About us

Religions, like everything human, are ambivalent. They can generally contribute to peaceful coexistence in society, but they can also have an absolutising effect and provoke, support and legitimise the opposite. Contradictions, paradoxes and alternative options that arise from this require fundamental interdisciplinary approaches and in-depth interreligious cooperation.

In particular, the cooperation between various philosophical and theological disciplines from different religious traditions should gain relevance through the centre. At the same time, inter- and transdisciplinary links with sociological, pedagogical, philosophical and other perspectives in the humanities and natural sciences are intended to deepen knowledge in the field of intercultural and interreligious issues.

Another central concern of the centre in this context is to pay attention to the HOW of research and teaching in an interreligious context. Diversity-sensitive, participatory, multi-perspective approaches with as much equal participation as possible from different religions and world views are being scrutinised. In this sense, it is about the further development of a critical methodology that identifies, reflects and processes asymmetrical communication patterns and stereotypes in individual, social and academic interaction and communication.

The Centre sees itself as a national and international platform for academics from various religious and ideological traditions as well as from a wide range of academic disciplines.

In a time of profound social and political change, the Centre's work aims to prove fruitful for all people and, in accordance with the Universities Act 2002, to "contribute responsibly to solving human problems and to the prosperous development of society and the natural environment".

• The fundamental concern of the Centre for Interreligious Studies is to facilitate spaces for encounters between the various actors in order to be able to link the different levels of interreligious work.
• Through the interreligious and interdisciplinary processing of questions in research and teaching and the mutual expert reflection of approaches, interreligious and intercultural competences are to be deepened.
• The further development of multi-perspective, divergence- and contingency-sensitive methodologies for interreligious research and teaching should be promoted.
• The networking of pluralistic theological approaches with corresponding approaches in religious education and religious didactics should be expanded.
• The capacity for plurality and heterogeneity in educational institutions and society should be strengthened through high-profile interreligious education, training and further education programmes.
• The contribution of interreligious education to a society capable of plurality is to be made effective and visible through the centre.

• Promotion of interreligious and transdisciplinary encounters and cooperation at various levels
• National and international transdisciplinary networking of interreligious research and teaching initiatives with the aim of making them fruitful for the Austrian context
• Realisation of research projects on relevant interreligious issues
• Further development of diversity-sensitive and multi-perspective interreligious methodologies in research, teaching and third mission
• Establishing new research and teaching formats
• Documentation and dissemination of results from research and teaching