April 2024 Newsletter

Dear Members,

I hope this email finds you well. As the communication liaison for the Society for the Anthropology of Religion, I’m excited to bring you the latest updates and announcements for the month of April 2024. We value your involvement and contributions to the Society, and we’re excited to continue fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing within our community.

If you have any questions, suggestions, or contributions for future newsletters, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Thank you for your continued support, and I look forward to connecting with you in our upcoming events and activities.

Best,
Shahana Munazir
PhD Candidate in Anthropology, UW-Madison


Society for the Anthropology of Religion
Section of the American Anthropological Association

15th April 2024, Monday

News and Announcements

The SAR welcomes three new additions to the board and two returning board members who will serve terms from November 2023 to November 2025, following the AAA meetings in Toronto in November 2023.

Read a new article published in Anthropology News by our new SAR President, Mayfair Yang:
“Buddhist Environmentalism and Indigenous Cosmology in Taiwan”

New Books and Articles

Shâmaran: The Neolithic Eternal Mother, Love and the Kurds
May 2024
Dilsa Deniz
Rowman and Littlefield

Power Circuits: Asymmetries of Global Christianity
April 2024
Candace Lukasik and Jason Bruner
Journal of the American Academy of Religion

Portrait: Mayfair Yang My Intellectual Endeavors
Mayfair Yang, Peter Van Der Veer, Francois Gauthier, Prasenjit Duara, and Susan Brownell
2023
Journal of Religion and Society

Engaged Buddhism in Mountain Monasteries: Templestay as Wellness Tourism in South Korea
Kyoim Yun
2023
Asian Ethnology

Politics as Worship: Righteous Activism and the Egyptian Muslim Brother
Sumita Pahwa
November 2023
Syracuse University Press

Holy Wells of Ireland: Sacred Realms and Popular Domains
Celeste Ray and Finbar McCormick (ed)
October 2023
Indiana University Press

Karma and Grace: Religious Difference in Millennial Sri Lanka
Neena Mahadev
October 2023
Columbia University Press

The Ethnography of Tantra
Carole Erika Lorea and Rohit Singh
October 2023

Call for Proposals and Opportunities

The Society for the Anthropology of Religion (SAR) column in Anthropology News invites submissions that convey short stories about religion inspired by fieldwork, popular media, or current events. Accepted submissions will be published in 2024 and 2025.

University of Toronto is hosting an International Symposium titled, ‘Securitizing the Sacred: Pilgrims’ Trails across Digital Landscapes’ from August 22nd to 24th, 2024. This three-day event invites abstract submissions exploring the intersection of pilgrimage and global security in the digital age. The symposium invites contributions from scholars, practitioners, and stakeholders interested in topics such as data justice, mobility, and the role of digital technologies in pilgrimage experiences with various formats available including papers, posters, sessions, and alternative formats. For inquiries and submissions, contact securitizingthesacred@gmail.com. The Symposium, supported by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Grant, offers free registration and ensures accessibility for all participants.
Application Deadline: April 20, 2024

2024 Black Muslim Psychology Conference “Longing for Home: A Place Where A Soul Can Rest.” Application Deadline: April 26, 2024

University of Waterloo’s The Conrad Grebel Review “Decolonizing Mind & Practice: A Lifelong Process.” Application Deadline: April 30, 2024

SOAS Shapoorji Pallonji Institute of Zoroastrian Studies

To Hong Kong and Back Again: Parsi Charity and Building Bombay Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry Memorial Lecture by Dr Leilah Vevaina on April 30, 2024

Religion and Society is seeking submissions for their upcoming special issue.
Application deadline: May 1, 2024.

Association for Jewish Studies Annual Conference. Application Deadline: May 2, 2024

The American Academy of Religion (AAR) is excited to announce a fully online annual meeting in June 2024, in addition to their in-person meeting in November. The Online June Sessions of the Annual Meeting will be June 25-27, 2024. Read here for more details.