Mózg – Umysł – Religia

Tutor

Director of Student Affairs
Institute for the Study of Religions
dr Maciej Czeremski

The Organizing Committee

Natalia Kłeczek, Matylda Ciołkosz, Anna Hojdeczko, Michał Florek, Jakub Szczęśniak, Magdalena Kozioł, Szymon Król, Maksymilian Woch, Michał Gocyła, Karol Kaczorowski, Agnieszka Dąbal, Małgorzata Dulska, Mikołaj Kupiec, Karolina Hess, Leszek Michta, Katarzyna Bajka, Adam Anczyk, Filip Kinczyk, Dorota Wójciak, Kama Wodyńska, Kinga Ziembińska, Mariusz Zalewski, Robert Czyżykowski

Institute for the Study of Religion

When the Institute of Religious Studies was found in 1974, no one expected it to become such an original, distinctive place, that will attract brilliant academics and ambitious students. Yet the founding dream was fulfilled, and today, under the guidance of professor Tomasz Sikora, the Institute remains the largest academic platform in Poland for those who wish to study religions "in all their forms and aspects." Especially since for more than thirty years the Institute was the only place to offer regular study courses in religious studies, and still remains – as a part of the Philosophical Faculty – the only academic unit authorized to accord a PhD in the field of religious studies.
If you have ever wanted to study the morphology of sacred, or what the deal is with those micwot things, why didn't the world end in 2012 what numinosum is and how did the medieval Inquisition tribunal proceed, the Institute is the right place to ask. Research conducted by the affiliated scholars pertains to religions of the world (including the religions of Poland, as researched by the Laboratory of Religious Denominations in Contemporary Poland) as institutions, as well as all types of related phenomena: the departments of the Psychology of Religion, Sociology of Religion Philosophy of Religion or Phenomenology and Anthropology of Religion are all a bustle of activity. A quick peek into their fascinating domains can be taken by reading any of the three magazines issued by the Institute – the yearly Studia Religiologica, quarterly Nomos, or the young academics' biannual Ex Nihilo, all included on the Ministry of Science and Higher Education's list of academic journals.

Apart from sending its students to international schools of religious studies and on Erasmus sojourns, the Institute is also known for its ambitious scientific conferences, both international and local (hopefully, this year's conference "Body, Mind, Religion" will be one of the boldest and most ambitious yet), as well as its numerous open lectures and meetings with members of various religious groups – a chance to prove that stereotypes are outdated and best forgotten.

The Institute is definitely a place that changes people, but it is difficult to meet someone who complains about these changes.