Panel description: The panel aims to foster open discussion on the diverse meanings of "conservation" in religion and ethics, encompassing established traditions and the new implications of the term in the context of global warming, climate crisis, and artificial intelligence. In Latin, "conservo" is a specification of "servo" (to keep, preserve, maintain, protect, watch over carefully, save). The term is used to indicate the act of preserving, guarding, or maintaining something. It shares with "servo" the intricate etymology of "servus," whose original meaning (*serwo-) likely was "guard" or "shepherd," but it evolved pejoratively to mean "slave" in Italy between 700 and 450 BC. "Conservo" adds the notion of a community where this act of watching over is shared. In Latin, "conservo" applies to animals, inanimate objects, and abstract principles like benevolence, faith, and nature itself. In a world often depicted as undergoing rapid transformation, and within the framework of the EUARE 2025 Vienna congress focused on "Religion and Socio-Cultural Transformation," we seek to explore the concept of "conservation" in religion, spirituality, and ethics. What is conserved amidst transformation? What must be preserved to prevent transformation from disrupting the very essence of "form," leading to deformation? What are the intricate, labyrinthine, and sometimes controversial relationships between the different semantic fields of conservation mentioned above? How can the nature of animals, plants, and inanimate objects be conserved if such conservation does not also apply to principles and ideas? What is the relationship between conserving the past and preserving the future? Furthermore, what are the lexical, semantic, and pragmatic distinctions between terms like conservation, preservation, and reservation? And how does the term "conservation" extend to the complex semantic structure, from the conservative to the Italian musical "conservatorio"?

Papers:

CONSERVE WHAT'S GOOD, GET RID OF WHAT'S BAD (AND TOLERATE WHAT'S NEITHER)!

Raehme B. (Speaker)

Center for Religious Studies - Bruno Kessler Foundation ~ Trento ~ Italy
The platitudinous rule of thumb expressed in the title is, of course, meant to highlight the equally platitudinous fact that questions regarding what merits conservation, abolishment or unruffled tolerance tap into the realm of normative commitments and values. They are normative questions through and through. That is why the rule of thumb gains concrete meaning only against the backdrop of the pre-existing value commitments of its interpreter. Present-day discourses about a host of questions - from artificial intelligence to wars and religious identities, the climate "crisis" (which isn't a crisis because crises, per definitionem, can be overcome) to the European Union etc. - are suffused with value-talk. What is largely missing in the public clashes of diverging value commitments is open argumentative debate about what values are justifiable. Argumentative debates of this kind are largely confined to the academic fields of normative philosophical and theological ethics, to political and social theory. The talk will focus on two examples of contentious debates, one from the religious and one from the political sphere. The aim is to show how radically argumentative debate may benefit these debates.
AN INHERITANCE WITHOUT TESTAMENT: MOUNTAINS AS A LABORATORY OF THE FUTURE

Costa P. (Speaker)

Center for Religious Studies - Bruno Kessler Foundation ~ Trento ~ Italy
This paper explores the role of mountain landscapes as ethical and spiritual laboratories for imagining alternative modernities aligned with ecological conservation. Drawing on the idea that mountain regions represent "an inheritance without testament," the study argues that these spaces, often seen as marginal and remote, can provide crucial insights into the future of conservation ethics. The research focuses on the Alpine region, where traditional forms of life are increasingly challenged by modernization, yet simultaneously, new models of sustainability, spirituality, and community are emerging. The paper is grounded in a multidisciplinary approach, integrating environmental philosophy, religious studies, and ethics. It examines five distinct areas where mountain environments act as crucibles for new ethical and spiritual practices. These include the rise of "new mountaineers" who choose to live in remote areas as a deliberate critique of consumerist society, spiritual seekers drawn to the mountains for non-traditional experiences of re-enchantment, and the evolving role of high-altitude mountain huts as centers for cultural and ethical renewal. The research also investigates sustainable entrepreneurship that seeks to grow with, rather than exploit, the environment, as well as innovative approaches to mobility in these hyper-complex landscapes. At the core of the study is the concept of "romantic empiricism," where nature is seen not as an inert object but as a dynamic agent deserving of respect. This perspective challenges the dominant scientific narrative that views nature solely as a resource for human use, proposing instead that conservation efforts must be rooted in an ethic of dialogue and mutual respect between humans and the natural world. The paper argues that this kind of ethical-spiritual engagement is essential for motivating the societal shifts required for an effective ecological transition.
21

Leone M. (Speaker)

University of Turin ~ Turin ~ Italy
This paper critically examines the growing ideology of "cancellation" in religion and ethics, contrasting it with a more nuanced ideology of conservation that condemns past wrongs while retaining a mature memory of them for future generations. As debates over cultural memory, moral accountability, and historical reckoning intensify, particularly in religious and ethical contexts, the concept of cancellation—a wholesale rejection and erasure of morally problematic legacies—has emerged as a dominant approach. This paper questions the ethical implications of this trend, arguing that while cancellation may seem just in swiftly disassociating from historical evils, it often fails to consider the long-term consequences of severing connections to the past. Drawing on both classical and contemporary ethical theories, the paper proposes that conservation offers a more sustainable and morally responsible alternative. Conservation, in this context, does not mean preserving injustices or celebrating harmful histories; rather, it entails acknowledging past wrongs and conserving their memory as cautionary tales. The discussion engages with Cicero's notion of conservatio—a principle that calls for the preservation of values, decorum, and human nature in ways that maintain social and moral continuity amidst transformation. The analysis touches on various case studies where both cancellation and conservation ideologies have clashed, particularly in religious communities grappling with their own problematic histories. The discussion extends to the broader ethical questions of how society should handle statues, texts, and symbols associated with oppression: should they be removed entirely, or preserved as reminders of what must never be repeated? The paper also probes the theological implications of erasure versus remembrance, asking whether religious traditions are better served by an ethics of amnesia or one of memory and redemption.

Panel description: Since the early 1980s, a widespread categorisation distinguishes four forms of interfaith dialogue: first, dialogue of life (often called "grass-root dialogue"), second, dialogue or deeds for the common good, third, dialogue of specialists, and fourth dialogue of religious experience. Today, at times a fifth form is added which can be named "diplomatic dialogue" (Marianne Moyaert). Yet there seems to be a dimension of dialogue running through all these different forms, that is, the personal level. What does dialogue do with people involved in one or many of these forms? How does interfaith dialogue affect individual personalities? And, conversely, how does the personal dimension impact the different forms of dialogue? The panel explores different facets of the personal level alerting us to the fact that in its most basic form, dialogue can only be dialogue between persons.

Papers:

UNEXPECTED ISSUES: THREE STORIES OF INTERFAITH ENCOUNTER.

Race A. (Speaker)

World Council of Faiths ~ London ~ United Kingdom
Interfaith encounter and dialogue invariably involve participants in dimensions of human complexities more than what we might think of as "purely religious". It is these human complexities that reveal both attitudes and behaviours that enliven dialogue and also mask dialogue's processes and outcomes. This presentation will focus on three personal examples where interreligious dialogue between Christians and other traditions reveals how many-layered the process can be.
DOES INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE NEED A THEOLOGICAL DIMENSION?

Schneider M. (Speaker)

Postdoc Research Fellow, Centre for Religion and Modernity, University of Münster ~ Münster ~ Germany
Based on observations in Birmingham and Leicester in 2023, the paper distinguishes two different profiles of interreligious dialogue. Practical dialogue, focused on social initiatives aimed at cooperation in the neighbourhood, and discursive dialogue, aiming at exploring theological and spiritual aspects of the participants' religious traditions, including conflicting truth claims. The range of ways in which interlocutors in both cities defined the relationship between the two profiles will be summarised and discussed. Are theological issues an obstacle to progress in practical dialogue formats? Or is dialogue insufficient without addressing the crucial points of theological debate?
INTERRELIGIOUS PHRONESIS: BRIDGING PRACTICAL WISDOM AND INTERFAITH ENGAGEMENT

Gustafson H. (Speaker)

Director of the Jay Phillips Center for Interreligious Studies (College of Arts and Sciences), Adjunct Professor in the Department of Theology, University of St. Thomas ~ Minnesota ~ United States of America
This paper explores the concept of interreligious phronesis - rooted in Aristotelian practical wisdom - as a guiding virtue essential for navigating the complexities of religiously diverse contexts. It outlines four key dimensions of this practical wisdom: Know What (episteme), Know Who (empathia), Know Why (sophia), and Know How (techne). These dimensions co-constitute the ability to act thoughtfully and effectively in interfaith encounters, emphasizing not just the knowledge of religious diversity but also the skills and moral virtues necessary to engage constructively with others. By grounding interfaith dialogue in these personal dimensions, this paper provides a practical framework that bridges theoretical models and real-world applications.
FOUR CATEGORIES OF INTERRELIGIOUS ENCOUNTER FROM A PHENOMENOLOGY OF PRACTICE

Wratten S. (Speaker)

Professional Doctorate Student, Cambridge Theological Federation with Anglia Ruskin University ~ Cambridge ~ United Kingdom
Constructed from stories of interreligious encounter in 'everyday life' this paper will present the following four categories of interreligious encounter: Human Connection, Transcendent Connection, Identity and Life Experience, Questions of Theology of Religions. Utilising a methodology of hermeneutic phenomenology, this paper argues that critical reflection on first-hand interreligious encounter reveals significant thought on meeting with the 'religious other' and that which we may call God or transcendent reality. This paper advocates for personal experience to be acknowledged as a significant gateway into interreligious dialogue for the academy and communities of practice.
DIALOGUE AND PERSONAL RELIGIOUS IDENTITY - THE CASE OF PAUL KNITTER

Riggert A. (Speaker)

Pastor emeritus of the Protestant Church of Westphalia. President of the Institute for Interreligious Studies INTR°A ~ Schwerte ~ Germany
The American Catholic theologian Paul F. Knitter (*1939) has reflected intensively on the effects of his dialogue with the religious other on his personal identity as a Christian, particularly in the last two decades. His dialogue with Buddhism and Buddhists finally led him to become a Buddhist-Christian dual belonger. The paper will explore this process of identity transformation as an example of the opportunities offered by interreligious dialogue to expand and deepen one's own religious self-understanding.
PERSONS, NOT TYPES - A LESSON TO BE LEARNED FROM HASAN ASKARI

Schmidt-Leukel P. (Speaker)

Senior Professor of Religious Studies and Intercultural Theology, University of Münster ~ Münster ~ Germany
Syed Hasan Askari (1932-2008) was one of the Muslim pioneers involved in interfaith dialogues organised by the World Council of Churches. Being strongly influenced by W.C. Smith, Askari emphasised the significance of meeting as individual persons and not as types representing some imagined collective religious identity. The paper explores the implications of this view for a better understanding of the impact of dialogue on the personal level.

Panel description: This session focuses on the interface between contemporary Hinduism and socio-cultural change. All three papers explores ways that Hindu beliefs and practices are inspiring such change in contemporary contexts in India and beyond. The first paper, "Socio-Cultural Transformation and the Trees for Life Movement," explores the life and vision of Balbir Mathur, founder of an NGO called Trees for Life International. This paper will focus broadly on Mathur's spiritual autobiography and the role of religion in inspiring him to found Trees for Life, an international movement that works for positive socio-cultural change through not just the planting of trees, but also through education and other forms of humanitarian work. The second paper, "Socio-cultural Transformation and the Public Visibility of Religion in Contemporary Kerala," explores a Hindu festival in Kerala, the Uthra Siveli Festival. The paper highlights tensions between progressive secularization and the increasing public visibility of religion in Kerala. But it also addresses the transformative potential of ritual and ways the Uthra Siveli Festival functions to promote social transformation and the transcendence of caste boundaries. The final paper, "The Brahma Kumari Tradition and Socio-Cultural Transformation," examines the Brahma Kumari tradition and its role in socio-cultural transformations in India and beyond. This paper examines several aspects of the Brahma Kumaris' acts of service to society, including their contributions to the uplifting of women and untouchables and bringing attention to the problems caused by climate change. This paper asks: What is the role of religion as a driving force for positive socio-cultural changes in individuals and in society? Can the belief that change starts from within make a lasting impact on society? Are there other socio-cultural transformations that happen in this way?

