Download - Dynamics in the History of Religions International Research …€¦ · historical research. Thereby, we will aim at a hermeneutics oriented toward mutual un-derstanding that might

Dynamics in the History of Religions between Asia and Europe

International Research Consortium for Re-search in the Humanities

Funded by the Ministry of Education and Research of the Federal Republic of Ger-many

1 Director

Prof. Dr. Volkhard Krech Chair for Religious History / Comparative Religion Ruhr University Bochum Universitätsstraße 150 44801 Bochum Tel.: 0234-3222272 Fax: 0234-14909 Email: [email protected]

2 Summary

At least since the works of Edward Said (1978), Talal Asad (1993, 2003), and others, we

know that the Western view on “the Orient” from the Near East to Japan is essentially a

construct. Then again, the “Christian occident” as well has often been—and still is—used

as a politically charged term. Analogous to “Orientalism”, “Occidentalism” has recently

entered the debate. The geopolitical consequences of this confrontation seem to be obvi-

ous and culminate in Samuel Huntington’s thesis of the “Clash of Civilizations”, which are

in their turn based on religion. But the cultural entities called “Orient” and “Occident” are

not, and have never been, homogenous, nor have they formed (and are continuing to

evolve) without mutual interaction. The global interdependences we are witnessing today,

often labeled “globalization”, have their origin in the formative phase of the major cultural

and religious traditions. The research consortium will focus on the origins and the devel-

opment of the major religious traditions within and by mutual encounter beyond the con-

struction of stereotypical and ideological misuse. We presume that the interconnections of

self-perception and perception by the other, of adaptation and separation that have be-

mailto:[email protected]

Dynamics of the History of Religions between Asia and Europe International Research Consortium of the Humanities at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany

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come self-evident in the Humanities, are an essential constituent of dynamics of the his-

tory of religion. The primary thesis of this research program consists in the assumption

that the major religious traditions form, establish and develop in mutual dependency.

The participating disciplines (Classical Philology, Protestant and Catholic Theology, South

Asian Studies, Jewish Studies, Islamic Studies, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese Studies, His-

tory, Comparative Religion, and Philosophy) will be incorporated into the research pro-

gram by the following focal points on which the study of the dynamics of religious history

will be based: First, exemplary studies will analyze the origin of the major religious and

ethical traditions via diachronic and synchronic cultural contact. Second, selected case

studies will be conducted concerning religious contacts within the institutionalization and

spread of religions. Third, aspects of interreligious contacts in Modern Times will be re-

searched. A fourth focus going alongside the other three will describe the origin of the

collective singular “religion”. In this context, we will inquire about the intercultural com-

patibility of the term “religion” and ask whether this term can be translated into different

cultural traditions. To enable the interconnected research of historical and present per-

spectives, we will cooperatively work on two out of four foci at a time. The aim of this

program consists of developing systematic criteria for a comparative approach that will

enable us to show differing and common elements of religions in the context of a general

history of religion as well as the various cultural and social conditions to differentiate be-

tween the religious and the secular, based on social scientific, philological, theological, and

historical research. Thereby, we will aim at a hermeneutics oriented toward mutual un-

derstanding that might contribute to a discourse on mutual respect.


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3 Outline of the Guiding Question and Schedule of the Research Consortium

3.1 Guiding Question

While religion is high on the agenda in the mass media since the late seventies, it seems

that the self-evidence of this term increasingly fades away. In the feature pages of news-

papers, all kinds of beliefs, practices, and sentiments are identified as religious, whereas in

the interdisciplinary research of the Humanities and in the Social Sciences, religion and

religiosity are deconstructed as eurocentric concepts (Asad 1993), or, even more, as scien-

tific fiction (Smith 1982), are only referred to in its plural form and even dissolved into

culture (Kippenberg/von Stuckrad 2003). On the other hand, scholars try to reconstruct a

general history of religion in its singular form (for the German context, see Antes 2006,

Dammann 1989), and on the background of identity struggles on a national and global

scale, ethnic and national movements draw on a reified understanding of ‘religion’. The

inter-religious dialogue, aiming towards an inter-religious understanding, also involves the

question about the singular nature of religion.

This ambiguous situation in contemporary debates on religion is the point of departure of

the Research Consortium. By analysing the dynamics of the history of religions and its

reflection on the basis of religious contacts, it asks for systematic points of references

which allow for the subsumption of diachronically and synchronically heterogeneous

phenomena–whose religious qualifications might even be disputed, as in the case of Con-

fucianism–under the concept of a general history of religion. We will not just apply theo-

ries and concepts on historical facts, as has been conducted in previous approaches of reli-

gious history (be they Kantian or Hegelian), but to proceed abductively in an interplay of

hypothetical conceptualization and empirical studies. With this procedure, we hope to

reveal circumstantial evidence which allows for the conceptualization of a general history

of religions. By bridging and reconciling scientific meta-discourse on religion with reli-

gious discourses and religious self-descriptions, we intend to avoid both unempirical scien-

tism and un-theoretical positivism.


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3.2 Research Program of the Consortium

Any analysis of the dynamics the history of religion has to be based on a comparative ap-

proach that at least includes one historical and one methodological aspect.

a) With regard to the material history, the Research Consortium conducts exemplary stud-

ies on the developments of the major religious and ethical traditions, namely Judaism,

Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism. We assume that the

constitution, establishment, and spread have been affected by mutual influence. The

means, situations and subjects of contact have varied from intellectual disputes up to ‘dis-

placed religions’ (Gladigow). From the individual research projects, we aim to detect re-

peating patterns of exchange and demarcation processes between the different religions

and religious communities.

b) With regard to methodology, the Research Consortium aims at constructing tertia com-

parationis that allow for the comparison of heterogeneous facts and circumstances. We

assume that the points of comparison do not solely depend on scientific reflections, but are

also formed and embedded within the cultural and religious history, namely when tradi-

tions are being reformed as their previous beliefs and practices are put into question, or

when they become challenged due to the influence of foreign religious traditions. The

points of comparison will result from the interplay of material, philological, and historical

research, together with systematic, social scientific and philosophical reflections. The sci-

entific aim is to establish a theory of religious transfers based on a typology of religious

contacts between adaption and demarcation, which can also be applied for cultural trans-

fers in general. In this context, we intend to draw upon and develop further a hermeneutic

approach of trans-cultural understanding, which contributes to social discourses on mu-

tual acceptation and acknowledgement (see Taylor 1997 and for the Chinese context Roetz

2002).

