Religionising Fieldwork and Fieldworking Religion: Hermeneutics of the engagement between religion and research methodologies in the field
3-4 November 2008

School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

Convenors:

James Kapalo, SOAS, Dept. Study of Religions
Stefania Travagnin, SOAS, Dept. Study of Religions

Keynote address:

Prof. Paul Gifford, Chair of African Christianity, SOAS, Dept. Study of Religions (more…)

Conversion and Time in Global Pentecostalism:
a lifelong ‘live’ experience

VU University Amsterdam
11-13 June 2008
Venue: Gebouw Pinkstergemeente Amsterdam
Arent Janszoon Ernststraat 302 Amsterdam

The conference seeks to explore new directions for the study of conversion looking specifically to Pentecostalism. The need for new directions emerged out of the work of the research program Conversion Careers and Culture Politics in Global Pentecostalism at the VU University in Amsterdam.

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On the 27th and 28th of March 2008 the Leiden Institute for the Study of Religions (LISOR) is holding a conference with the title Religion, Public or Private? 

Keynote speakers include: 

• Prof. Meerten B. ter Borg, Leiden 
• Dr Bart Labuschagne, Leiden 
• Prof. David Novak, Toronto 
• Dr Armando Salvatore, Berlin 
• Prof. Linda Woodhead, Lancaster

The programme and other details can be found on: http://www.leidenuniv.nl/gg/Ficl/index.html

The School of Theology and Religious Studies at Bangor University,
Wales, will host a conference about the interpretations of spirit
possession between the 16th and 17th of May.
Spirit Possession is the key practice in many religions worldwide and
the cause of many prejudices against certain religions. The aim of the
conference is to discuss, debate, and evaluate the relevance of new
interpretations of spirit possession and their application to new
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EASA 2008 conference: Experiencing Diversity and Mutuality

26-30 August, Ljubljana, Slovenia

African Christianities in Europe: the politics of religious recognition

(W029)
Location TBA
Date and Time TBA
Convenors
Simon Coleman (University of Sussex) s.m.coleman@ sussex.ac. uk
Ramon Sarró (Institute of Social Sciences, University of Lisbon)
ramon.sarro@ ics.ul.pt

Through an analysis of how some migrant churches seek recognition within and interact with other forms of Christianity, this panel explores the capacity of African Christian diasporas to reconfigure the European religious heritage, influence local identities and establish international connections.
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New Media and Religious Transformations in Africa
International Conference
Abuja, Nigeria, July 10-12 2008

Centre for the Study of African Culture and Communication
Catholic Institute of West Africa
Port Harcourt

(text link)

The next international conference of the European Research Network on Global Pentecostalism (GloPent) will be held at the University of Heidelberg on February 1-2, 2008 under the title “Theory and Method in the Study of Global Pentecostalism”.

Keynote lectures by Allan Anderson, Elizabeth Brusco, Michael Bergunder, Mark Cartledge, Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen and Birgit Meyer.

see for more details and programme

In view of a research project on dance culture by social scientists from the Meertens Instituut and the VU University, both at Amsterdam, we organize a one-day seminar entitled ‘Party Formations’, in which experts on dance are invited to join the research team in thinking about the contents and practical aspects of this research. In this seminar we will explore what kind of research is needed and which specific research questions have to be posed for the disclosure of the political, moral and religious meanings of dance, and in particular, for the ways in which dance could be shaping identities and world views of ‘dancers’ and ravers. You are kindly invited to attend this seminar.

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Announcement and Call for Papers
Rethinking Religion in India
24-27 January 2008
Delhi, India

Increasingly, it is felt that the current knowledge about the Indian culture and its traditions is unsatisfactory at best or erroneous at worst. In the domain of religious studies, in postcolonial studies and in the field of comparative science of cultures, scholars have begun to argue that the questions and conceptual framework for the study of India and its religions are firmly embedded within the Western cultural history. Therefore, Rethinking Religion in India, a five year international conference cluster, aims at developing an alternative theoretical framework to understand the Indian religions and traditions. The Research Centre Vergelijkende Cultuurwetenschap (Ghent University), the Centre for the Study of Local Cultures (Kuvempu
University) and the Karnataka Academy of Social Sciences and Humanities (KASSH) invite you to participate in this joint endeavour.
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The British Sociological Association Study of Religion Group

Study Day, 17th November, 2007

Call for papers on the subject of

Religion, Spirituality and Gay Sexuality

The subject of gay sexuality and religion has become one of the most contentious issues for the contemporary Christian Church. It has also developed as a concern for many of the other major world religions, as well as a number of new expressions of religiosity and spirituality. This study day, to be held at the University of the West of England (UK), seeks to explore a number of themes for which papers are invited. It is hoped that a selection of papers, in one form or another, will be published. (more…)