Papers:

SOCIO-CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AND THE TREES FOR LIFE MOVEMENT

Pintchman T. (Speaker)

Loyola University Chicago ~ Chicago ~ United States of America
This paper explores the life and vision of Balbir Mathur, founder of an NGO called Trees for Life International, focusing on the role of religious experience in shaping his relationship to the natural world and his work with Trees for Life. Mathur grew up in a Hindu family in India and later moved to the state of Kansas in the United States. He recounts that he had a profound religious experience one day while flying over the island of Cypress followed by a period of severe illness and further spiritual experiences, causing him to quit his job and seek a way to be of service to humanity. Mathur established Trees for Life, an organization that plants trees and engages in humanitarian work all over the world to help impoverished communities, especially in the global south, with the requirement that each person or community it assists in turn assist at least two others. his paper will focus broadly in Mathur's religious autobiography and the role of religion in inspiring Mathur to effect positive socio-cultural change through ahis global humanitarian movement. Mathur's vision of socio-cultural transformation is deeply informed by Hindu and Buddhist ideals, especially Hindu conceptions of the divine as an impersonal force, the Buddhist principle of codependent arising, and other Hindu and Buddhist religious concepts.
PUBLIC VISIBILITY OF RELIGION AND SOCIO-CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION

Pati G. (Speaker)

Valparaiso University ~ Valparaiso ~ United States of America
This paper explores the annual Uthra Śīvēli festival at the Śrī Vallabha Temple in Thiruvalla, highlighting the increasing public visibility of religion in Kerala and the socio-cultural transformation during this Hindu festival as the devotees come together. Annual festivals are a central feature of the South Indian religious tradition. More importantly, festivals unite people and places as devotees share devotion. This paper examines the festival and elucidates its transformative potency by discussing how it plays a role in socio-religious transformation, transcending caste and social boundaries in South India. I argue the dynamic interactions between deities and devotees that occur during the festival not only transform the space into a "religioscape," connecting lived and imagined worlds through ritual practice, but also promote socio-cultural transformation, problematizing our understanding of the social dimensions of caste and its historical religious valorization.
BRAHMA KUMARI TRADITION AND SOCIO-CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION

Dimitrova D. (Speaker)

University of Montreal ~ Montreal ~ Canada
This paper examines the Brahma Kumari tradition and its role in socio-cultural transformations in India and beyond. The focus is on the issue of spiritual identity, meditation, service to society and female leadership. I examine several aspects of the implication of Brahma Kumaris in service to society and their contribution to the uplifting of women and untouchables, and to the creation of a new awareness of climate change. I will focus on socio-cultural transformations leading to female empowerment, the transformations of slums into "divya nagar", or divine cities, and environmental improvements. What is the role of spirituality and meditation as a driving force for these positive socio-cultural changes in individuals and in society? Can the belief that change starts from within make a lasting impact on society? Are there any other socio-cultural transformations that happen in this way? By means of analysis of texts and data from interviews with Brahma Kumari followers, this paper discusses the important societal impact of the Brahma Kumari tradition and its contribution to meaningful socio-cultural transformations.

Panel description: The panel "Religion and New Cross-Cultural Reality: Transformations and Challenges" will explore the shifting role of religion in a world marked by increasing cultural diversity and global interconnectedness. The discussion will highlight the significance of interreligious dialogue, religious diplomacy, cross-cultural communication as vital tools for fostering understanding and cooperation among diverse religious groups. The panel will examine how different faith traditions can engage in meaningful conversations to foster mutual respect and understanding. Cross-cultural communication will be highlighted as a means of resolving conflicts and building bridges between communities with differing beliefs. The panel will also address the new roles religion is playing in these shifting contexts, including the challenge of maintaining traditional identities while adapting to a rapidly changing world. Participants will discuss the new roles and challenges that religion faces in this evolving landscape, including the need to navigate cultural complexities and contribute to global harmony. This exploration aims to illuminate the role of religion in adapting to and shaping the new cross-cultural reality.

Papers:

CROSS-CULTURAL COMPETENCE IN THE DIALOGUE OF RELIGIONS IN UKRAINE

Kharkovschchenko Y. (Speaker)

Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv ~ Kyiv ~ Ukraine
Nowadays it is important to explore the critical role of cross-cultural competence in fostering effective interreligious dialogue within the Ukrainian context. Ukraine, as a culturally and religiously diverse society, is home to a variety of faith traditions, including Orthodox Christianity, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, and Judaism. This diversity creates both opportunities and challenges for interfaith communication and cooperation. We will focus on how cross-cultural competence—defined as the ability to understand, communicate with, and effectively interact with people across cultures—can enhance mutual respect, reduce religious tensions, and promote social cohesion. Special attention will be given to the historical and contemporary interactions between different religious communities in Ukraine, highlighting examples of successful interfaith initiatives. The role of cross-cultural diplomacy in mitigating conflicts and fostering peace will also be discussed, along with the practical challenges that arise in the pursuit of religious harmony. This exploration will contribute to a deeper understanding of how cross-cultural competence serves as a vital tool for promoting interreligious dialogue and cooperation in a pluralistic society like Ukraine.
THE ROLE OF THE RELIGIOUS FACTOR IN BUILDING CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATIONS

Roma A. (Speaker)

Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv ~ Kyiv ~ Ukraine
We are going to examine the pivotal influence of religion in shaping and facilitating communication between culturally diverse groups. Religion, as a fundamental aspect of many societies, plays a crucial role in defining values, ethical frameworks, and social norms, which in turn affect how individuals and communities interact across cultural boundaries. We will explore how religious traditions, beliefs, and practices can serve both as bridges and barriers to effective cross-cultural communication. It will analyze the positive role of religion in fostering mutual understanding, trust, and cooperation through interfaith dialogue, shared moral values, and humanitarian efforts. At the same time, it will address the challenges posed by religious differences, including potential sources of conflict, stereotyping, and misunderstanding. Case studies from various regions, both historical and contemporary, will be highlighted to demonstrate how the religious factor influences cross-cultural communication. The discussion will also explore strategies for leveraging religious commonalities to build more inclusive, respectful, and productive interactions among culturally and religiously diverse populations. This abstract aims to provide a nuanced understanding of religion's role in the complex dynamics of cross-cultural communication.
THE CURRENT MEDIA IN PROVIDING RELIGIOUS COMMUNICATION OF CLERGY AND BELIEVING PEOPLE

Melnyk L. (Speaker)

Bila Tserkva National Agrarian University ~ Bila Tserkva ~ Ukraine
The topic "The Current Media in Providing Religious Communication of Clergy and Believing People" underlines the role of modern media platforms in facilitating dialogue between religious leaders and their congregations. In the contemporary digital age, traditional modes of religious communication are increasingly supplemented by online platforms, social media, and digital forums. This evolution impacts the dissemination of religious teachings, pastoral care, and spiritual guidance. The study explores how clergy use media to reach a broader audience, maintain spiritual connections, and address the religious needs of believers, particularly in a globalized and technologically interconnected society. It also investigates potential challenges, such as maintaining the authenticity of religious discourse, ensuring the meaningful engagement of the faithful, and addressing the risks of misinformation. The research highlights the growing importance of media literacy among religious communities and the implications of digital communication for the future of religious practice.
GLOBALISATION AND WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP IN RELIGION: HOW FEMINIST MOVEMENTS CHANGE TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS

Dobrovolska K. (Speaker)

Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv ~ Kyiv ~ Ukraine
The discussion on the topic "Globalisation and Women's Leadership in Religion: How Feminist Movements Change Traditional Religions" is amed to explores the transformative impact of feminist movements on traditional religious structures in the context of globalisation. As globalisation accelerates the exchange of ideas, values, and social movements, it has opened new avenues for the role of women in religious leadership and challenged patriarchal norms that have historically dominated many religious institutions. We will show how feminist ideologies, in tandem with global social change, have influenced and reshaped religious practices, doctrines, and leadership roles in various faith traditions. It will explore the ways in which feminist movements advocate for gender equality, inclusion, and women's rights within religious contexts, pushing for reforms that empower women as leaders, theologians, and spiritual guides. The discussion will include case studies from diverse religious traditions, highlighting both the successes and resistance faced by women in breaking traditional barriers. The paper will also analyze the tension between preserving religious traditions and adapting to modern feminist values, reflecting on how these dynamics contribute to evolving understandings of women's leadership in a globalised religious landscape. This exploration will offer insight into the ongoing redefinition of gender roles in religion and the future of women's leadership in faith communities worldwide.
CROSS-CULTURAL CONFLICT IN THE RELIGIOUS SITUATION IN UKRAINE

Zhernova S. (Speaker)

Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv ~ Kyiv ~ Ukraine
The abstract titled "Cross-Cultural Conflict in the Religious Situation in Ukraine: The Role of Orthodoxy" will explore the conflict in Orthodox Christianity in Ukraine. As the predominant faith in the country, Orthodoxy is deeply interwoven with national, cultural, and political identities, particularly in the context of the ongoing situation in Ukraine. Focusing on the cultural identities and the efforts at reconciliation and inter-Orthodox dialogue, highlighting the potential for cross-cultural communication within the religious sphere to either deepen or heal societal fractures. This analysis provides a deeper understanding of how Orthodoxy, as both a religious and cultural force, influences the evolving conflict landscape in Ukraine, offering insights into the potential for religious intervention in conflict resolution.

Panel description: The present panel addresses the development of Sufism beyond traditional tariqa structure that encompasses established Sufi lineages and hierarchies in response to secularization, privatization of religion, and the pluralization of religious markets. It aims to investigate the ways in which Sufism has transcended traditional institutional boundaries, leading to the emergence of "post-tariqa" forms that reconsider of reject established hierarchies and communal ties. The panel will delve into the sociocultural and political shifts that informed these changes, such as secularization and the securitization of Islam in Muslim-majority societies, the influence of reform movements, the privatization of religion and the development of alternative spiritualities in Western societies, and the increasing accessibility of Sufi teachings outside conventional frameworks. It will discuss the engagement of Sufi traditions with secular and pluralistic contexts, and the ways in which contemporary seekers navigate spiritual paths in reformed Sufi communities or beyond them. Through an interdisciplinary approach including historical humanities, anthropology, and religious studies, the panel will provide a comprehensive examination of post-tariqa Sufism. The panel discussions aim to contribute to broader debates on tradition and modernity in Islam, highlighting how religious traditions are evolving in the post-traditional sociocultural milieu.

Papers:

MAJMA-UL-BAHRAIN IN HAZRAT INAYAT KHAN'S ACTIVITIES IN THE WEST (1910-1926)

Moron M. (Speaker)

Centre for Comparative Studies of Civilisations, Faculty of Philosophy, Jagellonian University ~ Cracow ~ Poland
"Majma-ul-Bahrain" is a Sufi text from the 16th century by Dara Shukoh, exploring the connection between Sufi and Vedanta mysticism. The term is also associated with the union of Jalaluddin Rumi and Shams-e-Tabrizi. This paper considers whether it can apply to Hazrat Inayat Khan's interaction with Western audiences. Hazrat Inayat Khan (1882-1927), a distinguished Indian musician and Sufi mystic, initially intended to introduce Indian classical music to the West. However, upon his arrival, he encountered Western elites seeking spiritual enlightenment from the East, largely influenced by Orientalism. This fascination often revolved around hidden knowledge and occult practices, creating a preconceived notion of mysticism. Theosophy, in particular, sought spiritual guidance from India, focusing on Brahminical-Vedanta ideas. Inayat Khan's audiences were often part of this Theosophical interest in Indian spirituality. A key point of difference in the Western perception of Inayat Khan is his Muslim background. Although Sufism transcends strict religious boundaries, Inayat Khan, raised in a Muslim family and initiated by a Sufi shaykh in Hyderabad, was seen as a Muslim. Yet, from the outset of his activities in the West, his Muslim identity was downplayed or silently rejected. A similar phenomenon can be seen today in the Western embrace of Rumi's poetry, often detached from his Islamic context. This paper discusses Inayat Khan's Sufi teachings within the broader framework of Islam in the Indian cultural context. Rather than a true blending of mystic traditions or "Majma-ul-Bahrain", it was a case of Sufi esoteric teachings encountering Western notions of mysticism, where external practices and ceremonies held as much importance as the inner essence of Sufism. Examples of these practices among Inayat Khan's Western followers are also explored in the paper.
SUFISM IN MODERN KAZAKHSTAN: PROBLEMS OF INTERPRETATIONS, TRENDS AND CHALLENGES

Temirbayeva A. (Speaker)

Egyptian University of Islamic Culture "Nur-Mubarak" ~ Almaty ~ Kazakhstan
Sufism in Kazakhstan has deep roots dating to the 11th-12th centuries. Historically, with regard to the region, one of the most important functions of Sufism is Islamization through spirituality (ihsan). The following tariqas were present on the territory of Kazakhstan: Yasaviya, Naqshbandiya, Kubraviya and Kadiriya. Each tariqa had its own special approach to spirituality and different methods of achieving closeness to the divine; authority and political influence. The colonial policy of the Soviet period: repressive secularization, persecutions, repressions, shootings of clerics of different religions directly affected the religious tradition of the region. Some Sufi communities degenerated and ceased to exist, while others continued their activities underground. Today, a wide range of Sufi associations operate in Kazakhstan: traditional, hybrid, perennialist, and post-tariqa. Some Kazakhstani scholars identify them as neo-Sufi, pseudo-Sufi or "religious imports". The bright palette of Sufism demonstrates both orthodoxy with legitimate tradition and postmodern spirituality. Moreover, religious consumers who follow Sufi groups may move from one group to another or convert from other religions. As the followers themselves note, the leader-head of the Sufi community is very important for them. Different communities have different attitudes towards Islam and requirements for obligatory practices (e.g. shahada, ritual practices, dress code). In general, we observe that despite challenges, Sufism has demonstrated ideological flexibility and high adaptive capacity to spiritual demands over the centuries, the teachings are transformed and adapted to modern realities. In general, the trends indicate that the centuries-long history of Sufism and its popularity in modern times indicate that from a medieval elitist trend, Sufism has become more accessible and closer to the believers, which made it possible to survive in unfavorable conditions.
THE VISION OF SPIRITUAL PERFECTION IN SHAYKH FADHLALLA HAERI AND POST-TARIQA SUFISM

Yarosh O. (Speaker)

The Department of Religious Studies, Aarhus University ~ Aarhus ~ Denmark
This paper explores the vision of human perfection and spiritual individualism in Western Sufism, focusing on Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri's (b. 1937) literary works and teachings. It addresses the question of how the vision of spiritual perfection in Shaykh Fadhlalla's teachings interplays with reflexive spirituality and modern individuation, shaping his vision for the Sufi community and providing an alternative to the tariqa-style Sufism in the West. The main focus of this paper is the analysis of selected written texts by Shaykh Fadhlalla, in which he addresses issues of spiritual perfection through close reading, conceptual analysis, and cross-textual comparison. It argues that, despite some similarities with New Age concepts that imply minimal transcendence, Shaykh Fadhlalla's teachings are deeply rooted in the classical Sufi tradition and based on otherworldly transcendence, but articulated through the lens of reflexive spirituality. While contemporary Sufi communities in Western Europe navigate the opposing trends of 're-Islamization' and the development of 'post-tariqa' Sufism, this paper posits that Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri's vision of post-tariqa Sufism is shaped by his ideas on human perfection and the ways to attain it.

