Since the spatial turn of the 1980s, the significance and potential of space as an approach to a variety of sources—particularly to understand its social dynamics—have become widely acknowledged in the humanities. However, spatial theories and concepts have often been treated in isolation within Medieval Studies, a tendency particularly evident in research on Jewish
medieval contexts.
The aim of the conference is to expand our understanding of this underexplored topic. To this end, we seek to bridge theoretical approaches with practical insights and address questions such as
the following: What constitutes Jewish medieval space? How were such spaces constructed, and what symbolic meanings did they embody? Where do the boundaries of Jewish space lie? How do spaces evoke emotions, and in what ways did religious and social ideas structure spaces? How is Jewish space defined across different research fields? Which role does heritage preservation,
archaeology, and the possibilities of digital methods and humanities play, in order to make Jewish spaces accessible and publicly presented in our modern environment?

From 22 to 24 October 2025, the international symposium ‘Foreign Rule in Hellenistic Greece and Egypt. Local Contexts and Perspectives’ will take place in Münster, organised by the Department of Ancient History and Subproject 1 of the Xenocracy Research Group. The event is organised by Prof. Dr. Hans Beck, FRSC (Münster) and Prof. Dr. Patrick Sänger (Münster).

Program

The year 2025 marks the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea. To commemorate the occasion, the Pontifical Gregorian University and the University of Münster are organising an international conference entitled “The Confession of the Council of Nicaea: History and Theology”.
The aim of the conference is to foster dialogue between historical research on the Council and systematic-theological questions concerning the current significance of the Nicene Creed. Each of the two organising institutions represents this aim in its own way: each has a long tradition of studying theology and church history, while being concerned at the same time with contemporary issues of the Christian faith in different regional, linguistic and cultural contexts. 
The conference is therefore divided into two parts. The first took place from 27 February to 1 March 2025 in Rome;
the second will take place from 15 to 17 October in Münster.

The international conference "The Archaeology of Iron Age Transjordan: Between the Empires and Local Networks" will take place from 6 to 7 October 2025.
The conference aims to discuss the nature of society, politics, and religion throughout Iron Age Transjordan. Our goal is to explore interconnections, systems of control, and the tensions between local networks, emerging ‘state’ power, and the wider imperial context.

Venue: JO 101, Johannisstr. 4, 48143 Münster
Organisation: Prof. Dr. Katharina Schmidt

Program

On June 25, we had the opportunity to talk to one of the world's leading experts on the Jewish diaspora in ancient Egypt: Prof. Dr. Noah Hacham from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In the afternoon, he first gave a lecture as part of the interdisciplinary workshop “The Communal Institutions of Egyptian Jewry after the Diaspora Revolt according to the Papyri”.

The topic of this international conference "Munāẓara - Seeing Eye to Eye? Theological and Literary Arguing Practices in Comparison" will focus on theological and literary disputations (munāẓarāt), which occupy an important place in Arabic-language literature. From debates about the nature of God to imagined objects, such as the sword and pen, arguing about their superiority, munāẓarāt cover a range of topics that include popular and elitist issues, problems or criticism, and can also deal with them humorously.

Program of the conference

This workshop brings together scholars from diverse disciplines working on the coastal regions of South Asia and transcultural contacts with the Arab and Mediterranean worlds. It is related to a research project on sources produced by and for the coastal communities of the Malabar Coast as the case study of the emergence of religious demarcation in the Indian Ocean world. The project explores origin legends in Arabic, Malayalam, and Hebrew, for identifying patterns of inter- and intra-religious demarcation.

 

From 15 to 17 January, the workshop ‘Empire in Translation: Perso-Arabic Knowledge and the Making of Early Modern Ottoman Civilisation’ organised by the TRANSLAPT research group will take place at the University of Münster. Translations between Arabic, Persian and Ottoman Turkish will be discussed as various forms of adaptation, imitation, paraphrasing and reuse of texts within early modern Ottoman manuscript culture.

The region of Laconia with its capital Sparta continues to fascinate visitors to this day, not least because of the political and cultural uniqueness of Sparta in antiquity. This often obscures the cultural and scenic diversity of the region and its rich historical heritage. As part of this year's Greece seminar, facets of this heritage will be highlighted.

