Spontaneity: Violence, Politics, and Communitas at Ayodhya,” Society for the Scientific Study of Religion Annual Meeting.

2002 “Buddhist Culture in Andhra's Krishna River Valley,” Center for South Asia Annual Conference; Respondent.

2002 "Religion and Processes of Place," Society for the Anthropology of Religion Annual Meeting; Respondent.

2002 “Communitas and Conflict: Rethinking and Reapplying Turner’s Analysis of the Pilgrimage Process,” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

2000 “The Dialectics of Tara Representation,” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

2000 “Making a Case for Vis.n.u at Bodhgaya: Polemical Scholarship and Religious Identity,” Association of Asian Studies Annual Meeting.

1999 “Tracks of Multivalence: Footprints of the Buddha and/as Footprints of Visnu,” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

1997 “When is the Buddha not the Buddha? The Hindu/Buddhist Battle over Bodhgaya and the Buddha Image,” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

1996 “The Book’s the Thing: Representing the Text in Pala Buddhism,” American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

1994 “Relics and Physical Representations in Buddhism," American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting.

1994 "Towards a Dialectic of Practice: The Discourse on the Presence of the Buddha," Midwest Region, American Academy of Religion Conference.

Invited Public Talks

2013 “The Boston Marathon Bombings and Religion,” PBS Channel 12, Denver.

2013 Comparative Pilgrimage, Four Lectures, Trinity United Methodist Church, Denver.

2013 Hinduism and Buddhism, Five Lectures, University College, Denver.

2012 Comparative Religions, Five Lectures, University College, Denver.

2012 “The Buddha in and as the Book,” Wellshire Presbyterian Church, Denver.

2012 “Vision and the Presence of the Divine in Hinduism,” Wellshire Presbyterian Church, Denver.

2012 “Internal and External Pilgrimage in Islam,” Wellshire Presbyterian Church, Denver.

2012 “Relics and Pilgrimage in the Formation of Christianity,” Wellshire Presbyterian Church, Denver.

2012 “Ritual and the Sanctification of Time in Judaism,” Wellshire Presbyterian Church, Denver.

2012 “Asian Religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, and Zen,” Three Lectures, Trinity United Methodist Church, Denver.

2012 “Understanding Buddhism,” First United Methodist Church, Ft. Collins.

2012 “Understanding Hinduism,” First United Methodist Church, Ft. Collins.

2011 “Comparative Religion,” Five Lectures, University College, Denver.

2011 “Islam: Life as a Pilgrimage, Life as a Jihad,” First United Methodist Church, Ft. Collins.

2011 “Why Care About Different Religions?” Iliff Alumni Association, Grand Junction.

2011 “Asian Religions,” Five Lectures, University College, Denver.

2011 “Religion and Violence,” Two Lectures, Christ Church UMC.

2010 “Why Comparing Religion Matters,” Five Lectures, Ring Lake Ranch, Wyoming.

2010 “Understanding Hinduism,” Most Precious Blood, Denver.

2010 “Hospitality from a Comparative Perspective,” ATS Consultation on Best Practices: Christian Hospitality and Pastoral Practices,” Pittsburgh.

2010 “Islam,” Five Lectures, St. Andrews UMC, Highlands Ranch.

2010 “A World of Religious Differences: Engaging Religious Differences,” Two Lectures, Plymouth UCC, Fort Collins

2010 “Hindu and Buddhist Pilgrimage,” Two Lectures, Christ Church, Denver.

2009 “Why Bother with Other Religions?” The Blue Stocking Society, Denver.

2009 Denver Public Schools, two day teacher training on comparative religions.

2008 “The Concept of ‘God’ in Buddhism,” Montview Presbyterian Church, Denver.

2008 “What Is ‘Religious’ About Religious Violence?” Denver Eclectics.

2008 “Religion and Violence,” St. Barnabas Episcopal Church Adult Forum, Denver.

2008 “Pilgrimage in India,” Forum on Religion and Community, Regis University.

2008 “Why Comparative Religion Matters,” Iliff Leadership Conference.

2007 Iliff on the Road, lectures on the Relevance of Comparative Religion in Seattle and Portland.

2007 “Understanding World Religions in the Context of Globalization,” two lectures, Christ Church United Methodist Church, Adult Seminar.

2007 “World Religions in a Global Context,” parts I and II, Iliff Leadership Conference.

2006 “Relating Judaism and Islam,” Congregation Immanuel, Denver.