Panel description: In 16th-century Braj, Northern India, a profound shift in Hindu devotional practices and attitudes emerged: the divine began to be approached through anthropomorphic modes modeled on human relationships. Friendship and romantic/erotic/amorous bonds became considered as potent ways of connecting with the divine. Authors, philosophers, theologians and poets, such as Vallabhacarya, Surdas, Mirabai and Agradas advocated for cultivating a feminine identity to establish either a deep friendship (sakhi with Radha (Krishna's principal lover) or Sita (Rama's wife)—a practice aligned with the homosocial norms of the time, where friendships were formed between those of the same gender—or an intimate romantic relationship (madhurya-bhava) with Rama or Krishna. Here too, adopting a feminine identity was crucial for maintaining a socially accepted connection with a male deity. This panel aims to explore, first, the historical context and devotional literature linked to these new models of devotion, especially texts attributed to the Vallabha tradition, Surdas, and Mirabai, to better understand the rise of these practices in the 16th century. Second, it seeks to examine contemporary "sakhi" practices and figures, aiming to determine whether we can speak of a third and devotional gender in modern Hinduism. Florence Pasche Guignard, Universite Laval, Faculty of theology and religious studies, Quebec, Canada Title: "When the devotional and embodied genders do not match in the varta of the Vallabha tradition" Diana Dimitrova, Universite de Montreal, Institut de theologie et de sciences religieuses Title: "Gender Fuidity in the Devotional Poetry of Surdas and Mirabai and in the Poetic Imaginary of the Sakhi Sampradaya" Mathieu Boisvert, Universite du Quebec a Montreal, Departement de sciences des religions Title: "Contemporary 'Sakhi' of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh"

Papers:

DEVOTIONAL GENDER MATTERS: FROM FEMININE DEVOTIONAL FIGURE TO MALE OR FEMALE EMBODIED HUMAN

Pasche Guignard F. (Speaker)

Universite Laval ~ Quebec ~ Canada
This paper examines a selection of vārtā, narratives about the lives of saintly figures in the Vallabhācārya (c. 1479-1533) tradition, composed in Brajbhāṣā and compiled during the 16th and 17th centuries. They describe how specific individuals became initiated by Vallabha or by his son and successor, Viṭṭhalanātha, also known as Śrī Gusaiṃjī (c. 1516-1588). While the narratives focus on the actions and behavior of these Vaiṣṇāvas before and after initiation, the first part of most of these "stories about the three lives" (tīn janma kī bhāvanā vālī), along with their commentary sections (bhāvprakās), clarify that these individuals (men, women, children) were sakhī with varying dispositions in the līlā world, with differing proximity to other sakhī and to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. The text outlines their appearance, unique characteristics, and relationships with one another. Although most are clearly depicted as feminine in the līlā, they incarnate on earth as future devotees and members of Vallabha's community, taking on male or female bodies in a society where gender plays a significant role. The devotional and feminine gender of the sakhī may or may not align with that of the embodied individual.
GENDER FUIDITY IN THE DEVOTIONAL POETRY OF SŪRDĀS AND MĪRĀBĀĪ AND IN THE POETIC IMAGINARY OF THE SAKHĪ SAMPRADĀYA

Dimitrova D. (Speaker)

Universite de Montreal ~ Montreal ~ Canada
This paper studies the notion of gender fluidity in the saguṇa bhakti traditions of Sūrdās and Mīrābāī, which have inspired the poetic imaginary of the Sakhī sampradāya. The soul-wife longs for the union with the husband-lord, full of pain (viraha) from the separation from the beloved. The husband-lord has never actually left, it is rather the soul-wife, who has forgotten and needs to "remember" and find him again within, in order to unite with him and merge into him. In the hymns of a female devotional tradition, such as that of Mīrābāī, the gender identification of Mīrā with Rādhā (Kṛṣṇa's most beloved gopī) seems "natural". However, in the case of a male devotional tradition, for instance Sūrdās's tradition, male poets, and all men, become women before god, i.e. they assume a female poetic persona in order to identify with Rādhā and unite with Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, in the Sakhī sampradāya, male followers assume a female devotional persona. They identify with Rādhā and become women in front of god, enacting and performing in real life the gender fluidity of Hindi devotional poetry. Thus, this paper explores issues of gender fluidity and bhakti in the devotional poetry of the Mīrābāī and Sūrdās traditions, and suggests ways of interpreting notions of gender in the poetic imaginary of the Sakhī sampradāya from the perspectives of gender and ideological criticism.
CONTEMPORARY "SAKHĪ" OF MADHYA PRADESH AND UTTAR PRADESH

Boisvert M. (Speaker)

Universite du Quebec a Montreal ~ Montreal ~ Canada
Though very few individuals claim to be sakhī, it is not uncommon, either in places of pilgrimage or in ascetic milieu when a celebration takes place (bhaṇḍārā), to witness a man dressed as a woman, expressing his feminine identity and dancing in praise of the divine. This paper intends to address this contemporary sakhī identity and its various religious and social declensions. This paper relies on fieldwork conducted in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh (2023, 2024 and 2025) in order to observe and discuss with sakhī; it became clear that these individuals see themselves as very different from hijra - usually described as "third gender people" in India, and earning their livelihood through benediction (āśīrvād) and prostitution. The main objective of this paper is therefore to draw the inherent characteristics of this sakhī community. We will of course discuss the emotional state necessary to maintain, permanently, this female identity, but most of our presentation will rely on our analysis of the social structure inherent to the community: the guru-disciple relationship, support between members, community and personal lifestyle and livelihood. This will enable us to relate religion (modern Hindu bhakti/devotion) to contemporary gender identities and to present sakhī identity as a third devotional gender.

Panel description: The 2025 Scripture & Theology Panel invites scholars to submit papers that explore how Biblical Studies and Systematic Theology inform and shape one another. We seek contributions that analyze current or historical research methods, particularly those that highlight how such approaches can further develop the interaction between Biblical Studies and Systematic Theology. Descriptive or historical accounts are welcome, especially when they demonstrate ways to advance interdisciplinary methodologies. Key questions to consider: • How does research in Biblical Studies draw on insights from Systematic Theology? • In what ways can Systematic Theology benefit from engagement with Biblical Studies? • What methodological changes occur as a result of interactions between these two fields? • What examples of best practices exist for engaging Biblical Studies and Systematic Theology in both historical and contemporary scholarship? We encourage papers that reflect on these intersections and provide methodological insights, whether through theoretical exploration or by presenting a particular research approach. By examining the dynamic relationship between Biblical and Theological research, we aim to deepen our understanding of how these disciplines can challenge and enrich one another, leading to new academic insights. Submissions are welcome from both junior and senior scholars across various faith traditions, with a special invitation for biblical scholars to contribute. For more information about the Scripture & Theology Forum, including details about our members, ongoing projects, resources, and updates also on this panel, please visit scriptureandtheology.org. contact: michael.borowski@gmx.de

Papers:

E PLURIBUS UNUM: MINING BIBLICAL THEOLOGY FOR GUIDING PRINCIPLES IN THEOLOGY IN GENERAL

Borowski M. (Speaker)

VU Amsterdam ~ Amsterdam ~ Netherlands
A central concern of the Biblical Theology Movement was fragmentation. This presentation surveys accounts from the past decades on both implicit and explicit interactions with unity and diversity within the canon, and their effects on theology and Christianity. It argues for a revived effort in theology in general to retrieve the gospel as its guiding principle, starting with a renewed explication of what this gospel contains in biblical theology and what it must mean in contemporary theology. Particular emphasis is given to (1) movements that stand in the tradition of the Biblical Theology Movement (e.g., Postliberal Theology, Theological Interpretation of Scripture, Biblical Narrative Theology) and (2) influential introductions to the New Testament. The presentation seeks (3) guidance from more particular accounts from the past decades, such as those by Peter Stuhlmacher and Wilhelm Thüsing. Overall, there seems to be an understanding of theological method in the narrow sense, which includes reference to certain sources, adherence to certain principles, etc. Yet there also seems to be an understanding of theological method in the broad sense, which centers on adherence to a certain framework, a certain pattern, etc. The study suggests that there are limits within theological methods in the narrow sense, but that there is a need for highlighting theological method in the broad sense.
ANALYSIS OF THE COMPLEXITY OF THE RELATIONS BETWEEN SCRIPTURE AND SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY

Burger H. (Speaker)

Theologische Universiteit Utrecht ~ Utrecht ~ Netherlands
Biblical studies are important for systematic theology, because the Bible is an important book for the Christian church. The Bible is a diverse book, and systematic theology deals with a variety of themes. Hence, it does not surprise that the relationship between Scripture and systematic theology is diverse as well. Both Kelsey and Van Oorschot have shown that theologians use Scripture in a variety of ways. This paper builds on their analyses and attempts to further clarify the complexity of the many relations between Scripture and systematic theology, hence also clarifying the importance of Biblical studies for systematic theology. The paper develops a methodological proposal of why and how (in my view) systematic theologians should use Scripture, analyzing this variety of relations between Scripture and systematic theology. Starting from an argument for the importance of Scripture for systematic theology, the paper in a next step analyses the complexity and the many relationships between Scripture and systematic theology. It will explain why we need a variety of methodological strategies in using scripture. It will deal with several movements: 1. From Biblical words to theological concepts; 2. From metaphors to doctrinal perspectives; 3. From doctrinal passages to theological doctrine; 4. From Biblical narrative to a theological metanarrative; 5. From narrative analysis to the doctrine of God as main character of Scripture; 6. From narrative analysis to mystagogical dynamics. Examples will be used to further demonstrate how different movements are useful at different moments of the systematic-theological work. lit.: Kelsey, David H. Proving Doctrine: The Uses of Scripture in Modern Theology. Harrisburg, Pa.: Trinity Press International, 1999. Oorschot, Frederike van. Schriftlehre, Schriftauslegung und Schriftgebrauch. Eine Untersuchung zum Status der Schrift in der und für die Dogmatik. Dogmatik in der Moderne 40. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2022.

Panel description: The SCRIPTURE&THEOLOGY-FORUM invites responses to Frances Young's two-volume work, "Doctrine and Scripture in Early Christianity". This "Author Meets Critique" panel provides an opportunity for scholars to engage with Young's influential study on the interrelation of doctrine and Scripture in the early church. We seek submissions that not only critically assess Young's historical and theological contributions but also explore how her findings can foster deeper engagement between Scripture and theology today, particularly in terms of theological methodology. Key areas of interest in this context include: • How does Young's methodological approach illuminate the interaction between doctrine and Scripture in early Christian thought? • In what ways can her work inspire contemporary theological reflection, especially on the role of Scripture in doctrinal development? • How can Young's research inform theological methods in engaging Scripture today, both within systematic theology and biblical studies? Submissions should aim to offer constructive and critical reflections on Young's work while also proposing how her insights can contribute to ongoing conversations at the intersection of Scripture and theology. While Frances Young may only be able to join the panel online due to personal circumstances, presentations by proxy are not permitted. Additionally, papers for pre-reading must be submitted by May 15; late submissions will not be considered. We encourage submissions from scholars at all career stages and from a diversity of disciplines. For more information on the Scripture & Theology Forum, please visit scriptureandtheology.org Contact: michael.borowski@gmx.de

Papers:

Panel description: Religion in the workplace has become a recurring theme in European research. However, in recent debates it is mainly the beliefs of employees that have come to the fore. They are often seen in a negative light, as a hindrance to productivity, a source of internal or external conflict, or even more recently as a sign of radicalism. In the meantime, references to traditional religions are increasingly being replaced by a spiritual discourse, highlighting how work-experiences contribute to the construction of the meaning of life. This development is indicative of important choices in Western societies - both in the lives of individuals and in the structural transformation of organisations, in a context of secularisation. This panel will look at the potential for humanisation - hitherto untapped - offered by this trend, which posits service to human dignity, vulnerability, justice and the common good as the axiological horizon of the good life within a community at work.

