Call for Papers for the Next Two Issues (15 & 16) of the Freedom of Thought Journal: ‘Religion and Society in Iran: The Current Situation and Future Prospects’

We are planning to devote the next two issues of the Freedom of Thought Journal to the topic of “Religion and Society in Iran: The Current Situation and Future Prospects.” The importance of the topic is clear: it is difficult to find any discussion about Iran today that does not involve the role of religion in one form or another. One reason for the prominence of religion in such discussions and debates is the separation of religion from the traditional Iranian culture and its transformation into the ruling theocratic state’s political, economic, military, and propaganda instruments and institutions.

What, then, has happened to Iran’s “religious society”? How do religious beliefs
shape people’s lives, and how are they expressed today? In what ways might they change in the future? Does belief in God necessarily require belonging to a religion?
What about those who belong to a religious tradition, but refuse to follow the views and rulings of its clergy? What future awaits the current anti-clerical sentiments? What form will the separation of state and religion (secularism) take in Iran’s future? And how will the citizenship rights of believers in other religions, including Christians, Jews, and Baha’is, Sunni Muslims, and non-believers, be guaranteed?

Another important, though often neglected, issue is the role of religion in the
country’s political economy. How did religion come to be used as a tradable “coin” with which money, status, and official positions can be bought and sold? What does that “market” look like now?

Another basic issue: In few other places in the world have fundamental human
and civil rights been so closely tied to equal rights for women. Degradation of women’s social status and denial of women’s equal rights have become routine and normative in the pronouncements and policies of the clerically dominated Iranian state.

The above issues are examples of what we believe need to be investigated
impartially and more thoroughly. We invite you to contribute to one or the other
forthcoming issues of the Freedom of Thought Journal by submitting a research paper, a review of works by other scholars, or a review of recently published book(s) on the subject.

Our journal is bilingual, so your paper may be written in either Persian or English.
All submitted manuscripts are peer reviewed and are expected to meet the common academic standards of language, logical structure, and careful documentation of sources used.

The deadlines for the submission of papers for the issues of the journal devoted
to the subject of “Religion and Society in Iran: The Current Situation and Future
Prospects” are as follows:

Issue, No. 15: June 1, 2024
Issue, No. 16: November 1, 2024

Editorial Board
Freedom of Thought Journal