Events
Here is a frequently updated list of upcoming events related to At the End of the World's ongoing research, including those planned by members of our research team:
On 31 July 2026, Tobias Hägerland will give a paper titled “Regeneration and Inheritance: An Apocalyptic Saying De-apocalypticized (Titus 3:5–7)” at Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas (SNTS) Annual Meeting in Durham, UK.
On 15 October 2026, 13:00–15:00, at Lund University (location TBD), Tommy Lynch – advisory board member to At the End of the World and Reader in Political Theology at the University of Chichester. – will visit Lund University for a lecture titled “Cruel Hope at the End of the World: The Dilemmas of Polycrisis Cinema.” More information is available on this calendar page.
On 20 October 2026, At the End of the World will host Tina Pippin, alongside Ov Cristian Norocel and Blaženka Scheuer for a webinar titled “Gendering Apocalypse: Death and Desire as Central Themes of Apocalyptic Texts and Their Modern (Mis)Uses.” Aaron James Goldman will chair the webinar.
Blaženka Scheuer is organizing a conference at Lund University for 21–23 October 2026 titled How Bodies Matter: Religion, Disability, and Just Futures. The deadline for paper submissions is 31 March 2026. You can read more information about the conference here.
Here is a frequently updated list of past webinar events organized by At the End of the World:
Webinar XII – Apocalypse, Violence and the Technocratic Right: René Girard as Resource or Critic?, 5 May 2026. Gregor Noll, Aaron James Goldman, and Luca Di Blasi presented on the so-called Technocratic Right Wing's reception of René Girard.
Webinar XI – Apocalyptic Imaginaries in Jewish Psychedelic Discourse,24 March 2026, 16:00–17:30 on Zoom (Swedish time). The webinar featured Sam S. B. Shonkoff, Leor Roseman, and Natalie Bloch as speakers; Aaron James Goldman chaired the session. You can find more information about it here.
Webinar X – End of the World?: John's Revelation & the Christian Understanding of Human Telos in Late Antiquity, 9 December 2025, 16:00–17:30 on Zoom. In this webinar, speakers Katarina Pålsson and guest Nathan Betz discuss whether, in apocalypse, the world's end is really the conclusion of the world. You can find more information here. Mia-Marie Hammarlin chaired the session.
Webinar IX – Technology and the Apocalyptic Imaginary: Understanding AI through the Lens of Religion, 7 October 2025, 16:00–17:30 (Swedish time) on Zoom. In this webinar, Amanda Lagerkvist and guest Beth Singler converse about contemporary AI theorists and singulatarians in conjunction with historical transitions and the end of the world as we know it. Aaron James Goldman chaired the session.
Webinar VIII – With God on Our Side: Apocalyptic Motifs and the Struggle for Social Justice, 12 May 2025, 16:00–17:30 (Swedish time) on Zoom. In this webinar, Patrik Fridlund and Aaron James Goldman, researchers with At the End of the World, hosted Lisa M. Bowens, Associate Professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary, for a conversation about the role of apocalyptic thought in the speeches and activism of Martin Luther King, Jr., and for political resistance in general.
Webinar VII – The Last Human Being and the Modern Apocalyptic Imaginary, 29 April 2025, 16:00–17:30 (Swedish time) on Zoom. In this webinar, Torbjörn Gustafsson Chorell, a researcher with At the End of the World,hosted Eileen M. Hunt, Professor in the Department of Political Science at University of Notre Dame, and Sven Anders Johansson, Professor of Literary Studies at Mid Sweden University, for a conversation about the figure of the Last Man, or the Last Human Being. The conversation took as its point of departure a discussion of Mary Shelley's novel The Last Man (1826).
Webinar VI – The Many Lives of the Book of Revelation, 3 December 2024, 16:00–17:30 (Swedish time) on Zoom. In this webinar, the At the End of the World program hosted Timothy Beal, who is Distinguished University Professor, Florence Harkness Professor of Religion, and Director of h.lab at Case Western Reserve University (USA). Professor Beal has written widely on the Bible in culture, on the Anthropocene, and on technology today. He is the author of The Book of Revelation: A Biography (2018). Dr. Tobias Hägerland and Dr. Hannah Strømmen spoke to Professor Beal about the many lives of one of the most loved and hated parts of the Bible, the book of Revelation, and its impact on the world.
Webinar V: Surviving the Apocalypse,16:00–17:30 (Stockholm time), 10 October 2024. In the fifth webinar of the At the End of the World research program’s series 16:00–17:30 (Stockholm time) on 10 October 2024, Mia-Marie Hammarlin and Torbjörn Gustafsson Chorell lead a conversation with S. D. Chrostowska. The conversation related to Chrostowska's book Utopia in the Age of Survival: Between Myth and Politics.
Webinar IV: The Heavenly Jerusalem in Medieval Imagery and Imagination, 16:00–17:30 (Stockholm time), 7 May 2024. In the fourth webinar of the At the End of the World research program’s series, Kristin B. Aavitsland and Lena Liepe examined the various forms that the idea of the Heavenly Jerusalem took in medieval thought, with particular focus on medieval church art. The earthly Jerusalem was the principal locus of divine intervention in human history, while the future reality of the Heavenly Jerusalem, where the saved would rejoice eternally after the end of time, reached into the present of this world and was sacramentally actualized every celebration of Mass. A vital repertoire of the Last Judgement and the Heavenly Jerusalem; Aavitsland will present the concept of the Jerusalem Code, recently explored in a large research project of the same name: Liepe will outline the medieval idea of the physical church building as an image of the Heavenly Jerusalem.
