Biography

I was born in Locarno. In this town, in the Italian speaking part of Switzerland, I completed my education up to the high school diploma. At the universities of Fribourg and Zurich I studied theology and comparative study of religion. I graduated in 1996 with a doctoral thesis in New Testament studies. In 2002, I obtained the Habilitation in the study of religion at the University of Zurich. In 2004, I received a SNSF professorship in the Study of Religion and founded the research group «Media and Religion». From 2010-2016 I have been responsible as a director for the Centre for Religion, Economy and Politics, an interdisciplinary project of the universities of Basel, Fribourg, Lausanne, Lucerne, Zurich, and the Collegium Helveticum. Since 2016 I am working as a Professor for the Study of Religion and the History of Religion at LMU in Munich. Research grants and visiting fellowships have brought me to different cities in Europe where I could get familiar with different academic cultures and disciplines. I live in Neggio, a small village in Malcantone, a valley in southern Switzerland with Valdo Pezzoli and our sons, Leandro Elia and Noè Archimede. Intellectual engagement is not only a commitment to studying and thinking, but also a sphere of transmission of knowledge and political reflection. I am particularly committed to initiatives promoting interdisciplinarity, multilinguism, and gender equality.

transition
translation
beeing at home
virtually everywhere