A research initiation conference brings together international scholars working on abuse, authority, and accountability in religious settings.

The conference will explore spiritual, psychological, sexual, and institutional abuses within Catholic lay movements and organizations. Through research presentations, collaborative discussions participants will examine the structural and cultural conditions that enable abuses of power, identify key research gaps, and develop new interdisciplinary approaches to studying this emerging field. The workshop aims to lay the foundations for a major international research collaboration on abuse, governance, and safeguarding in religious communities.

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC:

We cordially invite the public to join us for the keynote lecture by Prof. Massimo Faggioli (Professor of Historical and Contemporary Ecclesiology, Loyola Institute, School of Religion, Theology and Peace Studies, Trinity College Dublin): The Abuse Crisis and the 'Third Phase' of the History of the New Catholic Ecclesial Movements, which will take place at 10:15 on December 4, 2026 (room number tbc).

Please register here, if you wish to participate in the keynote lecture.