Holy Cities in the 21st Century: Images, Identities, and Networks
A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 June 2026 | Viewed by 16
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue of the journal Religions entitled ‘Holy Cities in the 21st Century: Images, Identities, and Networks’.
This Special Issue seeks to examine the significance and role of contemporary holy cities of major world faiths in the 21st century, focusing on their cultural, religious, and political presence in an era shaped by globalization and digital media. While the emphasis will be on contemporary issues, historical perspectives that illuminate present-day practices are also welcome.
Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Intersections of the sacred and secular in holy cities;
- Digital and real-life pilgrimages, especially in relation to the role of visual media;
- Promotion of holy cities through websites, images, maps, and languages;
- Cultural interactions between religious traditions, tourism, and global audiences;
- Historical and contemporary layers of religious meaning in urban contexts;
- Interfaith exhibitions in museums and cultural institutions;
- Networks among holy cities across national and international contexts;
- Political and legal challenges facing holy cities;
- Mapping and analyzing the flows of visitors, tourists, pilgrims, and airline networks.
Case studies may include, but are not limited to, the following: Rome and Bethlehem (Christianity); Jerusalem (Christianity, Islam, Judaism); Mecca (Islam); Varanasi (Hinduism); Angkor Wat (Buddhism); and Teotihuacan (Mesoamerican traditions).
In this Special Issue, original research articles, case studies, and interdisciplinary contributions are welcome. Authors are encouraged to provide visual material, such as photos and maps, to accompany their analyses.
Prof. Dr. Stanley Brunn
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- holy cities
- pilgrimage
- religion and globalization
- sacred and secular
- interfaith encounters
- digital religion
- religious tourism
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