Webinar III: Post-Apocalyptic Environmentalism, 16:00–17:30 (Stockholm time), 5 March 2024. Guest panelists: Carl Cassegård, Professor of Sociology and Occupational Science (Gothenburg University) and Håkan Thörn, Professor of Sociology and Occupational Science (Gothenburg University). For this seminar, Carl Cassegård and Håkan Thörn discussed their recent book, titled Post-Apocalyptic Environmentalism: The Green Movement in Times of Catastrophe (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022). In this book, they identify three competing narratives that have evolved within the environmental movement. The first is the narrative of green progress, which has been central to the idea of sustainable development since the late 1980s. The second is an apocalyptic narrative, which became prominent in the environmental movement after the Second World War. The apocalyptic narrative expresses the fear of a threatening future, but it is a fear intermixed with a hope that ecological catastrophe can still be averted. In the last decade, a new narrative – post-apocalyptic environmentalism – has emerged. Unlike the other two narrative archetypes, post-apocalyptic environmentalism highlights the grief over loss and injustice that has been suffered in connection to ecological catastrophes, perceived as ongoing and/or unstoppable. Cassegård’s and Thörn’s work raises serious questions for those interested in the apocalyptic imagination, eco-anxiety, and environmentalism more broadly.
Webinar II: The Ancient Roots of Apocalypticism, 16:00–18:00 (Stockholm time), 6 December 2023. Guest panelist: Domenico Agostini, Associate Professor of Ancient History at Tel Aviv University. Host panelists: Blaženka Scheuer is Senior Lecturer in Old Testament Studies at Lund University. Her expertise is in prophetic literature, focusing on how this literature formed in reaction to socio-political disruptions of the Babylonian, Persian, and Greek empires. Cecilia Wassén is Professor of New Testament Studies at Uppsala University. She has published extensively on the apocalyptic worldview of the Dead Sea Scrolls, including on angels and demons, as well as on the apocalyptic conviction of the historical Jesus. Apocalypticism as both a literary genre and a socio-cultural phenomenon can be traced back to antiquity. During this seminar, three prominent scholars in the field explored the early roots of apocalypticism in Persian and Near Eastern mythology as well as in the Hebrew Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls. How are these sources related to one another? In what ways do today’s apocalyptic ideas and images reflect challenges to past socio-political orders? Which motifs can be discerned in this original phase of apocalypticism, and how do they resonate with later apocalypticisms throughout western history, including those of the present day?
Webinar I: At the End of the World – Apocalyptic Imaginaries Now and Then, 16:00–18:00 (Stockholm time), 9 October 2023. Guest panelist: Alison McQueen, Associate Professor of Political Science at Stanford University. Host panelists: Tormod Otter Johansen is a researcher in Public Law at the University of Gothenburg. He works on in constitutional and administrative law, legal theory, and political theology. Jayne Svenungsson is Professor of Systematic Theology at Lund University and the author of Divining History: Prophetism, Messianism and the Development of the Spirit (Berghahn Books, 2016). At our very first webinar, we hosted the prominent political scientist Alison McQueen, who discussed the political nature of apocalypticism with the jurist Tormod Otter Johansen and the program’s PI, Jayne Svenungsson. A key assumption of our joint research is that apocalypticism per se is neither destructive nor emancipatory. Yet history knows numerous examples of apocalyptic visions that have ended in disaster, even as other apocalyptic visions in other context have served to bolster resistance against oppressive social orders. What can we learn from these different historical examples? And what are the dangers and potentials of apocalyptic imaginaries in a contemporary political perspective?
Here is a frequently updated list of past events related to At the End of the World's ongoing research, parts of which you can view or listen to:
On 12–15 June 2026 at the Nordic New Testament conference at the University of Gothenburg, Cecilia Wassén gave a paper on “Third Temple Movements and the Use of the New Testament in Contemporary Apocalyptic Discourse,” and Joel Kuhlin gave a paper at the same conference titled "Roy Andersson’s Bible: Scandinavian Secularism, Apocalypticism without the Apocalypse and Post-Christian Cinema."
Tobias Hägerland presented a paper titled “Regeneration and Inheritance: An Apocalyptic Saying De-apocalypticized (Titus 3:5–7)” at the Nordic New Testament Conference in Gothenburg on 13 June 2026.
On 27 May 2026, At the End of the World, in collaboration with Kulturhuset/Stadsteatern (Klarabiografen) and Bokförlaget Faethon, presented a screening of the 1927 film Metropolis. Following the screening, a panel discussion featured author Torbjörn Elensky, Lena Liepe, and Allan Burnett, moderated by Natalie Bloch.
On 23–24 May 2026, At the End of the World partnered with Judisk kultur i Sverige for an event titled Apocalyptic Temple Imaginaries Across the Ages at the Jewish Book Festival at Konstakademien in Stockholm. The first was “Apokalyptiska tempelmotiv - från antiken till idag,” a conversation (in Swedish) between Cecilia Wassén, David Dunér and Blaženka Scheuer, moderated by Natalie Bloch. The second was in English, titled "Apocalyptic Temple Imaginaries in Contemporary Hebrew Literature," in which authors Ruby Namdar and Yishai Sarid discussed the role of the Jerusalem Temple in contemporary Hebrew literature, also moderated by Bloch.
