Conference
The Transformation of Sacred Spaces. Patterns and Paths across Europe
TRANSARA is organising its fifth annual conference in Leipzig. The conference will look at the contexts of sacred space transformation in Europe.
Thinking about the adapted reuse of church buildings, some binary differentiations seem self-evident: “Protestant churches are more easily used cooperatively because they are connected with a different understanding of sacrality than Catholic churches.” “Secularization is connected with a continuing loss of sacred spaces.” “In the cities, successful transformation is more likely because of a variety of stakeholders present.”
However, the work of the last years in the research group illustrates a complication of confessional, religious, and urban-rural binaries that initiated our comparative endeavor with the selection of the two research areas in East and West Germany.
Effects of minority-/majority-confession came into view as well as differences in building culture. Not only did the economic capital appear as a cross-sectional dimension, but also potential for tourism, engagement cultures, and guiding images of the church.
The conference aims to develop a more complex web of transformation paths and patterns and situate it in the European context. Emerging propositions from the inner-German ecumenical comparison will be discussed in relation to perspectives from academic research and experiences in church practice / religious heritage preservation in different parts of Europe.
Date and Place
- Thursday, 15th May 2025 -Friday, 16th May 2025
- Leipzig, Heilandskirche / Stadtteilzentrum "Westkreuz"
Registration & Fees
- Please send registrations to prtheol(at)uni-leipzig.de by 20 April 2025
- Fee: 50,00 € (inlcuding Catering), Students 25,00 € (including Catering)
Author: Elisabeth März