Theology & Religious Studies: Peace, Trauma and Religion

The master programme Peace, Trauma and Religion offers a distinct theological and interreligious perspective on questions of violence, peace-building and conflict transformation.

Today, we witness the rise of national and regional conflicts (so-called “new wars”), often linked to religious and ethnic diversity or enmity, usually triggered by unjust living conditions. In a globalized world, every regional conflict affects and is affected by the international community. At the same time we observe the devastating influence of violent conflicts on the individual as well as on the relations within families and communities (trauma).

This has created a growing interest in the political and public arena to explore and develop skills for peace making and peace keeping (locally, regional, and internationally) as well as for conflict prevention and post conflict care. In the field of Theology and Religious Studies, all of the different insights are considered and critically reflected (in research, education, and praxis) from the perspective of different faith traditions. Religion is misused to incite violent conflicts as well as it is one of the strongest resources for conflict resolution and trauma healing – on the inter-personal level, the inter-groups level, as well as in reconciliation processes within whole societies.