A theology of naming
The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice (JCFJ) ran its annual theology lecture in early April 2025 with guest speaker the Rev. Dr Hannah Malcolm, a Church of England priest and Eco-Theologian. She is a long-time friend of the JCFJ, having spent a month of her training for ordination working with them a few summers back. During that time, she engaged with the Gardiner Street parish on questions of mission and eco-spirituality and got to know the north inner city of Dublin quite well. Aptly, the title of her talk was ‘Who is a good local?’. Read below a report on the event from the JCFJ. A recording of the lecture is available here » and the JCFJ warmly encourages all to watch, reflect on, and share it.
In further news, the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice has partnered with Trinity College Dublin to launch a new MPhil programme: Theology and Social Justice. This innovative course blends deep theological study with practical skills for public advocacy, policy influence, and effective activism, equipping students to build a more just society.
You can join their free online information webinar on Wednesday, May 21st at 18:00, 2025 where course directors, including Dr Kevin Hargaden (JCFJ), will outline the programme’s unique strengths and answer your questions.
To register, email Cherise at [email protected].
“I will never forget this talk”
The annual lecture is meant to be an opportunity for the JCFJ to demonstrate how theological research can inform the life of the church and inspire change in our society. We can think of few people on these islands better equipped to address that task than Hannah.
Meeting for the first time in the newly refurbished John Sullivan Room in Gardiner Street parish, a packed house came to hear her explore the question of “Who is a good local?”, which as she answered it, became what she calls “a theology of naming”.
In her lecture, Hannah proposed a deeply theological vision for how naming – especially in prayer – can transform our relationship to place. In a context marked by displacement, ecological crisis, and contested belonging, she argued that a parish can resist turning in on itself and erecting walls towards those who are more newly arrived by creatively naming both human and non-human creatures.
Drawing from profound French thinker (Jean-Louis Chrétien), she explained how naming things can be a way to claim ownership or dominance, but for Christians, it is instead an act of attentiveness, hospitality, and praise.
This naming involves restoring lost vocabulary. There are clear implications in her talk towards our attitude to the Irish language. But it’s also a means of participating in the world’s renewal. Introducing nature writers like Robert Macfarlane and Amanda Thomson, she showed how language fosters love of place. Naming, she argued, enables us to recognise, resist, and repair.
For the church, the implication is clear: our prayers should not be abstract or placeless. They should name streets, species, and people – especially those overlooked. Such prayer remakes our attention and shapes a communal ethic of local care. In a fractured world, Hannah invited us to become an “ark of speech,” preserving and proclaiming a shared world through grateful, redemptive naming.
The evening concluded with a spirited open discussion. One attendee captured the feeling in the room: “I will never forget this talk.” It was theology at its best – nourishing the soul, stretching the mind, and calling us to deeper, more attentive presence.
