Co-Sponsorship
In-person November Annual Meeting 2026
CO-SPONSORSHIP: Mysticism Unit, Religion in Europe Unit, and Religion in Premodern Europe and the Mediterranean Unit
Call for Proposals
Back to the Future: Mysticism, Apocalypse, and Innovation
This panel invites papers that explore how mystic literature and visual culture approach the theme of apocalypse. Of particular interest are historically grounded approaches to apocalyptic mysticism that consider premodern frameworks. Additional areas of focus include comparisons across traditions and between Eurocentric and non-Eurocentric perspectives, apocalypse and social reform, trans panic and apocalyptic futures, and apocalypse and the colonial imagination. Specific paper topics might include, but are not limited to:
- Repurposing of premodern frameworks in our contemporary moment
- Historical and contemporary theorizations of apocalypse and millenarianism
- Apocalyptic mysticism, neo-fascism, and accelerationism
- Decolonial interventions and apocalyptic narratives
- Imaginative reconfigurations of apocalyptic mysticism
- Technological visions of apocalypse (singularity, AI, and the posthuman)
Review Process: Participant names are anonymous to chairs and steering committee members until after final acceptance/rejection