“Keep the Dialogue”
The project “Keep the Dialogue” is the continuation of the project “Keep the Dialogue, Despite the Conflict” (2024–2025). It builds on the insights and experience gained in the first phase, expands the scope of research questions, and opens up new areas for practical action.
In the 2024–2025 funding phase, the project “Keep the Dialogue, Despite the Conflict” aimed to analyze the consequences of the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 for German society as well as for interreligious relations in particular, and to explore ways to overcome the resulting polarization.
We have conducted a series of workshops with representatives from churches, religious communities and the education sector, as well as with full-time and volunteer practitioners in integration and refugee work. Through these efforts, we seek to identify disruptions and breakdowns in communication, analyze their complex causes, and develop approaches to keep the dialogue going between the different sectors of Germany society.
The second phase of the project “Keep the Dialogue” addresses the question of why, in secular as well as traditional societies, conflicts lead to increased rejection, even outright hostility toward people who are identified by their (presumed) religious affiliation. In Germany, this became apparent through the rise of antisemitism and anti-Muslim sentiment following 7 October.
Using an inter-disciplinary approach, the complex interplay between religion, politics, and society will continue to be examined and discussed at various levels.
The educational sessions that we offer to the practitioners as well as to the general public remain a central element in our work. Reports on our project activities and research results within our RelVie Working Paper Series are continuously published on our website.
The project is funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior, Sport and Integration.
