Ateneo - UPO

In light of the comparative method, the teaching offers an introduction to the main religious perspectives, with particular reference to the relationship between religion, state and society.
Through the reading of texts and the discussion in the classroom, the role of religions in contemporary societies will be deepened, with specific attention to the phenomena of religious pluralism and secularization and to the opportunities and problems posed by a certain religious renaissance in the present moment.

G. Filoramo, M. Massenzio, M. Raveri, P. Scarpi (a cura di), Manuale di storia delle religioni, Roma-Bari 1998.

R. Rémond, La secolarizzazione. Religione e società nell’Europa contemporanea, Roma-Bari 1998.

G. Filoramo, Che cos’è la religione. Temi metodi problemi, Torino 2004.

A. Melloni (a cura di), Rapporto sull’analfabetismo religioso in Italia, Bologna 2014.

P. Berger, I molti altari della modernità. Le religioni al tempo del pluralismo, Bologna 2017.

G. Filoramo G., M.C. Giorda, N. Spineto (a cura di), Manuale di Scienze della religione, Brescia 2019.

F. Garelli, Gente di poca fede. Il sentimento religioso nell’Italia incerta di Dio, Bologna 2020.

E. Pace, Introduzione alla sociologia delle religioni, Roma 2021.

The course aims to provide a general knowledge of the contemporary religious phenomenon and its fundamental categories, as a contribution for students to enrich specific aspects of their course of study.

No formal requirements.

The lectures will alternate with moments of in-depth study and dialogue, in which students will be invited to actively participate.

Additional study material for the exam will be indicated by the teacher during the course. Attendance is highly recommended and is a significant advantage for the exam.
Non-attending students will agree on the study program with the teacher.

The final exam will be oral.

- The concept of religion in the Western sciences.
- Religions, public sphere and society: historical and philosophical roots.
- The autonomy of the political fact from faiths and religious values. Enlightenment and liberal thinking.
- Modernity, cornerstones of the relationship with religion: from secularization to separation.
- The contemporary era.
- Secularism. Developments of the concept, law and practice. The secular state and religious freedom. The principle of secularism in Italy. Historical evolution, figures and ideas. Articles 7, 8 and 19 of the Constitution.
- The return of interest in the religious fact in the public and social sphere. The current situation.
- The challenges of immigration. Meeting of cultures and religions. Nationalisms vs multiculturalism and religious pluralism.

At the end of the course the student is able to understand religious phenomena, with particular reference to the contemporary context, in which the various religions are in complex relationship with each other, with society and with the political sphere.