Gay Men and Religion Unit
The Gay Men and Religion Program Unit invites proposals for the AAR Summer 2024 online gathering. Our summer session is titled, “Works in Progress,” an opportunity for scholars to present early-stage projects (theses, seminar papers, dissertations, books, journal articles, and other projects, etc.). This will be an opportunity to both share ideas and receive supportive feedback on scholarship in-progress. Very often, AAR presentations represent completed works—but we acknowledge that where we often need collegial feedback is in the midst of our work. This session is open to scholars of every level of their career, but a special invitation is extended to early career/emerging scholars. The GMaR Program Unit is fully inclusive of masters and doctoral students as colleagues in the field.
Colleagues with accepted proposals will receive 5-10 minutes to present their work in progress, followed by 10 minutes of open forum for constructive feedback. We encourage presenters to come with questions for the forum (e.g., concerning methodology, research resources, etc.)
The Gay Men and Religion Unit: Provides scholarly reflection and writing on the intersections of gay male experience, including sexual experiences, with religious traditions and spiritual practices. Fosters ongoing contributions by (or about) gay men—or men who have sex with men—to religious scholarship in all its forms; we are especially interested in gay men’s experiences across a range of religious traditions and in a wide variety of geographical contexts. Critically challenges homophobic scholarship and religious teaching, on the one hand, and aspects of the LGBTQI equality movement that promote assimilation and normalization of hegemonic patriarchy and heterosexism, on the other. Engages a variety of theoretical and political discourses, which fosters vigorous dialogue between essentialist and constructionist notions of gay male identity; this includes recognizing the insights and limitations of any theoretical and methodological approach to the study of religion and sexuality.