Research Portals for Institute Projects

Announcing the 2021-2022 Boston Colloquium on the Scientific Study of Religion:
Cognitive Science of Religion

The Colloquium, convened by Dr. Wesley J. Wildman, meets weekly for interdisciplinary discussions of the scientific study of religion. The group is a friendly and supportive environment for people making their way in the scientific study of religion, building connections between early-career scholars and researchers. The Colloquium meets on Wednesdays from 12:30-1:20 Eastern time. Most meetings involve a discussion of a research article, a presentation by a member of the group, or a guest speaker.

Each year, the readings and discussions are focused on a specific theme. For 2021-2022, the theme is Cognitive Science of Religion. The Colloquium will build on remote discussions over the past year to use a hybrid format that will include participants from a variety of locations. Members will attend the group, read the articles, and engage in discussions. They may also have the opportunity to present their own research.

Graduate students and postdoctoral researchers are invited to apply to become Colloquium members for the upcoming year by emailing a CV and a short paragraph explaining your interest in the Colloquium to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. To ensure optimal group size, the number of participants will be limited, and applications should be received before September 1, 2021. Researchers outside of Boston and Boston University are encouraged to apply.

The Colloquium is based at Boston University and affiliated with the Center for Mind and Culture.

IBCSR has a close relationship with Boston University, which is the home of a cutting-edge, multi-faceted PhD program in religion and science. This degree covers the scientific study of religion, empirical psychology of religion, philosophy and history of the religion-science relationship, religion and science dialogue issues, and spirituality and health research. IBCSR contributes resources and training opportunities to several phases of that degree program.

Pictured below is IBCSR Research Fellow Kirk Wegter-McNelly's board work part way through the derivation of the central inequality in Bell's Theorem—the theorem that paved the way for experiments that demonstrated the necessity of non-locality in physics. This line of investigation has had a revolutionary effect on our understanding of the natural world, and poses significant challenges for philosophical and religious interpretations of nature.