Papers:

HOW THE SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE TRANSFORMS THE DIACONATE AND THE WORK OF DEACONS

Gedda D. (Speaker)

Université catholique de Lille ~ Lille ~ France
Since the restoration of the diaconate as a permanent degree of the sacrament of Holy Orders at the Second Vatican Council, the call for candidates has multiplied in dioceses throughout the world. Many married men have responded[1]. However, the Magisterium, ecclesial communities and all baptised people have yet to fully grasp this new development. In the ecclesiastical province of Lille in the Hauts de France region, research based on semi-directive interviews has been undertaken. Its aim is to understand how the sacrament of Holy Orders is rooted in the sacrament of marriage experienced by couples whose spouses are permanent deacons, and what transformations and innovations have taken place in their couples and in their ecclesial practices. In the ecclesiastical province of Lille, after the call to the diaconate and a diocesan year of discernment (called year zero), candidates undertake a six-year provincial formation course, with each diocese retaining its own procedures for their progression towards ordination to the diaconate.
IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY AND CHAPLAINCY IN HOSPITALS

Khachan C. (Speaker)

Université de Fribourg - Faculté de théologie ~ Fribourg ~ Switzerland
This contribution deals with ignatian spiritual exercises from a health-centred perspective. The work will help us to define spirituality on the basis of this spiritual current. We are also proposing to open up a new dimension for a spirituality that for centuries has been concerned with healing souls, and to verify its impact on physical healing. So is there a link between the two forms of healing? Similarly, this work will define the links and limits between spiritual care and other disciplines, whether medical, technical or psychological. Based on the 'four weeks' of spiritual exercises, we hope to present a model that makes it easier to provide spiritual care for the sick. A model that is valid for all patients, regardless of their religious affiliation or personal beliefs (philosophical, social, psychological, environmental, etc.). In addition, this work will contribute to the field of pastoral health care through its response to the meaning of life, personal freedom and alienation, autonomy in crisis, and transcendence as a dynamic of hope and openness.

Panel description: Is Death, nowadays, still pornographic (cfr. G. Gorer, "The Pornography of Death", «Encounter», 5(4), 1955, 49-52)? Or does it have a new undeniable, prismatic and productive role in contemporary society? Which are the characteristics and the configurations of its, elusive or concrete, presence in today's interconnected world? And what are the features of the still very strong echoes of its past understandings? Encouraging transdisciplinary and cross-cultural analysis on material and immaterial approaches to death and dying, the panel aims to create an open discussion on thanatopraxis, rituals and socio-cultural attitudes in a synchronic and historical perspective, while also giving space to theoretical reflections on the relationship with death, end of life and mortality. From the socio-material and spatial turns to the newest digital outlooks, while still embracing longstanding academic and methodological attitudes towards ethical and religious consideration of the topic, we wish to explore the theme in all its width, to challenge conceptual boundaries and theoretical postures, addressing the intersections between death and beliefs, death and spirituality, death and politics/institutions, death and technology, death and cultural heritage.

Papers:

THE FUNERAL OF THE BASILEUS IN 9TH AND 10TH CENTURY. RITUAL HANDLING OF THE CORPSE AND MATERIAL CULTURE OF DEATH

Di Cosmo A.P. (Speaker)

University of Modena and Reggio Emilia - ISACCL Bucarest ~ Reggio Emilia ~ Italy
This contribution analyses the role played by material culture in the imperial funeral of the basileus in 9th and 10th century. The research applies archaeological, anthropological, and historical knowledge to describe the activity of the imperial entourage, which resolves issues concerning representation problems in the funeral, while examining the spectacularization and the communication strategies that shaped the etiquette of the Basileia. The imperial funeral was a collective ceremonial that didn't provide the expulsion of the imperial corpse from society and had the aim to transmit reassuring messages to subordinates, while capitalizing public consensus. The ritual represented an expression of the 'theatre of power' and was structured as a mise en scène concocted for the exclusive benefit of the monarchy, but still addressed to the individual participants who could recognize themselves as parts of the political body of the Basileia. The elaborations of the doctrine of power structures in the apparatus of the basileus' caducity the most refined expression of the material culture of Death. This ritual used a series of sensible signs, such as the insignia of the Basileia and the sepulcher in precious marble, which expressed their significance in the spaces reserved for the funeral ceremonies, such as the Sacred Palace or the imperial mausoleums.
SELF-DETERMINATION AND ALGORITHMIC AUTHORITY: CAN AI RESHAPE END-OF-LIFE DECISION-MAKING?

Ropelato T. (Speaker)

University of Turin - Bruno Kessler Foundation ~ Trento ~ Italy
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly introducing groundbreaking tools that are reshaping various aspects of healthcare. While fields like genetics have engaged in complex debates about AI's integration, the application of AI tools — such as machine learning (ML), natural language processing (NLP), and large language models (LLMs) — in end-of-life care has received little attention. Given the human-centric skills traditionally associated with end-of-life care — like effective patient- centered communication, supporting memory-making processes, and enhancing quality of life through spiritual care — some might argue that this field is inherently resistant to AI's transformative impact. Recently, however, discussions have emerged about the potential for predictive algorithms to replace the role of the surrogate decision-maker, a human fiduciary appointed to make decisions for individuals no longer capable of expressing their treatment preferences. Of particular importance is the proposal by well-known bioethicists Bryan Earp and Julian Savulescu: the Personalized Patient Preference Predictor (P4). This fine-tuned LLM leverages machine learning to infer incapacitated patients' preferences using personal data, acting as a "non-emotive digital psychological twin." While this approach aims to respect the principle of autonomy, it raises concerns about quantifying a deeply existential context like end-of-life decisions. Can we, and should we, envision a role for algorithmic tools in such profoundly "human" choices? How do core bioethical principles like autonomy, beneficence, and non-maleficence intersect or conflict in this context? Are we heading toward a future where decision-making authority is delegated to predictive algorithms, even in matters of life and death?
OBSERVING CORPSES. WHEN THANATOURISM MEETS RELIGIOUS HERITAGE

Sabatini R. (Speaker)

University of Turin - Bruno Kessler Foundation ~ Turin ~ Italy
According to Tony Seaton's definition, "thanatourism" consists in engaging in travels to locations wholly or partly motivated by the desire for actual or symbolic encounters with death. It is a wide category that includes very different types of destinations, activities and motives. Its boundaries are porous and intersect other kind of touristic interests such as cultural, historical, memorial and religious ones, that often concern death and its various representations. Nevertheless, sociologically thanatourism is a well definable phenomenon, that underlines the existence of a renovated interest in creating a new physical and symbolic space for death in contemporary society. If, as it has been proven, it's not possible to identify a sui generis type of tourist, with its own characteristics, specifically interested in dark destinations, is it possible to clearly define "black spots" when the sites' significance resides in the connections with other fields of meaning and concern? The exposition of religious human remains - keeping in mind a distinction between relics display, artistic uses of bones, mummies exposed in crypts and catacombs, and museum exhibitions - can be identified as both a religious fact and a thanatourstic opportunity, in a complex semantic layering produced by site management and visitors' fruition and interactions. Death is presumably the main topic of the experience but more often bones and corpses are vehicle of other religious meanings and historical and scientific data that seem to cover the "thantopsis" opportunity, transforming it in something else.
THE PHILOSOPHER, THE DEATH

Germano N. (Speaker)

University of Genoa ~ Genoa ~ Italy
Plato already suggested that philosophy has to do with death: the task of the philosopher is an exercise-for-death, both theoretical and practical. And if then Spinoza, in polite but resolute opposition, could affirm that philosophy was «non mortis, sed vitae meditatio», it is above all because that proposition has, as its subject, the free, wise, man who has already won his struggle against death (against his idea), and so he can act with a confidence that comes to him from a divine, imperturbable, non-mortal science. These two positions, apparently conflicting, finally converge at least in recognizing death's place, even if it is negative. Based on those reflections, Carlo Angelino (1938-2022) proposed, in an intense discussion with the great philosophical, religious, and literary traditions, an antithetical thought. The aim of this talk is therefore to briefly illustrate the main lines of Angelino's discourse, firstly tracing his cultural and theoretical references, with particular regard to Plato, Nietzsche, and Heidegger. Then, secondly, to show how the essential point of that reflection is precisely the thought of death, and that it remains so, only explored in all its abyssal depth, or ambiguity, from the writings contained in "Religione e filosofia" (1983) up to the comprehensive, latest collection "L'essere e/o il male" (2018). Searching, with Heidegger, for a new, different beginning for philosophy, he found it not in Being, but in Evil. From that perspective, only knowledge of finiteness could be conceived, as a mortal knowledge in constant antithetical relationship with that other part - the part of mystery, as opposed to that of certainty - that also constructs reality: evil and good, finite and eternal, death and immortality are the antithetical poles of all human experience. Contracted, these terms suggest a space of the religious, a God who is no longer Gott als Geist (and Geist als Gott), «sibbene Gott als Tod e Tod als Gott».

Panel description: Post-theism, post-secularism, and the transformation of Christianity are interconnected concepts that reflect evolving perspectives on God and religion in today's world. Post-theism describes a theological phase or movement that transcends the traditional idea of God. In this context, there is an emphasis on exploring new ways to conceptualize the divine that move beyond conventional theistic definitions, such as understanding God more as an immanent force or principle rather than a transcendent being. Post-secularism, on the other hand, refers to a stage where secular ideas coexist alongside a renewed interest in religion. In this re-evaluation, secular values recognize that religious beliefs and practices hold lasting importance for many individuals and communities. Rather than religion fading away with modernity, it is adapting and engaging meaningfully with secular culture, especially through a rediscovery of spirituality. The transformation of Christianity is the process involved in the interaction between post-theism and post-secularism. This process does not imply a full return to a religiously dominated society but instead suggests a reconfiguration where scientific, philosophical, and religious perspectives dynamically interact. Consequently, some expressions of Christianity are evolving, embracing more symbolic, allegorical, or ethical frameworks rather than strictly literal or dogmatic ones. Our proposal intends to address this complex, ongoing, and profound process that influences contemporary understandings and expressions of the Christian faith.

Papers:

BEYOND THE DEATH OF GOD

Zambaldi P. (Speaker)

University of Münster
When F. Nietzsche made a madman shout that 'God is dead', he did no more than emphasise that that transcendent 'God' was dead forever, killed by his own believers, because it was a 'God' that was now meaningless. Starting from this observation, M. Heidegger radically challenged the very concept of metaphysics and laid a philosophical foundation for the refusal to conceive of a God 'other' than human experience. From a world revolving around an all-powerful, personal and providential 'God' to a suddenly empty sky; from a reality dominated by historical religions to a world that is finally free and secular; from theism to post-theism... A true change of epoch and perspective that, as planetary humanity, stimulates, frightens and provokes us. In fact, this situation questions us: How do we seek that beyond which man needs? How to live one's spirituality in an adult and conscious way? To find a solution, reflecting on the languages of religion and spirituality is fundamental. Words in fact create and interpret reality, they define us, they help us find the right context. Indeed, language was and is central to humanity's life and search for meaning. In my talk I will examine this crisis of religious languages and how they can evolve in a post-theist perspective. In particular, I will focus on the words that we used to use and that, in spite of everything, we still use when we want to get in touch with the reality that we have been calling 'God'/Theós for millennia. For example, prayer, which is an excellent litmus test for dealing with problematic aspects that urgently need radical, albeit gradual, change. The very term 'prayer', with its meaning of 'request', 'submission' and 'dialogue' with an anthropomorphic and external 'You', must slowly be overcome, evolving towards other and more appropriate expressions such as 'meditation', 'communion', 'immersion'.
POSTTHEISM AS AN ALTERITARIAN PRACTICE

Kern C. (Speaker)

University of Münster ~ Münster ~ Germany
In current theological debate, posttheism is often discussed from the perspective of discourse and conceptual analysis. It is reflected how in posttheistic approaches concepts of God change and how the relationship between God and the world can be defined differently: God not as a sovereign power intervening from the outside, but as a mysterious/mystical, transimmanent depth that is interwoven in all things and manifested in them. The article proposed here supplements this conceptual-analytical view with a performance-analytical perspective, which has so far been rather marginal in the discussion. It treats posttheism not primarily as discourse, but as performative practice. How is posttheism performed? What are the characteristics of posttheistic forms of belief and life? How are social power relations received and shaped in it? On the basis of concrete practical examples such as the "Scuola diffusa di Silenzio", posttheism is reconstructed as a "doing theology" in which the relationship to God and the world is carried out, embodied in a specific way that can be broken down into three basic characteristics: Posttheism as a practice of resistant rejection of sovereignty, as a practice of relationality, as a practice of ungrounded alterity. In posttheistic enactments, socialization and subjectivation take place in an alterity-open way. What needs to be discussed, however, is whether and to what extent this alteritarian practice critically takes up social power relations and puts them up for discussion, or whether it evades this political dimension by spiritualizing it.
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN AN AGE OF TRANSFORMATION

Oliva R. (Speaker)

Pontificia Università Gregoriana ~ Rome ~ Italy
The evolution of European Christianity from the Constantinian era to the Second Vatican Council represents a profound shift in its role and self-understanding within society. Once a dominant force in public life—often termed "Christendom"—Christianity viewed itself as the exclusive interpreter of reality, marginalizing alternative perspectives. However, with the rise of pluralism, a defining feature of modern European societies, this monolithic view began to dissolve. Cultural, religious, and social diversity gradually reshaped Christianity, prompting a transition toward a more open, inclusive form of faith. This shift marks the emergence of a "Christianity of porosity," where faith embodies a hospitable and dialogical spirit, reminiscent of early Christian missionary openness. Instead of seeing diversity as a threat, this approach embraces it as a source of mutual enrichment, facilitating deeper encounters with the divine through diverse human experiences. Pope Francis exemplifies this transformative vision. His teachings emphasize moving beyond moral rigidity to a focus on joyful proclamation, grounded in compassion and inclusivity. Documents such as Evangelii Gaudium, Amoris Laetitia, Laudato Si', and Fratelli Tutti advocate a Church that values goodness in human vulnerability, champions ecological responsibility, and upholds universal fraternity as essential to human dignity. By fostering spiritual discernment and embracing diversity, this renewed Christianity seeks to engage meaningfully in a pluralistic, globalized world, adapting to the spiritual and social challenges of contemporary life.

