Welcome to the Committee for the Study of Religion

The Committee for the Study of Religion exists to promote interdisciplinary research on religion and religions. It develops various historical and comparative research projects that address religion and the sacred, and their complex and diverse manifestations in modern societies. In addition to the ‘world religions’, our concerns extend to modern spirituality and new religions. The Committee encourages research into the globalization of religion and global religions. Questions surrounding secularism, secularization and post-secular society are also considered by the Committee.

Events and Announcements

Narrating Conversos and Crypto-Jews Today: Blood, Religion, and the Past”

May 01, 2013
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
GC 5307

English Professor Dalia Kandiyoti of the College of Staten Island will speak about the re-emergence of crypto-Jewish and converso history in recent global fictions and personal narrative. The question of “returns” — to religion, ethnicity, and ancestry — and the kinds of pasts presented by narratives of recuperation and repair will be discussed.   Narrating Conversos and Crypto-Jews [read more»]

Land and Catastrophe: Dispossession and the Imagination in Native American History

May 03, 2013
5:30 pm
CUNY Graduate Center Room 9206/9207

The colonization of North America involved a violent conflict with Native Americans resulting in both physical and cultural destruction. Our symposium will explore catastrophe in Native American history within the framework of land, dispossession, and imagination. [read more»]

The Religious and the Political: A Comparative Sociology of Religion

Announcing a new book by Bryan S. Turner, Graduate Center of the City University of New York The Religious and the Political A Comparative Sociology of Religion While the relationships between ethics and religion, and violence and politics, are of enduring interest, the interface between religion and violence is one of the most problematic features of the contemporary world. Following in [read more»]

Islamic Feminism in Kuwait: The Politics and Paradoxes

April 24, 2013
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
GC 5307

Alessandra Gonzalez, a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at John Jay College, presents material from her new book: Islamic Feminism in Kuwait: The Politics and Paradoxes. Click here for the book’s introduction, which will be the basis for the seminar. Islamic Feminism in Kuwait: The Politics and Paradoxes
Date: Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Time: 12:30 pm – 2:00 [read more»]

Announcement of International Workshop: The Future of Religious Pluralism in Europe

International Workshop: The Future of Religious Pluralism in Europe Friday, May 17th – Saturday, May 18th 2013 Academic Direction: Volker Heins (KWI), Riem Spielhaus, (EZIRE) Location: Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities (KWI), Gartensaal, Goethestr. 31, 45128 Essen, Germany Organizer: Research Unit “Interculturality” at the KWI & Erlangen Centre for Islam & Law in Europe (EZIRE) Recent [read more»]

Catholicism: Crisis or Catastrophe?

May 15, 2013
12:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Room 5307

Catholicism: Crisis or Catastrophe? May,15th 2013 | 12.30-5pm Room  5307 | CUNY Graduate Center   We can define a crisis as a temporary set-back or problem for an institution or an individual for which there are solutions. The idea of crisis comes originally from medical science – the patient can recover from a crisis with the correct response. Catastrophe is [read more»]

American Exceptionalism

April 19, 2013
1:00 pm - 6:00 pm
CUNY Graduate Center Room 5307

The Mellon Committee for the Study of Religion will be discussing American exceptionalism, historical and contemporary, on Friday, April 19th, 1-5pm. This will be followed by a wine reception to launch the Committee’s publication based on last year’s seminar, War and Peace: Essays on Religion and Violence (edited by Bryan S. Turner). [read more»]

Burning for Peace in Tibet: Recent Self-immolations as Political Protest (seminar)

April 17, 2013
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
GC 5307

David Gardiner, Associate Professor of Religion, Colorado College In the past four years, over 110 Tibetans have burned their entire bodies in public, the majority ending in death. This is unprecedented in Tibetan history. How can we understand this painful practice? What social, political and religious issues are lit up by these self-sacrifices? Who is listening to this [read more»]

Call for papers: Special Issue of Gender & Society

Gender is one of the most salient features of religious movements and religious institutions. Women are the majority of participants in religious life and they are increasingly significant actors in religious movements and politics. In many religious traditions, cultural and religious continuity hinges on gendered practices and sexual regimes. Many regions of the world are experiencing important transformations with respect to religion. For instance, China has seen an enormous upsurge in participation in religious and spiritual movements, including large numbers of women. Evangelical Christianity is an increasingly significant player in society and [read more»]