Time: Saturday, 16 November, 12.30-19.00 hrs
Venue: agora conference hotel, Bismarckallee 5, Münster

Programme with further information

The 'Ancient Sudan' research center at the University of Münster is organizing the 13th 'International Conference for Meroitic Studies' from September 9 to 13. The focus will be on archaeological, historical, and philological research on ancient Sudan, particularly the Kingdom of Meroe (9th century BC to 4th century AD). In light of the current civil war in Sudan, a large discussion round on the topic of protecting cultural heritage is also planned.

Seminarraum JO 101
Johannisstr. 4
48143 Münster

Organization:
Prof. Dr. Lutz Doering I Exzellenzcluster "Religion und Politik"

Please register until 13 September by sending an email to Florian.Neitmann@uni-muenster.de.

Program

Venue:
Seminarraum JO 101
Johannisstr. 4
48143 Münster

Organisation:
Prof. Dr. Gesa Schenke I Exzellenzcluster „Religion und Politik“

Program

The aim of the conference is to focus primarily on the Jewish context for the Apk and to show the numerous connections to it, which has only been done to a limited extent in previous research, including that of recent decades.

Organization: Prof. Dr. Lutz Doering, Dr. des. John Dik

Program and further information

 

The conference aims for systematic understanding of the material cultures of cities (re-)founded in the Hellenistic southern Levant. It will use the unique situation of the region to make regional and cross-temporal comparisons. 

Organisation: Prof. Dr. Achim Lichtenberger (Münster) and Prof. Dr. Oren Tal (Tel Aviv) 

Program with further information
 

At the Münster Archaeology Day on 4 May, all interested parties are invited to get to know the diversity of archaeological research in Münster. A varied programme awaits you from 10 am to 5 pm in the Fürstenberghaus.
Anyone interested in the latest research findings is sure to find what they are looking for in our extensive lecture programme and poster exhibition. If you are tempted by the treasures of bygone times, you should join one of the guided tours through the Archaeological Museum! Or you can try out modern research methods for yourself at one of the activity stands and find out how archaeological field research works during a demonstration excavation.
If you are considering studying archaeology at the University of Münster, why not take the opportunity to talk to the teaching staff, our students or the student advisory team?
 

On February 19 and 20, 2024, the symposium "Toxic Biblical Hermeneutics? The Bible, abuse and the responsibility of exegesis". Renowned experts in the field of abuse research (including Barbara Haslbeck, Ute Leimgruber and Doris Reisinger) will discuss the role of the Bible, its interpretation and reception in initiating, committing and covering up sexual abuse in church contexts with biblical scholars.
The conference is being organized by the Chair of New Testament Theology and Biblical Theology (Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Grünstäudl) in cooperation with Dr. Judith König, research assistant at the Chair of Exegesis and Hermeneutics of the New Testament at the Faculty of Catholic Theology at the University of Regensburg.
To participate, please register at innovation@uni-muenster.de by January 31, 2024.

International Workshop
14 / 15 December 2023
all day

Venue
Evangelisch-Theologische Fakultät
Universitätsstraße 13-17
Raum 102
48143 Münster

Organisation: Eve-Marie Becker, Christoph Hammann / Exzellenzcluster „Religion und Politik“ und
Evangelisch-Theologische Fakultät, Universität Münster

Time:
11 and 12 December 2023
all day

Venue:
JO 101, Johannisstraße 4
48143 Münster

Organisers:
Francesca Mazzilli, Marian Helm, Achim Lichtenberger, Sophia Nomicos / Cluster of Excellence "Religion and Politics"

Keynote-Lecture  (11 December, 18:15 p.m.)
Christina Williamson (Groningen)
"Timeless Roots. Divine Narratives and Ritual Practices as Urban Anchors of Belonging"


Program

The workshop aims to examine one way of dealing with legal plurality: law consolidation, that is any attempt to order a multi-normative environment of an ancient polity. Both top-down approaches of the state and bottom-up pursuits of ordinary users of law will be examined on the basis of ancient sources.
Organisation:
Jakub Urbanik (Warsaw), Patrick Sänger (Münster)
Venue:
Käte Hamburger Kolleg (Iduna-Hochhaus)
Raum 7011 (7. OG)
Servatiiplatz 9, 48143 Münster
Date: 30.11.-02.12.2023
Program

