The Einstein Visiting Fellow project “(Re)Negotiating Social Cohesion – Religion and Community in Antiquity (800 BCE–400 CE)”, generously funded by the Einstein Stiftung/Einstein Foundation Berlin, explores the ambivalent role of religion in social cohesion in Graeco-Roman antiquity: On the one hand, religion can promote social integration by offering shared values and beliefs that influence individual lifestyles and facilitate group-based integration. On the other hand, religion also carries risks of division and conflicts across various domains. The project investigates the significance of religion for social cohesion in ancient societies through a comparative analysis. This includes examining different historical periods and communities, such as, e.g., the Roman Republic, Greek city-states, and communities marked by political upheavals and religious diversity in Late Antiquity.
The proposed research project comprises several subprojects that address different aspects and epochs, ranging from democratic processes in ancient Athens to religious conflicts and social cohesion in late antique cities. The project employs discursive approaches to conduct a detailed examination of interactions between structural conditions and actors. This project holds significance beyond historical inquiry as it addresses contemporary debates regarding the social relevance of religion. Studying ancient societies offers insights into mechanisms of social integration and division that are also relevant for understanding modern societies. Moreover, the project’s interdisciplinary nature is emphasized by including sociology, migration research, theology, religious studies, classical archaeology, and philology. In sum, the project provides a deeper understanding of the complex role of religion in social cohesion processes through a detailed and comparative analysis of ancient societies. The findings will contribute to an international discussion in academia and provide insights into the design of social processes in the present. The individual projects look into these issues more closely by focusing on Classical Athens, the local and global Hellenistic world, late antique cities, Alexandria in the Hellenistic and Roman periods, and Rome in the Republican period respectively.