Religion and the Secular in Eastern Germany, 1945 to the present

Esther Peperkamp, Ph. D. (2006) in Anthropology, University of Amsterdam, is lecturer in anthropology at Breda International University of Applied Sciences. She has published on religion in Poland and Eastern Germany, and is currently engaged in the anthropology of leisure.Małgorzata Rajtar, Ph.D. (2006) in Sociology, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, is Associate Member of the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology in Germany. She has published on morality and religion in Poland and eastern Germany.

• AcknowledgmentsNotes on ContributorsMap of eastern GermanyIntroduction, Esther Peperkamp & Małgorzata Rajtar1. Science as Religion: The Role of Scientism in the Secularization Process in Eastern Germany, Thomas Schmidt-Lux2. Secular Rituals and Political Commemorations in Eastern Germany, 1945-1956, Nikolai Vukov3. The Limits of Politicization of the Schools in the SED State: The Catholic Eichsfeld Region and the Protestant Erzgebirge – A Comparison, Kirstin Wappler4. Positions and Pathways of Families within the Religious Field of East Germany: Three Catholic Case Studies, Uta Karstein5. Between Menschlichkeit and Missionsbefehl: God, Work, and World among Christians in Saxony, Esther Peperkamp6. Religious Socialization in a Secular Environment: Jehovah’s Witnesses in Eastern Germany, Małgorzata Rajtar7. Young Eastern Germans and the Religious and Ideological Heritage of their Parents and Grandparents, Anja Frank8. The Rehabilitation of Ex-Offenders in Eastern Germany: A Religious-Secular Configuration, Irene Becci9. Church Buildings in Eastern Germany: Houses of God or Tourist Attractions?, Anja KörsConclusion: Dealing with Two Masters’ Commands – Explorations of the Complexities of Religious Life under a Dictatorial Regime, Monika Wohlrab-SahrIndex