The combination of these two aspects of the comparison of religious history offer insights

on the questions about both the genus proximum of religion (not as a determination of its

space- and timeless essence, as conceived in the phenomenological approach of compara-

tive religion, but in the context of its historical formation), and on the differentiae specifi-

cae of different positive religions (in the sense of cultural variations).


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The research program of the Consortium consists of four interrelated focal points: First,

the consolidation of the major religious traditions through cultural contact, both dia-

chronically and synchronously, is being analyzed based on exemplary studies. Second, case

studies on religious contacts within the periods of the institutionalization, spread, and di-

versification of the major religious traditions are being conducted. Third, the development

of the collective singular “religion”, as well as the formation and development of basic re-

ligious concepts are being studied. A final focal point studies religion and its reflection in

the context of colonialism and globalization. These focal points are not only conceptual-

ized on a chronological scale, but also reflect the different cultural geographical states of 1)

regional formation, 2) spatial expansion, and 3) the partially deterritorialized relations of

these traditions under the conditions of globalization.

This procedural method of the Research Consortium is unique in the sense that it does not

conceptualize the so-called major religions as distinct monolithic blocks which are then

compared with each other, but it conceives the development of these major religious and

ethical traditions as a result of constant processes of exchange, adaptation, and demarca-

tion. Further, endogenous as well as exogenous factors of the dynamics of religious history

as well as the functional change of religion are being taken into account (see Gladigow

2006 for the European history of religion). Finally, the Research Consortium shares the

persuasion that the contemporary state of religion(s) can only be understood on the back-

ground of historical perspectives – and that historical perspective always includes refer-

ences to contemporary issues (see Kippenberg 1997).

3.2.1 The origin of the major religious and ethical traditions via diachronic and synchronic

cultural contact

About 2000 years after the development of the first ‘advanced civilizations’, in the first

millennium B.C., the first of those religious traditions began to evolve that were going to

be labeled ‘major religions’ in the 19th century (see Auffarth 2005; Masuzawa 2005; Hutter

2005). One of the features of this process is the explicit demarcation of these traditions

from previous beliefs and practices which they aimed to reform or revolutionize, thereby

shaping a consciousness of distinctiveness while critiquing existing cults of sacrifice. They


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did so by establishing conceptualizations of transcendence. This term refers to a formal

distance which initializes enduring cultural processes and religious dynamics. Within the

Research Consortium, we ask for the meaning and relevance of this ‘discovery of tran-

scendence’ for the formation of the major religious traditions in their cultural context and

for the emergence of religious critique, which has been made possible by this ‘discovery’1.

This question also involves research on the demarcation of religious traditions from its

cultural and social environment and the formation of a self-reflection of religion as a dis-

tinct socio-cultural sphere. On this background, exemplary research projects analyze the

influence of cultural contacts and the dispute with various ways of thinking on the forma-

tion of the major religious traditions2. Further research questions involve the impact of

intercultural contacts on the relation of culture, religion, and philosophy, and the emerg-

ing difference between ritual and ethical religious practice (see Weber 1988) on the for-

mation of the various religious traditions. The Research Consortium analyzes the rele-

vance of diachronic and synchronous cultural contacts for the emergence and formation of

the major religious and ethical traditions by means of exemplary case studies upon the

following transformation processes:

From Chinese religion of the Shang-dynasty and early Zhou-dynasty to the emergence of Confucian-ism and Taoism;

from Vedic religion towards Buddhism; from the ancient Near Eastern religions, e.g. Zoroastrianism and ancient Israelite religion towards Ju-

daism; from pre-classical Greek religion towards the classical antiquity; the Hellenistic hybridization of classical-antique and Near Eastern religious beliefs and practices; the formation of Christianity, Judaism, and the polytheistic cult institutions of the Greek-Roman an-

tiquity and the Near East; the constitution of Islam in the dispute with classical-antique traditions and Jewish and Christian

movements.

From this exemplary research on the relevance of cultural contacts for the constitution of

the major religious and ethical traditions, we hope to find first criteria for the intercultural

and interdisciplinary comparison of religions.

1 Karl Jasper’s theorem of axial times (1949) focuses on the ‘discovery of transcendence’ (for a discussion of this concept see Eisenstadt 1987-1992) which was developed further towards a concept of ‘multiple modernities’ by Shmuel Eisen-stadt (Eisenstadt 2000, 2003). The theorem of axial times will be discussed according to its relevance on the dynamics of religious history within the first focal point of the Research Consortium. 2 The characterization of the ’world religions’ by Karen Armstrong (2006), which draws upon the theorem of the axial times, does not take cultural contact as a factor for the emergence of the major religious traditions into account.


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3.2.2 Religious Contacts during the Period of Institutionalization and Expansion of Re-ligions

A second focus of the Research Consortium will be exemplary constellations of religious

contacts during the periods of the institutionalization and expansions of these traditions.

This focus also draws on the assumption mentioned above, e.g. that also after the forma-

tion and especially in times of expansion, the religious and ethic traditions had multiple

mutual interrelations (demarcations included) and never existed as unique monolithic

blocks.

Besides the ‘horizontal’ contacts, ‘vertical’ contacts have to be taken into account. This

refers to the distinction into ‘primary’ and ‘secondary’ religions which was conceptualized

by Theo Sundermeier and Jan Assmann (see Diesel 2004). The ‘high’ or ‘secondary’ relig-

ions formed within the contention with the religions that existed in the areas of extension,

and developed patterns of hermetical or popular religion (like Esotericism in the European

history of religion or ‘animistic’ beliefs and shamanist practices in the extension areas of

Buddhism).

Within this focal point of the Research Consortium, constellations of religious contacts are

being analyzed through exemplary case studies towards the following research topics.

