History

Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation entered into a development contract with the University of Aarhus in February 2005, providing the strategic aims of the university for the period of 2005-2009 to solve its four main tasks

• research
• education
• communication and dissemination of research to the public
• exchange of knowledge.

The university's research priority areas include six topics: "Globalisation", "Molecular medicine", "Nanoscience and nanotechnology", "Theoretical science", "The knowledge society" and "Religion and normativity", which are based at the five university faculties.

The topic "Religion and normativity" was chosen by the Faculty of Theology Academy Council as the area to be given special priority for the coming years as it would be a continuation of the faculty's already existing main research areas:

• "Jews, Christians and pagans in antiquity - critique and apologetics."
• "The Text and the texts - the importance of the holy text for understanding literature, rhetoric and communication."
• "Ethics, law and religion."

also drawing on the expertise of the ongoing main research area "Religion, cognition and culture" and Centre for Multireligious Studies.

Focus

The project "Religion and normativity" has a double task. The faculty wishes to gain more knowledge of:

• how religion in the course of history has been normative as regards, for example, identity, literature, politics and law;
• whether religion still has - or should still have - an influence on the establishment of norms in the contemporary society, in this country as well as worldwide.