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Dear friends and colleagues,

This week we would like to draw your attention to our next Screening Religion film “The Light in her Eyes”. Moreover, we have a recommendation for a call for papers and panels for you. Besides that, we give you an update on Covid-19 protection measures and inform you about the ongoing reconstruction work at our office building.

Enjoy and have a good and healthy week!

Screening Religion: "The Light in her Eyes" on 24 March

We are happy to present the next film in our series Screening Religion as online livestream in cooperation with Cinémathèque Leipzig: On 24 March we invite you to watch the documentary "The Light in her Eyes", directed by Julia Meltzer and Laura Nix. The film portrays Houda al-Habash, a conservative Muslim woman, mother and preacher who, already at the age of 17, founded a Qur'an school in Damascus exclusively for young girls. Every summer, her students there immerse themselves in the rigorous study of Islam, in addition to their secular school education. The film shows a world hardly known until now and was shot shortly before the uprising in Syria erupted in 2011. It will be shown in Arabic language with English subtitles, followed by a discussion. Registration is not necessary.

24 March | 7 p.m. (CET)

Online Livestream and Discussion (Free entry, donations welcome)

COVID-19 Latest Update

The latest Saxon Corona Protection Ordinance valid until 31 March, prolongs the existing basic Corona protection measures such as reducing contacts, keeping distance and wearing masks in public spaces (ideally medical masks) wherever people meet. Though, some relaxation has been made with bookshops, garden centres and other shops being allowed to open again for a limited number of customers.

Nonetheless, the current Corona Protection Ordinance also introduced the "Duty to test": According to this, employers are obliged to offer their employees who are present at their place of work, the opportunity to carry out a free self-test at least once a week as of 22 March 2021. The tests for employees are to be provided free of charge by employers. For the implementation at Leipzig University, the Free State of Saxony as employer is currently involved in the procurement of the self-tests. At the same time, university administration is working on a testing strategy together with our company doctors from the Central German Institute for Occupational Medicine.

By the end of the month, Leipzig University will adopt a new hygiene and infection protection concept and, hopefully, also have clarity about testing options. Depending on this, internal processes and responsibilities (distribution, prioritisation, instruction, etc.) will be organised and all employees will be informed as soon as possible. We will – of course – always keep you updated on the current developments.

Reconstruction work at KFG office building

Currently, there is a reconstruction taking place in our Leipzig office building on the 6th and 7th floor which unavoidably leads to some noise disturbances especially in the morning hours between 7 and 10 a.m. The reconstruction work will continue throughout the year. According to your preferred working time and your subjective sensitivity, our office at times may not be the ideal place to work from. You may consider bringing earplugs and earphones with you – or working from home in the morning.

Please contact us via e-mail if you have any questions.

Thanks for your understanding!

Call for Papers and Panels: BASR Annual Conference "From Religious Studies to the Study of Religion/s: Disciplinary Futures for the 21st century"

We would like to mention to you the Call for Papers and Panels for the BASR Annual Conference Edinburgh 2021, which will be held entirely online this year. The aim of the conference is to discuss disciplinary and interdisciplinary pasts and futures in Religious Studies or the Study of Religion(s), with a particular focus on the future shape of the field in the 21st century. The scope of the conference is the post-1960s period up to and including the present moment, during which Religious Studies emerged, consolidated and diversified as a recognised disciplinary field or 'brand'. Local and regional histories of the field during this period are welcome, particularly where they identify problems or strengths for the future, or can illuminate regional or international developments.

The conference organisers are particularly interested in exploring the grounds for positive and constructive disciplinary futures based on concrete methods and models for research and teaching. Proposals for individual papers and panels can be submitted via e-mail.

Deadline: 31 May

Conference dates: 6–7 September | Online

If you have any content that you think suits the purpose of the weekly, please feel free to send it to us at multiple-secularities@uni-leipzig.de.