Religious Contacts Region Period

Contacts between the Eastern reli-gious traditions (Confucianism, Tao-ism, Buddhism)

East Asia Antiquity, Medieval Age, Early Mod-ern Times

Early Judaism, Ancient Eastern Relig-ions

Mediterranean Area Antiquity

Christianity, ancient and Hellenistic religions

Europe, Near East Antiquity

Christianity – Judaism Europe, Near East Antiquity, Medieval Age, Early Mod-ern Times

Christianity – Islam Europe, esp. the Mediterra-nean Area, Near East Medieval Age, Modernity

Islam – Judaism Europe, esp. the Mediterra-nean Area, Near East Medieval Age, Modernity

Islam – Buddhism India, Central Asia, China Medieval Age, Early Modern Times

Islam – Hindu-Religions India Medieval Age, Early Modern Times, Modernity

Christianity in East Asia East Asia From the Jesuite Mission to the pre-sent

Reception of Buddhism in the West Europe 18th -20th century


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With reference to these constellations of religious contacts, the conditions are studied un-

der which the religious dimension within the various cultures tends to be highlighted or

neglected and tends to raise conflicts or offer mutual understandings. Furthermore, on the

basis of these analyses on mutual perceptions, we hope to establish criteria for the scien-

tific comparison of religions.

3.2.3 The Development of the Collective Singular ‚Religion’ and of basic religious con-cepts in intercultural comparisons

The modern scientific study of religion and the concept of a general religious history are

based on the genesis of religion as a Kollektivsingular (see Koselleck 1979) in Early Mod-

ern Times. The term religion which is until now applied as a concept within philological,

historical, philosophical, and social scientific research is a creation of European intellectual

history in Early Modern Times (see Feil 1986, 1997, 2001). “Due to the formation of this

general term, Europeans could talk about religion, its essence and function, instead of only

referring to single ‘religions’” (Tenbruck 1993: 37). As a collective singular, the term relig-

ion has proximity to other terms which claim universality, like reason or humanity. It was

then possible for Herder and others to create the term ‘Menschheitsreligion’. The terms

‘World-‘ or ‘Universal Religions’ as scientific concepts have their roots within these intel-

lectual developments and are deeply interwoven with the history of colonialism and impe-

rialism (see Auffarth 2005; Masuzawa 2005). By means of selected case studies, this focal

point conducts research on the origins of the collective singular ‘religion’ within the Euro-

pean intellectual history, as it emerged in the Renaissance, in English Deism, the French

and German Enlightenment and German Idealism, as well as corresponding developments

in the intellectual histories of East Asia and in Muslim contexts.

In addition to the development of religion as a general term since the Enlightenment, this

focal point of the Research Consortium analyses the emergence and development of basic

religious concepts in the last three centuries in Europe. It is based on the observation that

the term ‘religion’ as well as important basic religious concepts like ‘denomination’ and

‘church’, ‘piety’ and ‘religiosity’, ‘secularization’ and ‘laity’ emerged as a result of an inter-

play between a religious inner perspective and a scientific outer perspective on religion.

This dichotomist structure of the modern European understanding of ‘religion’ and reli-


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gious phenomena seems to be unique in the history of religions and may serve as a central

criterion for the intended inter-religious comparison.

The focal point “The Development of the Collective Singular ‚Religion’ and of basic reli-

gious concepts in intercultural comparisons” has two purposes. First, the forms and condi-

tions of the religious semantics in the intellectual history of the European early modern

times and in modernity shall be explored (also by recourses on previous developments).

Second, in order to further advance the criteria for inter-religious comparisons, we ask for

the compatibility of this European concept of religion with non-European cultures by

questioning its translatability and its adaptations to the various non-European cultures (in

correspondence to the concept of ‘multiple modernities’ [see Eisenstadt 2000, 2003, for the

question of translatability, see Haußig 1999 and 2003]).

3.2.4 Religion and its Reflection in the Age of Colonialism and Globalization

The fourth focal point of the Research Consortium is devoted to the modern and contem-

porary religious situation and its observance. Key terms are ‘fundamentalisms’, religious

contacts in the ‘global village’, processes of secularization and sacralization, as well as

processes of politization and de-differentiation of religion. It also has to be taken into ac-

count that the European scientific concept of religion has now entered non-European reli-

gious discourses and—as a meta-concept—impacted religious practice itself. Finally, we

have to ask for the emergence of a religious world system in which the various religious

traditions tend to observe each other as religions (see Stichweh 2001; Beyer 1994, 2006).

3.2.5 Integration of the Focal Points

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 re-

flection 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.


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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 emer-

gence of the major religious and ethical traditions, as well as on the emergence of the col-

lective 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 tradi-

tions, and on religion and its reflection in the age of colonialism and globalization.

After the international evaluation in six years, we plan to continue our research on the

basis of the achieved results. If necessary, we will modify the structure of the program.

4 International Networking of the Research Consortium and Organization of the Study Group

The interdisciplinary goal of the Research Consortium is to convey philological and his-

torical case studies of the various cultural and regional studies into a common, integral

perspective. Supplemented by systematic perspectives, we shall reach a general theory of

religious transfers. The scientific yields are expected due to the combination of research on

historical and contemporary issues, and of philological with social scientific and philoso-

phical approaches (for this approach as a program of religious studies, see Krech 2006).


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Scientists of the Ruhr University Bochum take part in every single focal point. They form

the key group for the duration of the Research Consortium. Based on proposals of the key

group and in understanding with the scientific advisory board, guest scientists from abroad

and from Germany will be invited for the duration of at least one year. The fellows from

abroad shall originate from the cultural region to which their research will be dedicated.

The fellows are integrated into the specific work groups. Organizationally, they will be

taken care of by the service board of the Consortium.

Fellows will be ascribed in the first and second period of funding to the following study

groups:

from pre-classical Greek religion to the classical antiquity; the Hellenistic hybridization of classical antique and Near Eastern religious beliefs and practices; the formation of Christianity, Judaism, and the polytheistic cult institutions of the Greek-Roman an-

tiquity and the Near East; the constitution of Islam in the dispute with classical-antique traditions and Jewish and Christian

movements.

