Criteria for reviewers

The following minimal criteria are designed to uphold the IAHR’s mission and values, ensuring that all accepted papers contribute meaningfully to the scholarly study of religion in a way that is consistent with the organization’s objectives and standards.

The papers* must contribute to the critical, analytical, academic study of religion, either in historical or contemporary contexts. The papers must showcase a clear empirical and/or methodological and theoretical approach. While the focus of the Congress should be on the topics outlined in the various sections of the call for papers, we welcome papers on all topics in the study of religion; these may encompass various cultures, time periods, and religious traditions and draw on different methodologies and theoretical frameworks.

The papers must maintain an academic tone and approach. They should not be apologetic, confessional, or otherwise non-academic in nature. Papers explicitly defending a normative stance are not excluded on principle but are required to conform to academic standards of argumentation and to demonstrate their relevance to current debates in the study of religion. This aligns with the IAHR’s stance as a forum for scholarly, rather than confessional or apologetic, discourse.

The abstract should be clear and well-structured, containing a discernible thesis statement. It should also indicate the method or approach that will be used to support or investigate the thesis, ensuring that the reader can understand the direction and purpose of the paper.

Contributions to the Congress can be submitted in English or in French.

_{* The term paper extends here to all forms of academic contribution to the Congress.}