Avi Astor
Avi Astor is a Ramón y Cajal Fellow at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ISOR –Sociology of Religion). He has written on several topics related to religion, culture, and Islam in Spain. His recent book is entitled, Rebuilding Islam in Contemporary Spain: The Politics of Mosque Establishment, 1976–2013 (Sussex Academic Press, 2017).
Address: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Departament de Sociologia
Avinguda Eix Central. Edifici B
08193 Bellaterra
Address: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Departament de Sociologia
Avinguda Eix Central. Edifici B
08193 Bellaterra
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Articles by Avi Astor
definition and classification, I advance a framework based on ideal typification and family resemblance which allows for the intelligibility and analytic utility of unconventional subtypes, even when premised on root conceptions of religion that lack precise boundaries and defining attributes. I show how the logics underlying these subtypes are not limited to specification, but also include looser forms of family resemblance. More generally, my analysis explores conceptual classification and innovation as analytic practices involving the identification and creative interpretation of
similarities, affinities, linkages, and other kinds of relationships within the constraints of “language-games” relevant not only to academic debate, but also to more basic and quotidian structures of meaning.
in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct
approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being
located in the same national context. Whereas Madrid has dealt with
religious diversity under the broader rubric of immigration and culture,
and has been largely passive and ‘hands-off’ in its approach to governance,
Barcelona has demarcated religion from other cultural issues and
developed a more proactive and ‘hands-on’ approach to governing
religious diversity. In explaining this difference, our study builds on
recent work highlighting the relative autonomy of cities vis-à-vis states
in the definition and implementation of diversity policies.We trace the
divergent patterns of religious governance in Madrid and Barcelona to
differences in their respective political and territorial positioning. These
differences have given rise to contrasting objectives, relations with
national agencies, and local structures of opportunity for religious
actors to enter into the governance process.
This chapter analyses the evolution of the management of religious diversity in Spain from the transition to democracy to the present day. The main thesis is that an important change has taken place in the management of this diversity over recent years. There has been a
shift away from a predominantly vertical, hierarchical, centralised model towards a more horizontal, plural, multi-level approach. This change is the result of the emergence of new challenges and critical events that
have politicised religious diversity and produced pressure for the deeper and more active involvement of public agencies in this issue. This new form of management favours a more democratic, inclusive approach to
religious diversity, but it has also intensified the surveillance, regulation and control of religious organisations.
religious accommodation and strategies of political mobilization among religious minorities.
In concluding, we draw attention to the need for more studies that help to connect recent analyses of ethno-religious and political transformations in the Mediterranean with the work
of historians and social scientists on the historical constitution and evolution of the region as an interconnected space in which core socio-political and cultural dynamics are shaped by
cross-border flows, engagements, and exchanges.
definition and classification, I advance a framework based on ideal typification and family resemblance which allows for the intelligibility and analytic utility of unconventional subtypes, even when premised on root conceptions of religion that lack precise boundaries and defining attributes. I show how the logics underlying these subtypes are not limited to specification, but also include looser forms of family resemblance. More generally, my analysis explores conceptual classification and innovation as analytic practices involving the identification and creative interpretation of
similarities, affinities, linkages, and other kinds of relationships within the constraints of “language-games” relevant not only to academic debate, but also to more basic and quotidian structures of meaning.
in Madrid and Barcelona, two cities that have pursued distinct
approaches to accommodating religious diversity despite being
located in the same national context. Whereas Madrid has dealt with
religious diversity under the broader rubric of immigration and culture,
and has been largely passive and ‘hands-off’ in its approach to governance,
Barcelona has demarcated religion from other cultural issues and
developed a more proactive and ‘hands-on’ approach to governing
religious diversity. In explaining this difference, our study builds on
recent work highlighting the relative autonomy of cities vis-à-vis states
in the definition and implementation of diversity policies.We trace the
divergent patterns of religious governance in Madrid and Barcelona to
differences in their respective political and territorial positioning. These
differences have given rise to contrasting objectives, relations with
national agencies, and local structures of opportunity for religious
actors to enter into the governance process.
This chapter analyses the evolution of the management of religious diversity in Spain from the transition to democracy to the present day. The main thesis is that an important change has taken place in the management of this diversity over recent years. There has been a
shift away from a predominantly vertical, hierarchical, centralised model towards a more horizontal, plural, multi-level approach. This change is the result of the emergence of new challenges and critical events that
have politicised religious diversity and produced pressure for the deeper and more active involvement of public agencies in this issue. This new form of management favours a more democratic, inclusive approach to
religious diversity, but it has also intensified the surveillance, regulation and control of religious organisations.
religious accommodation and strategies of political mobilization among religious minorities.
In concluding, we draw attention to the need for more studies that help to connect recent analyses of ethno-religious and political transformations in the Mediterranean with the work
of historians and social scientists on the historical constitution and evolution of the region as an interconnected space in which core socio-political and cultural dynamics are shaped by
cross-border flows, engagements, and exchanges.
Both buildings can be described as global architectural icons that become symbolic expressions of plural religious heritages, and are presented as models for “political pedagogy” (Mukerji, 2012) that conjure up particular versions of the past but also offer a specific imaginary of possible interreligious futures. However, both projects are also highly controversial. In both settings, several actors have raised serious concerns about the framings, meanings and practices that define these locations as serving to foster interreligious dialogue and coexistence. Thus, the paper examines how notions of religious diversity and multi-religious coexistence are materially represented, shaped and contested around controversies on multi-religious iconic buildings.