The Islamic State, which captured and controlled large parts of Iraq and Syria for more than three years between 2014 and 2017, has been widely documented and studied by scholars and journalists.The most prominent existing explanations for the group's rise-its recruitment of foreign fighters from more than 85 countries, its capture of valuable resources including weapons stockpiles and oil fields, and its ability to spread fear through extreme violence-do not fully explain its remarkable persistence in the face of the largest international military coalition since World War II.

Around 2 billion people worldwide live in areas affected by armed conflict, including dozens of ongoing wars, sectarian violence and political instability that forces the displacement of millions of people. Beyond the direct impacts of these conflicts on human health, including the many people who are killed or injured as a result of armed combat, prolonged periods of conflict can have much wider health impacts, such as by worsening environmental conditions that drive disease and disrupting access to medical services and care.

Anthropologist and mortician, Ruth E. Toulson, takes you behind the scenes in a Singaporean funeral parlor.

While multiple authors have probed the corpse's power as a potent political symbol, much of the existing literature on necropolitics has an exclusive focus on contexts of violent regime change, on the bodies of political leaders, or of "the dead" understood as an undifferentiated mass.

Please join us on Sunday, September 13, after the Chapel worship service for a Fellowship Lunch Gathering at the Duke Brodhead Center.

Volunteers will be holding signs after worship to provide directions to the Brodhead which is just a short walk from the Chapel.

The Brodhead Center provides a wide array of dining options. Purchase your own lunch from one of their many vendors, then gather in the dining area by Roasts & Chops on the main floor to share a time of fellowship.

Note: each restaurant offers a $5 Blue Devil Deal.

The Congregation's weekly Adult Forum offers a variety of guest speakers, presentations and discussions on a wide range of thought-provoking topics, including Biblical studies, current social issues and the work of mission agencies. Adult Forum aims to deepen the faith and understanding of adults through shared learning experiences. Classes include programs and discussions on contemporary issues in light of Christian teachings.

The Congregation's weekly Adult Forum offers a variety of guest speakers, presentations and discussions on a wide range of thought-provoking topics, including Biblical studies, current social issues and the work of mission agencies. Adult Forum aims to deepen the faith and understanding of adults through shared learning experiences. Classes include programs and discussions on contemporary issues in light of Christian teachings.

Join us on Monday, September 28th at 5:00 PM in East Duke 209 for a public lecture by Dr. Hortense Spillers, a black feminist thinker of unparalleled influence and a foundational figure in African American literary and cultural theory. Reception to follow. RSVP required (please click the "More event information" button to access the RSVP form).

Talk title: Oedipal Deferral: Implications of the Middle Passage

Join the Hart Leadership Program for the second annual Public Purpose Symposium as we celebrate and explore community-engaged research and leadership in conversation with Hart Leadership Program students.

Undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and staff are welcome to sign up to attend one of three lunchtime roundtable discussions facilitated by past Hart Fellows, Sarine Krovitz, Carina Lei, and Sadie Sheridan.

Chris Appleton of Social Rx and Dr. Anne Basting of TimeSlips join Prof. Sarah Wilbur to look at the past and future of arts-based referral practices and their nationwide expansion.