![Marshall Laidlaw, MDiv '27, and Lexi Kallaher, MTS '26](/sites/g/files/omnuum5526/files/styles/hwp_21_9__1920x825/public/2025-12/TaylorSwift-Banner-00014.jpg?h=13248fed&itok=-lLnen7a) # New Taylor Swift Student Group Explores Faith and Folklore at HDS Through Swift’s lyrics and fandom, students explore how pop culture shapes identity, community, and religious imagination. December 11, 2025 [ Emma Scharff, HDS News Correspondent ](/news/news-stories/emma-scharff) Earlier this fall, the Harvard Divinity School (HDS) events calendar featured its typical array of group meetings: the HDS Friends Weekly Meeting, events for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, and the HDS Buddhist Community weekly practice. Amid these familiar gatherings, a new student club also met for the first time: Taylor Swift: Faith and Folklore at HDS. The club began its first meeting by sharing what one member dubbed their “Swiftie credentials.” Jen Serena, MRPL ’26, shared that she went to Swift’s Eras Tour three times; Grace Harlan, MTS ’27, has been listening to Swift “forever”; and Marshall Laidlaw, MDiv ’27, used religious language to describe his relationship to Swift. “I’m a relatively recent convert,” Laidlaw said. As one of the club’s leaders, Laidlaw expressed the roots of his interest in starting a student group at HDS focused on Swift. “I’m interested in studying fandoms and how certain actions of fandoms mirror religious groups,” Laidlaw said. “These things which we think are secular end up having a lot of connections to the practices of religious people.” Lexi Kallaher, MTS ’26, the club’s other leader, was similarly curious about the functioning of a fandom like Swift’s. What especially interests Kallaher is the reciprocal relationship between an artist and their fans. “There’s a lot of really interesting commentary online,” Kallaher said, about what it means to be “an ethical consumer” of an artist’s music like Swift. The club is invested in engaging critically with this broader conversation, she said. Even in the introductory meeting, club members were engaged in serious discussion about Swift. The group’s conversation revolved around Swift’s new album, *The Life of a Showgirl*, released just a few days before the meeting. Members raised questions about what the album revealed about Swift as a businessperson, a force for community building, a celebrity, and an artist. The club’s focus on Swift goes beyond examining the artist herself and aims to delve into her work as a lyricist. Laidlaw noted that Swift’s lyrics are full of broader cultural references and religious themes, making her discography a rich text for critical interpretation. The questions raised by Swift’s lyrics—and by the reception of her fandom—mirror the kinds of inquiries students at HDS ask in the classroom. “At HDS, especially in the first year, we spend a lot of time asking: What is religion?” Kallaher said. Taylor Swift’s following, in particular, she said, has often been described as being “like a religion.” ![From left, Jen Serena, MRPL '26, Marshall Laidlaw, MDiv '27, Lexi Kallaher, MTS '26, Jasmyne Harper, MTS '27, and Grace Harlan, MTS '27](/sites/g/files/omnuum5526/files/2025-12/TaylorSwift-Inline-00008.jpg) From left, Jen Serena, MRPL '26, Marshall Laidlaw, MDiv '27, Lexi Kallaher, MTS '26, Jasmyne Harper, MTS '27, and Grace Harlan, MTS '27. Photo: Alex BayerWhile on some level it’s “funny” to view Swift, her music, and her fandom this way, Kallaher said, she’s interested in thinking seriously about the deeper implications of celebrity-fan dynamics and about “a collective body of people who are all faced towards a certain figure in different ways,” she said. The group also discussed their future activities, ranging from the analytical—doing close readings of Swift’s lyrics, discussing her biography, and examining the religious themes in her work—to more casual plans, watching Swift’s concert films together and making friendship bracelets—a tradition among Swift’s fans to exchange the bracelets at her concerts. Laidlaw said that starting the club felt like an important way to carve out space at HDS for a critical approach to pop culture. The club’s very existence, he noted, helps legitimize these kinds of discussions. And though the Swift club may not be engaged in biblical hermeneutics, “these questions are a valid form of inquiry at a divinity school, too,” Laidlaw said. “We are in an age of incredible uncertainty and incredible grief and loneliness in the world right now, and people are hungering for meaning,” Laidlaw added. “Whether or not we think that the world is still becoming more secular, people are finding meaning through Taylor Swift. People are gathering, people are seeking connection through this artist. I think that's worth discussing.” *Banner image: Marshall Laidlaw, MDiv '27, and Lexi Kallaher, MTS '26. Photo credit: Alex Bayer* See also:- [ Student Activities and Interviews ](/discover-stories-about/student-activities-and-interviews)