On 15 May 2026, Lena Liepe presented a paper titled “Exploring the ‘Here and Now’ of the Medieval Parish Church” at the International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
On 12 May 2026, Aaron James Goldman presented two papers at the University of Helsinki for a conference titled Religion and Theology in Times of Uncertainty: “Apocalyptic Theology and Conspiracy Theories: The Shape of Crises with Historical Scope” and “Sine Quibus Non for the Moral Adequacy of the Creation: Rethinking the Problem of Evil with Kierkegaard.”
On 6 May 2026, several members of End of the World's research team gave presentations at the Patristic Day 2026 at Lund University. Here you can download a poster with information.
On 4 May 2026, Patrik Fridlund gave a lecture titled “Opening the French Window behind the Curtain of Sexual Difference — Reading Luce Irigaray,” as part of a Philosophy of Religion colloquium at Lund University.
On 24 April 2026, Amanda Lagerkvist delivered the ICCIT Annual Lecture at the University of Toronto, titled AI as Existential Media: Refiguring Human-Technology Relationality at ‘the End Times’.
On 20 April 2026, Katarina Pålsson gave a presentation on the topic “At the End of the World: Presentation of a Research Program on Apocalypticism” at a research school seminar with church historians and practical theologians from CTR, at the University of Glasgow.
At the International Conference on Edith Stein, 17–18 April 2026 at the Newman Institute in Uppsala, Mårten Björk presented a paper titled “Aether and Eternity, or Why the Stars of Heaven One Day Will Circle Around the Earth: Hedwig Conrad-Martius and Edith Stein’s Apocalyptic Anthropology”.
On 24 March 2026, 18:00–20:00, we celebrated the launch of Mårten Björk and Tormod Johansen's book The End of Law at Lund University.
On 21 March 2026, Torbjörn Gustafsson Chorell discussed apocalyptic dystopias at a symposium titled Liv: Samskapa och ge rum för liv i destruktionens tid at Sigtunastiftelsen in Sigtuna.
On 18 March, Hannah Strømmen gave a lecture at University of Zurich titled “After Secularism? Uses of the Bible in Contemporary Right-wing Politics.”
On 18 March 2026, Mårten Björk and Tormod Johansen gave a book presentation for their new book The End of Law at the University of Gothenburg. Then they also participated in a book launch event titled ”Rätten vid lagens slut” for their new book The End of Law at Gothenburg's Literature House.
On 12 March 2026, Joel Kuhlin organized a symposium at Lund University titled Bibelvetenskapens framtid - Hur ser förutsättningar, forskning och undervisning i akademisk exegetik ut om 20 år? Both Kuhlin and Tobias Hägerland presented.
On 12 March 2026, Lena Liepe gave a presentation entitled ”I apokalypsens tid” at the event Kvinnokraft med Zonta at PM & Vänner in Växjö.
On 10 March 2026, Patrik Fridlund gave a lecture titled "Populism som idé — med och utan konspirationer och apokalyptik" at Filosoficirkeln in Lund.
On 4 March 2026, Cecilia Wassén gave a lecture on the historical Jesus at Maria Magdalena Parish in Stockholm.
On 26 February 2026, the Department of History of Science and Ideas at Uppsala University and Thorbjörn Gustafsson Chorell hosted Julie Hugonny (Glasgow) for a seminar titled “The Last Man, a Child of the Revolution.” The seminar was co-sponsored by the Department of Literature and Rhetoric.
On 9 February 2026, 18:30–20:00, Natalie Bloch participated in a panel discussion about the documentary film Psychedelic Psalm at Filmhuset in Stockholm. The event was organized by Nätverket för psykedelisk vetenskap.
On 27 January 2026, a number of researchers from At the End of the World presented their thoughts – alongside other international experts – at the symposium “Conversations in Apocalyptic Times” at the Berlin Center for Intellectual Diaspora. More information is available on this page.
On 4 December 2025, Max Liljefors and Johannes Stripple gave a presentation titled “Dark Hope in the Apocalypse” for the Green Room Seminar at Linköping University.
On 28 November 2025, David Dunér participated in a panel titled “The Democratisation of Space” in Norrköping, Sweden.
At the AAR/SBL Annual Meeting in Boston, 22–25 November 2025, Tobias Hägerland was a book review panelist for T. C. Schmidt's Josephus and Jesus: New Evidence for the One Called Christ. Moreover, Natalie Bloch presented a paper titled “Apocalyptic Temple Imaginaries in Contemporary Hebrew Literature” during the session Apocalypse Now: Apocalyptic Reception and Impact throughout History.
On 19 November 2025, Patrik Fridlund, Jayne Svenungsson, and others participated in a half-day symposium at Lund University titled Talmud and Philosophy: Contemporary Challenges.
On 11 November 2025, Blaženka Scheuer gave a public lecture at Lunds senioruniversitet titled “Till Guds avbild och till människornas - Bibelns skapelseberättelse i ljuset av AI.”
6–8 November 2025, Jayne Svenungsson and Cecilia Wassén presented at a conference at Universität Basel titled ‘Ende oder Wende?’ Apokalyptische Diskurse in Antike und Gegenwart. Wassén's talk, on 6 Nov., was titled "Der apokalyptische Jesus." Svenungsson's, on 7 Nov., was titled “Apocalypticism Today: Challenges for a Responsible Theology.”
