The need for religion and spirituality does not diminish in times of secularization and ideological pluralization; rather, it becomes more plural, diverse, and individualized. Moreover, the boundary between religion and non-religion is not clearly defined—hybrid phenomena are increasingly emerging. In addition, the realm of the religious in the 21st century appears highly dynamic, especially from an international perspective. Against the backdrop of these ongoing processes, the perception and interpretation of religion and spirituality become complex tasks that can only be addressed through an interdisciplinary approach. The study of contemporary religious cultures lies at the heart of various research projects and initiatives at EHB. One initial focus is the reconstruction of religious semantics in the context of social-diaconal practice. Such a reference to religion is evident in the diaconal field not only at the level of organizations, addressees, and employees, but religion is also addressed as a resource for generating (corporate) values. In connection with questions of organizational culture and professional identity, another research focus is the investigation of the understanding, implementation, and perception of an “evangelical” or “diaconal” profile among church and diaconal institution providers and companies. The research draws on various perspectives from theology, organizational psychology and sociology, as well as adult education, and works both reconstructively-conceptually and socio-empirically.

• Religious semantics in social-diaconal practice fields
• Spirituality as a “value creation factor” in corporate diakonia and fields of social work
• Religious sensitivity as a topic and task in social work
• Evangelical identity and diaconal profile in church-diaconal institutions
• Religion and spirituality as resilience- and health-promoting resources
• Identity as a topic in theological anthropology
• Theology of feelings

For research and transfer activities in this research area, the following colleagues from EHB can be contacted:

• Enger, Philipp (Chair of Biblical Theology and Evangelical Religious Education): philipp.enger@eh-berlin.de
• Grohn, Anne (Chair of Psychology): anne.grohn@eh-berlin.de
• Keßler, Hildrun (Chair of Evangelical Religious and Community Pedagogy): hildrun.kessler@eh-berlin.de
• Lübeck, Dietrun (Chair of Psychology): dietrun.luebeck@eh-berlin.de
• Zarnow, Christopher (Chair of Systematic Theology and Ethics): christopher.zarnow@eh-berlin.de

The following research and transfer projects have already been realized in this research area at EHB:

• Evaluation of Continuing Education for Diaconal Employees (Enger)
• Late-Modern Symbolic and Emotional Languages of Christianity (since 2019, Zarnow)
• Perceptions and Notions of the Evangelical Profile of Evangelical Schools (2018–2020, Enger & Schröer-Werner)
• Spirituality with Regard to the Guiding Principles of Social Psychiatry (2018, Lübeck)