External Fellows Topic Fellows, Post-Docs, PhD candidates 1. period 2. period

STUDY GROUP 1 (Scheduled 2008-2010)

The origin of the major religious and ethical traditions via diachronic and synchronic cultural contact (Antiquity until early Medieval Times)

o From Chinese religion of the Shang-dynasty and early Zhou-dynasty to the emergence of Confucianism and Tao-ism

Roetz, N.N. (East Asian religions past and present)

o Confucianism – Taoism Roetz, Plassen, N.N. (East Asian religions past and present)

o From Vedic religion towards Buddhism Heitmann, N.N. (Indian relig-ions past and present)

o From the ancient near eastern religions, e.g. Zoroastrianism and ancient Israel-ite religion towards Judaism

Frevel

o From pre-classical Greek religion to-wards the classical antiquity

Günther, N.N. (Greek stud-ies)

o Hellenistic hybridization Glei, Günther, Strothmann, N.N. (Greek studies), N.N. (Ancient history – Roman)

o Formation of Christianity between Juda-ism and the polytheistic cult institutions of the Greek-Roman antiquity

Geerlings, Wick, Wyrwa, N.N. (New Testament)

o Formation of Islam in the reflection with classical philosophy, and Jewish and Christian movements

Reichmuth, N.N. (Islamic Studies), N.N. (History of Asia minor and the Middle East)


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External Fellows Topic Fellows, Post-Docs, PhD candidates 1. period 2. period

STUDY GROUP 2 (Scheduled: 2011-2013)

Religious Contacts during the Period of Institutionalization and Expansion of Re-ligions (Antiquity until Modernity)

o Reception of Antiquity in Early Judaism Frevel o Reception of (Hellenistic) Antiquity and

Judaism in Christianity Geerlings, Wick, Wyrwa, N.N. (New Testament)

o Christianity – Judaism Jaspert, Lubich, N.N. (Je-wish Studies)

o Christianity – Islam Glei, Jaspert, Glatz, Reich-muth, Lubich, N.N. (Islamic Studies)

o Islam – Judaism Jaspert, Glatz, Lubich, N.N. (Islamic studies), (Jewish studies)

o Islam – Hindu-Religions in India Reichmuth, N.N. (Islamic Studies), N.N. (Indian relig-ions past and present)

o Islam – Buddhism in India und East Asia

Heitmann, Reichmuth, N.N. (Islamic Studies), N.N. (In-dian religions past and pre-sent)

o Neo-Confucianism – Buddhism

Eggert, Krämer, Mathias, Plassen, Roetz, N.N. (East-Asian religions past and present)

o Christianity in East Asia Eggert, Krämer, Mathias, Roetz

o Reception of Buddhism in Europe Heitmann, Jaeschke


The Development of the Collective Sin-gular ’religion’ and of basic religious concepts in intercultural comparisons (Early Modern Times)

o European intellectual history Renaissance English Deism French and German Enlightenment German Idealism

Jaeschke, Hölscher, Krech, N.N. (Church History of modern times)

o East Asia Krämer, Mathias

o Islamic cultures Reichmuth, N.N. (Islamic Studies), N.N. (Jun.-Prof. contemporary Islam)


Religion and its Reflection in the Age of Colonialism and Globalization (Moder-nity)

o Fundamentalisms o Religious contacts in the modern world o Secularization and sacralization o De-differentiation and politization of re-

ligion

Glatz, Hölscher, Jaeschke, Krech, Reichmuth, Roetz, N.N. (Jun.-Prof. contempo-rary Islam), N.N. (Church history of modern times)


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The Research Consortium is supervised by a scientific board which advises the Research

Consortium with the appointment of Fellows, the selection of the exemplary case studies,

and the evaluation of the projects; its members shall also participate in the workshops,

conferences, summer schools and lectures organized by the Research Consortium. The

following persons are members of the scientific board:

Name Place Subject Invited by

1) Prof. Klaus Antoni Tübingen Japanese Studies Mathias

2) Prof.in Heidrun Brückner

Würzburg South Asian Studies Krech

3) Prof. Hubert Cancik

Berlin Comparative Religion/ Latin

Krech

4) Prof. Burkhard Gladigow

Tübingen Comparative Religion/ Greek

Krech

5) Prof.in Danielle Hervieu-Leger

Paris Sociology of Religion Hölscher

6) Prof. Hans G. Kippenberg

Erfurt Comparative Religion

Krech

7) Prof. Stefan Leder Halle-Wittenberg Islamic Studies Reichmuth

8) Prof.in Monika Neugebauer-Wölk

Halle-Wittenberg History of Early Modern Times Krech

9) Prof. David Niren-berg

Chicago European History of Religion in Medieval Times

Jaspert

10) Prof. Peter van der Rooden

Amsterdam Religious History of Early Mod-ern Times

Hölscher

11) Prof. Veit Rosenberger

Universität Erfurt Ancient History Günther

12) Prof. Peter Schäfer

Princeton Jewish Studies Glatz

13) Prof. Jens Schlieter

Bern Comparative Religion/ Buddhist Studies

Roetz

14) Prof. Daniel Schwartz

Jerusalem Jewish History Wick

15) Prof. Hubert Seiwert

Leipzig Comparative Religion/ Sinology

Roetz

16) Prof. Christoph Uehlinger

Zürich Comparative Religion/ Old Testament and Ancient Orient

Frevel

17) Prof. Boudewijn Walraven

Leiden Korean Studies Eggert


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5 Interdisciplinary Cooperation and Integration with the Local University

The Research Consortium intensifies the cooperation of scientists of Ruhr University who

do research on issues of the history of religions and extends their networking with guest

scientists from abroad. By not being based within a single discipline, it intends to integrate

the different regional and cultural studies under the roof topic of ‘Dynamics of the history

of religions’ in combination with systematic approaches through the participation of the

disciplines of Comparative Religion, Philosophy, and Sociology of Religion. In this sense,

the initiative complies with the advice of the scientific board of the ‘Area Studies’ and the

Humanities, which suggest to ‘enhance performance by interdisciplinary cooperation

through regional and thematic concentration’.

