Systematic theology: Research program 2022–2024

Systematic theology is the philosophical and historical study of religious symbols, ideas, teaching traditions and philosophies that have shaped and still shape our culture. But the emphasis on ideas and teachings with cultural significance means that the study cannot be strictly limited to religious sources. Secular traditions of ideas and worldviews are also of central importance for the systematic study of theology. Furthermore, the research is not limited to texts and symbols from philosophical and theological traditions, but includes other types of material. A great interest in art and literature can be mentioned here. The research in Systematic theology at the Department of Theology is internationally recognized. The work is led and developed with the ambition to foster theoretical, methodological and material plurality.

Historically speaking, systematic theology covers academic-theological research primarily around the intellectual foundations, content and practical implications of Christian doctrine. On the international scene, one often finds the disciplines of philosophy of religion, dogmatics and ethics gathered under the common designation “systematic theology”, with an more or less explicit connection to Christian traditions. In Uppsala, the discipline has for almost half a century included both studies in Christian doctrine and broader studies in worldviews and theoretical thinking about culture and society. Over the last years the research profile has been developed and expanded, and today, at the Department of Theology, research in Systematic theology has two legs: (1) Worldview studies and Christian theology, and (2) Islamic theology. These two subdisvisions work closely together, and the weekly research seminars are joint arrangements between the two.

Worldview studies and Christian theology

The first leg, Worldview studies and Christian theology, involves the systematic study of worldviews, philosophies, ideologies, religious ideas and symbols primarily within what can, somewhat imprecisely, be called the Western Judeo-Christian cultural sphere. Historical, critical philosophical and constructive discussion of Christian teaching traditions therefore occupies a central place in the research, together with the study of philosophical thought traditions that have emerged in critical interaction with the dominant Western forms of Christianity. This means that the theoretical discussion around secularization on the ambivalent position of religion in a modern and postmodern society has an important place in the research agenda. Aesthetic perspectives from art and literature also characterize the discussion. It should also be pointed out that Jewish thought has a given place within this subject orientation. Finally, the research is often characterized by gender studies and power theory discussion.

Islamic theology

The second leg, Islamic theology, combines historical, critical philosophical and constructive discussion of Islamic teaching traditions. Two parallel lines can be discerned. The first deals with the historical development of Islamic theology through its interactions with philosophical, legal, Sufi and other currents of thought within the Muslim world of thought as well as patterns of thought native to other cultures and religious traditions. This also includes the study of the development of Islamic theology in modern times and the response of Muslim theologians to contemporary challenges, for example gender issues, secularization and globalization. The second involves a study of Islamic theology from a university theological perspective that approaches religious traditions from a critical and constructive perspective but without making religious claims. Islamic university theology differs in this from theological studies at Muslim universities, as the study of Muslim thought in a Western cultural context becomes one of its main objects of study, that is, the development of Islamic theology in a minority position as a result of the migration of Muslims to non-Muslim and secular countries.