Religious Actors and Social Movements in Contemporary World

This session is part of a series of panels co-organized by RC07, RC22 and RC47 on “Religious actors, social movements and politics”. It aims at exploring multiple articulations between religious actors and social movements, both progressive and reactionary, in different regions of the world. Theoretically, it will provide a space for a dialogue between social movement studies, religious studies and sociology of the future. While social movement studies and the sociology of religion have developed useful analytical and methodological tools to study these actors, their concepts and perspectives are seldom mobilized together. We will be particularly interested in the role of religious groups in the formation of new generations of activists, as incubators of political and activist cultures, in the construction of resources and networks that can be mobilized in social and political spheres, and in the roles played by the worldviews and spirituality in which some social and political activists find the source and meaning of their engagement. Full papers are expected on 1st June 2023 to ensure an insightful discussion at the congress.