Students from our Study of Religions undergraduate programme have been awarded inaugural prizes for their excellence in academic writing:

Rebecca Desbordes and Finn Mac Callum received the Isabella Honan Essay Prize for the best first year essays.

Alice Stapleton was awarded the Brian Bocking Dissertation Prize for the best final year dissertation.

This new book:

• Explores the psychedelic experience from a phenomenological perspective
• Argues that the psychedelic experience can reveal aspects of reality which would not otherwise be disclosed
• Discusses how psychedelic experience can open the subject to the essential nature of reality

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy, Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam was live at Cork’s RTÉ studios today on RTÉ's TV show Today for ‘Talk of Today’ discussing topical news such as The Conclave, Salaries and Tyres on Wednesday 7th May 2025.

Aman was joined on the panel by Irish media star Terry Prone, Henry McKean, Dáithí Ó Sé and Maura Derrane. Broadcast live from Cork studio. 

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam and Head of Department led a seminar for University College London’s  Commonwealth Scholarship Commission Fellows Programme on ‘Gender and Sexuality in Islam’ with healthcare professionals from Uganda, Zambia, Nigeria and Bangladesh on Monday 28th April 2025. Thanks to Irwin Nazareth (Professor of Primary Care and Population Sciences) for organising. 

Aman also met Lord Mayor of Cork - Dan Boyle, film producer and former Member of the House of Lords of the United Kingdom - David Puttnam, TD and Minister of State - Jerry Buttimer and UCC's VP Global - Professor Ursula Kilkelly

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy presented at a keynote conversation honouring the life and legacy of Tudor Parfitt, Distinguished University Professor and President Yitzhak Navon Professor of Sephardic-Mizrahi Studies at Florida International University (Miami, USA) at ‘The Fringes of the Jewish World Colloquium’ at the Jewish Museum of Florida in Miami (April 6/7). 

First Year student on the RG1001: Religions and Global Diversity Programme, Rebecca Desbordes aka Rivka Salomé, will participate in the Harvard Divinity School Conference 'Art and Spirituality' connected to HDS's Program on the Evolution of Spirituality.

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy’s ‘One God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam’ students welcomed the West Cork Artist and Writer, Brian Lalor to class on Thursday 3rd April 2035. A specialist archeologist having worked extensively in the Middle East, Brian explored the built heritage of Jerusalem over successive periods and discussed archaeological discoveries and their interpretation.

They also welcomed Clair Lalor (Co-Chair of Cork Three Faiths Forum) and other members to class. Clair introduced the work of the forum and its significance in building bridges between Jews, Christians and Muslims in Cork and beyond. Photo includes Rev, Tony Murphy (Church of Ireland)

Dr Jenny Butler is participating in the workshop entitled "The Echo of Ancestors: The Reemergence and Claims of 'Ancient' Religions in Europe"

The interdisciplinary workshop explores the revival of ancient religions in Europe, examining their resurgence, dissemination, institutional recognition, and sociopolitical impact. As non-monotheistic beliefs—polytheism, paganism, and animism—gain renewed interest and are increasingly leveraged in identity debates, the initiative brings together researchers from across Europe for a cross-disciplinary investigation of these evolving dynamics.

Michelle Gonzalez Maldonado, Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Scranton (USA) gave a guest lecture to RG2008: One God – Judaism, Christianity and Islam students on the topic of ‘Latin American Christianity’ on Thursday 27^th March 2025. Students were honoured to discuss topics such a liberation and black theology in Latin America as they connected to historical and contemporary themes with Professor Maldonado.

Taking place on Saturday, March 29th, 2025

The next presentation in the Study of Religions Research Seminar Series will be on Wednesday 26 March from 6-7pm with Dr Olesia Zhytkova on

"Activity of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church in Kyiv (1919-1930)"

Considering a postgraduate programme in Anthropology or the Study of Religions? Join our webinar and hear directly from Programme Directors from UCC's MA in Anthropology and Higher Diploma in the Study of Religions. Sign up: http://bit.ly/UCCW325

Animal Studies and Ecocriticism in India

A conference within the context of PRIN Project 2022 funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research   

“For a Multivocal History of the Attitudes Towards Non-Human Animals in South Asia. Ethics, Practices, Symbolism. Investigating New and Unsolved Issues”

Professor Max Strassfeld, Religious Studies from University of Southern California Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences spoke with Dr. Amanullah De Sondy’s One God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam students on the topic of ‘Trans Talmud: Androgynes and Eunuchs in Rabbinic Literature’.

