Reflections on the material and spatial cultures of religious sites and buildings in london's east end: introduction

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis special issue brings together a group of scholars of different academic provenance—sociology, history, planning, urban spatial analysis, religious studies—to attend to the materialities of religion in London. In the articles published here we see how mobilities and interconnections are central to the formation of religious life and its architectures in London at each historical conjuncture. The essays look at London, particularly its eastern parts and Finchley, from the seventeenth century to the present, drawing on a range of sources, methodologies, and approaches to explore different aspects of religion, religious settlement, cultural practices, place making, and community, in the context of globalization, migration, and diaspora. As such, it contributes to contemporary and historical debates on the place of religion in the social and cultural life of cities.