Research on “hunting poetry” used to declare the nonexistence of such courtly pleasure during the Mamluk period and research on “nature poetry” mainly focused on flowers, garden and spring up to around 1100.
This conference will explore the topic of hunting and nature more broadly in Arabic literature during Mamluk times in many diverse literary fields, poetry and prose, in order to explore some of those treasures that have been ignored far too long. Next to different kinds of hunting we will observe the Nile flood, a supernova, several earthquakes, a fruit contest, and nature in religious contexts as well as how nature is transformed into abstract concepts.
Find more information in our flyer

Monstrous and extraordinary figures appear in Greek visual and textual worlds from antiquity to modern times. They leave a lasting impression, but also arouse amazement and horror. During the seminar, several aspects of the fantastic and monstrous will be discussed from philological, historical, ethnological, art-historical and natural science perspectives.

The body has always been an integral part of religious practices and ideas. The case studies to be discussed at the conference range from ancient Egyptian rituals to body practices in medieval Al-Andalus and magical practices in the early modern period.
The conference serves as preparation for the exhibition "Religion and the Body. From Antiquity to Today", which the EXC will be showing at the Archaeological Museum and the Bible Museum of the University of Münster from October 2024 to February 2025.
The keynote speech "God and the body. Some unusual perspectives from the Jewish-Christian tradition" will be given by Prof. Dr CHRISTOPH MARKSCHIES on Monday (13.11.2023, 19:00-20:00, Room JO 1).

On Friday/Saturday, 17/18 November 2023, the "Day of Ancient Numismatics" (TAN) will once again take place in Münster, which is a joint project of the Research Centre for Ancient Numismatics at the University of Münster, the Coin Cabinet at the LWL Museum of Art and Culture / Westphalian State Museum and the Verein der Münzfreunde für Westfalen und Nachbargebiete e. V. (Association of Coin Lovers for Westphalia and Neighbouring Areas).
As in previous years, the event will also provide a platform for young academics to discuss the latest research and projects.
The evening lecture will be given by UTE WARTENBERG (ANS New York & International Numismatic Council) on the topic of "Archaic coinage: In search of new explanations".

Programme

The symposium "130 Years Lakonische Kulte" takes place on Oc­to­ber 23 at the Swedish In­sti­tute at Athens. The event is co-or­ga­nized by the Epi­chorios Se­ries, Uni­ver­sität Mün­ster, and the Athens Greek Re­li­gion Sem­i­nar.

Theophilus of Alexandria (385–412) was the driving force behind the condemnation of Origen as a heretic. Initially a follower of Origen, in 399/400 he turned against him and contemporary Origenists. What were the motives for this change of course? What role did the Alexandrian bishop's claims to political power play in this?
 
Program

Parodies of religious texts and practices have been handed down in Jewish, Islamic and Christian contexts. This interdisciplinary and comparative conference will examine the conditions under which religious parodies are possible, the contexts and times in which they are increasingly written, and how they are received or censored. It will also focus on the functions of these parodies, their potential and their relationship to tradition, and their significance in the history of religion and culture as well as in social and political terms.

Venue: Seminar room JO 101, Johannisstraße 4, Münster

Organisation: PD Dr. Pia Claudia Doering, Prof. Dr. Regina Grundmann, Prof. Dr. Syrinx von Hees

Programme flyer

In interdisciplinary, trans-epochal and trans-regional contributions, the conference will deal with possible examples of 'cultural appropriation' in pre-colonial times and will also explore the theoretical question of how far the concept that originates in 'postcolonial studies' can be applied to these contexts.

Time: 11 to 13 September 2023
Venue: Johannisstraße 4, JO 101, Münster
Registration is requested.

The programme and further information can be found here

The conference casts exegetical, historical and theological perspectives on ancient Antioch.

Time: 20-21 September 2023
Venue: Faculty of Protestant Theology
Universitätsstraße 13-17, Room 102

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German

further information can be found in German