This article presents fundamental information and research objectives within the additional study program Critical Education on Antisemitism for Teaching (ZABUS), based at the University of Würzburg, Germany. Initial findings are shared based on evaluations and questionnaires completed by students in religious education. The authors provide an overview of the three-semester degree program, advocating for an iterative educational design that intertwines research on antisemitism with teaching practices, thereby integrating its unique characteristics with the resources of the teaching profession.

The article presents results from the project Religious Education Laboratory digital (RELab digital): At a time when exclusive access to religion in the classroom seems less and less plausible, the concept of digital religion education we propose leads back to the existential needs for religion. It can refer to the thematic fields of digital religions, which in turn are not new for religious education, but remix its traditions and themes in the mirror of transforming communication cultures: authority, community, truth, communication, autonomy, religion, identity, and ritual. Chapter 1 contains a description of the project structure. Chapter 2 is dedicated to the pedagogical challenge of teaching Religious Education (RE) in the digital change. Chapter 3 reflects from a pedagogical standpoint on empirical findings of the project, which were developed in the context of classroom observations and interviews. Chapter 4 focuses on topics related to the profession of teachers: What self-concepts are pursued by teachers of Religious Education and/or can be reconstructed through the way they act in the classroom? How can the often critical perceptions of teachers who use digital media in religious education be put to good use in the future? The conclusion bundles the most important insights and highlights examples of further research.

In this article we offer initial insights into the fairly new interdisciplinary and international domain of robotics in Christian religious practice. We are a group of scholars in media ethics, practical theology/religious education, and human computer interaction, who have been engaged in this discourse since 2017. A natural starting point is our study of BlessU2, a “blessing robot,” a device which received considerable recognition from the global public at the Wittenberg 500th reformation anniversary in 2017. We thus begin with the results of this study. Secondly, we will briefly address the relevant theses from Gabriele Trovato et al., as presented in their 2019 article on so-called theomorphic robots – followed by our interdisciplinary discussion of their approach. Finally, we draw conclusions for further work on the field of “religious robots.” Somewhat more carefully: Section 1 offers starting points within the perspectives of Christian religious practice: here, the blessing robot is both cause and occasion for doing religion and theologizing in the context of existential questions (1.1). We continue with perceptions in the field of religion regarding “Discursive Design Theory” (1.2). The interaction of humans with computers as posing questions for theological standardization of religious practice is focused upon in 1.3. Section 2 reconstructs the HRI/HCI-initiative to develop theomorphic robots in a twofold manner, i.e., the idea of developing theomorphic robots (2.1) and the concept of theomorphic robots: Questions and objections (2.2). In this part of the article we raise discussion points concerning the relationship between technology and religion and the need for sharpening the understanding of religion within the research field. Section 3 closes with propositions and alternatives.

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