The 24th Nordic Conference in the Sociology of Religion (NCSR 2018) ~ 1-3. August 2018.

The Association for the Sociology of Religion (ASR) welcomes you to attend our 2018 Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA.

Our 2018 theme, “Strengthening Weak Ties to other Sociological Subdisciplines,” highlights the meeting overlap with the American Sociological Association (ASA), Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP), Association of Black Sociologists (ABS), and other sociological associations.  Furthermore, the ASR Annual Meeting schedule maximizes participation opportunities for those who are interested in both the ASR and the ASA Religion Section activities.

Jennifer Glass will be our featured speaker and will discuss religion and politics in everyday life.

Please visit our website at https://www.sociologyofreligion.com/annual-meeting/ for more information, including registration and hotel reservation instructions.   We welcome non-ASR members to attend our annual meeting.

You may pay a reduced registration rate if you would like to become an ASR member (visit our home page  https://www.sociologyofreligion.com/ for membership information).

Please contact ASR Executive Officer, Rachel Kraus, at ASREO@bsu.edu with any questions.  We hope to see you in Philly!

ORIENTALISM, NEO-ORIENTALISM AND POST-ORIENTALISM

IN AFRICAN, MIDDLE EAST, LATIN AMERICAN, ASIAN/CHINESE STUDIES

15th Anniversary of Memory of Edward Said (1935-2003)

and 40th Anniversary of His Book (1978)

MAY 17 – 18, 2018

CENTER FOR GLOBAL STUDIES, SHANGHAI UNIVERSITY – CHINA

PRELIMINARY CONFERENCE PROGRAM

https://orientalismconference.blogspot.com/2018/04/international-conference-orientalism.html

Dears,

Prominent Arab philosophers and thinkers took part in the conference, which was attended by a large audience during the two days of the proceedings; these scholars include Hassan Hanafi (Egypt), despite his old age and move in wheelchair, Abu Yaareb al-Marzuki (Tunisia), Muhammad Shahrur (Syria), Ali Oumlil (Morocco), Abdeljabbar al-Rifai (Iraq), Abdellah Seyyid Ould Bah (Mauritania),  Ridwan el-Sayyid (Lebanon), besides many others; female scholars and activists, like Fahima Sharafeddine, Suad Joseph, Magda Essanoussi, underlined especially gender issues and their challenges in the Arab world, and beyond. Youth voices were very present during the discussion sessions and contributed to energetic debates.

Hanafi centralized the role of human change and perpetual interpretations of religion and the tradition, and asked the youth to rebel whenever their rights and aspirations are not met by the ruling class or are threatened by external hegemons; he demanded an urgent revival of the humanist spirit in the tradition; al-Marzuki underlined the role of history and economics in human growth, and challenged the idea of renaissance and awakening, saying that without strong and independent economies and serious ethics of work, social growth may remain a wishful thinking; at the same time he enumerated the various benefits of the early Arab Renaissance of the 19th and early 20th century, among which the revival of the Arabic language and literatures; ultimately, he said that the current catastrophes in the Arab world reflect the crises of not only the Arabs but those of the modern world as well; the Arab world has a civilizational mission, and should not be eclipsed by the ongoing ruins and wars; this region has a place in world history and it can always revive it, differently, creatively, he said. Al-Rifai called for reinvigorating the humanist aspect of religion, and argued that religion is not only law; law is a very small aspect of which, and it is historical; Shahrur went so far as to say that the Muslim legal scholars have misunderstood the Islamic message, and made of law its core; he also said that early Muslim theologians and legal theorists centralized the life of the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions, in mimicry of Christianity and the centrality of Jesus Christ, at the expense of the Quran, whose central place has to be reclaimed for renewal. As for

Ould Bah and Oumlil, they both read the current political crisis as a return to pre-modern notions of sectarian politics by which the established institutions of the modern states are put to the ground in a number of Arab countries and capitals. El-Sayyid, after having critically examined the Quranic studies literature in Western academia, went back to the Arab world to say that the current young generations of Arabs at the university for example lack interest in local issues and in the ideas of reform and renaissance because they belong to a more digital and global generation; their concerns are different, and it is challenging to expect them to have the same concerns as those of the pioneers of reforms.

In sum, these big figures that represent the 1967 generation of Arab philosophers and intellectuals all emphasized the need of real ethical work to not only save what could be saved but importantly to renew the old hopes of the Arab Renaissance of the 19th century, by underlining human rights, humanist values, pluralism, rule of law, and economic growth. The congress ended by launching the birth of Arab Renaissance Center for Thought, as part of ARDD foundation.

One could not but be optimist despite the dark present in the region and around the world! Arab scholars have given this message of hope as a moral duty for the locals first, and for the world outside as well.”

Pilgrimage Studies Network

EASA2018 conference: Staying, Moving, Settling
Stockholm University, 14-17th August 2018

PILNET panel: Changing Face of European Pilgrimage

Convenors
– John Eade (University of Roehampton and University of Toronto)
– Mario Katić (University of Zadar)

Short abstract
In this panel we want to examine intellectual contributions and debates involving the anthropological study of pilgrimage both across Europe and further afield. We want to locate the region within a global context where research draws on both European and non-European traditions.

Long abstract
In the rapidly expanding interdisciplinary field of pilgrimage studies, which covers not just religious pilgrimage but other key forms such as secular pilgrimage, spiritual pilgrimage, dark tourism, the relationship between travel, tourism and pilgrimage, many of the theoretical debates, methodological approaches and researchers have focused on the European context and most contributors are European in origin. In contemporary Europe the influence of different types of migration and tourism is becoming evident at some major Christian shrines and has also led to the emergence of non-Christian sites (primarily Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim). The diversity and complexity of pilgrimage practices is also apparent at more local shrines in the Balkans and the Mediterranean, for example, as members of trans-local communities return to their native countries during the summer holidays or re-settle. The growth of spiritual and secular pilgrimage and religious tourism adds to this diversity and complexity. Battlefield tourism and military pilgrimage illustrate the importance of cultural heritage since Europe continues to act as a magnet to non-European visitors, such as Canadians, Australians and New Zealanders, who feel connected through a shared past. In this panel we want to examine intellectual contributions and debates involving the anthropological study of pilgrimage (religious, spiritual, secular etc) both across Europe and further afield. We want to locate the region within a global context where research draws on both European and non-European traditions. We want to discuss not only the issues of reflexivity and autobiography but also discursive traditions linked to political and cultural systems.
To propose a paper:
https://nomadit.co.uk/easa/easa2018/conferencesuite.php/panels/6479

Dear colleagues,

The Chair of Law and Religions, the Research Institute of “Religions, Spiritualties, Cultures and Societies” (RSCS) at the Université Catholique de Louvain, and National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS) Belgium, jointly organize the international conference on halal “Rethinking Halal: Genealogy, Current Trends, and New Interpretations,” to be held at the Université Catholique de Louvain, in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, on 18-19 June 2018.

Please find attached the poster and two-day programs’ conference for more detailed information. If you happen in Belgium this incoming Summer, please join us and register at the link below:

https://uclouvain.be/fr/instituts-recherche/rscs/cdr-halal-project.html

Kind regards,

Ayang Utriza Yakin

Chaire de droit et des Religions

Institut de recherche Religions, Spiritualités, Cultures, Sociétés (RSCS),

Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL),

Collège Albert Descamps, Grand Place, 45, Bte.L3.01.02

B-1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, la Belgique.

Téléphone portable : (+32) 04.89.12.69.53.