Panel description: Political events of nowadays are showing very clearly how important is the Church for Ukrainian society. History of religious denominations is an inexhaustible source of facts for building statements and arguments on the cultural and political orientation of Ukrainian state and society. This panel deals with the premodern time, when different cultural and confessional identities were shaped on the Ukrainian lands. Moreover, at this time, the first narratives of national importance appeared among Ruthenian Church intellectuals (both Uniate and Orthodox). In 1990s, Ukrainian scholars started to argue Ukrainian Christianity was not an amorphous mixture of external influences but represents a certain tradition. However, the question what were the distinctive features of this phenomenon remains open, leaving the concept of Kyivan Christianity under development. Nevertheless, as German researcher Klaus Koschorke has repeatedly shown, the history of the Church must be treated as a polycentric movement with the proper attention to the plurality of Christian centres. Can we speak of Kyivan Christianity as a separate phenomenon and of Kyiv as one of the centres of the World Christianity? This panel is aiming to give an answer to that question, taking into consideration a long years research of the Ukrainian history and theology.

Papers:

"TO HEAVEN…OR TO HELL…": ENEIDA, NEW UKRAINIAN LITERATURE, AND THE OLD KYIVAN THEOLOGICAL TRADITION IN THE IMPERIAL PERIOD

Potapenko S. (Speaker)

M. S. Hrushevsky Institute of Ukrainian Archeography and Source Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine / Goethe University Frankfurt am Main ~ Frankfurt on Main/Kyiv ~ Ukraine
The idea of my paper is to (re)read some classical texts, created during the long 19th century and representing modern Ukrainian literature, in order to scrutinize the plots and features characteristic of the Kyivan theological thought which developed in the earlier periods—especially, in Mohyla's epoch—and the entire complex of peculiarities which can be defined as "Kyivan Christianity", according to the renowned conception recently elaborated by Ihor Skochylias. I hypothesize that the Russian imperial synodal reforms introduced in the Kyivan Orthodox metropolitanate during the 18th century were not effective enough, and therefore certain interpretations inherent to the Kyivan theological tradition, as well as typical practices of local religious life, continued to exist further on the territory of the former Hetmanate, albeit in a hidden/not easily detectable way. Ivan Kotliarevsky's Eneida occupies a prominent place among such texts since it is commonly considered to symbolize the beginning of modern Ukrainian nation-building. Written in a "simple" language and first published in 1798, it bridges the "old" (early modern) and "new" (modern) phases of Ukrainian literary history and contains such seemingly unexpected plots as a description of Purgatory. What other passages might be relevant in the light of the Kyivan ecclesiastical tradition? I plan to examine the novels of Ivan Nechui-Levytsky and the works of other Ukrainian authors.
CHALLENGING THE RUSSIAN IMPERIAL NARRATIVE OF THE HISTORY OF UKRAINIAN THEOLOGY: A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF GEORGES FLOROVSKY'S WAYS OF RUSSIAN THEOLOGY.

Gavrilyuk P. (Speaker)

University of St. Thomas, Minnesota ~ Minnesota ~ United States of America
This paper analyzes Florovsky's treatment of the Kyivan Theological Tradition in his magnum opus, The Ways of Russian Theology. I argue that Florovsky failed to sufficiently understand the distinctiveness of this tradition because he took the political narrative of Russian imperial history for granted. The assumption of the imperial narrative led Florovsky to evaluate all western influences upon Ukrainian theology as distortions (he borrowed Oswald Spengler's term "pseudomorphosis" to describe the phenomenon) of Christian Hellenism, which he considered normative for Orthodox theology. In conclusion, I identify the unique features of the Kyivan Theological Tradition and chart a way for the future studies of the ways of Ukrainian theology.
TRANS-CONFESSIONALITY IN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY KYIVAN METROPOLITANATE: CULTS OF SAINTS IOV OF POCHAIV AND JOHN THE NEW OF SUCEAVA

Almes I. (Speaker)

Ukrainian Catholic University ~ Lviv ~ Ukraine
The paper concentrates on the issue of trans-confessionality in the Eighteenth-Century Kyivan Uniate Metropolitanate. Tridentine style unification and the Zamość Council of 1720 created a Uniate confessional culture. But the cults of two Orthodox saints are great examples of trans-confessional practices in eighteenth-century Uniate (Basilian) monasteries: Pochaiv and Zhovkva. The cult of the saints after the confessional conversion of the monasteries from Orthodox Christianity to Eastern Catholicism (Uniate) continued being practiced; however, it was unofficial, meaning a strictly local cult. The transfer of relics from Suceava to Zhovkva led to the cult's emergence in a new place that had not previously been associated with St John (the patron of Moldavian lands and trade) in any way. In the summer of 1686, Polish king Jan Sobieski, returning from a Moldavian war campaign, took Metropolitan Dosytheus and St. John the New relics from Suceava. The relics first came to Stryi and then to Zhovkva (now a city in Ukraine) monastery. The fact that the Polish king himself, as the promoter of the cult, relocated the relics to the Zhovkva monastery was one of the most powerful arguments for practicing the cult despite confessional borders. The cult of Iov Zhelizo was closely connected to the relics and to his patronage of the place. The power of the relics overcame confessional boundaries despite official rules and bureaucratic procedures. What were the strategies involved in practicing the cult of a non-beatified person for Catholics but a saint for Orthodox? And for what reasons did the cult of the local saint dominate official prescriptions? Research also discusses the borderless cultural practices beyond political (Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Wallachia from the Ottoman empire) and confessional (an Orthodox saint in an Eastern Catholic monastery) borders.
ORTHODOXA CONFESSIO FIDEI LITERATI AND (UN)ORIGINAL THEOLOGICAL JUSTIFICATION OF THE GIFT GIVING BY KYIVAN LITERATI IN THE EARLY MODERN PERIOD.

Prokopyuk O. (Speaker)

National Museum Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra / Goethe University Frankfurt am Main ~ Kyiv ~ Ukraine
The paper is dedicated to the analysis of the theological justification of the gift giving formulated by Kyivan literati of the early modern period. The main source will be the Orthodoxa Confessio Fidei or Catechism, a doctrinal text by Petro Mohyla and Isaia Trofymovych- Kozlovsky, which sets out the Orthodox doctrine in a certain system. The Code was reviewed and adopted by the Church Council of Eastern Patriarchs in Iassy in May 1642. The final version of the Orthodoxa Confessio Fidei, translated into Greek, was approved by the Church Synod in Constantinople on 11 March 1643 as the general doctrine of the Orthodox Church. The main considerations set out in the Orthodoxa Confessio Fidei regarding the gifts and their relation to prayer and salvation were detailed in the prefaces to the commemoration books (pomennyk, synodyk) of Kyivan monasteries of the 17th and 18th centuries and confirmed the idea of the Church as an institution in which gifts circulate, already present in doctrine and canon law. Until then, theological justification of the gift giving by Kyivan literati has not been studied, especially the question of (un)original, which is of paramount interest given the common or different ideas about death and salvation among Orthodox, Uniates, Roman Catholics, and Protestants. In order to address these general questions, it is worth answering some specific questions, for example, about the system of arguments used; about the selection of texts that were referred to confirm the idea, etc. While the Orthodoxa Confessio Fidei sets out the ideas that defined gift giving, the prefaces to the commemoration books, based on its, provided models that established everyday practices. In addition, each monastery had to take care of its centrality and formulated a separate offer for donors.
THE INVENTION (?) OF THE KYIVAN THEOLOGICAL TRADITION IN THE 17TH CENTURY: CONTINUITY OF TEXTS AND IDEAS.

Sinkevych N. (Speaker)

University of Leipzig ~ Leipzig ~ Germany
The term "Kyivan theological tradition" is not commonly used. With the light hand of Georgy Florovsky, the works of Kyivan authors have been suspected for several decades of distortion (pseudo-metamorphosis) of true Byzantine Orthodoxy. This thesis, eagerly taken up by Russian historiography, is reinforced by the illustration of Western borrowings in the works of Kyivan Orthodox authors and is also to be found among contemporary theologians and historians, who seem to be forced to apologise for the "Latinism" of Kyivan authors. Not better is the situation with the appraisals of the Uniate theology. Scholars underlined that the Uniat Church broken the connection between lex credendi and lex orandi accepting the Catholic theology and thus lost the integrity between its theological and liturgical life that is of a great importance in the Eastern Church. Most of the scholars, however, did not consider the fact that the Eastern Christian theology at the beginning of the 17th century was still dogmatised that left a certain space for independent theologising and interconfessional debates. Kyivan controversial theology aimed to draw a clear line between the Kyivan and other traditions. The late 17th - beginning of the 18th centuries was a golden age of Kyivan theology that moved in many directions: anti-Protestant, anti-Catholic and anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish ones. Without breaking with their declared loyalty to the Byzantine tradition, Kyivan intellectuals came under the influence of Western post-Triduum theology in virtually all its areas: Mariology, Christology, soteriology, angelology, asceticism, etc. Despite the criticism from Moscow, Kyiv, as Natalia Yakovenko aptly puts it, lived "in its own theological and intellectual rhythm."
HOLY RUS AND HISTORY: IN SEARCH OF THE SOURCES OF 'KYIV' AND 'MOSCOW' ORTHODOX HISTORIOGRAPHY.

Morawiec N. (Speaker)

Jan Dlugosz academy ~ Częstochowa ~ Poland
The paper will analyse the views of Kyiv and Moscow Orthodox authors on the Orthodox history. Particular attention will be paid to fluctuations in historical interpretations made under the influence of political-confessional changes in the 16th-19th centuries. These interpretations were constructed by Orthodox-Catholic theological polemics after the Union of Brest. The loss of Kyiv to the Commonwealth in the 17th century led to a new vision of the Moscow-Kyiv history ('Sinopsis') that began to permeate Russian soil during the reign of Peter I who actively used the 'Malorussians' to provide state reforms and building of the imperial historiography (from Teofan Prokopovich to George Konissky). Catherine II's exaltation of the 'Velorussians' and Platon Levshin's creation of a 'Moscow' synthesis of the history of Russian Orthodoxy initiated further interpretive transformations. They were aimed at preparing an imperial interpretation of the history of the Orthodox Church, yet typically Russian. However, subsequent political and confessional changes led to a questioning of the hegemony of Orthodox historiography written by 'learned monks' and the emergence of an 'oberprocuratorial' vision (Mikhail Muravyov), a 'West Russian' vision (Yosef Semyashko), or a vision of secular researchers.
SOME ASPECTS OF THE MEDIEVAL ORIGINS OF KYIVAN CHRISTIAN TRADITION.

Chemodanova O. (Speaker)

Charles University ~ Prag ~ Czech Republic
High Middle Ages in Kyivan Rus' left us a splendor of sources which shed the light to its Christian spiritual practices, worldviews and theological ideas. These sources are various, including chronicles, lives of saints, testaments, sermons, travel diaries, inscriptions on the walls of old churches, and so forth. Contradictory to the theory of modern nations they testify to the existence of imagined proto-national communities based on common language and religion, not only on dynastic loyalty. They also reveal the spoken language. Moreover, they show religious convictions and individual piety of the age. The history of Kiev Rus' or Kyivan Rus' became a battle between Russian imperial historical narrative, claiming it to be the cradle of triune nation, and Ukrainian historiography, stating that Kyiv was always Ukrainian. Unfortunately, the first narrative is still firmly dominant amongst theological academia, who inherited it from the Russian Orthodox White emigration. Even in the 21st century, the whole medieval period of Kyivan state is automatically attributed to Russia, while Ukrainian language and culture are regarded to be the fruit of Polish influences. In my presentation, I'm not going to deal intensively with historiographic debates. Instead, I would like to give the voice to medieval Kyivans themselves - to trace their concerns and ideas from pages of the Primary Chronicle by Nestor, the Testament of Volodymyr Monomakh to Children, the Sermon on Law and Grace by Hilarion, metropolitan of Kyiv, and other primary sources. This classics, however, helps to grasp their spiritual, national and political imagination. It also posts a question whether a Kyiv theological tradition emerged in that era and, if so, what features it had.

