Overview of course content: For most of the twentieth century and during much of the Cold War era the role of religious beliefs, practices, movements, and institutions in shaping domestic or international politics seemed to have fallen out of view. In general, social scientists had come to interpret human action through an exclusively secular lens so that the levers of human behaviour were entirely motivated by social and economic causes.  This was particularly true of Europe, the home of modernity, the scientific revolution, industrial capitalism, and popular sovereignty. All of these processes had signalled in the minds of most analysts that religion was dead. This conviction was memorably divulged by the famed Sociologist of Religion Peter Berger who speaking to The New York Times observed that ‘By the 21st century religious believers are likely to be found in only small sects, huddled together to resist a worldwide secular culture.’ Religion though has not disappeared, suffered death, or been confined to a small corner of reality but has made a comeback that has taken most expert opinion by surprise. This is true in Europe as much as it is for the Middle East, Latin America, South Asia, and Africa. This module aims to introduce students to the contemporary resurgence of religion as a starting ground to think critically about the role of religion and secularism in the formation of European self-understanding. To make progress with this the module will generally be divided into a theoretical component that looks at theories and interpretations of religion and secularism on the one hand. And secondly, an empirical and case study component that tries to apply the understanding gained from the theoretical component to areas of religious conflict like Northern Ireland and Bosnia, to live issues of race, and racialization like Islamophobia and Antisemitism on the other hand. Methodologically the module is not anchored in one disciplinary framework and thus encourages students to reflect and think critically on the disciplinary frameworks they have been trained in as well as encouraging them to reflect critically on the methods used by thinkers and texts discussed in the readings throughout the module. It is hoped that students will be enthused to learn about one of the most important phenomena of the late twentieth and early twenty-first century. Religion promises not to wither away on the vine as so many secularisation theorists predicted during the middle of the twentieth century. Engaging with religion and secularism offers the opportunity to navigate the theoretical and practical questions that confront modern Europe.      

Method of teaching delivery: The method of delivery for this course is that of a lecture/seminar format, consisting of a 25–30-minute mini-lecture and an hour-and-a-half seminar that discusses the themes of the lecture and the set readings in full.