Lesson 1: Introduction to the course I
Topics:
What is “religion”? What is the “public sphere”? What is “central-eastern Europe”?
Literature:
- Rogers, D. (2005), ‘The Anthropology of Religion after Socialism’, Religion, State & Society 33,
no. 1: 5-18.

Lesson 2: Introduction to the course II
Topics:

What is “religion”? What is the “public sphere”? What is “central-eastern Europe”?
Literature:
- A. Testa, “Re-thinking (with) the Concept of Re-enchantment (in Central-Eastern Europe)”,
forthcoming

Lesson 3: Places of worship in eastern and central-eastern Europe
Topics:
A comparative analysis of the development and function of churches and cathedrals in post-
socialist times in several eastern and central-eastern European countries
Literature:
- Giuseppe Tateo 2021: “New Cathedrals in Postsocialist Europe: Turning Chance into
Destiny”, in T. Köllner, A. Testa (eds.), Politics of Religion: Authority, Creativity, Conflicts, LIT,
Berlin et al., pp. 23-42

Lesson 4: Catholicism in the Visegrad Countries
Topics:
In this lesson the topic of the history and importance and role of Catholicism in the
contemporary social and political situation in the Visegrad countries will be explored.
Literature:
- C. Hann, “Problems with the (De)Privatization of Religion”, «Anthropology Today», VI (6),
2000 (only the part about Poland)
- Z. Mach, “Continuity and change in political ritual: May Day in Poland”, in Revitalizing
European Rituals, ed. by J. Boissevain, Routledge, London-New York, 1992
- or
- Pasieka, Agnieszka. 2015. Hierarchy and Pluralism: Living Religious Difference in Catholic
Poland, Palgrave Macmillian. Chapter 1: Poland: a History of Pluralism

Lesson 5: Religion and the market in consumerist society
Topics:
Religion and the market in consumerist society in Czechia and Slovakia: the case of Buddhism.
Literature:

- Zuzana Bártová, “The Buddhist style in consumer culture: from aesthetics to emotional
patterns”, in Journal of Religion in Europe, 2021

Lesson 6: Religion and politics in Hungary
Topics:
Hungarian neopaganism and the Hungarian religious revival in their public dimension. With a
presentation by Viola Teisenhoffer.
Literature:
- Miklós Tomka, “Hungary Post-World War II: Religious Development and the Present
Challenge of New Churches and New Religious Movements”, In I. Borowik and G. Babinski
(eds) New Religious Phenomena in Central and Eastern Europe. Krakow: Nomos

Lesson 7: Orthodox Europe
Topics:
Religion, politics, and the market in Eastern Christianities.
Literature:
- François Gauthier, “Religious change in Orthodox-majority Eastern Europe: from Nation-
State to Global-Market”, in Theory and Society, 2021
- A. Testa (ed.), “Themed Reviews Session on Recent Studies in the Anthropology of Eastern
Christianities”. In Anthropological Journal of European Cultures, n. 30 (1), 2022

Lesson 8: Religious ritualisation in the public sphere I
Topics:
Case studies from the Czech Republic about religious and folkloric ritualisation in the last few
decades and what that can tell us about broader social transformations in post-socialist
Czechia.
Literature:
- Chlup Radek, “Pieta za oběti covidu”, in in Dingir 2021/1, pp. 48-52
- A. Testa, “ʻFertilityʼ and the Carnival 1: Symbolic Effectiveness, Emic Beliefs, and the Re-
enchantment of Europe”, in Folklore, n. 128 (1), 2017, pp. 16-36

Lesson 9: Religious ritualisation in the public sphere II
Topics:

Case studies from the Czech Republic about religious and folkloric ritualisation in the last few
decades and what that can tell us about broader social transformations in post-socialist
Czechia.
Literature:
- Chlup Radek, “Pieta za oběti covidu”, in in Dingir 2021/1, pp. 48-52
- A. Testa, “ʻFertilityʼ and the Carnival 1: Symbolic Effectiveness, Emic Beliefs, and the Re-
enchantment of Europe”, in Folklore, n. 128 (1), 2017, pp. 16-36

Lesson 10: The Czech Republic I
Topics:
A general introduction to the thorny topic of religion, irreligion, and religiosity in the Czech
Republic.
Literature:
- David Václavík, Dana Hamplová, and Zdeněk Nešpor, “Religious Situation in Contemporary
Czech Society”. In Central European Journal for Contemporary Religion 2 (2): 99-122
or
- David Václavík, “Deepening Secularization? How to Read Official Statistics. A Case of the
Czech Republic”, Diskus. The Journal of the British Association for the Study of Religions. 16.2
(2014), 22-30
or
- Tomáš Bubík, “A Graveyard as a Home to Ghosts or a Subject of Scholarly Research? The
Czech National Cemetery at Vyšehrad”, in Changing Societies & Personalities, 2020, Vol. 4, No.
2, pp. 136–157
or
- Dušan Lužný 2021: “Invented religions and the conceptualization of religion in a highly
secular society: The Jedi religion and the Church of Beer in the Czech context”, in European
Journal of Cultural Studies 2021, Vol. 24(5) 1160–1179

Lesson 11: The Czech Republic II
Topics:
Continuing the discussion about the thorny topic of religion, irreligion, and religiosity in the
Czech Republic, with a focus on the relationship between nationalism, politics, and religion.
Literature:
- Tomas Bubik, “The Czech Struggle Over Religion in the Public Space” (submitted, the text
will be provided)

Literature:
- Chlup Radek, “Jak fungují symboly: religionistické postřehy k mariánskému sloupu”, in
https://blog.aktualne.cz/blogy/radek-chlup.php?itemid=37071
or
- A. Testa, “The Reconstruction of the Marian Column in Prague Old Town - between Religion,
Heritage, and Politics”, forthcoming

Lesson 12: Concluding remarks and final discussion
Topics:
Recapitulations
Literature:
- None