On 6 November 2025, Jonathan Morgan and Aaron James Goldman presented at a conference at Lund University titled “‘Truthers’ and ‘Truth Defenders.’” Their presentation was titled “Beyond the facts of the matter: Addressing Socialstyrelsen’s efforts to counter the LVU-kampanjen conspiracy theory.” Patrik Fridlund presented at the same conference on 7 November, with a paper titled “Conspiracy Theories, Truthers, Truth Defenders, and Paul Ricœur’s Hermeneutics.”
On 20 October, Blaženka Scheuer gave a lecture at the Association of Retired Priests of Lund titled “Bibeln, Artificiell Intelligens och Människan.”
Allan Burnett was the principal organizer of a conference titled The Power of the Humanities in Academia and Society, from 16 to 17 October 2025 at the Arbetets museum in Norrköping, Sweden. Burnett's role is part of his ongoing work with at Linköping University's Hub for Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic Research.
From 16 to 17 October 2025, Joel Kuhlin participated in and presented at a workshop at Lund University for the affiliated Scriptures & Secularism project, titled “Bibles in Digital Culture: Methods, Approaches, Practices.”
On 10 October 2025, Max Liljefors was an invited speaker at a symposium about Human Flourishing at Uppsala University. His talk was about the role of art and aesthetics in times of crisis.
On 1 October 2025, Tobias Hägerland invited our research group to an afternoon in Gothenburg. This event, titled Apokalyptik i konst och litteratur, featured a visit to Gothenburg's art museum and a seminar – featuring Hannah Strømmen, Blaženka Scheuer, and Mia-Marie Hammarlin – about Karl Ove Knausgård's Morgenstjernen.
On 23–24 September 2024, David Dunér co-organized a conference at Lund University under the title “Cognition and Evolution in Historical and Social Research.”
On 23 September 2025 at Lund University, American Professors of Religious Studies Christine Helmer and Robert Orsi, respectively, delivered lectures tightly connected to the foci of At the End of the World. Helmer's lecture was titled “Sacramental Religion in Apocalyptic Times” and Orsi's was titled “The Gods of the Contemporary Far-Right.”
On 4 September 2025, Tormod Johansen and Mårten Björk presented, alongside Matilda Arvidson and Simon Larsson (moderator: Pamela Slotte Russo) in the webinar “On the Nature and End of Law: Theological, Philosophical and Juridical Discourses.” The panel is viewable online at the Youtube channel of Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory.
On 3 September 2025 Amanda Lagerkvist was invited to give a lecture at The Danish Institute for Advanced Study in Odense (DIAS) titled “At the Limit: Existential Media, Relational Selves and Technological Futures.”
On 2 September 2025, 16:15–18:00, in association with the Beyond Truth and Lies project, Aaron James Goldman presented work in progress in a seminar at Lund University under the title “Kayfabe Making, Kayfabe Breaking: Trump, Authenticity, and the Politics of Unmasking.”
On 5 August 2025, Amanda Lagerkvist delivered a keynote at the International Society for Media, Religion and Culture (ISMRC) Conference, Boston College (USA) titled, “In the Wilderness of the (Digital) Limit Situation: Existential and Extraordinary World-making in Times of Techno-apocalypticism.”
On 26 June 2025, 11:00–12:30, At the End of the World was represented at the Society of Biblical Literature international meeting in Uppsala, Sweden. Presentations included Jayne Svenungsson, “At the End of the World: A Transdisciplinary Approach to the Apocalyptic Imaginary in the Past and Present”; Blaženka Scheuer, “Secret Knowledge and Sealed Books: Secrecy in Biblical Apocalypses”; Natalie Bloch, “The Temple as a State in Mind”; Tobias Hägerland and Katarina Pålsson, “From Justin to Jerome: Othering Processes in the Early Reception of the Book of Revelation”; and Joel Kuhlin, “The Apocalyptic Imaginary and Malcolm X's Revolutionary Rhetoric: Analyzing the Book of Revelation.” Cecilia Wassén chaired the session.
On 12 June 2025, Patrik Fridlund and Aaron James Goldman gave papers at the Nordic Society for Philosophy of Religion conference in Uppsala, Sweden. Fridlund's paper was titled “A Voice that Must be Silenced? — In the Name of Reason — A Reading of D’un ton apocalyptique adopté naguère en philosophie.” Goldman's paper was titled “‘Roko’s Basilisk,’ Love for the Neighbor, and Other Infohazards: Contagious Obligations for Søren Kierkegaard, William James, and AI Enthusiasts.”
On 2 June 2025, Blaženka Scheuer gave a keynote lecture titled “I begynnelsen fanns mörker: en studie av ondska i Gamla testamentet” at the clergy convention at the diocese of Strängnäs.
On 29–30 May 2025, Gregor Noll and Daniel Steuer presented a paper titled “How Not to End Wars: Europe’s Future within a Global Großraum Order” at the SECEUR Research Network annual workshop ‘European Security 2.0: Reassessing Security after Munich.’
On 28 May 2025 at Stockholm's Stadsmission at Mötesplats Mariatorget, Patrik Fridlund participated alongside Jan Stocklassa and Joel Halldorf in a panel titled “Konspirationer och konspirationsteorier,” part of the conversation series Fakta och andra alternativ. Information about attendance is available on their website.
