Religion and Sexuality Unit
We invite proposals for individual papers, paper sessions, and roundtable proposals in all areas of the study of religion and sexuality. We are interested in work which engages diverse contexts, geographies, religions and communities. Proposals should reflect sound engagement with existing scholarship along with innovative theoretical and/or methodological proposals around the study of religion and sexuality. We encourage the submission of coherent pre-arranged sessions, which could include roundtables, pedagogic sessions, or other creative presentation formats.
This year we especially encourage individual and paper sessions that address the following topics along with the 2026 Presidential Theme of the Future.
+ The Future of Sex: Beyond Reproduction: Considering human sexuality as trajectory. What does sexual pleasure and experimentation point us toward? Is there a future without sexual violence? Uses of story-telling, coalition building, and trauma studies from a wide variety of geographies and religious traditions encouraged.
+ Beyond Marriage: Considering hetero-coupling as a tool, rather than a goal of human thriving; marriage and religious nationalisms; contemporary and creative framings in relation to sexual politics and social justice; theoretical and conceptual innovations when considering these intersections.
+ Sexuality and Citizenship: Considering how the formation of sexual citizenship informs the future of the nation state. Creative theologies or philosophies of citizenship drawn from a wide variety of geographies and religious traditions.
+ Religion and Sexual Literacy: Considering how knowledge about sex and sexuality is transferred, taught, and framed in order to achieve a particular vision of the future.
This Unit examines religion and sexuality, broadly conceptualized, and focuses on questions of why and how sex matters for particular religious persons, communities, or traditions. We welcome collaboration with other Program Units doing work in some area of sexuality. Distinguishing this Unit from other Program Units are an emphasis on empirical research and analysis and an intentionally multidisciplinary and comparative religious focus. We especially encourage interdisciplinary approaches, interest in gender (broadly defined), and strong attention to methodological issues. This unit is committed to diversity and inclusivity; pre-arranged panels should reflect gender and racial/ethnic diversity as well as diversity of field, method, context, and scholarly rank as appropriate.
| Chair | Dates | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Megan Robertson | m.a.robertson@leeds.ac.uk | - | View |
| Sara Moslener | mosle1sj@cmich.edu | - | View |