[URBANTH-L]Urban Diversity and Religious Traditions

[Tuomas Martikainen]

URBAN DIVERSITY AND RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS
19th Nordic Conference in Sociology of Religion

13-15 August 2008
Åbo Akademi University, Turku/Åbo, Finland

http://www.abo.fi/ncsr2008

*Call for sessions, deadline December 15th, 2007*
Call for papers, deadline April 30th, 2008

The theme of the conference is religion in a contemporary urban setting. 
How are religious traditions and practices influenced by the 
contemporary city, and what is the role of religion in the late modern 
"cityscape"? The pluralistic situation in a modern city is characterized 
by ethnic minorities, but also by various other subcultures. The role of 
media and consumption is most evident in urban settings. And in the 
centre of town, we find a cathedral. What are the strategies of the 
mainstream churches amidst the new urbanism? In short, how does religion 
fit into the contemporary city and what happens with religion in this 
environment?

The plenary speakers of the conference are Professor Linda Woodhead 
(University of Lancaster, UK), Professor R. Stephen Warner (University 
of Illinois at Chicago, USA), Professor Inger Furseth (Centre for Church 
Research, Norway) and Doctor Pasi Mäenpää (University of Helsinki, 
Finland). The language of the conference is English.

Keynote Speakers

Professor *Linda Woodhead*

Professor Linda Woodhead (Lancaster University, UK) is specialised in 
the changing face of Christianity in the 20th and 21st centuries, and in 
the rise of alternative forms of spirituality, particulary the holistic 
spirituality that has flourished since the late 1980s. Her publications 
include The Spiritual Revolution (2005 with Paul Heelas) and 
Congregational Studies in the UK (2004 co-editor with Mathew Guest and 
Karin Tusting).

Conference abstract: Locality Studies of Religion: Methods and Approaches
http://web.abo.fi/fak/hf/relvet/ncsr2008/abstract_woodhead.html

Professor *R. Stephen Warner*

Professor R. Stephen Warner (University of Illinois at Chicago, USA) is 
specialised in religion and immigration, and the religious involvement 
of Christian, Muslim, and Hindu youth in the U.S.A.. His publications 
include A Church of Our Own: Disestablishment and Diversity in American 
Religion (2005) and Gatherings in Diaspora: Religious Communitites and 
the New Immigration (1998, co-editor with Judith Wittner).

Conference abstract: Parameters of Paradigms
http://web.abo.fi/fak/hf/relvet/ncsr2008/abstract_warner.html

Professor Inger Furseth

Professor Inger Furseth (Centre for Church Research, Norway) is 
specialised in religion and social theory, including issues related to 
religious diversity and gender. Her publications include From Quest for 
Truth to Being Oneself. Religious Change in Life Stories (2006) and An 
Introduction to the Sociology of Religion. Classical and Contemporary 
Perspectives (2006, with Pål Repstad).

Doctor Pasi Mäenpää

Doctor Pasi Mäenpää (University of Helsinki, Finland) is specialised in 
urban sociology and sociology of consumption, including questions of 
urban public space, spaces of consumption, cell phone user cultures, and 
emerging mobile internet, as well as urban politics and urban planning. 
His publications include Narkissos kaupungissa. Tutkimus 
kuluttaja-kaupunkilaisesta ja julkisesta tilasta (2005, "Narcissus in 
the City: a study of a consumer-urbanite and urban public space) and 
Nitting the Jackpot. Lives of Lottery Millionaries (1999, Pasi Falk).

Conference abstract: Spirituality of Homo ludens urbanus
http://web.abo.fi/fak/hf/relvet/ncsr2008/abstract_maenpaa.html