The Bloomsbury Handbook of Religion and Heritage in Contemporary Europe

This rich and nuanced handbook offers academics and heritage practitioners new perspectives on European religious legacies. It will provide intellectual and practical frameworks for exploring the highly heterogeneous religious heritage configurations in Europe. Contributions will feed public, professional and scholarly debates on religion and identity, ritual and materiality, diversity and nationalism, post-secular dynamics, minority empowerment and theoretical challenges to religion-heritage relations. * Cyril Isnart, Director of Research, National Centre for Scientific Research, France *
This exciting, much-needed collection of timely essays opens an expansive window onto creative and thoughtful contemporary approaches to the preservation and use of both material and intangible religious heritage. An impressive range of international perspectives and voices—preservationists, scholars, artists, museum professionals, clergy, and community activists—illuminate the embodied tensions of complex religious places and histories. These thoughtful studies demonstrate how religious sites and artefacts can be catalysts for discovery, reconciliation, and meaning-making in a post-secular world. * Gretchen Buggeln, Professor of Art History & Humanities, Valparaiso University, USA *
Politics underlies so many of these fascinating essays and the editors of this useful collection highlight that a newly diverse society requires a diverse heritage. What’s more, the book acknowledges Europe as a fast-secularising society where religion and heritage both call for negotiation of identity. Highly recommended. * Crispin Paine, Visiting Fellow, The Open University, UK *