Centre for Religion and Public Life

The Centre for Religion and Public Life

A hub of research, impact and public engagement activities at the intersections of religion and public life in local, national and global contexts.

Photo by Camylla Battani on Unsplash

Religion in Public Blog

The Religion in Public blog provides an ongoing analysis on the role of religion in public life, both locally, nationally and internationally.

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PRHS Newsletter

Our regular newsletters report on events, research, publications and other research-related achievements. They are a great way to learn more about our diverse and creative community.

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Our research

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The Centre for Religion and Public Life (CRPL)  studies the complex and critical role of religious belief and practice in contemporary society, locally, nationally and globally.

The Centre brings together academic staff and research students in the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science, as well as from other Schools at the University of Leeds. Director of the Centre is Professor Johanna Stiebert.

Members of the Centre employ various methodological perspectives – such as sociology and anthropology of religion, theology, biblical, religious and cultural studies – as the Centre foregrounds interdisciplinarity as critical to the study of religion and public life.

Research in the Centre is concerned with contemporary religion in relation to a wide range of current issues, such as gender and sexuality, race and ethnicity, diaspora and globalisation, media, and development. The geographical contexts range from the city of Leeds, the UK and Europe, Africa and Asia. We have expertise in diverse religious traditions, such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and new religious movements.

Find out more about our events and activities, and work in and around the Centre, in our weblog, Religion in Public.

Events

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Drs. Alexiana Fry and Rivkah Gillian Glass

An interactive research day/workshop with two Early Career Researchers, Dr Alexiana Fry & Dr Rivkah Gillian Glass. Part 1 (10.00-13.00) - SR Worsley 9.59 and Part 2 (13.00-17.00) - Worsley SR 8.49

More on CRPL Research Day on Diaspora, Diaspora Studies, Antiquity and Modernity

Discover the subject specialists who lead our research: influential thought leaders who contribute to public policy, from postgraduate research students to internationally-renowned academic staff.

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The Centre for Religion and Public Life's research examines how religious beliefs and practices are interrelated, and how these connect with ethical convictions that impact upon action in the world.

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Research clusters

Work in the Centre is clustered in the following research areas:

Work in this area is multidisciplinary, making use of anthropological, sociological, philosophical and theological approaches and concerns a wide range of global contexts

More on Religion, Activism and Social Justice

This ethnographic research focuses on both local, national and international levels, and is mostly concerned with South Asian Muslim and Sikh communities and traditions.

More on Religion, Ethnicity and Diaspora

Research covers philosophical, theological, ethnographic approaches, and the relation between beliefs in an afterlife and ethical or political engagement; religion, animal ethics and environmentalism.

More on Religion, Ethics and Practice

Research in this area makes use of anthropological, sociological, geographical, theological and textual approaches, building on feminist, queer, and postcolonial perspectives.

More on Religion, Gender and Sexuality

Work is empirical, examining the role of religious communities in public health, and also theological and philosophical, how religion contributes to human flourishing and spiritual well-being.

More on Religion, Health and Wellbeing

The work explores South Asian traditions and communities in Britain and makes use of ethnographic, sociological and media-studies approaches.

More on Religion, Media and Material Culture

This work is multiscalar, ranging from neighbourhoods, local and national governments, state institutions such as the police, and international bodies.

More on Religion, Politics and the State