Panel description: This panel examines transformation and interfaith dialogue through the following seven interlinked themes: 1. How interfaith dialogue can transform faiths, individuals, and/or communities 2. Case studies and historical examples of spiritual, religious, political, intellectual, and/or social justice transformations through encounters with religious others 3. Failures of transformation amidst interfaith encounters 4. Pioneers of interfaith dialogue and transformation 5. Key or overlooked texts advocating transformation through interfaith dialogue 6. How to nurture transformation through interfaith dialogue initiatives in schools, places of worship, rituals, praxis, and pilgrimages, etc. 7. Obstacles that inhibit transformation through interfaith dialogue or virtues that can promote robust interfaith transformation * Please send proposals of 300-500 words with a clear title, structure, and focus, along with your cv, to Peter Admirand at peter.admirand@dcu.ie. Panels will be arranged thematically, or by specific interfaith dialogues, if pertinent (i.e., Muslim-Hindu; Jewish-Buddhist; Christian-Indigenous Faith; Atheist-Theist. etc.).

Papers:

SHAPING GLOBAL CITIZENS THROUGH INTERRELIGIOUS COLLABORATION: THE INTERFAITH COALITION CONFERENCE FOR GLOBAL CITIZENS

Lefebure L. (Speaker)

Georgetown University ~ Washington, DC ~ United States of America
This presentation will discuss the initiatives of Won Buddhists from South Korea who founded the Interfaith Coalition Conference for Global Citizens as a creative response to the crisis of the Covid pandemic. In 2000 we met online to discuss the future of religion after Covid and launched a movement to develop a sense of global citizenship in diverse contexts. After meeting again online in 2001 about 2002, we met in person in Seoul in August 2023, where The Honourable Ban Ki-moon, former secretary general of the United Nations, delivered the keynote address. The presentation will conclude by discussing the ICCGC's collaboration with the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CoNGO) in co-hosting an international interreligious conference on "Global Action on Peace, Sustainability, and Prosperity" at the Church Center of the United Nations in August 2024. The goal of the conference was "to pursue peace, human security, dignity, and planetary sustainability" through fostering collaboration and solidarity among religious communities in diverse contexts around the world; at the conclusion we issued a consensus declaration: "A Call to Global Community and Action for a Just, Peaceable, Inclusive, and Sustainable World."
THE TRANSFORMATION OF CHRISTOLOGY AFTER INTERFAITH DIALOGUE

Admirand P. (Speaker)

Dublin City University ~ Dublin ~ Ireland
The transfiguration of Christ (Mark 9:2-13; Matthew 17:1-13; Luke 9:28-36) and the sacramental belief in transubstantiation both speak of change and stability. In the transfiguration in Mark's gospel, we read: "And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling bright, such as no one on earth could brighten them." While the disciples were said to be "terrified" by this illumination, the voice of God, as at the baptism of Jesus and later through the mouth of the Roman Centurion at the cross speak, of the sonship of Jesus. Changed, but not changed, or the change still results in a core identity, an element of sameness. In the Catholic belief of transubstantiation, the bread and wine consecrated by a priest at mass, becomes the body and blood of Christ. As 1413 in the Catholic Catechism states: "Under the consecrated species of bread and wine Christ himself, living and glorious, is present in a true, real, and substantial manner: his Body and his Blood, with his soul and his divinity." In this paper, I want to argue that the interfaith encounter, and often embrace and even critique, of the Christian belief of Christ, is another kind of transformation that is both miraculous and sacramental, if we take the two examples above. And like those two examples, the transformation that occurs can overpower what had been before. The Jesus on the way up the high mountain and the Christ who returns with the disciples (though the act is not narrated) is still, in many ways, the same—but yet also clearly perceived as (or become) radically different. For Catholics, the bread and wine offer a distinctive but parallel meditation. Taking a Buddhist, Jewish, and Muslim interpretation, embrace, or critique of Christology, I will endeavor to see how this interfaith, transformed Christology is still, as it were, my Jesus, even as these interfaith words will encourage, if not demand, a transformation within.
ENGAGING WITH DISCOURSES ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND GENDER JUSTICE IN INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUES: A TRANSFORMING MATTER?

Grung A.H. (Speaker)

University of Oslo ~ Oslo ~ Norway
Interreligious dialogues take many shapes and may have different aims, depending on various contexts and the partners involved. In the Norwegian context of interreligious dialogue, the Secular Humanist Organization has been an involved party since the start of these dialogue endeavours, entailing a re-naming of the activity into "faith and worldview dialogue" to make the inclusion visible. But the strong presence of the Secular Humanists has also meant that the language and epistemology of Human Rights has become a kind of lingua franca within the interreligious dialogue in Norway, because this is a strong commitment in this worldview community. In the Norwegian society, gender equality and gender justice is perceived as fundamental values, and there has been suspicions and prejudices against religious communities which is apprehended not to adhere to gender equality. This paper will discuss how engaging with discourses of Human Rights in interreligious dialogues has shaped and possibly transformed interreligious dialogues in the Norwegian context regarding discussions on Gender Equality and Gender Justice.

Panel description: Post-secularism, and the transformation of Christianity are interconnected concepts that reflect evolving perspectives on God and religion in today's world. Christianity is undergoing a process of transforming itself in transcending the traditional idea of God. In this context, there is an emphasis on exploring new ways to conceptualize the divine that move beyond conventional theistic definitions, such as understanding God more as an immanent force or principle rather than a transcendent being. Post-secularism, on the other hand, refers to a stage where secular ideas coexist alongside a renewed interest in religion. In this re-evaluation, secular values recognize that religious beliefs and practices hold lasting importance for many individuals and communities. Rather than religion fading away with modernity, it is adapting and engaging meaningfully with secular culture, especially through a rediscovery of spirituality. The transformation of Christianity is the process involved in the interaction between post-theism and post-secularism. This process does not imply a full return to a religiously dominated society but instead suggests a reconfiguration where scientific, philosophical, and religious perspectives dynamically interact. Consequently, some expressions of Christianity are evolving, embracing more symbolic, allegorical, or ethical frameworks rather than strictly literal or dogmatic ones. Our proposal intends to address this complex, ongoing, and profound process that influences contemporary understandings and expressions of the Christian faith.

Papers:

POST-THEISM AND REFORM OF CHRISTIANITY

Gamberini P. (Speaker)

Pontifical Theological Faculty of Southern Italy ~ Naples ~ Italy
The faith consciousness of the new generations appears to be increasingly secularized, as if God no longer existed; it is an agnostic and indifferent generation. This raises the urgent question of how and what kind of God should be proclaimed in this post-secular time and society. Interestingly, in the meantime—in this post-secular society—mysticism and recent scientific discoveries in quantum physics and neuroscience, for example, are revealing a vision of reality that is understood at its deepest level as interconnected. This "interconnected" vision of reality is not only proposed by many quantum physics theorists but has also always been the mystical vision of the great religions. Unlike the atheism of the 19th and 20th centuries, post-theism does not reject all forms of transcendence, but only the kind of transcendence in which God is conceived as "separate from the world," "intervening" from time to time with some supernatural revelation or miraculous action. Post-theism fulfills what atheism, clearly indicated by the privative prefix (a-theism), had already attempted to do, namely, to deny the "God" of religion. However, atheism was—at least in my view—a partial attempt at denial, because it in fact denied a particular and specific image of God, namely the theistic one, but it did not seek to deny the reality of God as the foundational ground of reality. This issue has remained, so to speak, unresolved. One need only think of the concept of "transcendence without any heavenly transcendence" in Ernst Bloch's Principle of Hope. It is a denial of the transcendence of the transcendent, not of transcendence as such. Post-theism adopts Bloch's "immanent" vision, as it denies the transcendent God of theism, understood as Someone who is outside and separate from the cosmos, with the cosmos itself viewed as something external, outside of transcendence.
THE DEATH OF GOD AND THE GOD OF CHRISTIANITY

Zambaldi P. (Speaker)

University of Münster ~ Münster ~ Germany
When F. Nietzsche made a madman shout that 'God is dead', he did no more than emphasise that that transcendent 'God' was dead forever, killed by his own believers, because it was a 'God' that was now meaningless. Starting from this observation, M. Heidegger radically challenged the very concept of metaphysics and laid a philosophical foundation for the refusal to conceive of a God 'other' than human experience. From a world revolving around an all-powerful, personal and providential 'God' to a suddenly empty sky; from a reality dominated by historical religions to a world that is finally free and secular; from theism to post-theism... A true change of epoch and perspective that, as planetary humanity, stimulates, frightens and provokes us. In fact, this situation questions us: How do we seek that beyond which man needs? How to live one's spirituality in an adult and conscious way? To find a solution, reflecting on the languages of religion and spirituality is fundamental. Words in fact create and interpret reality, they define us, they help us find the right context. Indeed, language was and is central to humanity's life and search for meaning. In my talk I will examine this crisis of religious languages and how they can evolve in a post-theist perspective. In particular, I will focus on the words that we used to use and that, in spite of everything, we still use when we want to get in touch with the reality that we have been calling 'God'/Theós for millennia. For example, prayer, which is an excellent litmus test for dealing with problematic aspects that urgently need radical, albeit gradual, change. The very term 'prayer', with its meaning of 'request', 'submission' and 'dialogue' with an anthropomorphic and external 'You', must slowly be overcome, evolving towards other and more appropriate expressions such as 'meditation', 'communion', 'immersion'.
POST-THEISM AS AN ALTERITARIAN PRACTICE

Kern C. (Speaker)

University of Münster ~ Münster ~ Germany
In current theological debate, posttheism is often discussed from the perspective of discourse and conceptual analysis. It is reflected how in posttheistic approaches concepts of God change and how the relationship between God and the world can be defined differently: God not as a sovereign power intervening from the outside, but as a mysterious/mystical, transimmanent depth that is interwoven in all things and manifested in them. The article proposed here supplements this conceptual-analytical view with a performance-analytical perspective, which has so far been rather marginal in the discussion. It treats posttheism not primarily as discourse, but as performative practice. How is posttheism performed? What are the characteristics of posttheistic forms of belief and life? How are social power relations received and shaped in it? On the basis of concrete practical examples such as the "Scuola diffusa di Silenzio", posttheism is reconstructed as a "doing theology" in which the relationship to God and the world is carried out, embodied in a specific way that can be broken down into three basic characteristics: Posttheism as a practice of resistant rejection of sovereignty, as a practice of relationality, as a practice of ungrounded alterity. In posttheistic enactments, socialization and subjectivation take place in an alterity-open way. What needs to be discussed, however, is whether and to what extent this alteritarian practice critically takes up social power relations and puts them up for discussion, or whether it evades this political dimension by spiritualizing it.

Panel description: Philosophy of religion emerges historically as a theory about human religious expression. While the trend in the development of the field, both in the analytic and continental traditions, has been to privilege doctrinal reflection at the expense of questions pertaining to the socio-cultural aspect of religions, recent decades have witnessed a change in orientation. Indeed, philosophy of religion is diversifying its field by increasingly focusing on the analysis of religious practices and communities, as well as on their creative or conflicting relationship with the multiple factors that characterize the global transformation of modern civilization. Religion and faith continue to play a fundamental role within social change and are a vital part of cultural expression. The philosophy of religion panel thus invites paper proposals that engage with diverse social and cultural transformations from a religious-philosophical perspective. For questions please contact Dr. Brandon Watson (brandon.watson@uni-muenster.de) or Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Grosshans (grosshans@uni-muenster.de).

Papers:

TRANSFORMING METAPHORS: LAKHOFF AND JOHNSON ON EMBODIED PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION

Watson B. (Speaker)

University of Münster ~ Münster ~ Germany
This paper argues for the embodied metaphorical experience of cultural and societal transformation. The mechanism for experiencing such transformation is through the metaphors that encase and are embedded within human existence, those from which human lives cannot escape. Human lives, and society by extension, are thereby metaphorically transformed. The paper explores the work of Lakhoff and Johnson in an effort to extend their thesis of both metaphorical existence and the embodied reality of philosophy into the modality of the transformation of human experience through religious metaphorical speech.
WHAT SOCIAL MEANING DOES AN INTERCULTURAL TRANSFORMATION OF PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION ENTAIL?

De Caprio D. (Speaker)

University of Strasbourg ~ Strasbourg ~ France
The renewal of philosophy of religion seems today to be unable to avoid a diversification in terms of the philosophical categories and religious phenomena. In this way, the issue of an intercultural transformation of the discipline emerges, in which the transcendental or pragmatic conditions that govern a hypothetical global communication between different philosophical-religious traditions are placed at the center. This paper aims to question the social meaning and model of human coexistence that can be derived from pluralistic (M. Burley) or normative (V. Harrison, K. Schilbrack) approaches to the diversity of religious systems. The paper asks in particular whether such approaches pose a challenge to classical models of multicultural liberalism, thereby opening a space for describing and evaluating the asymmetry between practices of minority and majority religions

Panel description: This panel brings together scholars from a range of disciplines who study the difficulties and possibilities of tolerance in a variety of settings. These include Christian as well as Shiite Islamic and African indigenous religions from both European and non-European contexts in contemporary and past societies. As the invited scholars are members of the research unit "The Difficulty and Possibility of Tolerance: The Multifaceted Challenges of the Concept and Practice of Tolerance", funded by the German Research Foundation, their papers will be closely linked to the disapproval-respect model of tolerance developed by the social psychologist Bernd Simon (Kiel). According to this model, tolerance is the result of disapproval being restrained by respect or respect being burdened by disapproval. In both cases, therefore, tolerance is the recognition of disapproved others as 'different equals' - in this case 'different' because of their membership of a particular religious group - and 'equal' because of their shared membership of a superordinate ingroup (i.e. the same society). There are, of course, many implications of this model which is a very valuable heuristic tool. In our papers we use the model to identify and discuss the possibilities and limits of tolerance in the context of religion.