The original idea for the conceptualization of this initiative was born by a research alli-

ance named ‘Religion and Secularization’, which was constituted as a result of the restruc-

turation of the Humanities at the Ruhr University two years ago. As first results, the inter-

facultative course of studies ‘Comparative Religion’ (by now with more than 300 B.A. stu-

dents) and the section ‘Religion and Secularization’ (with 15 PhD candidates in the first

period of funding) within the framework of the Graduate School as part of the Cluster of

Excellence have been established at the Ruhr University. The following colleagues of the

Ruhr University will take part in the Research Consortium:

Name Function Subject Chair 1) Eggert, Marion Professor Korean Studies Korean Language and Culture 2) Frevel, Christian Professor Old Testament Old Testament 3) Geerlings, Wilhelm Professor Church History Ancient Church History, Patrology

and Christian Archaeology 4) Glatz, Oliver Wiss. Mitar-

beiter Jewish Studies and Islamic Studies

Comparative Religion

5) Glei, Reinhold Professor Latin Latin Philology, focus on Latin Litera-ture of the Classical Period, the Late Antiquity, and Humanism

6) Günther, Linda-Marie

Professor Old History Ancient History – Greece

7) Heitmann, Annette Dr., Wiss. Mitarbeiterin

South Asian Studies Comparative Religion

8) Hölscher, Lucian Professor History New History and Theory of History 9) Jaeschke, Walter Professor Philosophy

Philosophy, focus on the Philosophy of German Idealism

10) Jaspert, Nikolas Professor History History of Late Medieval Times


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Name Function Subject Chair 11) Krämer, Hans Mar-

tin Dr., wiss. Mitarbeiter

Japanese Studies Japanese History

12) Krech, Volkhard Professor Comparative Religion, esp. Sociology of Re-ligion

History of Religions/Comparative Religion

13) Lubich, Gerhard Professor History History of Early Medieval Times 14) Mathias, Regine Professor Japanese Studies Japanese History 15) N.N. (currently

being appointed) Professor History Ancient History – Roman

16) N.N. (currently being appointed)

Professor Islamic Studies Islamic Studies


Professor Greek Philology Greek Philology


Professor History History of Asia Minor and the Ancient Middle East


Professor Church History Church History with focus on the Ref-ormation

20) N.N. (will be an-nounced in the course of the RUB future concept)

Jun.-Professor

Islamic Studies Contemporary Islam

21) N.N. (will be an-nounced in the course of the RUB future concept)

Jun.-Professor

Jewish Studies Comparative Religion

22) N.N. (will be an-nounced in the course of the RUB future concept )

Professor Comparative Religion Comparative Religion, focus on In-dian Religions past and present

23) N.N. (will be an-nounced in the course of the RUB future concept )

Professor Comparative Religion Comparative Religion, focus on East Asian Religions past and present

24) Plassen, Jörg Dr., Jun.-Professor

Korean Studies Korean Language and Culture

25) Reichmuth, Stefan Professor Islamic Studies Islamic Studies 26) Roetz, Heiner Professor Chinese Studies Chinese History and Philosophy 27) Strothmann, Meret Dr., akad.

Rätin History Ancient History – Roman

28) Wick, Peter Professor New Testament Exegesis and Theology of the New Testament, History of Early Christian-ity

29) Wyrwa, Dietmar Professor Church History Patrology

The Research Consortium is supported by the Center of Religious Studies (CERES). CERES

coordinates the research on and teaching of religious topics at the Ruhr University (see

www.religionsforschung.de). The fellows from abroad will also be integrated into this cen-

ter. The RUB owns a guest house with sufficient capacities; practical support is given by

the newly established Welcome Center for scientists from abroad.

http://www.religionsforschung.de/


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The Research Consortium will be complemented by a Research Department for Religious

Studies which is currently under construction. The implementation of this Research De-

partment with focus on religious studies is part of the university’s future concept. This

ensures the continuation of interdisciplinary research beyond the period of funding of the

Research Consortium. Further structural measures for the strengthening of interdiscipli-

nary research on religion are planned by the direction of the university. The upgrading of

this research focus will be supported by the implementation of new positions, which will

be part of the third line of funding of the initiative of excellence: Assistance in systematic

Comparative Religion; Junior Professor for Contemporary Islam; Junior Professor for Jew-

ish Studies; Professor in Comparative Religion with focus on Indian religions past and pre-

sent; Professor in Comparative Religion with focus on East Asian religions past and pre-

sent. Furthermore, new appointments will consider the focus on religious studies. The

international Research Consortium shall also support the implementation of an interna-

tional Master Course of Studies in cooperation with universities from abroad. In case of

the approval of the second line of funding, Ruhr University will participate in the financ-

ing of the Research Consortium.

Finally, a connection between the Consortium and the project ‘Humanism in the Age of

Globalization’, performed by the Kulturwissenschaftliche Insitut Essen (KWI) is being

planned. The KWI is headed by the three universities of the Ruhr Area and coordinates

the existent humanities and social sciences. The cooperation is supported by the new

president of the KWI, Prof. Dr. Claus Leggewie.

Organization of the Research Consortium

The guest fellows will take part in an intensive exchange with their colleagues from Ruhr

University. The whole Research Consortium with all its participating professors, scientific

assistants, and doctoral candidates will meet in a monthly colloquium, in which single

projects as well as general and paradigmatic questions shall be discussed. The single study

groups which are being coordinated by a member of the Research Consortium will meet

twice a month. Smaller research groups will meet more frequently. The study groups and

the whole Research Consortium will arrange workshops on a regular basis. Furthermore,


17

lecture series, conferences, summer schools, a publication series and events in cooperation

with the KWI towards social knowledge transfers are being planned.

A further measure is the implementation of a PhD program for young researchers. As in

the case of the external fellows, we intend international appointments. The PhD student-

ships will be integrated into the Research School of Ruhr University, where they can ac-

quire key skills. The external fellows shall also take part as lecturers in the interdiscipli-

nary M.A. course of studies ‘Comparative Religion’, and will participate in the program of

the section ‘Religion and Secularization’ of the RUB Research School.

Members of the Research Consortium shall be temporarily released from teaching and

administration duties in order to enhance their time capacities for research and coopera-

tion with the external fellows. Every semester, two of the internal members of the Re-

search Consortium shall be appointed for release, which will be decided by the scientific

board of the Research Consortium based on objective criteria. The release can be ex-

tended, if necessary. Finally, external emeriti will be invited for sharing their expertise

and supervising the PhD students of the Research Consortium.

