The Eastern International Region of the American Academy of Religion serves as a gateway into the academic study of religion for regional participants who reside in Western Pennsylvania, the State of New York (excluding New York City), and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The EIR is a benefit to being a member of the AAR, at no extra fee.
Let us hear from you! If you are starting a project or continuing one, hosting workshops, or know about awards, grants, or upcoming publications, we want to hear from you to create and sustain an engaging and creative community of scholars. Use our website feature [“Share News” link] to share your news with us and with our Regional members. Our intention is to help members widen networks and spark conversations with scholars across the Regions. Check out the AAR-EIR Twitter feed as well as our Facebook pages for Members and Students for updates and news throughout the year.
To learn more about the rest of our Board Members, view their profiles on our 'About' page.
Call for Papers 2026!
The EIR is thrilled to announce that our 2026 Annual Regional Meeting will be held in conjunction with the RSGS annual meeting at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. The theme is Beyond Science and Religion.
Click here for the conference description and the link to submit proposals
The deadline for submissions is February 1, 2026.
CALL FOR PAPERS
2026 AAR-EIR Annual Conference
&
Fifth Annual Graduate Conference
McGill University’s School of Religious Studies
Paper proceedings from the conference will have the opportunity to be published, in collaboration with Arc: The Journal of the School of Religious Studies.
May 7th - 10th, 2026
McGill University
Tiohtià:ke (Montreal), Quebec
Deadline for submissions: February 1rst, 2026.
The Organizing Committee of the American Association for Religion - Eastern International Region and the Religious Studies Graduate Society of McGill University’s School of Religious Studies invites you to submit your paper proposal to our 2026 bilingual conference.
Beyond Science and Religion
… …
Over the last century, there has been much discussion regarding the relationship between religion and science. Like the notion of religion, science — and even the debate about how it co-exists with religion — has a conceptual history. Even when fully traced, these histories do not give us fully formed and eternally true conceptual identities. The focus of this conference is whether religion and science speak to each other. How do we think about this relationship in a deeper way than conflict? How can we move beyond this frame? What tools do we need to achieve this? We therefore seek submissions that treat the theme ‘Beyond Science and Religion.’ These include many variations or aspects, such as: What is religion? What is science? Are these compatible with one another? Is religious studies a science [Wissenschaft]? What relation is there, or should there be, between ontology and epistemology? Why do we conceptualize ‘thinking’ and ‘believing’ as two different processes? When we consider the state of the field of religious studies and the way it understands itself and its relationship to other sciences and disciplines — or even its relationship to ‘Science’ as such — how can this debate be furthered and deepened? What is beyond the now?
We invite participants to submit papers or panels (groups of 3-5) that reflect their research and interests by situating their work with the goal of moving forward the discussion involving the concepts of ‘religion’ and ‘science,’ broadly conceived. This bilingual English/French conference will be a space where, together, scholars and graduate students from different universities and backgrounds gather in Tiohtià:ke (Montreal) and find a place to share their expertise with each other to build a lasting sense of academic community. Proposals that do not relate directly to these themes are also welcomed and will be seriously considered.
Submission Guidelines:
Paper length: Participants will have a minimum of 15 minutes and a maximum of 20 minutes for their presentations, followed by a short period for questions.
Please submit, in one single .doc, .docx, or .pdf document:
(1) Your name, preferred pronouns, university affiliation, department, program, and contact information.
(2) A tentative title for your presentation.
(3) An abstract of your presentation (250-word limit).
(4) A short introduction of yourself (100-word limit).
(5) Indication of whether you want your paper to be considered for publication.
(6) Indication of whether you speak English, French, or both.
(7) Indication of the primary language of your presentation.
Submissions should be sent to
For those willing to submit their conference paper for publication, more details will be communicated to them at a later date.
We accept papers from graduate students from any discipline whose research is connected to the conference theme in religious studies and associated fields. As a general guideline but not exclusively, any of the following areas and fields of study are recommended:
Ancient, Classical, Medieval, Renaissance, Modern, and Contemporary Religions & Spiritualities
Western, Eastern, and Indigenous Religions & Spiritualities
Philosophy, Theology, Philosophy of Religion, Phenomenology of Religion, Ethics and Bioethics
Anthropology, Psychology, and Sociology of Religion
Religion & Political theory, Religion in the Public Sphere, Secularization and Laïcité, Religion in Pop Culture and the Arts
Modernity, Industrialization, Globalization, Communication and Media Studies, New Technologies, AI and Religion
Ritual Studies, Material and Sensory studies, Semiotics of Religion
Gender, Race, Decolonial, Postcolonial, and Queer Critical Theories
Magic, Mysticism, Myth, Ritual, Theopoetics
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Paper presentations are limited to 20 minutes, with 10 minutes allowed for questions; Panels are limited to 4 papers each, or 3 papers with a respondent.
EIR PARTNERS
SCRIPT invites proposals on any aspect of iconic and performative texts. Examples include but are not limited to their display as cultural artifacts, their ritual use in religious and political ceremonies, their performance by recitation and theater, their depiction in art, and their display in museums.
Send proposals consisting of a title, abstract, and the presenter's academic affiliation directly to
UNDERGRADUATE PANELS
The EIR welcomes submissions from undergraduates in the field of Religious Studies or on the theme of the conference. Presentations in undergraduate sessions must be 15 minutes long. In addition to the standard form for submissions, undergraduate students must also arrange a letter from a faculty member who has supervised the student’s work.
STUDENT PAPER COMPETITION
Graduate and undergraduate students are invited to enter the student paper competition. Please note that to be eligible, the student must attend a college or university in the Eastern International Region. The graduate student award and the undergraduate student award will be formally presented at the business meeting during the conference.