On 23 May 2025, the Nordic Network of Conspiracy Theory Research (CONNOR) conference featured a co-authored presentation by Patrik Fridlund and Mia-Marie Hammarlin titled “Conspiracy Theories and Apocalypticism.” Aaron James Goldman also gave a presentation titled "A defense of a self-reflexive, etic definition of ‘conspiracy theory.’"
On 16 May 2025, Aaron James Goldman gave a paper at University of Southampton connecting Kierkegaard's epistemology to apocalyptic conspiracy theories at a workshop titled Epistemological Themes in Kierkegaard's Climacus Works.
On 15 May 2025, At the End of the World with CTR's Islamic Studies group hosted visiting PhD student (from Ankara University) and Erasmus+ fellow Rabia Sena Çakır Ihsan for a seminar titled “Hadith, History, and the End Times: A Study of Fiten and Malāḥim in Islamic Tradition.”
Lena Liepe presented a paper titled “Relic use in medieval Iceland” at the International Congress of Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University, which ran from 8–10 May 2025.
On 9 May 2025, Amanda Lagerkvist gave a keynote lecture titled “Technology at the End Times” at the 404 Not Found conference at Ruhr-Universität Bochum.
On 29 April 2025, Sven Anders Johansson, Professor of Literature at Mid Sweden University, gave a guest seminar at Lund University titled Resentment, Dialectics, Ambivalence: On the Possibility of Critical Thinking Today.
On 15 April 2025, David Dunér presented under the title “The History of the Concept of Life” for the Neobiogenesis group at the Pufendorf Institute.
On 15 April 2025, Johannes Stripple, Lena Liepe, and Natalie Bloch participated in a panel discussion at Riksteaterdagarna together with Malin Axelsson, Artistic Director at Riksteatern Barn & Unga. The discussion focused on the launch of the project Från kaos till kreativitet – unga utforskar apokalypsen på scenen (From Chaos to Creativity – Young People Explore the Apocalypse on the Stage). The panel was moderated by Katinka Richter, Project Manager at Länk.
On 13 April 2025, a segment from Godmorgon världen (Sveriges radio) by Klara von Gegerfelt titled “Sverige kan sko sig på USA:s ‘brain drain’” featured an interview with Aaron James Goldman.
On 10–11 April 2025, David Dunér and Joel Kuhlin presented research at the conference Svensk Gnosis Genom Tiderna at Kungl. Vitterhetsakademien in Stockholm. Dunér's presentation was titled “Gnosticismen, Swedenborg och svenskt 1700-tal,” and Kuhlin's was titled “Gnosticismen och den svenska poddvärlden.”
On 9 April 2025, David Dunér gave a presentation at Vitterhetsakademien, Stockholm, titled “En livsviktig fråga: Syntetiskt liv, artificiell intelligens och astrobiologi.”
On 8 April 2025, David Dunér participated on a panel at the Pufendorf Institute in Lund titled “Vad är liv?”
On 3 April 2025 Lena Liepe gave a lecture titled “The End of the World and a New Beginning: The Apocalypse in Art from Ancient Times to the Present” at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. You can find more information here. She also gave the lecture at the University of Calabar on 8 April 2025. You can find more information here.
On 2 April 2025, Joel Kuhlin gave a conference paper at the Society for Biblical Literature Global Virtue Meeting titled “The Book of Revelation and the Apocalyptic Imaginary of Malcolm X: Revolutionary Rhetoric 1963–65.”
On 2 April 2025, Tobias Hägerland gave a presentation titled, “Mellan apokalyps och utopi - framtider då och nu” at the International Science Festival (Vetenskapsfestivalen), Stadsbiblioteket, Gothenburg.
On 2 April 2025, Tormod Johansen participateed in a panel at the University of Gothenburg's Vetenskapsfestival about the role of philosophy and theology in law.
On 18 March 2025, at 18:30, Marie Cronqvist delivered a public lecture at Linköping's Cathedral titled “Framtidstro i en apokalyptisk tid.” The lecture was part of the Tisdagskvällar i Linköpings domkyrka series.
On 12 March 2025, Aaron James Goldman presented for a group of students at Lund University about Donald Trump's apocalyptic critique of American electoral politics. His presentation was titled “American Electoral Politics and Trump’s Cult(ure) of Critique.”
On 6–7 March 2025, Natalie Bloch participated as a panelist in the session “Är psykedelika den nya mystiken?” (“Are Psychedelics the New Mysticism?”) at Religionsvetarmötet 2025, an annual conference for scholars in the Study of Religions, which took place at Södertörn University 6–7 March 2025.
On 3–4 March 2025, Blaženka Scheuer co-organized a symposium titled AI and Religion at Lund University.
On 3 March 2025, Johannes Stripple took part in a debate panel hosted by Debatt i Lund. The panel is titled “Debatt i Lund: Behövs utopier?” You can watch the event on Youtube.
On 25 February 2025, Amanda Lagerkvist gave a lecture in Uppsala titled “AI, framtiden och normer kring det mänskliga.”
On 25 February 2025, Lena Liepe gave a lecture at the Department of Fine Arts, Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad, India, titled ”The End of the World – and a New Beginning: The Apocalypse in Art from Ancient Times to the Present.”
