uu77

Zes vrouwen in witte jurken en hoeden poseren op straat naast een draaiorgel. Ze hebben allemaal een collectebus vast. Op het orgel staat de tekst: 'Orgelfonds parochie Onze Lieve Vrouw van Altijddurende Bijstand'.
Zes vrouwen in witte jurken en hoeden poseren op straat naast een draaiorgel. Ze hebben allemaal een collectebus vast. Op het orgel staat de tekst: 'Orgelfonds parochie Onze Lieve Vrouw van Altijddurende Bijstand'.

Call for Papers for Trajecta Conference 2025: Between Money and God

Organised religions require material resources and funding. This dependence on capital has generated concerns for centuries. From the mid-18th century onwards these took a new, modern form. However the top layer of society continued to exercise considerable influence e.g. through donations and charitable initiatives. In return, this was often contested by ‘ordinary church members’, who could counterbalance the elite (financially) by means of organisation.

How have religious and economic discourses been reconciled? Can we better understand religious organisations by observing them as economic actors, even enterprises? Can we get a grip on the evolving historical identity of faith-based communities by studying their financial practices, such as fundraising? How did they interact with the financial and business world? What impact did faith have in these communities, and what role did employers’ association with a religious background play? How and to what extent could financial structures and practices be changed or adjusted?

Trajecta conference 2025

The Trajecta conference ‘Between Money and God. Financial forces and religion in the Low Countries, 1800-2025’ focuses on the interplay between organised religion and economical-financial practices, perspectives and structures in Belgium and the Netherlands from the 1800s to the present day. The event is intended for historians, religion scholars, economists, (church) administrators, bankers, fundraisers, archivists, heritage specialists and other interested parties.

The conference will be held on October 2-3, 2025 at uu77 in Nijmegen and is organised by Gertjan Schutte (Theological University of Utrecht), Hans Krabbendam (Catholic Documentation Centre of uu77) and Peter Heyrman (KADOC Documentation and Research Centre on Religion, Culture and Society of KU Leuven).

Deadline

Proposals for papers (max. 500 words) and resumes (150 words) may be submitted by May 15, 2025 to hans.krabbendam [at] ru.nl (hans[dot]krabbendam[at]ru[dot]nl)

Submitters will be notified of acceptance in May. After peer-review, the papers may be published in a themed issue of Trajecta, Religion, Culture and Society in the Low Countries (Amsterdam University Press).

Learn more

Below you can download the Call for Papers for additional information and inspiration.

Learn more about the Trajecta journal of the publisher.

Contact information

Organizational unit
Catholic Documentation Centre