ECER - European Congress of Ethnic Religions

05/10/2026

On 11th, 18th and 25th of October: Japanese Religion — Shintō by Dr. Uģis Nastevičs (Mg. paed., Ph.D.)

What are we going to learn:
1. Japanese History of Religion, sources, and emergence of Shintō
2. Definitions, etymology, theological concepts and their transformations, distribution, trends, role and influence in society, and status quo
3. Ritual structure, sacred space, music, art, language, symbolism, and shrines
4. Practice: Rites of passage, and their chants, and view of the afterlife
5. Practice: Chronology, annual rites, and their chants
6. Practice: Ceremonies, prayers, special rituals, their chants

Dr. Uģis Nastevičs (Mg. paed., Ph.D.)
Translator, lecturer, and scholar in Latvian Studies and Japanese Studies, holding Master’s and Doctoral degrees conferred for comparative research of Dievturība and Shintō, and continuing scholarly work in Folkloristics, Mythology, and the Phenomenology of Religion.

11/09/2026

Watch a short fragment from the lecture on Hellenic Religion
by George Lizos where the Ancient Asclepian therapeutic method is presented.

01/09/2026

On 6th and 27th of September: Indigenous Religions of Amazonia & Oceania by Dr Evgenia Fotiou

The seminar will cover the religions of the Indigenous religions of Lowland South America, with an emphasis on Amazonia, especially its shamanic traditions, as well as the Indigenous religions of Oceania. Topics will include worldview, ritual, and myth, as well as the effects of Christian missionary activity in these areas.

Evgenia Fotiou is Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Crete. She is a cultural anthropologist researching Indigenous Knowledge Systems, which often encompass both medical and religious knowledge. Specifically, she looks at how these systems get appropriated and re-imagined as they become globalized. She has a Ph.D. in cultural anthropology and Latin American studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she completed doctoral research on Amazonian shamanism in Peru and its transformation through globalization and shamanic tourism. Her current work urges scholars to reexamine assumptions about Indigenous Knowledge Systems and to engage meaningfully with non-Western epistemologies. She has served on the board of Anthropology of Consciousness, a section of the American Anthropological association, and has edited special issues in the journals Anthropology of Consciousness and Frontiers in Pharmacology. She is currently on the editorial boards of The Journal of Psychedelic Studies and Psychedelics.

📷 Andreas Sjovall

02/08/2026

On 9th, 23rd and 30th of August: Slavic Religion by prof. Giuseppe Maiello

Slavic religion was practiced until the 9th–10th centuries CE across vast areas of Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe. From the late Middle Ages onward, belief in the ancient deities and nature spirits gradually weakened; nevertheless, well into the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th, numerous elements of the pre Christian tradition remained clearly recognizable among rural communities in Slavic speaking regions. Thanks to the work of ethnographers, many components of the ancient Slavic religious system have been reconstructed. Building on this research, the 20th century—especially its final decades—witnessed a revival of groups throughout the Slavic world dedicated to revitalizing these ancient beliefs.

The seminar aims to present the main theories concerning the religious system of the ancient Slavs and to examine how contemporary rodnover groups reinterpret and put these reconstructions into practice.

The presentation will also explore several characteristic elements of the Slavic religious imagination, such as vampirism and the relationship with the dead and with death. As a counterpoint to this analysis, an in depth discussion of the sexual customs of the ancient Slavs will be offered.

Finally, the seminar will address the symbolism of the kolo, the circular dance that continues to be performed in many parts of the Slavic world—not only within contemporary Slavic communities, but also in village traditions across Central Europe and, in the case of the southern Balkans, even in urban settings.

11/06/2026

Watch a short fragment from the lecture on Hellenic Religion
by George Lizos where the Mycenaean Period, the Evolution of Religion, the Dorians and Linear B are presented.

30/05/2026

On 7th, 14th and 21st of June: Hellenic Religion / Hellenism by George Lizos & Elena Petri

The Hellenic Religion, also known as Hellenism, is the indigenous polytheistic religion of the Hellenes, with roots that go back to ancient times. This seminar offers an in-depth perspective at this living worldview, from which Hellenic thought shaped theology, tradition, philosophy, and cosmogonic narratives.

The Hellenic Religion consists of three axes:

The Hellenic Religion is polytheistic, as it recognizes and accepts the natural law of the multiplicity of the Cosmos. Its unique pantheon of Gods and Goddesses expresses and guarantees the functioning of the multiple and complex cosmic forces that constitute the Universe.

The Hellenic Religion is deeply naturalistic because it understands that the divine governs and permeates nature, making it sacred and alive. The Gods manifest themselves and act through the natural functions of nature (e.g., the annual cycle, birth, death, and rebirth), establishing the eternal and unchanging laws of the Cosmos.

Approaching the divine and understanding the laws of nature requires rational and intellectual processing and perception. Since ancient times, the observation, analysis, and systematization of natural phenomena have formed the basis of theology and worship practices (sacred rites, festivals, rituals). Knowledge of the divine world therefore arises from the study of living and sacred nature.

What will we examine in the seminar?

The seminar will explore how the Hellenes' "logically grounded sacred discourse," enriched by mythological narratives, has been preserved as an authentic and true tradition to this day. We will understand how the lived experience of sacredness leads humans to recognize the pervasive divinity around and within them, and how this perception shaped the ethics, art, and philosophy of Hellenic civilization.

We will discover how Hellenism offers a distinctive, rational, and deeply spiritual way of connecting with the divine and the laws of the Universe.

15/05/2026

Watch a short fragment from the lecture on Egyptian Religion
by Dr Marios Koutsoukos where Lamp Divination is presented.

Photos by: British Library and Ahmed Assem on Unsplash

30/04/2026

On 3rd, 10th and 17th of May: Egyptian Religion by Dr Marios Koutsoukos

In this seminar, participants will embark on an exciting journey into ancient Egyptian cosmology, examining its fundamental structures, from the myths of creation and the hierarchy of gods and goddesses (such as Ra, Osiris, Isis, and Horus) to the central concept of Maat (cosmic order, truth, and justice). Burial practices and beliefs about the afterlife, the soul, and the roles of Ka and Ba will be analyzed in depth, offering a comprehensive understanding of how religion shaped the politics, art, and daily life of Egyptian civilization for millennia.

29/04/2026

The TSERS (Theological Seminars of Ethnic Religious Studies) third seminar on Asatru Tradition presented by Koenraad Logghe, has been successfully completed.

Watch a short fragment from the second lecture on Asatru Tradition where the Types of Fire are presented.

Enroll here 👉 https://tsers.ecer-org.eu

26/04/2026

During the first three months of Theological Seminars of Ethnic Religious Studies from late-January to late-April we have covered Latvian religion — Dievturība, Roman Religion, and Ásatrú. 🌿 Egyptian Religion, and Hellenism shall follow in May and June.
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Greetings