On 15 February 2025, 21.20 – 22.50 (Sweden time) Natalie Bloch presented her paper “The Psychedelic Temple – Re-imagining Ancient Jewish Temple Space through Psychedelic Aesthetics” at The Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard Divinity School, on the occasion of their third annual Psychedelic Intersections conference, titled Betwixt & Between Chaplaincy, Plant Medicine, & Aesthetics. The event was held at Harvard University and was available to join virtually. More information can be found on this page.
On 12 February 2025, Patrik Fridlund, Aaron James Goldman, and Rickard Andersson organized – in conjunction with the affiliated Beyond Truth and Lies project – a webinar on Zoom with Marisa Žele titled “A Deal with the Devil – On the Question of Trickery, Truth and Lying.”
On 10 February 2025, David Dunér gave a presentation titled “Swedenborg” at Senioruniversitetet in Stockholm.
On 7 February 2025, Amanda Lagerkvist was involved in a conference at Färgfabriken Konsthall in Stockholm titled Relational Technologies, Technological Relations – An interdisciplinary assembly on existential challenges of AI and biometrics.
On 28 Janaury 2025, Amanda Lagerkvist gave a lecture at Seniorverksamheten Immanuelskyrkan titled ”AI-apokalypsen. Går vi mot undergången eller det mänskligas pånyttfödelse i maskinen?”
On 24 January 2025, Patrik Fridlund gave a seminar in French titled “Théories de la conspiration et croyances apocalyptiques” at Institut protestant de théologie in Paris, France. Fridlund presented his paper on the links between apocalypse and conspiracy theories, before opening up discussion. He also said a few words about the At the End of the World research program.
On 23 January 2025, Marie Cronqvist gave a talk titled “Om krisen eller kriget kommer,” at the Air Force Museum (Flygvapenmuseum) in Linköping.
On 23 January 2025, Lena Liepe gave a presentation in conjunction with Academia Lundensis Medii Aevi (ALMA) titled “Body and the Church / The Church as Body: The Medieval Church Interior as a Medium.” She gave this presentation a few days earlier, on 20 January, under the title for the series Das skandinavische Mittelalter und seine Medien, organized by the Institut für Skandinavistik, Frisistik und Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft at the Christian-Albrechts-Universität in Kiel, Germany.
On 11 December 2024, Jayne Svenungsson delivered a lecture for the Catholic Academy in Berlin titled “Apocalypse – The End of Law and Other Narratives.” You can view and listen to the lecture on Youtube.
On 9 December 2024, the Centre for Theology and Religious Studies celebrated the launch of Hannah Strømmen's new book The Bibles of the Far Right. Speakers includedJames Crossley, Professor in Bible, Society and Politics (MF School of Theology, Oslo, Norway); Holly Morse, Senior Lecturer in Bible, Gender and Culture (University of Manchester, UK); and Anders Berg-Sørensen, Associate Professor in Political Theory (Copenhagen University, Denmark).
On 4 December 2024, Katarina Pålsson delivered a lecture at Stadionkyrkan in Malmö titled “Kyrkan, människan och domen: Förståelser av världens slut i senantik och medeltida eskatologi.”
On 26 November 2024, David Dunér organized and chaired a public seminar at Lund University titled Post-Apocalyptic Space Imaginaries. Invited speakers included Johan Lagerkvist (Stockholm University), Erik Persson (Lund University), and Sandra Siljeström (RISE Research Institute of Sweden).
On 20 November 2024 at the Lund Cathedral, glass artist Erika Lagerbielke, priest Lena Sjöstrand, and End of the World researchers Lena Liepe, Max Liljefors, and Jayne Svenungsson participated in a public symposium about a stained glass window titled Att skapa Hopp. The session was moderated by Martin Garwicz.
On 6 November 2024, Joel Kuhlin gave a public lecture titled “Malcolm X: Apokalyptiker & politisk teolog” at the Centre for Theology and Religious Studies in Lund.
On 1 November 2024, Patrik Fridlund, Aaron James Goldman, and Rickard Andersson organized a seminar at Lund University led by Damir Skenderovic – Professor of Contemporary History at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) – titled “Conspiracy Theories and Right-Wing Populism.” The seminar was supported by the Lund Centre for the History of Knowledge, the Beyond Truth and Lies project (LMK-Stiftelsen), and Krookska Stiftelsen.
On 31 October 2024, Patrik Fridlund, Aaron James Goldman, and Rickard Andersson organized a lecture at Lund University by Damir Skenderovic – Professor of Contemporary History at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) – titled Counter Media of the New Right. The lecture was supported by the Lund Centre for the History of Knowledge, the Beyond Truth and Lies project (LMK-Stiftelsen), and Krookska Stiftelsen.
On 16 October 2024, Aaron James Goldman co-organized (with Patrik Fridlund and Rickard Andersson) and chaired a webinar featuring Genia Schönbaumsfeld – Professor of Philosophy at University of Southampton – titled “Partners in Crime? Radical Scepticism and Malevolent Global Conspiracy Theories.”
On 7 October 2024, Tobias Hägerland gave a lecture titled “Apokalypsbegreppet i kristendomen” at the seminar "Perspektiv på undergången", organized by Göteborgs konstmuseum in relation to the exhibition Tidens slut. Undergångskonst från Dürer till AI, Göteborg.
On 26 September 2024, Blaženka Scheuer gave a "docentlecture" at the Centre for Theology and Religious studies on the material from her book Bees, Wasps & Weasels.
