Dr. Jessica Coblentz is a professor of Religious Studies and Theology, as well as Gender and Women's Studies, at St. Mary's College in Notre Dame, Indiana. She came to academia through a lifelong curiosity about religion sparked during her secular upbringing in the Seattle area. She pursued graduate studies at Harvard Divinity School and Boston College and ultimately chose theology as a discipline that allowed her to speak constructively back to her own Catholic tradition. Her book Dust in the Blood addresses the gap in Christian theological reflection on depression, critiquing popular frameworks that either blame sin or frame depression as a divine gift, arguing both can be harmful to sufferers. As an alternative, she develops a theology of depression rooted in the story of Hagar in the wilderness, emphasizing that God does not always explain or fix suffering but does accompany, see, and open new possibilities for those who are struggling. She is currently working on a second book examining women's depression through the lens of Mariology, particularly the image of Our Lady of Sorrows, exploring how ideals of womanhood may contribute to women's disproportionately higher rates of depression. Throughout the conversation, she reflects on the value of personal vulnerability in scholarship, the importance of accompaniment over easy answers in Christian community, and the call to simply be a loving presence to others — especially those who suffer.
0:00 Introduction
0:39 Dr. Coblentz's Background and Path to Academia
7:27 Dust in the Blood — A Theology of Depression
15:15 The Story of Hagar and Wilderness as a Framework for Depression
21:03 The Lament Psalms and Relational Faith
23:48 The Title Dust in the Blood — Robert Lowell and Poetic Language
26:38 New Research on Women's Depression and Mariology
32:34 Personal Vulnerability in Scholarship
37:16 What Does It Mean to Be Church?
40:24 Closing Question — If You Were an Animal
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