Studying religion: McGill to host regional conference

Religious diversity in Quebec on table as American Academy of Religion meets in Montreal

Just a few weeks ahead of the widely anticipated release of the Bouchard-Taylor Commission’s report on reasonable accommodation, religious diversity in Quebec will be among the topics when McGill University hosts the 2008 Eastern International Regional Meeting of the American Academy of Religion, May 2-3.

“Hosting the conference in Montreal gives us the opportunity to explore all kinds of topics because of our history, our politics and the religious diversity here,” said Prof. Ellen Aitken, Dean of McGill’s Faculty of Religious Studies.

In collaboration with the other three Montreal universities with religious faculties – Concordia University, Université du Québec à Montréal and Université de Montréal – McGill’s Faculty of Religious Studies will host the two-day series of discussions and presentations, which will also touch on the academic study of religion, as well as the religious connections to food and revolution.

Topics include ‘Immigrants and religious freedom: the Quebec Commission on Accommodements raisonnable,’ and ‘Problematic framing: othering and being othered in the context of Canadian immigration.’

Founded in 1909, the American Academy of Religion is the world’s largest association of academics who research or teach topics related to religion, with more than 10,000 members at 1,500 colleges, universities, seminaries and schools in North America and abroad. The Eastern International Region of the AAR includes Quebec, Ontario and parts of New York and Pennsylvania.

Members of the public can register for the conference online at AAR Eastern International Religion.