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Jessica DeCou and "A Fantastic Affair"

"'A Fantastic Affair': Karl Barth in America, 1962" is the title of a research project by Jessica DeCou. The scholar is one of several Visiting Fellows researching at the Institute for European Global Studies in this year.

At the Institute for European Global Studies, Jessica DeCou is conducting research for her upcoming book, which will chronicle Karl Barth's sole visit to the U.S. in 1962 while also reflecting on the changing landscape of religion in Western culture over the past half century. Barth arrived at a tumultuous moment in American history and found himself involved in some of the nation’s most severe conflicts. Therefore, the project will not only shed light on the later life and work of the Swiss theologian, but also provide a snapshot of American culture in the early 1960s – from the highest levels of government to the tourist cultures built along with the developing Interstate Highway System or from Seminary campuses to high security prisons.

Jessica DeCou holds a doctoral degree in theology at the University of Chicago Divinity School, USA, and is specialized in the evolving relationship between religion and culture in the modern period. At the Institute for European Global Studies, she is conducting research for her upcoming book, “´A Fantastic Affair´: Karl Barth in America, 1962,” which will chronicle Barth's sole visit to the U.S. in 1962 while also reflecting on the changing landscape of religion in Western culture over the past half century.

Every year, the Institute for European Global Studies invites selected scholars to join as Visiting Fellows and to work on  specific projects related to the overall research approach of the institute. Visiting Fellows provide impulses to their field of expertise and share their ideas about research in and on a Global Europe with colleagues.

In the upcoming weeks and months, we publish a news series introducing all new Visiting Fellows. Shortly before their stay at the Institute of European Global Studies, a short interview will be available on this website. Learn more about the new Visiting Fellows when they present their research project during a Working Lunch.