Transformations of Religiosity - Research Group

Research Group - Transformations of Religiosity

• Mission

  To become the leading center of research into new empirical and philosophical research into the various transformations of religiosity in the Netherlands and the West, and into the consequences of those transformations for spiritual care. 

• Goals

  The research agenda of this group for 2025–2028 focuses on theorizing and mapping new forms of religiosity. Research projects include:

  • The encounter of Zen, Yoga and Ayahuasca traditions with Western modernity, with a focus on spiritual care and planetary health.
  • Contrast experiences (disruptive and revelatory experiences) as a source of spirituality
  • Spirituality in relation to ecology and nature
  • New forms of religious community
  • Meaning-making processes in spiritually fluid people
  • Liquid divinity: an ontological approach to ayahuasca religiosity
  • The role of psychedelics in spiritual care
  • The role of imagination and art in spiritual care 
  • Spiritual leadership

• Team

  Team leader:
  André van der Braak
  
  Team members
  Hans Alma
  Henk Blezer
  Elpine de Boer (Leiden University)
  Gertie Blaauwendraad
  Annemarie Foppen
  Lenneke Post
  Jens Reinke
  Daphne Simons

• Disciplines

  Systematical, Empirical

• Possible thesis topics and PhD Topics

  • The encounter of Zen, Yoga and Ayahuasca traditions with Western modernity (BA course module Spirituality Today)
  • Contrast experiences (disruptive and revelatory experiences) as a source of spirituality
  • Spirituality in relation to ecology and nature (e.g. Karen Armstrong, Sacred Nature)
  • New forms of religious community
  • Meaning-making processes in spiritually fluid people
  • Liquid divinity: an ontological approach to ayahuasca religiosity
  • Psychedelics in Spiritual Care (e.g. psilocybin in palliative care, psychedelic-assisted spiritual care: possibilities and pitfalls, psychedelics and life-threatening illnesses, psychedelics and meaning-making)

• Collaboration Senior and Junior Researchers

  The Juniors will present parts of their research in the meetings. One of the Juniors will be appointed as the secretary of the group.

• Academic relevance and societal urgency

  The rapid transformation of the religious landscape is a socially very relevant development. The old concepts of pillorization and religious affiliation no longer suffice to adequately map this landscape. New concepts and ways of thinking are needed in order to bring these new religious realities into focus.

  For example, the societal role of the spiritual caregiver is being redefined in the context of ongoing social and ecological transitions. This is reflected, among other things, in the recently published work Ecospirituality by Hans Alma. At the same time, there is growing academic and societal interest in the use of psychedelics as a source of meaning or as a form of theurgy. For spiritual caregivers, this domain presents both new opportunities and significant ethical and professional challenges, which are being explored within this research group. 

  By studying these emerging forms of religiosity and spirituality, we aim to contribute to the development of new conceptual frameworks that better reflect contemporary spiritual experience. In doing so, we seek to create space for individuals with multireligious, fluid, and/or non-traditional worldview orientations within the broader religious landscape

• Methods

  Our research will be a combination of conceptual, hermeneutical and empirical approaches. We follow the ontological turn as defined in anthropology: asking ontological questions without providing ontological answers.