Assistant Professor of United Church of Canada Studies
BA (History), University of Victoria, 2001
MDiv, Vancouver School of Theology, 2007
ThM, Vancouver School of Theology, 2011
PhD (Interdisciplinary Studies), Graduate Theological Union, 2016
Contact
Email: carmen.lansdowne@utoronto.ca
Office Phone: (416) 585-4546
Website: www.carmenlansdowne.com
Carmen Lansdowne is Assistant Professor of United Church of Canada Studies. A well-known leader in the life, work and witness of The United Church of Canada, Lansdowne began her role following a three-year term as Moderator of the United Church. Her leadership journey spans nearly two decades of church and nonprofit governance and executive leadership. During her term as Moderator, she piloted a leadership development program called (Re)Generate as part of the United Church’s strategic priority to invigorate leadership. She is a member of the Heiltsuk First Nation and an ordained minister in the United Church.
Lansdowne's first scholarly monograph is Wearing a Broken Indigene Heart on the Sleeve of Christian Mission (CMU Press, 2025). With her Indigenous siblings Vance Blackfox (Citizen, Cherokee Nation) and Robert O. Smith (Citizen, Chickasaw Nation), she serves as co-editor of the Survivance Series for Fortress Press. Her current writing projects include a co-authored book for the Survivance Series with Blackfox and Smith. She is also co-editing a volume of essays on liberating theological education and pedagogies with Stephan de Beer of the University of Pretoria.
A sought-after preacher and speaker, Lansdowne has most recently been invited to speak or preach at the Cato Lecture (Uniting Church of Australia, 2027), the Luther Lecture (Luther College, Regina, 2025), Evolving Faith (Evolving Faith Conference, 2023), the John Albert Hall Lecture (University of Victoria, 2023) and the United Church of Christ General Synod (2023). She continues to preach regularly in communities of faith and is a frequent podcast guest. She writes regularly on church-related topics through her Substack, Church-y Conversations. In fall 2026, she will release the first season of a related podcast, Church-y Conversations with People Who Know Things.
Lansdowne teaches basic degree courses at Emmanuel related to preparation for ministry. Her research focuses on ministry leadership for the next quarter-century. Her previous teaching experience includes sessional appointments at Union Theological Seminary (New York), the Centre for Christian Studies, Vancouver School of Theology, the University of Winnipeg, Sandy-Saulteaux Spiritual Centre, Starr King School for the Ministry and the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley (Santa Clara University). She is also a member of several research cohorts, including the Church Apologies Project (University of Waterloo) and the International Working Group on Theology in the Capitalocene (Wendland-Cook Program in Religion and Justice, Vanderbilt University Divinity School). She is a Fellow of the Christ Seminar with the Westar Institute.
Lansdowne continues to speak, facilitate and write both inside and outside the church. She has been praised by youth and young adults in the United Church as both “an incredibly talented churchy person” and the “nerdiest church nerd.” She is passionate about creating a life filled with great stories and adventures with her family from their home base in Toronto’s west end.
Courses
- EMP 1621 Multi-religious Theological Education and Leadership (with Dr. Voss)
- EMP 1021H Leading Congregations
- EMT 3412 Confessing Our Faith
- EMP 2731 Ministry of Governance and Administration
- EMT 2155H Engaging the Spirit (2025 only)
Selected Publications
Books
- Tracks in the Snow: Essays on Hope from Purgatory (Douglas & McIntyre, March 8, 2027).
- Wearing a Broken Indigene Heart on the Sleeve of Christian Mission (CMU Press, 2025). (R)
Chapters and Articles
- “It is a Strict Law That Bids Us Dance”: Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw and Haíɫzaqv Traditions Transforming Christianity by Receiving the ‘Other’.” In Decolonizing Church, Theology, and Ethics in Canada, edited by Néstor Medina and Becca Whitla (McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2025). (R)
- “Indigenizing Religion & Science.” Bloomsbury Religion in North America, with Mary Keller and Jeanette Weaskus. Edited by Whitney Bauman and Lisa Stenmark (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2021 online; 2024 print). (R)
- “North American Indigenous Theology.” In Emerging Theologies from the Global South, edited by Mitri Raheb and Mark A. Lamport (Cascade Books, 2023).
- “ORiginAL Voices: Eradicating the ‘Fearful Asymmetry’ or Power Imbalance in Indigenous/Western Thought in History and Theology.” In Theology and the Crisis of Engagement: Essays on the Relationship of Theology and the Social Sciences, edited by Néstor Medina and Jeff Nowers (Pickwick Publications, 2013).
- “Exodus 16.” In Unsettling the Word: Biblical Experiments in Decolonization, edited by Steven Heinrichs (Common Word, 2018).
- “Spirituality That Stabs Salmon.” In Quest for Respect: The Church and Indigenous Spirituality, edited by Steven Heinrichs (Intotemek Magazine and Common Word, June 2017).
- “Autoethnography That Breaks Your Heart, OR: What Does an Interdisciplinarian Do When What She Was Hoping for Simply Isn’t There?” In Mixed Blessings: Indigenous Encounters with Christianity in Canada, edited by Chelsea Horton and Tolly Bradford (UBC Press, 2016). (R)
- “To Resist Evil.” In Called to Be the Church: Intercultural Visions, edited by Rob Fennell (United Church Publishing House, 2012).
Current Memberships and Affiliations
- Volunteer Associate Minister, Islington United Church
- Member, International Association of Mission Studies (2025–present)
- Member, Academy of Religious Leadership (2025–present)
- Member, American Academy of Religion (2006–present)
Other: Carmen is a co-editor of the Survivance Series for Fortress Press.