2006 “Understanding Buddhism,” St. Andrews Episcopal Church, Denver.

2006 “Issues of Presence and Absence in Mahayana Buddhism,” Colorado College.

2006 “Reading Hindu Texts,” Iliff School of Theology, sponsored by the Center for Religion and Public Life, Denver.

2006 “Reading Buddhist Texts,” Tri State Buddhist Temple, sponsored by the Center for Religion and Public Life, Denver.

2005 “Sacred Spaces,” Panelist on Channel 6 “Town Hall Series,” two one-hour episodes.

2005 “Buddhist Temple Life,” Site Visit, Denver Thai Buddhist Temple, sponsored by the Center for Religion and Public Life, Denver.

2004 “Understanding Religious Violence and the Power of Comparison,” talk given to Iliff School of Theology Board Of Trustees.

2004 “Sacred Space in Buddhism,” Lunch with a Professor, Iliff School of Theology.

2003 “Religious Diversity,” panelist, Symposium at James Madison University.

2003 “Kingly Restraint and Activism: What to Do When Your King is Not Restrained,” March for Peace Rally, College of William and Mary.

2003 “Looking At and Looking With Religious Art ,” Monroe Scholars Lecture, College of William and Mary.

2002 “Hindu Spirituality as Ethical Imperative,” Alternate Spirituality Group, College of William and Mary.

2002 “Why Difference Matters: Comparative Religious Perspectives on the Events of the World,” Alumni Association, College of William and Mary.

2002 "Putting Religious Strife in Contemporary India in Context," Monroe Scholars talk, College of William and Mary.

2001 “Understanding the Taliban’s Iconoclasm,” College of William and Mary.

2000 “Religious Tolerance: What Do We Learn from Looking at Hindus and Buddhists?” College of William and Mary.

2000 “Why Buddhists and Hindus are Not Killing Each Other in India,” Monroe Scholars talk College of William and Mary.

2000 “When the Buddha Sued Visnu (and Other Tales from the Construction of Bodhgaya’s Polyglot Community),” presented in honor of Frank Reynolds, Brunswick, Maine.

2000 “What Jesse is Missing, or Why Religion is Not Just a ‘Crutch for the Weak Minded,’” Fireside Lecture Series, Northwestern University.

1999 "Harmony Amidst Hatred - A Tale of Two Religions on the Indian Subcontinent," GLOBE organization, Northwestern University.

1999 “Stars Wars and Eastern Religion,” Fireside Lecture Series, Northwestern University.

1999 “Hindu Women and Sexuality,” Departments of Religion and History, Northwestern University.

1998 “Envisioning the Buddha in the Sculpture of India,” Department of Religion, Bowdoin College.

1998 “What’s in a Footprint: Remarks on the Padas of Visnu and the Buddha and the Question of Religious Identity,” Department of Religion, Northwestern University.

1995 “Representations of Wisdom in the Sculpture of Bihar,” Patna University, Bihar, India.

1995 "Reevaluating the Eighth-Ninth Century Pala Milieu: Icono-Conservatism and the Persistence of Sakyamuni," The Divinity School, University of Chicago.

1992 "From the Mother of All Buddhas to the Buddha's Bodies: The Visual Representation of Prajnaparamita," The Divinity School, University of Chicago.

1988 "Henry Steele Olcott: The Making of a Revival and the Making of a Myth," The American Center, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Courses Taught

Buddhism (Undergraduate) Buddhist Philosophy (Graduate) Comparative Asceticism and Monasticism (Graduate) Comparative Study of Religion – Methodologies (Graduate) Comparative Study of Religion – Topics: Pilgrimage (Graduate) Comparative Study of Religion – Topics: On Identity (Graduate) Comparative Pilgrimage (Graduate) Gods and Goddesses of India (Graduate) Hinduism (Undergraduate) Interreligious Dialogue (Graduate) Introduction to Religion (Undergraduate) MA Seminar (Graduate) Modern Hinduism (Undergraduate) Pilgrimage in India (Undergraduate) Theravada Buddhism (Undergraduate) Religion and Contemporary Indian Fiction (Undergraduate) Religion and Violence (Graduate) Religion in Human Experience (Undergraduate) Religions in the World (Graduate) Religions of Asia (Undergraduate) Religions of India (Undergraduate and Graduate) Sacred Space and Place (Graduate) Theories of Religion (Graduate) World Religions (Undergraduate and Graduate)