Papers:

"CONCEPTIONS OF TOLERANCE AND INTOLERANCE IN POETIC TEXTS: CATHARINA REGINA VON GREIFFENBERG AND THE NOTION OF UNIFIED CHRISTIANITY IN THE FACE OF THE COMMON ENEMY"

Klimek S. (Speaker) , Stolzenberg L. (Speaker)

Kiel University, Germany ~ Kiel ~ Germany
Particularly in confessional poetry, groups that were otherwise silenced and excluded from the tolerance discourse that had been smoldering since the Reformation, such as heterodox and/or women, were able to overcome these predetermined group categorizations and express their ideas. While the Thirty Years' War, caused by opposing denominational groups within Christianity, was pacified by the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, group categorization shifted with the steadily increasing advance of the Ottoman Empire since 1656. In this paper, S. Klimek and L.-S. Stolzenberg will trace this shifting categorization through the poems of Catharina Regina von Greiffenberg. They aim to show how her encouragement to tolerate other Christian denominations against the backdrop of a united and purified Christianity, which as such has better arguments for the conversion of non-Christians, reveals a dynamic conception of tolerance between the poles of inter-denominational tolerance and inter-religious intolerance.
"RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE IN TIMES OF TROUBLE? IRAN'S RELIGIOUS MINORITIES AND THE ISLAMIC REPUB-LIC DURING THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR"

Michel S. (Speaker)

Kiel University ~ Kiel ~ Germany
The eight-year conflict between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and the newborn Islamic Republic of Iran witnessed widespread calls for mobilization on both sides. In light of the disapproval-respect model of tolerance, this paper evaluates the Iranian regime's call to minorities for a national yet "Holy Defense" and the responses of Jewish, Christian (both Armenians and Assyrian Chaldeans), and Zoroastrian communities. By drawing on diverse sources, from individual memoirs to official statements from the Islamic Republic, this paper shows that the regime employed a rhetoric of national unity while occasionally advocating for the mobilization of minorities on religious grounds, such as a shared theology of martyrdom between Christians and Shia. In return, leaders of religious minorities used both secular (nationalistic) and religious arguments to justify or deny their participation in the war. Beyond the arguments of the ingroup and outgroups, the model will also inform our identification of concrete instances of tolerance between the Shia majority and religious minorities on the warfront.
"RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE IN COLONIAL TIMES: THE CASE OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE IN IVORY COAST"

Nakou V. (Speaker)

University of Passau ~ Passau ~ Germany
Religion played a pivotal role in the colonization of African peoples, often serving as both a tool of control and a point of contention between colonial authorities and local communities. This presentation examines the concept of religious tolerance under colonial rule, using the case of Côte d'Ivoire to explore the limitations and contradictions of such policies. While colonial powers, particularly the French, promoted an image of tolerance towards indigenous religious practices these policies were often selective and coercive, favouring the dominance of Christianity and marginalizing traditional and Islamic beliefs. By analysing archival documents and historical accounts, this study highlights how religious tolerance was strategically manipulated to maintain colonial power, revealing deeper insights into the complex dynamics of faith, governance, and resistance in colonial Africa. The findings offer a critical perspective on the enduring legacies of colonial religious policies in contemporary West African societies.
"PRACTICES OF TOLERANCE AND INTOLERANCE IN IRAN: SHIITE JURISTS FACING 'APOSTATES' AND 'HERE-TICS'"

Pistor-Hatam A. (Speaker)

Kiel University ~ Kiel ~ Germany
In this paper, A. Pistor-Hatam will show that although from the very beginning (C19th), the new religious movements of the Bābīs and later the Bahāʾīs in Iran were rejected and opposed by Shiite clerics in particular, there still exist(ed) instances of tolerance according to the disapproval-respect model of tolerance. Since both beliefs are considered to be outside the range of permissible and therefore tolerated 'deviations', many clerics react(ed) with disgust and rejection to such 'blasphemy'. Consequently, the persecution of Bābīs and Bahāʾīs has accompanied their history in Iran ever since. Yet, from the beginning of these new religious movements to the present, individual Shiite scholars in Iran have tamed their disapproval of the non-permissible religious other by respect for the believer, the fellow constitutionalist or the compatriote.
"SUPRA-CONFESSIONAL COMMUNITIES AND THE IMPERATIVE OF TOLERANCE ON THE SHAKESPEAREAN STAGE"

Schindler K. (Speaker)

Université de Fribourg ~ Fribourg ~ Switzerland
This paper considers the role of group categorisation, both national and confessional, in early modern discourses of tolerance as they are represented on the Shakespearean stage. Despite the culturally dominant early modern view of England as an essentially Protestant nation, this paper takes as its starting point the observation that Shakespeare's drama frequently imagines alternative political and religious communities: forms of English nationhood that include Catholicism in addition to Protestantism, but also the pre-Reformation notion of the "common corps of Christendom" that is nostalgically involved in his history plays, for instance. Using plays such as King John (c. 1596) or Sir Thomas More (c. 1600) as case studies, this paper aims to investigate to what extent such larger communal identities can serve to buttress the imperative of toleration beyond confessional boundaries. In doing so, it seeks to test the extent to which the empirical disapproval-respect model of toleration may also apply to the history of ideas and cultural practices of early modern England.
"RELIGIOUSLY MOTIVATED TOLERANCE: THE COMMANDMENT TO LOVE ONE'S NEIGHBOR FROM THE HEBREW BIBLE AS MOTIVATION FOR TOLERANCE"

Steinebach L. (Speaker)

Protestantse Theologische Universiteit ~ Utrecht ~ Netherlands
For tolerance to be stable in a plural society, people need good reasons to adopt tolerant attitudes and practice tolerance. In her paper, L. Steinebach will offer a perspective on the commandment to love one's neighbor as a religious motivation for tolerance. She will focus on the way in which the commandment promotes equality-recognition between different groups by encouraging an empathetic attitude and corresponding behavior towards one's (disapproved) neighbor. Special emphasis shall be given to the affective, cognitive and behavioral dimensions of both tolerance (as depicted in the disapproval-respect-model) as well as neighborly love to find commonalities and differences.
"SOCIAL IMAGINARIES AND ECCLESIOLOGICAL FOCUS: THE CHURCH AS PRACTICE GROUND OF TOLERANCE"

Zeller K. (Speaker)

Protestantse Theologische Universiteit ~ Utrecht ~ Netherlands
A recent study has shown that protestant churches in Germany can be regarded as practice grounds of democracy and, in prolongation, also of tolerance. In her paper, Kinga Zeller discusses possible explanations arguing that it is especially an ecclesiological focus on the center instead of the borders of the church as well as the use of certain social imaginaries that foster tolerance. With regard to the disapproval-respect-model of tolerance she highlights the role of intragroup respect, suggests ways to strengthen it, and offers criteria for its limits.

Panel description: The reception of texts of the Christian Old Testament in the first centuries is coined by the text hermeneutics of late antiquity as well as by philosophical and theological presuppositions. Christian exegesis was based on earlier Jewish work with the biblical text and struggled to find a specific Christian interpretation. This is at the same time a process finding one's own identity and of delimitation and the construction of hermeneutical others, be it "Jews" or "Judaizers" or "heretics". Philology, philosophy and theology, text and community determine the reception of the Bible. The panel presents four examples from the discursive field of early Christian biblical interpretation illustrating the exegetes' engagement with the texts and with different traditions of interpretation.

Papers:

THE RECEPTION OF THE GREEK-JEWISH MESSIANIC READINGS OF ISAIAH IN THE CHURCH FATHERS OF THE II CENTURY CE

Bonanno B. (Speaker)

Université catholique de Louvain ~ Louvain ~ Belgium
Studies on the Greek versions of the Bible have mostly focused on the Septuagint (LXX), often overlooking the contributions of the Jewish Minor Versions. Conversely, research in Patristics has tended to examine these versions only when they appear in specific controversies. Recent scholarship, however, has underscored the significance of the Jewish Minor Versions, highlighting not only the insights they offer into the development of biblical texts but also their importance for understanding the Jewish theological and cultural context from the II century BCE onward and their role in shaping Christian identity.
THE FIGURE OF SOLOMON IN 2KI 1-11, ACCORDING TO THEODORET

Elliott M. (Speaker)

University of the Highlands and Islands ~ Moray and Perthshire , Scotland ~ United Kingdom
One can get a good indication how important an interpreter of the historical books Theodoret was and remained at least for the first millennium from the evidence of Catenae, that of Procopius (Scholia) and others (e.g. CatLeipzig), even if he himself was not averse to borrowing' from Diodore. This popularity suggests that Theodoret's work was not time-conditioned by mentioning political specifics of his own time. He approached Sam-Ki from the starting-place of the Pentateuch, as it were, and in that way is not prone to over-contextualise in his interpretations. Two recent works dealing with ninth-century interpretations, which might be classified as 'Reception-Historical', are very different. M. Riedel ('Biblical Echoes in the Taktika of Leo VI' [2018]) has outlined Photius' pupil Leo VI's 'self-identification with Solomon', in turn responding to J. Haldon's 2014 monograph on the same work. Solomon is portrayed as judicious, fearing the Lord in a Deuteronomic way, living out the wisdom of his own proverbs. More critical of such discourse as 'totalising' (Foucault via A. Cameron) is the study by Y. Stouraitis on the imperial ideology of holy war, with the monarch as one who kept true to Deut 20, in his Krieg und Frieden in der politischen und ideologischen Wahrnehmung in Byzanz (2009). Theodoret, by contrast, is better understood as presenting an image of a king who is no straightforward hero, fit for imitation, but as one whose figure encompasses saint (son of God) and sinner (deviating from the law of God). His judgements are neutral about Imperial ideology, for his categories are theological and larger. The paper will look at how his treatment of 2Ki 1-11 according to the text of Quaestiones in Reges et Paralipomena: ed. N. Fernandez Marcos (1984), contained a theological impression of Solomon's story that is neither lost in ancient history nor drowned in Byzantine historical reception.
"A TOWER WITH ITS TOP IN THE HEAVENS" - THE RECEPTION HISTORY OF GEN 11

Meiser M. (Speaker)

Universität des Saarlandes ~ Saarbrücken ~ Germany
Ancient Christian exegetes interpret Gen 11 with regard to "historical" and theological questions: ‎How is the unity of languages possible after the distribution of the sons of Noe (Cf. Augustine, Qu. ‎Gen. 20, CCSL 33:6). What was the sin of the human beings? (John Chrysostom, Hom. Gen. 30.2, PG ‎‎53: 275; Augustine, Qu. Gen. 21, CCSL 33:7: stulta audacia et impietas). What is the meaning of the ‎phrase cuius caput erit usque ad caelum" (Augustine, Loc. Gen. 34, CCSL 33:384: Secundum ‎hyperbole dictum est). What was the material for the building? (The Venerable Bede, In Gen., CCSL ‎‎118a:153). What is the reference of the plural "let us descend" in Gen 11:7 (Augustine: Qu. Gen. 22, ‎CCSL 33:7 et al.: angels), especially after the notice of God's descending Gen 11:5 (Augustine, Civ. ‎‎16:5, CCSL 48: 506) ; The Venerable Bede, In Gen., CCSL 118a:154)? What was God's intention ‎‎(according to Cyril of Alexandria , Glaph. Gen. 2, PG 69:77cd, by the dispersion of human beings and ‎languages, God intended to stop human thoughts which go beyond human capability. John Chrysostom, ‎Hom. Gen. 30.3, PG 53:277, underlines God's philanthropy). What is the Interpretation of the name ‎Babel (The Venerable Bede, In Gen., CCSL 118a:156: Confusion). What is the spiritual interpretation ‎of Babel (The Venerable Bede, In Gen., CCSL 118a:157: diabolic city)? At the end, the ‎interpretations of Gen 2 as antitype of Acts 2 are presented.‎
THE INTERPRETATION OF CULTIC AND ETHICAL LAW IN LEVITICUS IN ORIGEN'S HOMILIES

Siquans A. (Speaker)

Universität Wien ~ Wien ~ Austria
One of the central discussions in early Christianity—and finally the crucial point of division from Jewish groups—was the relevance of the Mosaic law for Christian believers. Blackburn (2021) identifies several strategies for interpreting the Mosaic law: it was given to the Israelites due to their obstinacy and wickedness; it had a limited pedagogical aim; it was given for a certain period and came to an end through Christ. The most important answer to the problem was a figurative interpretation of the Old Testament law. Origen uses this approach to the Book of Leviticus in his homilies as an encompassing hermeneutical concept. Not every commandment in the Old Testament, however, can be interpreted allegorically or typologically. Christian interpreters thus make a distinction between cultic and ethical law(s). In the Homilies on Leviticus Origen concentrates on cultic law as the more problematic part for the Christians for which he provides Christian and Christological interpretations. His basic principle is Rom 7:14 where Paul states that "The law is spiritual," and he extensively uses the Letter to the Hebrews for his explanations. Nevertheless, the boundaries are not always easy to draw and there are also interpretations on the level of the literal sense and the moral sense. The paper wants to show the different and differentiated approach to the law by Origen, originating from and supporting his intention to retain the Old Testament as Holy Scripture for his Christian audience.

