ESA Research Network 34 - Sociology of Religion
in cooperation with the
German Section for Religionssoziologie in the DGS
Call for papers - Mid-term Conference
University of Potsdam,, Germany, 3-5 September 2012
Transformations of the Sacred in Europe and Beyond
The thesis of secularization, once sheer uncontested in the social sciences, is increasingly
under fire. Secularization is nowadays often deconstructed as an ideology or mere wish dream
that is intimately connected to the rationalist ambitions of modern Enlightenment. Such
alleged blurring of morality and science, of what ‘is’ and what ‘ought’, informing sociological
analysis obviously obscures clear sight on recent developments in the Western world.
Countless empirical and theoretical studies convincingly demonstrate that religion is
alive and well in Europe and beyond. Particularly after the attacks of 9/11 in 2001, religious
identities have become salient in a situation of cultural polarization and religious
pluralization. Moreover, we are witnessing a trend towards ‘believing without belonging’
(Davie, 1994) and – particularly in those European countries that are most secular – a shift
from organized religion to ‘spiritualities of life’ (e.g., Heelas and Woodhead, 2005), paganism
and ‘popular religion’ (Knoblauch, 2009). And although the thesis of secularization has
always been highly problematic from a non-European or global perspective, the rapid
globalization of Islam and the Evangelical upsurge – especially in Africa, Latin America and
East Asia – fly in the face of the long-held expectation that religion is doomed to be a
marginal or socially insignificant phenomenon.
Evidently, then, the focus of sociological analysis has shifted over the last decades
from religious decline to religious change. More than that: it is theorized that we are living in
a “post-secular society” (Habermas, 2005) where religion is re-vitalized, de-privatized and
increasingly influences politics, voting behavior, matters of the state and ethical debates in the
public domain (e.g., Casanova, 1994). Motivated by such observations, the mid-term
conference calls for papers addressing changes in the field of religion and, more in particular,
transformations of the sacred in Europe and beyond. Particularly we welcome studies
covering the following topics:
• Studies on how and why conceptions of the sacred, religious beliefs, doctrines, rituals
and organizations of long-standing religious traditions – such as Islam, Christianity,
Judaism, Buddhism or Hinduism – transform under the influence of processes of
globalization, individualization, mediatization as well as changing gender relations.
• Studies dealing with trends of believing without belonging, i.e. non-institutionalized
beliefs, personal ‘bricolage’ and privatized conceptions of the sacred outside the
Churches, Chapels and Mosques. Encouraged are also studies addressing new, more
informal ways of ‘belonging’, religious communication and collective effervescence,
i.e. in loose social networks, discussion groups or virtual communities on the internet.
• Studies covering popular religion and post-traditional spirituality, i.e., New Age,
esotericism, paganism, occultism, discussing for instance an epistemological turn from
belief to experience and emotion; a shifting emphasis from transcendence to
immanence; from seriousness to playfulness; or a transition from dualism to monism.
Studies dealing with implicit religion, i.e. addressing a re-location of the sacred to
seemingly secular domains in society such as self-identity, sports, modern science and
technology. This avenue of research may also include the place and meaning of the
sacred (i.e., religious narratives, symbols and images) in popular media texts – in
novels, films, series on television or computer games.
These topics are rough guidelines; papers dealing with religious change and the
transformation of the sacred in Europe and beyond other than these outlined above are also
very welcome. Furthermore we invite PhD and post-doc candidates to contribute to a poster
session, including work in progress; the best poster will get a – small, but nice – prize.
Dates & Deadlines in 2012
March 15 Submission of abstracts and online registration starts
April 20 Submission of abstracts ends
May 10 Acceptance of abstracts
June 30 Early-bird registration ends
September 3 – 5 Conference
Conference Fees:
for ESA-Members & Students: € 30,- plus € 20,- for Conference Buffet
for Non-Members € 50,- plus € 20,- for Conference Buffet
for late registration € 80,- plus € 20,- for Conference Buffet
For further information, please visit: https://www.esareligion.org
Contact: esa-religion@uni-potsdam.de
Conference Venue
The University of Potsdam turned 20 this year.
More than 20,000 students are enrolled in more
than 100 degree programmes, located at three
different sites. The mid-term conference will take
place at Griebnitzsee Campus, which is directly
located at the S-Bahn that connects Potsdam City
and Berlin.