New Research Center to Study Religious Conversion
New Research Center to Study Religious Conversion
May 20, 2013
The Jerusalem Post — A new research center for the study of conversion and inter-religious encounters is being established at BGU as part of the government-funded Israeli Centers of Research Excellence (I-CORE) program. It will be headed by Prof. Chaim Hames, chair of BGU’s History Department.
A conversion to Judaism class (Photo: Ariel Jerozolimski)
“Conversion from one religion to another is a significant moment, not only for the person converting, but also for the religious community abandoned and the one adopted,” says Prof. Hames.
I-CORE’s goal is to promote and strengthen academic research in a wide range of fields such as renewable energy, cognitive science, mass trauma research and Abrahamic religions.
One of the major projects of BGU’s new research center will be to create a database of every known instance of conversion from one religion to another from the Middle Ages through Modern times.
“The database will help shed light upon the socio-economic status of converts, their professions and educational and cultural background,” says Prof. Hames.
Read more on The Jerusalem Post website >>
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