Research

Religion in culture fascinates me. In my approach to religion, I focus on strategies of representation, on processes of communication, and on symbolic systems. I am interested in the media dimension of religion in historical and contemporary contexts. This field of study encompasses the European history of religion as well as religion in contemporary society. Which role do media assume in religious traditions? How is religion presented and negotiated in contemporary media? Cultural studies approaches are applied to explore these fields of research.


Visuality, media and religion

Images are understood as social practices which link mental concepts, material representations, gazes, bodies, and places. Looking at the visual dimension in and around religion in the world of images is a fascinating research activity. Intermediality and materiality play a crucial role in this field. Research on images focuses on intellectual and theological aspects, bodily dimensions, and emotions in religious systems and practices.


Religion and film

Since the very beginning, religion has had a widespread presence in film history. Famous narratives about central figures of religions, mythological and epic accounts, sacred texts, phenomena beyond rationality, utopias, and dystopias of human society are very common in cinema. Audio-visual media can stage imaginary worlds similar to religious visions. In film, religion is depicted in various, controversial fashions: sometimes religious thinking is the object of a strong criticism and sometimes it is presented as an integral part of existence, as a human positive project, or as a part of cultural heritage. The interaction between audio-visual media and religion offers a rich and multifaceted research field reaching from blockbusters to art-house films, from documentaries to YouTube, from a TV series to commercials.


Religion and gender

Religious systems influence social roles and are intertwined with gender in a fundamental way. Concepts and representations of the body and clothing, power hierarchies based on gender differences, regulation of sexuality and of reproduction, and family structures are some examples of the interaction between sex, gender and religion. At the same time, religious and theological reflections can motivate emancipation processes and lead to subversion of gender roles within a society. Gender perspectives in religious fields stimulate a systematic reflection on the construction of a discipline in which gender equality is far from being realised.


Space, place and religion

Debates concerning religion in the public space characterise a secular, differentiated society dealing with migration and conflicts. Space is a fundamental dimension of human living: the spatial dimension is the common ground of life where social structures and symbolic discourses merge. Space can be a place of sharing or confrontation. In democracy, shared space is a place of conflict, transformation, gathering, reciprocal awareness, or societal cohesion and responsibility. Furthermore, in space memory is shaped and materialised and the transmission of religious knowledge takes place.

Interdisciplinary approaches to religion innovate and make research more relevant and balanced.