Research
The research program of the consortium consists of four interrelated focal points:
- First, the formation of the major religious traditions through cultural contact, both diachronically and synchronously, will be analyzed based on exemplary studies;
- second, case studies on religious contacts within the periods of the institutionalization, spread, and diversification of the major religious traditions will be conducted;
- third, the development of the collective singular "religion", as well as the formation and development of basic religious concepts are to be studied;
- a final focal point studies religion and its reflection in the context of colonialism and globalization.
These focal points are not only conceptualized on a chronological scale, but also reflect the different cultural geographical states of:
- regional formation
- spatial expansion, and
- the partially deterritorialized relations of these traditions under the conditions of globalization.
The four focal points can be seen as arranged along a chronological axis. But only to rely on chronology would undermine the intention of the Research Consortium: to explore the dynamics of the religious history in the interplay of empirical research and systematic reflection on the one hand and historical perspectives and contemporary issues, on the other. Furthermore, the research on the development of the collective singular "religion" and the development of basic religious terms is fundamental for the whole project of the Research Consortium.
In order to combine historical and contemporary perspectives, two of the four focal points are scheduled to overlap: In the first half of the scheduled period of funding of six years, exemplary case studies will be conducted on religious contacts during the time the emergence of the major religious and ethical traditions, as well as on the emergence of the collective singular "religion" and of basic religious concepts as a source of the modern science of religion. In the second half, we will focus on case studies about religious contacts during the period of institutionalization and expansion of the major religious and ethical traditions, and on religion and its reflection in the age of colonialism and globalization.
