Description

This seminar examines the transformations of religion in contemporary Europe, focusing on three themes: growing religious diversity, the rise of secularisation and nonreligion, and the challenges of managing religious plurality in democracies. It explores how religious identities are constructed and contested in public discourse, often shaped by misunderstandings and stereotypes. The visibility of religious practices in secular spaces raises questions about the boundaries between private belief and public expression.

The course investigates how affiliation, belief, and practice are evolving, using sociological frameworks to analyze the fragmentation of traditional institutions and the rise of individualized spirituality. It considers the impact of migration and minority dynamics on the religious landscape, with attention to both established and new communities.

Secularisation is addressed as a contested, context-dependent process. The seminar contrasts models of secularisation and explores the coexistence of religious and secular worldviews in pluralistic societies, introducing the concept of multiple secularities.

Special attention is given to legal and political frameworks regulating religious expression, with a focus on tensions between neutrality, equality, and recognition. The French model of laïcité is examined alongside other European approaches. The seminar also addresses the situation of religious minorities in Europe and neighboring regions.

Modalités d'organisation et de suivi

Each student will write a research paper and will present his/her work in
class.

Disciplines

• Cultures et langues régionales

Informations complémentaires

Samim Akgönül, Anne-Sophie Lamine, Anne-Laure Zwilling

akgonul@unistra.fr 

Bibliographie

Public Space and beliefs in Europe », in P. Bréchon and F. Gonthier, eds., European values: Trends
and divides over thirty years, Leiden, Brill, 2017, 104-122.
Davie D., « Vicarious Religion: A Methodological Challenge », in Ammerman N. T., ed., Everyday
religion: Observing modern religious lives, Oxford University Press, 2006, 21-35. 18
Davie G., « Managing Pluralism: The European Case », Society, 51.6, 2014, 613-622.
Fadil N., « Managing affects and sensibilities: The case of not‐handshaking and not‐fasting », Social
Anthropology, 17.4 2009, 439-454.
Fadil N., « Performing the salat [Islamic prayers] at work: Secular and pious Muslims negotiating the
contours of the public in Belgium », Ethnicities, 13.6, 2013, 729-750.
Hervieu-Léger D., « The transmission and formation of socioreligious identities in modernity: an
analytical essay on the trajectories of identification », International Sociology, 13.2, 1998, 213-228.
Iannaccone L. R., « Why Strict Churches are Strong », American Journal of Sociology, 99.5, 1994,
1180-1211.
Jouili J., « Negotiating secular boundaries: Pious micro‐practices of Muslim women in French and
German public spheres », Social Anthropology, 17.4, 2009, 455-470.
Lamine A.-S., « Dimensions of Belief : Oscillations, Confrontations, Toughening », in A. D. Ornella, ed.,
Making Humans: Religious, Technological and Aesthetic Perspectives, Oxford, Inter-Disciplinary Press,
2015, 21-41.
Lamine A.-S., « "I doubt ; Therefore, I Believe.” Three Modalities of “Belief in the Making » in Gl. Ganiel,
Ch. Monnot and H. Winkel, eds., Religion in Times of Crisis, Leiden, Brill, 2014, 72-90.
Lamine A.-S., « Singular Pluralities. A Review on Religious Pluralism », Religion and Society, 4.1, 2013,
150-166.
Lamine A.-S., « Religion as Experience. Dialogue with John Dewey », Social Compass, 65.4, 2018,
667-683.
Spickard, J. V., « What is happening to religion? Six sociological narratives." Nordic Journal of Religion
and Society 19(1), 2006, 13-29.
Stolz, J., « Secularization theories in the twenty-first century: Ideas, evidence, and problems », Social
Compas, 67.2, 2020, 282-308.

Webography
European Values Survey, Church attendance : https://i1.wp.com/europeanvaluesstudy.eu/wp-
content/uploads/2018/09/visitreligiousservices.jpg?ssl=1 ; European Values Survey, Importance of
God : https://i0.wp.com/europeanvaluesstudy.eu/wp-
content/uploads/2018/09/importanceofgod.jpg?ssl=1

Contacts

Responsable(s) de l'enseignement

• Samim Akgönül
• Alexandre Kostka
• Anne-Sophie Lamine
• Dimitrios Kargiotis

MCC

Les épreuves indiquées respectent et appliquent le règlement de votre formation, disponible dans l'onglet Documents de la description de la formation.

Régime d'évaluation

CT (Contrôle terminal, mêlé de contrôle continu)

Évaluation initiale / Session principale - Épreuves