Theology & Religious Studies

I read Theology at the University of Durham in the UK for my Undergraduate Degree and following two years of working in the media industry in London I decided that I wanted to know more about the interplay of religious belief, modernity and theories of conflict- which has led me to study Religion, Conflict and Globalization here at the University of Groningen.

Religious choices and religious thinking are so close to the hearts of many millions of people around the world and religion’s interaction with modernity and secularism has formed the basis and breeding ground for many of the challenges faced by governments, international organisations and policymakers around the world. Religion is a very fluid concept, which almost always adapts to its contextual situation and so being taught its role within diverse modern societies and in relation to theories of conflict, intersectionality, culture and peacemaking is incredibly important when hoping to develop a better understanding of the world.

The course is multi-faceted, drawing in influences from the social sciences, religious studies and political theory (and much, much more!). The course designers have worked incredibly hard to ensure that all the readings for classes are relevant, interesting and appropriate to the topic. Most pertinently, academic theories are applied to real-world case studies and many of the teaching staff in the department are leading experts in applying theory to practice. The Faculty of Religion, Culture and Society at UG has a brilliant teaching style, where independent study is encouraged but expert advice and support is only a short e-mail, coffee or chat away!

Religion, Conflict and Globalization has a diverse range of focus topics; I chose ‘Religion, Violence and Conflict Transformation’ and have really enjoyed the mixture of topics - having had tasters of the other focusses (migration and gender) I can quite happily state that all of the focusses are equally interesting and well-taught.

The University has a focus on the real-world application of your degree programme and part of that is and internship. I hope to undertake my internship within Groningen and work with one of the Non-Governmental Organisations that have clustered around the exceptional university.

As a place to live and study in, Groningen is unmatched. It is vibrant, everyone is very friendly and there is a vast array of things to see and do. There is a festival, or university-led event nearly every weekend and I hope to extend my time in Groningen further than my one-year programme. I cannot recommend my course highly enough to anyone who would like to gain a more sophisticated understanding of our highly interconnected world, develop their thoughts on religion in the public domain and experience life at a renowned university in a beautiful city.

Before I followed the master's degree in Heritage and Religion, I did the bachelor's degree in Social Geography and Planning at the University of Groningen. The master appealed to me because it was a perfect combination of many of my interests: the built environment, culture, history and of course religion. It turned out to be a very good choice!

As part of the master's degree, I was also able to do an internship at the Province of Groningen. I spent six months there with the Heritage, Spatial Quality and Landscape (Erfgoed, Ruimtelijke kwaliteit en Landschap) team, but mainly conducted my own research into Church Visions (Kerkenvisies) in Groningen. Church visions are part of a national programme (The Future of Religious Heritage/ Toekomst Religieus Erfgoed) of the Cultural Heritage Agency (Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed). At the time of my internship there were hardly any Groningen municipalities that were going to adopt a church vision. The province was curious why this was, so I looked for an answer during my internship by conducting interviews.

Ultimately, through the contacts I made during my internship, I came to my current job: drawing up a church vision for and at the Westerkwartier municipality. Because of my internship, my thesis and of course the courses from the master, I was well aware of how a church vision works and which dynamics play around (religious) heritage. This combination has ensured that I have received a good foundation that certainly helps me in my work. It is also just great fun to see the topics that emerged in the master's in practice.

I chose the program at the University of Groningen for two reasons: The historical and social approach that the program has (other universities have a more theological approach), and the opportunity of studying the three monotheistic religions (other programs are focused on Christianity or Islam). Also, I like the courses on texts studies.

My master’s thesis is about the split between Jews and Samaritans. Both religious communities share several beliefs, texts, practices, origins, and yet they are not the same. I chose this topic because one of my interests in religions is how they help in the formation of identities. For my internship, I will work at a historical research agency concentrating on museum design and exhibitions. They are currently working on the exhibition at the Jewish Museum in Groningen, and I will help with research. I will be a comparative study on several Jewish museums based in synagogues and how the religious aspect of the building might influence its use for cultural activities.

I did my bachelor's in History at the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana in Mexico City, and besides the cultural shock and the evident differences regarding the weather, living in Groningen has been a marvelous experience. The international environment in such a small city and its student essence makes studying at Groningen a great experience.

After graduation, I would like to do research and teach at a university. The field of Religious Studies in Mexico is far from being developed and accepted at the universities. I want to help this to change. Also, as a former worker at a Research and Documentary Center of the Jewish Community, which also organizes cultural events, I want to collaborate on the planning of courses and activities for promoting an inter-religious society.