Introduction

In the previous chapter we laid out some of the intellectual, social and political imperatives for a more informed and nuanced policy discussion about the increase in the public role and impacts of religion and belief that has emerged with the arrival of the new millennium. We now turn to an analysis of the data gathered from the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)-funded interdisciplinary research project, Re-imagining Religion and Belief for Policy and Practice that ran from 2014 to 2016, which has framed the new interdisciplinary analysis in this volume.

Methodology

The Re-imagining Religion and Belief for Policy and Practice research network aimed to critically map a wide range of contemporary conceptions of religion and belief, and to translate, disseminate and calibrate this mapping for policy audiences. We sought, as the principle researchers, to engage new thinking about religion and belief with policy-makers’ ideas in those key policy fields related to religion and belief that are especially prominent: security and cohesion; community and neighbourhood; education; welfare and the third sector; international development; and health and social care. The network curated information sharing and debates on religion and belief from several current disciplines, including Religious Studies, Political Philosophy, Public, Practical and Political Theology, Cultural Studies, Anthropology and Sociology of Religion, Social and Public Policy, and Critical Urban Geography.

The process of mapping, reflecting and translation into policy terms had four iterations, designed to triangulate as much as possible our inductive mapping of key ideas and themes across the different disciplines. The first iteration involved ‘landmark’ semi-structured interviews with 18 leading critical thinkers in the study of religions and beliefs. These thinkers were selected not only for their global reputation, but also because many could be considered to be public intellectuals, transcending as well as epitomising key thinking in their disciplines. It was this quality of perspective we were seeking to engage. Each participant responded to three questions: How do you characterise the present debate/dialogue concerning religion and the public sphere in your field? What are the key pinch-points and new insights? Where is the study of religions and beliefs going to go in the next five to ten years?