Re-imagining the Future of Religious Studies Scholarship: A Roundtable for De Gruyter Handbook of Religion and Social Change

The roundtable on The De Gruyter Handbook of Religion and Social Change (2026) will convene editors and contributors to discuss how scholars are reimagining the future of religious studies amid major social transformations. The Handbook brings together theoretical, methodological, and empirical case studies from around the world to explore religion’s dynamic roles in processes such as urbanization, democratization, media expansion, and social justice movements. Panelists will offer brief reflections on the volume’s key claims, its contributions to interdisciplinary “futuring,” and methodological lessons for future research, then engage in dialogue with one another and the audience. The session will showcase the Handbook’s comparative scope and provoke discussion on how religious studies can productively envision futures by integrating diverse theories and global evidence.