About me
I am a Hungarian sociologist of religion currently based in Vienna, Austria.
I am originally from Pécs, Hungary and studied at the University of Szeged (HU), with an Erasmus+ stay in Berlin (2018). After completing a BA in Sociology (2017) and an MA in Religious Studies (2020), I continued my studies at the Max Weber Kolleg in Erfurt (DE), in a cotutelle PhD programme with the University of Graz (AT). Having completed my dissertation in 2023, I successfully defended it on 6 February 2024, achieving a summa cum laude grade. I am currently living and working in Vienna (AT).
During my PhD, I researched Hungarian festivals, focusing particularly on how participants interpret and experience these events. I utilise theories and tools from religious studies, social anthropology, sociology, and psychology to understand how individuals construct meaning. I named this research project event religion, on which topic I have published several articles.
A religious studies scholar researches religion from an outsider perspective. This means that they do not aim to research dogmas, theologies or religious truths; rather, they research how people live and experience religion, how they make meaning through religion, and what social, cultural and political roles religion can play in society.
In my research I am interested in the religious experience, its terminological challenges, and what interpretations people give to their special, mystical, transcendent, spiritual, religious experiences. I am interested in socioanthropological methods, spatial approaches (incl. nature religions), symbolism in contemporary popular religion (incl. cultural appropriation), and community and individual experiences (at events and beyond). I am also interested in psychological approaches to the experience (and what happens after the experience is over).
I am motivated to conduct further research into religious experiences, and to understand their cultural and social similarities and differences, as well as learning about individual interpretations.
Cliffs of Moher, after the EASR conference in Cork, 2022 © Sara Heidl