6 Preliminary Research

The participating scientists of Ruhr University have worked in many ways on the focal

points of the Research School. The most important works are listed below:

6.1.1 The origin of the major religious and ethical traditions via diachronic and syn-chronic cultural contact.

Christian Frevel has conducted research on the relations between the Ashera and YHWH

cults (1995) and also published about material communication and media in Ancient Pal-

estine (2005). Annette Heitmann works on interrelations of Indian and classic Greek phi-

losophy (habilitation) Heiner Roetz reconstructed the Chinese ethics and the formation of

Confucianism (Roetz 1992, 2006). Meret Strothmann worked on the Cesar cult of Augus-

tus and on the Roman death cult (2000b, 2006). Peter Wick conducts research on early

Christian church services in the context of the early Jewish temple, synagogue and house

piety (Wick 2004), and explores the reception of the mystery cults in the New Testament

(Wick 2004). Dietmar Wyrwa analyses, among other things, the reception of classical

Greek thinking in the old church (Wyrwa 1983, 1991, 2000). In this context, he partici-


18

pates in the fifth volume on Philosophy during the Cesarean era and late antiquity, which

is newly edited by Ueberweg, Outline of a History of Philosophy.

6.1.2 Religious Contacts during the Period of Institutionalization and Expansion of Relig-ions

Marion Eggert has analyzed the interplay of different religious traditions in Chinese and

Korean literature (1999, 2002) and explored forms of explicit syncretism as a reaction

against Christian missionaries (1995). Wilhelm Geerlings is editor of Fontes Christiani

(meanwhile 92 volumes) and co-editor of the Lexikon der antiken christlichen Literatur

(Döpp/Geerlings 2002). Reinhold Glei is editor of Corpus Islamo-Christianum (see Glei

1989-1993, 1995, 2001) and prepares a critical edition of the Tractatus contra principales

errores perfidi Machometi of Cardinal Torquemada. Nikolas Jaspert conducts research on

the history of the Crusades and the inter-religious contacts in the Mediterranean area.

(Jaspert 2005, 2006, in print). Jörg Plassen works on Buddhist commentary literature and

the exchange processes with Tao and Confucian philosophy (Plassen 2002, 2004, in print).

Stefan Reichmuth analyses Muslim education and intellectual networks with focus on re-

ligious and cultural contacts (Reichmuth 2004a, 2000). The Chair of Chinese History and

Philosophy (Heiner Roetz) currently conducts research on the early Christian communi-

ties in China and the corresponding inter-religious dialogues. The Chair of Japanese His-

tory (Regine Mathias) has published a work on the treatment of the Catholic Church by

the Japanese state between 1932 and 1945 (Krämer 2002).

6.1.3 The Development of the Collective Singular ‚Religion’ and of scientific basic con-cepts of religions in intercultural comparisons

Lucian Hölscher conducts research on the history of Religions in the early modern times

and about the semantic history of religion (Hölscher 2005, 2007, in print). Walter Jaeschke

has worked on the idealistic philosophy of religion, mainly on Hegel (see Jaeschke 1983,

1986), and is editor of the Hegelian volumes. Hans Martin Krämer at the Chair of Japanese

History (Regine Mathias) analyses the deployment of the term ‘religion’ in 19th century

Japan. Volkhard Krech has published about the history of the research on religion (Krech

2000, 2002).


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6.1.4 Religion and its Reflection in the Age of Colonialism and Globalization

Walter Jaeschke and Volkhard Krech have published on the term secularization (Jaeschke

2001 and Krech, in print). Volkhard Krech conducts research on processes of religious plu-

ralization in different regional contexts; a project on religious plurality in North Rhine

Westphalia has currently been completed (Krech/Hero/Zander 2007), and a new project

comparing different countries with partners in Finland and Slovenia has started. Further-

more, Krech has published on the following issues: one literature review on religion and

violence (Krech 2003), one article on the relation of culture and religion (Krech 2006b),

and one programmatic article about interdisciplinary religious research (Krech 2006a).

Stefan Reichmuth has conducted research on the German Orientalism debate (Reichmuth

2004b).

6.2 Cited Literature from Members of the Research Consortium of Ruhr University Bo-chum

Eggert, Marion (1995): “The Genius of Native Soil: Lao Can youji as Travelogue,” in: Ming Qing yanjiu, Neapel, 67-77.

Eggert, Marion (1999): “Balancing Words: The Sôp'o manp'il on language and literature,” in: Nelly Naumann, ed., Language and Literature: Japanese and the Other Altaic Languages. Studies in Honour of Roy Andrew Miller on his 75th Birthday, Wiesbaden, 67-90.

Eggert, Marion (2002): “Yijing Cosmology in Kuunmong,” in: Embracing the Other: The Interac-tion of Kroean and Foreign Cultures. Proceedings of the 1st World Congress of Korean Stud-ies, Sôngnam: Academy of Korean Studies, 213-218.

Frevel, Christian (1995): Aschera und der Ausschließlichkeitsanspruch YHWHs. Beiträge zu liter-arischen, religionsgeschichtlichen und ikonographischen Aspekten der Ascheradiskussion, Weinheim.

Frevel, Christian (ed.) (2005): Medien im antiken Palästina? Materielle Kommunikation und Me-dialität als Thema der Palästinaarchäologie. Beiträge des internationalen Kolloquiums „Me-dien der Alttagskultur in Palästina“, 25-27.Juli 2003 an der Universität Köln (FAT zweite Reihe Bd. 10), Tübingen.

Geerlings, Wilhelm (zusammen mit Siegmar Döpp) (ed.) (2002): Lexikon der antiken christlichen Literatur, 3., vollst. neu bearb. und erw. Aufl. Freiburg et al.

Glei, Reinhold F. (mit L. Hagemann) (ed.) (1989-1993): Nikolaus von Kues, Sichtung des Korans, 3 Bde., Hamburg.

Glei, Reinhold F. (mit A. Th. Khoury) (1995): Johannes Damaskenos und Theodor Abu Qurra, Schriften zum Islam. Kommentierte griechisch-deutsche Textausgabe, Würzburg-Alten-berge.

Glei, Reinhold F. (mit M. Köhler) (2001): Pius II. Papa, Epistola ad Mahumetem. Einleitung, kri-tische Edition, Übersetzung, Trier.

