Lieke Schrijvers

The research group “Beyond ‘Religion versus Emancipation”, with IARG director prof. Anne-Marie Korte as project leader, organises its first interdisciplinary symposium at Utrecht University. Two keynote lectures by experts in the field, professor Jeanette Jouili (University of Pittsburgh) and professor Elina Vuola (University of Helsinki), will be the starting point for a discussion about conversion, religion and emancipation. This expert meeting is part of the NWO-funded project “Beyond ‘Religion versus Emancipation’: Women’s Conversions to Judaism, Christianity and Islam in Contemporary Western Europe”, located at the department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Utrecht University. This project investigates public discourses, religious traditions and lived experiences of women who have converted or are in the process of conversion. It also researches secular and religious discourses about gender, sexuality and emancipation. A more extensive description of the project can be found here.

Conversion, a paradox?!
In contemporary Western Europe, an intense public…