On 29 September 2024, Patrik Fridlund co-presented with Rickard Andersson at Gothenburg's Bokmässan, under the title “Att förstå konspirationsteorier i politiken.”
On 1 October 2024, Aaron James Goldman gave a seminar presentation titled “The Myth(s) of Other Minds" at Lund University, with Kate Kirkpatrick (University of Oxford) serving as a respondent.
Lecture by Tobias Hägerland: "Det stora Babylon: Romarriket i Uppenbarelseboken" 17.30-19.30, 1 Oct. 2024. The lecture was a part of the lectureseries "Vi tänker på romarriket" organized by the Faculty of Humanities, University of Gothenburg, at Göteborgs stadsbibliotek.
On 24 September 2024, At the End of the World invited Ervik Cejvan to deliver a lecture at Lund University titled “Apocalyptic Imaginary and Truth.”
On 18 September 2024, Max Liljefors, Johannes Stripple, and Matthew Paterson participated in a seminar at Lund University titled “Politics and Immersive Performance Art near the End of All Things.”
On 9 September 2024, Cecilia Wassén presented "Halakhah in the Kingdom of God: Jesus's Apocalyptic Teaching in Context on the conference" at the 18th European Congress of Theology, organized by the Theology Faculty of Heidelberg University and the Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft für Theologie.
Populism and religion online seminar with Rickard Andersson: "What if… the Qanon Conspiracy Theory is True? Political Reality According to Conspiracist Imaginaries," on Zoom, 15 May 2024
In this seminar, Rickard Andersson (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Lund University's Centre for Theology and Religious Studies) proceeded from a thought experiment: If the conspiracy theory known as QAnon were true, what would political reality have to be like? This makes it possible to outline some basic features that the political world must possess, should some of the things envisioned by QAnon advocates be correct, and highlight how such conspiracist imagines rely on personalistic conceptions of the constitution of political reality. The seminar ran 16:00–18:00 on Zoom on 15 May 2024. You can find more information at the event's calendar page.
On 23 May 2024, Allan Burnett defended his dissertation Order in Ruins: British Society and the Media Assemblage of The World at War c. 1970–1975 at Lund University.
Lena Liepe gave a paper at the 59th International Congress on Medieval Studies (9–11 May 2024) at Western Michigan University, titled “Relics and the resurrection at the end of time.”
Presentation: "Världens slut: förställning och flyktväg" - Skissernas Museum, Lund 15.00-18.00, 2 May 2024. As a part of a collaborative event between artists and reserachers on 2 May, 15.00-18.00, under the rubric "Osäker prognos – Oförutsägbarhetens estetik och forskning om framtiden", Joel Kuhlin presented the overall trajectory of At the End of the World.
At the 41st Eco-Ethica symposium in Paris (15–19 April 2024), Jayne Svenungsson gave an invited lecture titled “The World in Crisis: What is the Possibility of Philosophical and Eco-Ethical Renewal?”
Populism and religion online seminar with Nancy L. Rosenblum and Russell Muirhead: "Conspiracy and the Assault on Democratic Institutions," on Zoom, 10 April 2024
Patrik Fridlund, Aaron James Goldman, and Rickard Andersson organized a webinar in association with their project Beyond Truth and Lies with Nancy L. Rosenblum and Russell Muirhead. The seminar ran 16:00–18:00 on Zoom on 10 April 2024. More information can be found at this page: https://www.ctr.lu.se/institutionen/kalendarium/evenemang/conspiracy-and-assault-democratic-institutions-nancy-l-rosenblum-russell-muirhead-populism-and/
Den eviga apokalypsen – fyra samtal om mänsklighetens undergång, 10 April 2024. This symposium – organized by the Royal Society of Letters and the Royal Physiographic Society of Lund – featured program scholars Mia-Marie Hammarlin, Blaženka Scheuer, Johannes Stripple and Jayne Svenungsson.
On 7 April 2024, Amanda Lagerkvist gave a lecture titled "Teknologiska trossprång: evighet, uppståndelse och undergång i AI-ingenjörernas värlsbild" at Sofia Församling, Church of Sweden.
Populism and religion online seminar with Lauritz Holm Petersen: "Co-constructing Future Pasts: Eschatology & History on 4chan /pol/," on Zoom, 21 March 2024
Patrik Fridlund, Aaron James Goldman, and Rickard Andersson organized a webinar in association with their project Beyond Truth and Lies with Lauritz Holm Petersen. The seminar ran 16:00–18:00 on Zoom on 21 March 2024. More information can be found at this page: https://www.ctr.lu.se/en/about-us/calendar/event/co-constructing-future-pasts-eschatology-history-4chan-pol-second-four-seminars-populism-and/
Lecture by Amanda Lagervist: ”Artificiell Intelligence, digitala existenser och europeiska teknikframtider.” On the 20 March, 12.15–13.00, Framtids akademin organized a series of talks under the rubric “Europas framtid: debatt- och samtalsluncher i Glasgården på Stadsbiblioteken i Uppsala” by Folkuniversitetet Uppsala.
Lecture by Jayne Svenungsson: "Vid världens slut" at the S:t Johannes kyrkan Malmö, 20 March 18.00, 2024
Har vi någonsin varit närmare undergången? Föreställningar om att världen är på väg att ta ett dramatiskt slut har funnits i hela den västerländska historien. Med dagens upprustning, världens alla krig, miljöförstöring och global uppvärmning kan vi väl aldrig ha varit närmare? I forskningsprogrammet ”At the end of the world” undersöker 22 deltagare hur apokalyptiken format och formar historieskrivningen, hur de påverkar politiskt tänkande, populistisk retorik och rapportering om AI, klimathot och migration. Programmet leds av Jayne Sveningsson, professor i systematisk teologi och tidigare ledamot av Svenska Akademien. Under kvällen framförs musik av polarprisvinnaren 2023, tonsättaren Arvo Pärt.
On 17 March 2024, Cecilia Wassén gave a lecture at Katedralakademin, Storkyrkan Stockholm, on the topic ”Den historiske personen Jesus: vad kan man veta?”
On 13 March 2024, Cecilia Wassén gave the ONTEC lecture at University of Oslo's Faculty of Theology titled “Jesus as an Apocalyptic Prophet and Teacher of Law.”
Patrik Fridlund, Aaron James Goldman, and Rickard Andersson organized a webinar titled “Microdosing Conspiracy Theories” in association with their project Beyond Truth and Lies with ERC-grant recipient Elżbieta Drążkiewicz. The seminar took place on 26 February 2024.
Torbjörn Gustafsson Chorell gave a public lecture in Uppsala at Studentföreningen Heimdal titled “Världens slut: apokalypsen förr och nu,” on 8 February 2024.
On 20 January 2024, Amanda Lagerkvist gave a lecture at Sigtunastiftelsen during a seminar titled "Samtal om hur AI kommer förändra kultur och samhälle," organized by the Svenska kyrkans skribentskola.
On 14 December 2023, Torbjörn Gustafsson Chorell gave a lecture in Swedish for a general audience at Heimdal in Uppsala, titled “Världens slut – apokalyptiska föreställningar då och nu.”
On 13 December 2023, Aaron James Goldman gave a public lecture at LUX läsesalen in Lund titled “Donald Trump, Conspiracy Theories, and Professional Wrestling.” You can read more at this page: https://www.ht.lu.se/om-fakulteterna/vara-hus/lux/lasesalen/
On 12 December 2023, Tommy Lynch, Reader in Political Theology at Chichester University, visited Lund University for a public lecture titled “Apocalyptic Political Theology,” followed by a panel discussion, open seminar, and a buffet-style reception, open to attendees. The panel discussion included Jens Bartelson, Johannes Stripple, Hannah Strømmen, and Jayne Svenungsson.
On 28 November 2023, Mårten Björk hosted a seminar on Ernst Bloch's classic 1918 Geist der Utopie (The Spirit of Utopia). The book, which Bloch actually wanted to call "Musik und Apokalypse," is an expressionist work that encompasses everything from a complex discussion of philosophy of art and music, a long critique of Marxism and the at-the-time ongoing Russian revolution, to a defense of the Platonist theory of the migration of the souls. Aaron James Goldman moderated the seminar with Björk.
On 27 November 2023, Aaron James Goldman, researcher for At the End of the World and Beyond Truth and Lies, gave a public webinar presentation on apocalyptic conspiracy theories. More information, including an abstract, can be found on this page.
Kristina Myrvold, Visiting Professor of History of Religions at Lund University, organized an open symposium on 13 October 2023 titled “Manipulating Scriptures.” Among other speakers was Hannah Strømmen, a researcher for At the End of the World, who gave a presentation titled “The Feel-Good Bible: Scripture on Social Media.”
Cecilia Wassén participated in a panel discussion about “Jesus the Jew,” together with Cardinal Anders Arborelius, Archbishop Martin Modéus, and Rabbi Ute Steyer at a seminar at the Gothenburg book fair, on September 28, 2023. The discussion was moderated by author and journalist Göran Rosenberg. The seminar was organized by Judisk kultur i Sverige / Jewish Culture in Sweden, in cooperation with the Swedish Church and the Catholic Church.
David Dunér organized a conference in Kiruna, Sweden, 25–27 September 2023, titled “Commercial Space Exploration and Travel – Chances and Risks.”
On 21 September 2023, Mårten Björk presented his work at a seminar titled “Law as Command or Instruction?: Hans Barion and Gustav Radbruch on the Nature and End of Law” at Uppsala University's Department of History of Science and Ideas. Björk, with Torbjörn Gustafsson Chorell, provided introductory remarks before the seminar.
On 7 June 2023, David Dunér guested for an episode of the Swedenborgspodd, titled “Swedenborgs resor i rymden.” The episode will be available after postproduction, on the podcast’s homepage.
On 4 June 2023, Marie Cronqvist was interviewed for an episode titled "Apokalyps" of MKV-Podden, which includes mentions of At the End of the World's research and Frank Kermode's classic The Sense of an Ending (1967).
On 20 April 2023, Jayne Svenungsson was interviewed for the podcast Eskatologi Podden. You can listen to the interview here.
On 14 April 2023, platform researcher and secretary Aaron James Goldman gave a lecture titled "Donald Trump as a Religious Hero" for Lund University's HT-Dagarna, which was recorded and produced for the Centre for Theology and Religious Studies' Religion och teologi podcast.
On 9 December 2022, Mårten Björk was interviewed for the podcast Eskatologi Podden. You can listen to the interview here.
On 9 April 2022, Katarina Pålsson was interviewed for the podcast Eskatologi Podden. You can listen to the interview here.