Günther, Linda-Marie (2003): „Hellenistische Könige als Götter: Das Beispiel der Ptolemäer“, in: Gerhard Binder et al. (ed.), Gottmenschen. Konzepte existentieller Grenzüberschreitung im Altertum, Trier (=BAC 55), 9-26.


20

Günther, Linda-Marie, und M. Oberweis (eds.) (2006): Inszenierungen des Todes: Hinrichtung-Martyrium-Leichenschändung, Berlin et al.

Hölscher, Lucian (2005): Geschichte der protestantischen Frömmigkeit in Deutschland, München. Hölscher, Lucian (2007): „Konfessionspolitik in Deutschland zwischen Glaubensstreit und Koexis-

tenz“, in: Ders. (ed.), Baupläne der sichtbaren Kirche. Sprachliche Konzepte religiöser Ver-gemeinschaftung in Europa, Göttingen, S. 11-52.

Hölscher, Lucian (im Druck): „Strukturwandlungen religiöser Semantik in Deutschland seit der Aufklärung“, in: Hans Kippenberg et al. (eds.): Europäische Religionsgeschichte. Konzepte, Entwicklungspfade und Vermittlungsformen eines doppelten Pluralismus.

Jaeschke, Walter (1983): Die Religionsphilosophie Hegels, Darmstadt 1983 (Japanische Über-setzung: Tokyo 1990).

Jaeschke, Walter (1986): Die Vernunft in der Religion. Studien zur Grundlegung der Religionsphi-losophie Hegels, Stuttgart (Englische Übersetzung: Reason in Religion, Berkeley et al. 1990).

Jaeschke, Walter (2001): „Säkularisierung“, in: Handbuch religionswissenschaftlicher Grundbe-griffe, ed. by Hubert Cancik, Burkhard Gladigow and Karl-Heinz Kohl, Bd. V, Stuttgart, 9-20.

Jaeschke, Walter (2004): „Philosophy of Religion after the Death of God”, in: Philosophy and Reli-gion in German Idealism, ed. by William Desmond, Ernst-Otto Onnasch and Paul Cruys-berghs, Dordrecht/Boston/London, 1-19.

Jaspert, Nikolas (2005): „Jerusalem und die Kreuzfahrerherrschaften im Leben und Denken des Maimonides“, in: The Trias of Maimonides. Jewish, Arabic, and Ancient Culture of Knowl-edge, ed. by Georges Tamer (Studia Judaica 30), Berlin, 41-64.

Jaspert, Nikolas (2006): Die Kreuzzüge, 3. Aufl. Darmstadt [englische Übersetzung: The Crusades, London].

Jaspert, Nikolas (im Druck): „Die Wahrnehmung der Muslime im lateinischen Europa der späten Salierzeit“, in: Salisches Kaisertum und neues Europa in der Zeit Heinrichs IV. und Hein-richs V., ed. by Bernd Schneidmüller and Stefan Weinfurter.

Krämer, Hans Martin (2002): Unterdrückung oder Integration? Die staatliche Behandlung der ka-tholischen Kirche in Japan, 1932 bis 1945. Marburg.

Krech, Volkhard (2000): “From Historicism to Functionalism: The Rise of Scientific Approaches to Religions about 1900 and their socio-cultural Context”, in: Numen 47, 244–265.

Krech, Volkhard (2002): Wissenschaft und Religion. Studien zur Geschichte der Religionsfor-schung in Deutschland 1871 bis 1933, Tübingen.

Krech, Volkhard (2003): “Sacrifice and Holy War: A Study of Religion and Violence,” in: Wilhelm Heitmeyer and John Hagan (eds.), International Handbook of Violence Research, Dordrecht/ Boston/London, 1005-1021.

Krech, Volkhard (2006a): „Wohin mit der Religionswissenschaft? Skizze zur Lage der Religionsfor-schung und zu Möglichkeiten ihrer Entwicklung“, in: Zeitschrift für Religions- und Geistes-geschichte 58, 2, 97-113.

Krech, Volkhard (2006b): „Religion und Kultur. Überlegungen zu ihrem Wechselwirkungs-verhältnis aus soziologischer Sicht“, in: Thomas M. Schmidt und Matthias Lutz-Bachmann (ed.), Religion und Kulturkritik, Darmstadt 2006, 15-34.

Krech, Volkhard (in cooperation with Markus Hero and Helmut Zander) (ed.): Religiöse Vielfalt in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Empirische Befunde und Perspektiven der Globalisierung vor Ort, Paderborn 2008.

Krech, Volkhard (in press): “Secularisation: The German Case,” in: Jan N. Bremmer and Arie L. Molendijk (eds.), What is Religion? What is the Secular?, Leiden.

Plassen, Jörg (2002): Die Spuren der Abhandlung (Lun-chi): Exegese und Übung im San-lun des sechsten Jahrhunderts, Diss., University Hamburg.


21

Plassen, Jörg (2004): “Some Random (And Very Preliminar) Notes On Performative Dimensions Of Buddhist Commentaries Written in China And Korea,” in: Asian Studies/Études Asiatiques, vol. 58,3, 597-611.

Plassen, Jörg (in press): “Some preliminary (and mostly prefatory) remarks on the production of Buddhist ŏnhae texts in Early Chosŏn.” [to be published in a volume about diglossia in Ko-rea, ed. by JaHyun Kim Haboush and Ted Hughes, ca. 34 pages.]

Reichmuth, Stefan (2000): „‚Netzwerk’” und „‚Weltsystem’”. Konzepte zur neuzeitlichen ‚Islami-schen Welt’ und ihrer Transformation, in: Saeculum 51, 267-293.

Reichmuth, Stefan (2004a): “Murtada al-Zabidi (1732-91) and the Africans: Islamic Discourse and Scholarly Networks in the Late Eighteenth Century,” in: Scott R. Reese (ed.), The Transmis-sion of learning in Islamic Africa, Leiden, 121-153.

Reichmuth, Stefan (2004b): “Discourses of Orientalism? The Topicality of Islamic and Oriental Studies in present-day Germany,” in: Youssef Courbage und Manfred Kropp, Penser l’Orient. Traditions et actualité des orientalismes francais et allemand, Beirut, 129-145.

Roetz, Heiner (1992): Die chinesische Ethik der Achsenzeit. Eine Rekonstruktion des Durchbruchs zu postkonventionellem Denken, Frankfurt/M. [engl. Translation Albany 1994].

Roetz, Heiner (2006): Konfuzius, 3rd ed. München. Roetz, Heiner (2002): „Philologie und Öffentlichkeit. Überlegungen zur sinologischen Herme-

neutik“, in: Bochumer Jahrbuch zur Ostasienforschung Vol. 26, p. 89-111. Strothmann, Meret (2000a): Augustus – Vater der res publica. Zur Funktion der drei Begriffe resti-

tutio – saeculum – pater patriae im augusteischen Principat, Wiesbaden. Strothmann, Meret (2000b): „Sepultura more perfecta. Zur legitimatorischen Funktion des To-

tenkultes in der römischen Kaiserzeit“, in: Archiv für Religionsgeschichte 2, 87-109. Strothmann, Meret (2006): „Hausfriedensbruch im Totenreich. Gewalt gegen Gräber im römischen

Reich“, in: L.-M. Günther, M. Oberweis (ed.), Inszenierungen des Todes, Hinrichtung – Martyrium – Leichenschändung, Bochum, 1-20.

Wick, Peter (2003): Die urchristlichen Gottesdienste. Entstehung und Entwicklung im Rahmen der frühjüdischen Tempel-, Synagogen- und Hausfrömmigkeit, 2. ed. Stuttgart u. a.

Wick, Peter (2004): „Jesus gegen Dionysos? Ein Beitrag zur Kontextualisierung des Johannesevan-geliums“, in: Biblica 85, 179-198.

Wyrwa, Dietmar (1983): Die christliche Platonaneignung in den Stromateis des Clemens von Al-exandrien, Berlin et al.

Wyrwa, Dietmar (1991): „Über die Begegnung des biblischen Glaubens mit dem griechischen Geist“, in: Zeitschrift für Theologie und Kirche 88, 29-67.

Wyrwa, Dietmar (2000): „Hellenisierung des Christentums“, in: Religion in Geschichte und Ge-genwart, Vol. III, 4th ed, Tübingen 2000, Sp. 1608f.

7 Further literature cited in the exposé

Antes, Peter (2006): Grundriss der Religionsgeschichte. Von der Prähistorie bis zur Gegenwart, Stuttgart.

Asad, Talal (1993): Genealogies of Religion: Discipline and Reasons of Power in Christianity and Islam, Baltimore, Md. et al.

Armstrong, Karen (2006); Die Achsenzeit. Vom Ursprung der Weltreligionen, München. Auffarth, Christoph (2005): „Weltreligion als ein Leitbegriff der Religionswissenschaft im Imperi-

alismus“, in: Ulrich van der Heyden and Holger Stoecker (eds.), Mission und Macht im Wandel politischer Orientierungen. Europäische Missionsgesellschaften in politischen Span-nungsfeldern in Afrika und Asien zwischen 1800 und 1945, Stuttgart, 17-36.

Beyer, Peter (1994): Religion and globalization, London et al. Beyer, Peter (2006): Religions in global society, London et al.


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Dammann, Ernst (1989): Grundriss der Religionsgeschichte, 3rd ed. Stuttgart et al. Diesel, Anja A. (2004): „Primäre Religion(serfahrung) – Das Konzept von Theo Sundermeier und

Jan Assmann“, in: Andreas Wagner (ed.), Primäre und sekundäre Religion als Kategorie der Religionsgeschichte des Alten Testaments, Ossing 2004, 23-45.

Eisenstadt, Shmuel N. (1987-1992): Kulturen der Achsenzeit, 5 vol., Frankfurt a.M. Eisenstadt, Shmuel N. (2000): Die Vielfalt der Moderne, Weilerswist. Eisenstadt, Shmuel N. (2003): Comparative civilizations and multiple modernities, 2 vol., Leiden et

al. Feil, Ernst (1986, 1997, 2001): Religio. Die Geschichte eines neuzeitlichen Grundbegriffs. Vol. 1:

Vom Frühchristentum bis zur Reformation; Vol. 2: Zwischen Reformation und Rationalis-mus (ca. 1540-1620); Vol. 3: Im 17. und frühen 18. Jahrhundert, Göttingen.

Gladigow, Burkhard (2004): „Elemente einer longue durée in der mediterranen Religions-geschichte“, in: Hallesche Beiträge zur Orientwissenschaft 38, 151-171.

Gladigow, Burkhard (2006): Europäische Religionsgeschichte seit der Renaissance , in: zeitenblicke 5, Nr. 1, URL: http://www.zeitenblicke.de/2006/1/Gladigow/index_html (15.4.2007).

Haußig, Hans-Michael (1999): Der Religionsbegriff in den Religionen, Berlin. Haußig, Hans-Michael (2003): Religion: eine europäisch-christliche Erfindung?, Berlin. Hutter, Manfred (2005): Die Weltreligionen, München. Jaspers, Karl (1949): Vom Ursprung und Ziel der Geschichte, München. Kippenberg, Hans Gerhard (1997): Die Entdeckung der Religionsgeschichte, München. Kippenberg, Hans Gerhard, and Kocku von Stuckrad (2003): Einführung in die Religionswissen-

schaft, München. Koselleck, Reinhart (1979): Vergangene Zukunft. Zur Semantik vergangener Zeiten, Frankfurt/M. Masuzawa, Tomoko (2005): The Invention of World Religions: Or, how European Universalism

was Preserved in the Language of Pluralism, Chicago. Said, Edward W. (1978): Orientalism, New York. Smith, Jonathan Z. (1982): Imagining Religion: from Babylon to Jonestown, Chicago, Ill. et al. Stichweh, Rudolf (2001): „Weltreligion oder Weltreligionen?“, in: Soziale Systeme 7, 118-124. Taylor, Charles (1997): Multikulturalismus und die Politik der Anerkennung, Frankfurt a.M. Tenbruck, Friedrich H. (1993): „Die Religion im Maelstrom der Reflexion“, in: Jörg Bergmann et

al. (eds.), Religion und Kultur, Opladen, 31-67. Weber Max (1988): Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Religionssoziologie, 3 vols, 7th ed. Tübingen.

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