Religion and Society

Convenor: Guillermo Martin-Saiz (guillermo.martin-saiz@durham.ac.uk) and Adam Powell

Meetings: Fortnightly on Thursdays (12 noon)

Description:

The Durham Religion and Society Research Seminar is a weekly forum for scholarly engagement with issues in the social scientific study of religion. The seminar runs for one hour, including a 30-minute presentation of new research in the field followed by questions and discussion. Invited speakers are academic experts working on a range of religious phenomena, often within the contemporary world, and travel from across the UK and from overseas to address the seminar.

The seminars are held in Abbey House (Seminar Room C). All are welcome.

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact the convenor of the Religion and Society Research Seminar: Dr Jonathan Miles-Watson (jonathan.miles-watson@durham.ac.uk).

All sessions will take place on Thursdays in Seminar C TH107 at noon. For any queries, please, contact: guillermo.martin-saiz@durham.ac.uk / adam.j.powell@durham.ac.uk.

EPIPHANY TERM 2026

January 15: The Hypnagogia hypothesis: Sleep, religious experience, and meaning-making, with Dr Adam Powell

January 29: Religion and neoliberalism: A challenge in research and writing, with Professor Mathew Guest

February 12: The social life of Islamic sectarianism: Notes on space- and place-making, with Dr Guillermo Martín-Sáiz

February 26: Postgraduates’ Day

March 12: Dr Kristy Slominski (University of Arizona) 

MICHAELMAS TERM 2025

October 9: Death, betrayal and identity, with Professor Douglas Davies

October 23: Not quite church, not quite secular: Entangled spiritualities in the cracks of modernity, with Dr Sitna Quiroz

November 6: Bluegrass and religion, with Professor Pete Ward

November 20: Postgraduates’ Day

December 4: External speaker (TBA)