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy, Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam was honoured to represent University College Cork - Study of Religions as guest of his dear friend Bishop Paul Colton at the Feast of Saint Patrick and Civic Choral Eucharist - alongside Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Cllrs, Oireachtas members and civic representatives led by the Lord Mayor of Cork. 

Taking place 6-7pm on MS Teams on Wednesday 12 March 2025 with Iryna Stavynska 

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy wrote in The Conversation on the murder of gay South African Imam Muhsin Hendricks as it reignites queer Muslim debate.

Students from Dr Amanullah De Sondy’s One God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam course visited St. Fin Barre's Cathedral today in Cork. A splendid tour was given by The Very Rev Nigel Dunne on Thursday 6^th March 2025. Always an enjoyable and educational visit.

A student visit took place to the Chester Beatty in Dublin which houses important religious texts and artefacts. Dr. Moya Carey, Curator of Islamic Collections presented a tour of the collections to students taking the One God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam module on Sunday 23^rd February 2025. We were also joined by students from our Women's and Gender Studies programme and the Philosophy Department.

Cedar Monroe is a PhD student and Assistant Lecturer in the Study of Religions Department at UCC. His research is focused on the intersections of ecological sustainability and activism, nature-based spiritualities, and settler colonial critique. He is interested in the ways that spiritual connection or relationship to land and place can motivate responses to the world's polycrisis.

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy joined RTE’s ‘Today’ programme On Monday 10^th February 2025 for his regular participation in the ‘Talk of Today’ panel. Topical news stories are discussed. The hosts for this week’s show were Dáithí Ó Sé and Sinead Kennedy alongside panelists Elaine Kinsella from Radio Kerry and Shane Beatty from Newstalk.

Kerem Görkem Arslan is a lecturer in the Department of Turkish Studies at the University of Strasbourg, an associate researcher at the French Institute for Anatolian Studies, and a PhD candidate in political sciences at the Droit, Religion, Entreprise et Société Research Unit (UMR 7354 DRES, jointly supervised by CNRS and the University of Strasbourg).

Dr Tatsuma Padoan (Study of Religions Department, UCC), together with his team from the SENSA Lab (Laboratory of Semiotics, Ethnosemiotics, Nonfictional Studies and Audiovisuality), presented the Seed-Funded Pilot Project "Aesthetic Communication: The Role of Senses in Social Interaction, Across and Beyond the Human", during the Future Humanities Institute event "Methodologies that Motivate", held at UCC Granary Theatre on 15 January 2025 (16.00-19.30).

and Happy New Year!

Dr Lidia Guzy represented the MA Anthropology and Study of Religions in Johannesburg, South Africa returning with many innovative ideas and inspirations to foster South Africa-Ireland collaboration in teaching and learning.

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy, Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam attended the reception to celebrate nominees and winners of the Tyndall Institute’s Annual Recognition Awards (TARA) 2024 on Thursday 15^th November. Aman was on the Official Judging Panel for People and Culture. Aman chatted with CEO Professor William Scanlon about Equality and Diversity at the Institute and at the University.

Pictured: Professor Scanlon, Dr Amanullah De Sondy and Claire Cooke (Tyndall Institute’s People and Culture Manager)  

Many congratulations to Dr. Isral Naska who graduated with his Ph.D on October 31st in Arabic and Islamic Studies. 

President John O’Halloran and Dr. Amanullah De Sondy (supervisor) wished him well in his academic career in Indonesia and the many international collaborations that he is involved in.

Amanullah De Sondy, Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam presented a keynote address at Mater Misericordiae University Hospital in Dublin at their symposium on the theme of ‘Living Our Values Every Day – Mission Impossible’ on Wednesday 25^th September 2024. Aman spoke on issues related to religions in Ireland and themes related to diversity and pluralism.

Dr Jenny Butler (2024) ‘“A Druid Land”: Druid Identities and Practices in Contemporary Ireland’ In Doyle White, Ethan and Jonathan Woolley, Modern Religious Druidry: Studies in Paganism, Celtic Identity, and Nature Spirituality, Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 121-140.

Dr. Vagramenko is leading the SFI-IRC Pathway project (total budget €515,000). Additionally, she has secured an IRC Ukrainian Researcher Scheme grant, a prestigious British Library grant in 2023 and UCLA grant in 2024 to preserve endangered archives in war-torn Ukraine. 