Panel description: This panel brings together studies in theological history, church history, public theology, practical theology, ethics and systematic theology. Historical examples, cases studies and personal experiences are aligned with descriptive and normative analyses of transformation processes and claims concerning the presence and work of God. World history: How is God present to the world in times of gross and often dangerous changes affecting life on the planet earth? Social history: Can we find God's creative presence in historical processes of socio-cultural transformation? Church history: How is God's presence conceptualized in times of drastic ecclesiastic change (reformation, church growth or decline)? Personal history: How is God's presence experienced in processes of biographical transformation (conversion, crises, radicalization, post-traumatic growth)?

Papers:

DISCERNING GOD'S PRESENCE IN THE ANTHROPOCENE

Van Den Brink G. (Speaker)

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam ~ Amsterdam ~ Netherlands
God's presence to the world has traditionally been conceived of in terms of conservation, governance and concurrence. But what do these concepts mean now that the earth, due to patterns of human (mis)behaviour, is transitioning from a relatively stable Holocene into a much more precarious "Anthropocene", i.e., in a time of irreversible depletion of natural resources, mass biodiversity loss and species extinction, and global climate change? To what extent is the entangled web of creation with all its creatures "great and small" still the object of God's abiding presence and providential care? I will argue that we will need to reconceive of God's providential presence for our times, using more concepts than the traditional triad so as to do justice to the dynamic and often dramatic interplay between God and creatures, in accordance with the much more "polyphonic" (David Ferguson) biblical account of God's presence.
DISCERNING THE THEOLOGICAL VALUE OF SOIL

Huijgen A. (Speaker)

Protestantse Theologische Universiteit ~ Utrecht ~ Netherlands
Christian theology currently needs reflection on the theological status of the earth, in particular the soil. How does the fact that it feeds humans who cultivate it and forms the actual basis of human existence inform doctrines of creation, pneumatology, and eschatology? This paper addresses such questions in discussion with Norman Wirzba, and against the background of nationalist movements in Europe that give their soil special status.
PERSONAL TRANSFORMATIONS: THE CONTESTED CASE OF JAIL CELL CONVERSIONS

Van Willigenburg T. (Speaker)

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam ~ Amsterdam ~ Netherlands
Numerous are the reports of hardened criminals behind bars who claim to have found a "new life in Jesus" involving substantial changes in attitudes and behaviours, changes in beliefs and goals, and changes self-understanding and destination. How genuine are such conversions? Finding God might be a convenient way to impress parole boards and judges! In order to find out, we first need to understand what a religious conversion is. Sociological accounts of religious conversion (a radical change of group adherence), as well as (socio-)psychological accounts (reconfigurations of one's self-narrative as an effective coping strategy) provide self-evident immanent construals of the phenomenon, given what Charles Taylor describes as the "modern social imaginary" that precludes transcendence. I will argue that such construals are problematic because the event and process of religious conversion cannot be clearly delineated and fully understood without reference to an encounter with a transcendent reality. In addition, I wonder whether Taylor's own 'poetico-performative' view on religious (re)conversions can make room for the reality of the presence of God as witnessed by jail cell converts.
THE GUIDANCE OF THE SPIRIT AND DEPENDENCE ON DIVINE PROVIDENCE

Van Den Belt H. (Speaker)

Theologische Universiteit Apeldoorn ~ Apeldoorn ~ Netherlands
For the Christian, life's dependence upon God is an important factor, especially in periods of biographical turmoil and change. But what exactly is meant by such dependence and how does it influence the lives of believers? How does it shape prayers and everyday choices. This paper offers a reflection on the practical consequences of faith in God's most special providence (providentia specialissima). This paper offers a description of dependence as a practical consequence of belief in God's providence based on several source texts from the Reformed tradition and reflects on the relationship between these expressions of faith in providence and the sense of dependence as a characteristic of general religiosity (Friedrich Schleiermacher).
BORN FREE? A TRIADIC VISION OF CHRISTIAN LIBERATION AMONG YOUNG SOUTH AFRICANS

Forster D. (Speaker)

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam ~ Amsterdam ~ Netherlands
The so-called "Born Free" generation - South Africans born after the nation's 1994 democratic transition - carries the complex inheritance of political freedom. Yet, the promise of freedom remains incomplete, as structural inequalities, systemic violence, and socio-economic exclusions persist. This paper critically examines the unfinished task of "freedom" for this generation, engaging the theological frameworks of memory and liberation. Drawing on Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela's triadic vision of the memory of trauma, I explore how the "Born Free" generation confronts the lingering wounds of apartheid, mediated through personal, intergenerational, and collective memory. Gobodo-Madikizela's framework invites a reflection on how healing can arise from an ethical engagement with the past, as well as from fostering new social imaginaries. I will further engage Robert Vosloo's concept of liberative memory and Allan Boesak's theological vision of a hope-filled future. Together, these frameworks emphasize the transformative potential of remembering not only past suffering but also the unrealized promises of liberation, offering young South Africans a path toward reimagining their agency and dignity within a fractured society. By employing these theological insights, this paper will argue for a Christian vision of liberation that integrates the memory of trauma, the liberative promise of hope, and the ethical enactment of justice. This triadic framework illuminates the divine presence in history, particularly in the ongoing struggle for freedom, inviting young South Africans to embody and co-create a future shaped by equity, dignity, and reconciliation.

Panel description: Hell occupies an important place in the religious imagination across various cultures. This panel will examine ways in which the idea of hell(s) is negotiated across different religio-cultural contexts. It will explore hell as a dynamic concept that is both continuously transformed and transforming. First, how has the idea of hell been transformed in different religious traditions? As a recurring theme in the global history of religions, hell is a liminal idea in two ways. On the one hand, it has given rise to a wide spectrum of interpretations, partly because it is an intersection where eschatology, anthropology, soteriology, and ethics converge. On the other hand, this spectrum is shaped by the ambivalence of hell. In many contexts, hell has never been unequivocally affirmed, but has consistently been challenged by its "rivals" escape, relief, and purification (Alan Bernstein). Therefore, the idea of hell oscillates between its endorsement as a prerequisite for postmortal justice and its rejection as metaphysically inconsistent or morally bizarre. Drawing on case studies from Buddhist, Hindu, and Islamic traditions, the panel will explore how the liminality of hell serves as a catalyst for the development of different doctrinal strategies for transforming the idea of hell. Second, how does the idea of hell transform religious materiality and the cultural imagination? Hell has never been an isolated idea, but has exerted a profound influence on the shape of religious materiality, spirituality, and pop culture. Case studies focusing on the construction of religious space, interpretations of near-death experiences, and the figure of the zombie will complicate the often-stated assumption that the idea of hell is a declining phenomenon in the contemporary religious landscape. Instead, they will investigate how hell continues to haunt the interstices of lived religion and (post)modern cultural imagination - but not without remaining unchanged in the process.

Papers:

HINDU HELLS IN VEDĀNTA

Völker F. (Speaker)

University of Vienna ~ Vienna ~ Austria
It is widely believed that there are seven main hells in Hinduism. However, according to the Brahma-, Śiva- and Viṣṇu-Purāṇa, there are altogether twenty-eight hells, whereas the Garuḍa-Purāṇa knows of more than eight million hells that vividly demonstrate the possibility of an intensification of suffering and pain in the afterlife. The paper explores the different notions of hell in Hinduism and its theological interpretations in the Vedānta of Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja, and Madhva.
ESCHATOLOGICAL PUNISHMENT AND THE INHABITANTS OF HELL IN IBN AL-'ARABĪ'S PERSPECTIVE

Emirahmetoglu E. (Speaker)

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin ~ Berlin ~ Germany
This paper will explore Ibn al-'Arabī's eschatology by focusing on three aspects of his understanding of hell. Ibn al-'Arabī's writings offer a unique interpretation of divine mercy that diverges from the traditional views of reward and punishment in Islamic theology. His perspective on God's mercy as the foundation of all existence - emphasizing its precedence over God's wrath - raises important questions about the nature of suffering and punishment in hell. To address these questions, the paper will first present the different categories of the "people of the fire" (al-mujrimūn), including the proud (al-mutakabbirūn), the associators (al-mushrikūn), the atheists (al-mu'aṭṭila), and the hypocrites (al-munāfiqūn). The exploration of who qualifies for hell will be connected to Ibn al-'Arabī's view on infidelity and humankind's knowledge of God, which is, for him, intrinsic to every single being, influenced by individual perspectives, constantly evolving, and often expressed in contradictory forms, including aspects of association.
HOW BODHISATTVAS TRANSFORM BUDDHIST HELLS

Schmidt-Leukel P. (Speaker)

University of Muenster ~ Muenster ~ Germany
According to traditional scholastic Buddhist texts, there are at least 144 hells. Although stay in none of those hells is literally eternal, it is nevertheless incredibly long and the broad range of tortures stretches sadistic imagination beyond the extreme. Given that compassion plays a central role in Mahāyāna Buddhism, some of its scriptures introduce the teaching that Bodhisattvas enter the various hells in order to transform them into rather pleasant places and liberate their inmates from their horrendous pain. The paper explores how Bodhisattvas can do that and speculates what this might imply for a renewed Buddhist concept of hell.
HELLS IN JAPANESE BUDDHISM AND THEIR ADOPTION IN RELIGIOUS SITES

Rüsch M. (Speaker)

University of Muenster ~ Muenster ~ Germany
This talk addresses the problem of hell in Japanese Buddhism in two parts. First, it examines the concept of various hells and their relationship to bad actions by focusing on a key text in this context, Genshin's Ōjō yōshū ("Essentials of Birth [in the Pure Land]"). Second, the talk explores how contemporary religious sites in Japan incorporate the concept of hell within their precincts and halls. This includes so-called earthly representations of hell, such as Osorezan ("The Mountain of Fear"), the role of hell in mountain asceticism (Shugendō), and halls enshrining images of Enma (Skt. Yama), the king of hells. The aim is to elucidate how various aspects of Buddhist hells and their doctrinal foundations are emphasised in Buddhist practice as manifested in Japanese temples.
HELL AND NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES

Schneider M. (Speaker)

University of Muenster ~ Muenster ~ Germany
The study of near-death experiences (NDE) represents a growing area of clinical and psychological research, which has also attracted increasing attention from Religious Studies and Theology. Nevertheless, NDE and their study are highly controversial: seen by some as an expression of a lush, individualistic postmodern spirituality, others regard NDE as a robust indicator of the possibility of life after death. In general, however, research into NDE phenomena has often focused on its positive forms, while neglecting the occurrence of distressing or even "hellish" variants. This paper will explore the transformation of hell from the perspective of NDEs: do distressing NDEs transform contemporary eschatological imaginations as much as their more joyful counterparts? Can cross-cultural comparisons of contemporary hellish NDEs and related phenomena, such as reports of afterlife journeys, shed new light on the emergence of eschatological beliefs?
THE WORKING DEAD: ZOMBIES IN THE RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL IMAGINATION FROM HAITI TO HOLLYWOOD

Burkhardt S. (Speaker)

University of Muenster ~ Muenster ~ Germany
In the African-diasporic religion of Haitian Vodou there is a cosmological space of desirable death and afterlife as well as hell-like states of doom: wandering on earth without their eternal soul, this state of existing is known as zonbi. As it was encountered by Western visitors of the island its story of the pop cultural figure of the Zombie began and has ever since been a product of quite different cosmologies and specific Euro-American fears. This talk will explore selected stations of the entangled history of the Zombie and what its transformations reveal about the dark side of their respective new and old home cultures.

Panel description: D. Tonelli - G. Mannion, Exiting Violence: The Role of Religion, De Gruyter 2024 In the 20th and 21st centuries, where violence has scarred countless lives, the interplay between religion, politics and conflict remains a complex web. Exiting Violence seeks to unravel some of the knots, showing not only how faith can contribute to bloodshed, but also how it can inspire peace and build bridges. Starting from the assumption that theology, religion and faith are different aspects of what we loosely (and ambiguously) call "religion," the chapters that make up the book analyze and discuss the criteria by which it is possible to understand the involvement of religion in conflicts, offer case studies ranging from Japan, China , India to Israel North America, and South America, analyze concrete cases in which religion has helped bring societies and communities out of situations of violence and hatred, offer tools to reflect on the instrumentalization of religious communities, of the deviance of theology into ideology, and of the importance of the spiritual dimension in overcoming the drifts of religious affiliation. Analyzing different religious traditions, contributing scholars explore the interplay between religion and violence through a variety of interdisciplinary, cross-cultural, and interfaith methods. In particular, the variety of approaches and methodologies pays attention to the fields of political science, ethics, history, sociology, law, philosophy, theology, and religious studies. Exiting Violence offers a nuanced and thought-provoking exploration of the multifaceted role of religion in the human struggle for peace and justice. The book is the result of an international collaboration between FBK-ISR, Reset Dialogues Among Civilizations and Georgetown University's Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs.

Papers: