Lived Religion, representation and practice

This course is offered by the Department of Teaching and Learning as a part of the Doctoral School in the Humanities. The course is offered during the spring semester of 2027.

Istanbul

Anders Ackfeldt

Course Content

This course provides an introduction to the field of lived religion, focusing on how religion is practiced, experienced, and given meaning in everyday contexts, beyond its institutional and doctrinal forms. Through theoretical, methodological, and empirical perspectives, the course examines lived religion as a research field, with particular attention to the relationship between official, institutionally sanctioned forms of religion and the diverse, often informal practices through which individuals and communities engage with religious traditions. The course also examines how religion is represented, for example in museums, urban settings and non-formal educational institutions.

The course combines online theoretical sessions with an on-site field study component, during which students investigate how religion is represented and negotiated in specific institutional settings, such as museums, educational sites, heritage sites, and places of worship, alongside sites of everyday and popular religious practice, including pilgrimage destinations, shrines, and devotional spaces. Using the field study site as an ethnographic case, the course illustrates the multifaceted expressions of lived religion and equips students with analytical tools for interpreting contemporary religious life.

Throughout the course, students will engage critically with key theoretical debates in the study of lived religion, reflect on methodological and ethical considerations in fieldwork, and apply a lived religion perspective to empirical source material.

After completing the course, the doctoral student should be able to:

  • discuss relevant theoretical and methodological perspectives within the research field of lived religion
  • critically reflect on how lived religion can be observed and analyzed
  • critically reflect on how religion is represented at different types of sites in Istanbul or elsewhere
  • critically reflect on the use of lived religion in research
  • apply a lived religion perspective to source material
  • demonstrate knowledge of key ethical considerations in the study of lived religion

Mandatory elements

Mandatory elements are:

  1. i) written seminar assignments
  2. ii) attendance at seminars

Participation in the field study in Istanbul is not mandatory but strongly encouraged.

Examination

The course is examined through written assignments submitted throughout the course, and orally through a presentation.

Instruction

The course is taught through online lectures and seminars, in which doctoral students are expected to participate actively. The seminars are complemented by an optional field study at the Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul. Doctoral students who do not take part in the field study in Istanbul may instead carry out their field study at another location.

Language of instruction

English, but assignments can be written in Swedish

Course dates and period

Course period: February–May 2027

Course sessions:

  • Online seminars every Thursday, 15.00–17.00, starting 25 February 2027, with a break during Easter week
  • Field study: 19–23 April 2027, at the Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul (or an alternative location)
  • Concluding online seminar with oral presentations, held after the field study

Literature list:

Course Plan:

Application

Applications for courses starting in the spring semester 2027 are received between November 15 and December 15 2026. Notifications of acceptance are sent out as soon as possible after the final date.

All applications are sent by the supervisor to: doctoralschool@hum.su.se. Official transcript of records, or certificate of registration, verifying the applicant's status as doctoral student should be enclosed with the application.

All courses are free of charge, and they are open to all who are admitted to studies on PhD-level, regardless of faculty or university. Prerequisites and special admittance requirements may apply for some courses.

How do I apply?

The application form (document link below) is used to apply for a place in a course. The supervisor (or equivalent) must support the doctoral student’s application with a motivation as to why the doctoral student should participate in the course. The supervisor also submits the proposal to the following address: doctoralschool@hum.su.se.

Application form for place in a joint faculty coursedocx, 294.6 kB.

Who can apply?

The Faculty of Humanities’ doctoral students have priority for places, and external doctoral students (from Stockholm University or another university) can be admitted to a course subject to availability. External doctoral students will be registered in Ladok in order to enable the Board to monitor all participants in a course.

This course is offered by the Department of teaching and learning and course coordinator is Jenny Berglund.

Research officer: Mikael Kalm, Fil. dr

forskarskolan@hum.su.se

Mikael Kalm

Last updated: 2026-09-15

Source: Office of Human Science

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