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy. Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam joined the academic procession for University of Glasgow Commemoration Day, as an affiliated member of staff and PhD Alum of the university, on Wednesday 12th June 2024. Amongst Honorary Graduands was Dr. Veronica Crosbie, Irish pioneer of University of Sanctuary networks.Aman met with Principal and Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sir. Anton Muscatelli, Prof. Alison Phipps - Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts and Chaplain Rev. Dr. Carolyn Kelly. "

Dr Jenny Butler will give the keynote lecture "Invoking Ireland: Celticity, Landscape and Identity in Irish Literary Tradition" at the conference "Landscape and Identity in Contemporary British and Irish Literature", 10-11 May 2024 at the Institute of English Studies, Jagiellonian University in Kraków.

Dr Jenny Butler will give a public talk titled "The Traditional Irish Ritual Year and Calendar Customs" at the Ethnographic Museum in Kraków/ Muzeum Etnograficzne im. Seweryna Udzieli w Krakowie on 10 May 2024 at 5pm.

Study of Religions Research Seminar Series 17 April 2024 with Dr Tatiana Vagramenko on:

When the Ghosts of History Speak: Endangered Community Archives and Collaborative Anthropology in Times

Students were accompanied by Dr Brendan McNamara and the Dean of Cork, Rev. Nigel Dunne

The next lecture in the Study of Religions Research Seminar Series is on Wednesday 10 April 2024 from 5-6pm on MS Teams with Mriganka Mukhopadhyay on:

Bharat Samaj Puja: Studying a Theosophical Ritual

Dr. Amanullah De Sondy, Head of Department and Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Islam was an honoured guest of Bishop Paul Colton celebrating the Feast of Saint Patrick & Civic Choral Eucharist and his Silver Jubilee Year alongside Cork City Council Cllrs, Oireachtas members & civic representatives led by the Lord Mayor of Cork at Saint Finbarre’s Cathedral on Sunday 17th March 2024

An absolute St. Patrick's Day treat for Dr. Amanullah De Sondy’s One God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam students to visit Chester Beatty for a magnificent tour with Dr. Moya Carey, Curator of Islamic Collections on Saturday 16th March 2024

We were honoured to have Elizabeth Castelli, Professor of Religion, from Barnard College at Columbia University NYC in class. Students of Dr. Amanullah De Sondy’s One God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam students thoroughly enjoyed thought-provoking discussion on Genders and Sexualities in Christianities on Thursday 14th March 2024.

Dr. Aurangzeb Haneef, Assistant Professor in the Study of Religion, was invited by Dr. Amanullah De Sondy to speak to undergraduate students enrolled in, ‘One God: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam,’ module on Thursday, 15th February 2024. The topic was “Scriptural Interpretation: Islam and the Judeo-Christian traditions.” Dr. Haneef spoke about various methods of Qurʾānic interpretation while elaborating its relationship with previous scriptures. He included a close reading of relevant passages from the Qurʾān and its exegesis which the students found very interesting, accessible, and helpful

The next lecture in the Study of Religions Research Seminar Series will be online on MS Teams on Wednesday 6 March 2024 from 5-6pm:

Dr Margaret Lyngdoh: Gender and Human-Animal Transformations from a Khasi Christian Context

The Study of Religions Department along with Future Humanities Institute, EDI, LGBTQ+ Staff Network, Mná and Women's Studies at UCC welcome you to Professor Elizabeth Castelli's lecture on Pasolini: 

Chair: Dr. Amanullah De Sondy 

Monday March 11 17.00-18.00 in the CACSSS Seminar Room - O’ Rahilly Building  

A decade after publishing the authorized English translation of San Paolo, the never-produced script for a film about Saint Paul by twentieth-century Italian writer and filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini, Professor Elizabeth Castelli revisits the work, considers its afterlives, and reflects on Pasolini's legacy at the intersections of religion and cultural politics.

Dr Yael Dansac: "(Re)Sacralizing Stones: Spiritual Engagements with Megaliths in Belgium"

Ethnographical studies increasingly show the conversion of megalithic sites into places used for a myriad of spiritual purposes, mostly associated to contemporary rituals that celebrate nature as a sentient being. Analyzing data recently gathered at Pagan practices held in Wéris, a Belgian megalithic site dating from the Neolithic period, this ethnography examines material evidence (offerings) and ritual interactions (ceremonies). This presentation provides understanding on the processes of sacralization of ancient spaces, while also suggesting further inquiries to assess the relationships between non-religious spiritualities, identity transformation, and the re-enchantment of nature.