Judith Könemann – författare

This landmark study in the sociology of religion sheds new light on the question of what has happened to religion and spirituality since the 1960s in modern societies. Exposing several analytical weaknesses of today's sociology of religion, (Un)Believing in Modern Society presents a new theory of religious-secular competition and a new typology of ways of being religious/secular. The authors draw on a specific European society (Switzerland) as their test case, using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to show how the theory can be applied. Identifying four ways of being religious/secular in a modern society: 'institutional', 'alternative', 'distanced' and 'secular' they show how and why these forms have emerged as a result of religious-secular competition and describe in what ways all four forms are adapted to the current, individualized society.

This landmark study in the sociology of religion sheds new light on the question of what has happened to religion and spirituality since the 1960s in modern societies. Exposing several analytical weaknesses of today's sociology of religion, (Un)Believing in Modern Society presents a new theory of religious-secular competition and a new typology of ways of being religious/secular. The authors draw on a specific European society (Switzerland) as their test case, using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to show how the theory can be applied. Identifying four ways of being religious/secular in a modern society: 'institutional', 'alternative', 'distanced' and 'secular' they show how and why these forms have emerged as a result of religious-secular competition and describe in what ways all four forms are adapted to the current, individualized society.

In many societies, awareness of diversity has grown, not least thanks to the struggles for recognition and against gender-based, sexual, racial, and ethnic discrimination. At the same time, exclusionary and discriminatory tendencies are on the rise again. Christian theology, which also has a public impact, has a responsibility to respond to these developments and take a stance on them. An international symposium on the topic “Theology: Biographical – Contextual – Intersectional,” held October 20–21, 2022, and organized by the Center for Theological Gender Studies at the Faculty of Catholic Theology in Münster, was dedicated to this issue. This volume documents the presentations and findings of the conference, focusing in particular on various ways and conditions for theologically engaging with intersectionality and making it fruitful for theological thought. The contributions in this volume include both (auto)biographical approaches from diverse geographical, cultural, and religious contexts (including West Africa; the Philippines) as well as theoretical reflections on the theological appropriation of intersectionality. Furthermore, they offer approaches for the further development of theological intersectionality research and for a more in-depth examination of its methodological and hermeneutical prerequisites.

Das Buch leistet auf empirischer Ebene einen Beitrag zur Debatte über die Bedeutsamkeit unterschiedlicher religiöser Lernorte – insbesondere von Religionsunterricht und Katechese. Mit Hilfe von zwölf leitfadengestützten Interviews werden an biografischen Schnittstellen erste Kriterien und Parameter von Nachhaltigkeit und Wirksamkeit religiöser Lernprozesse gewonnen.