Page - 9 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 01/01

Editorial | 9www.jrfm.eu 2015, 1/1, 9–19 inspired by a workshop held at the University of Zurich in November 2014, we inau- gurate the Journal for Religion, Film and Media (JrfM) with a special issue dedicated to methodology. The field of media and religion is characterised by a multitude of approaches to both religion and media. The choice of communication paradigms and analytical procedures to be used in an investigation of the intertwined relationship of religion and media depends on the sources, the questions we seek to answer and the cultural context. This issue of JrfM presents a range of methodological procedures by highlighting three selected communication models: the first part considers a mod- el that defines communication as an overlap of spaces that mediates meaning-making processes; the second part looks at the employment of a gender lens for investigation of the relationship between media and religion; the final part analyses the interaction between media and religion in the context of various contemporary art productions. While these models have been drawn from a broad range of possible topics, those selected share a common concern: they involve reflection on methodological steps used to analyse interactions always characterised by non-linear and multi-causal rela- tions. each of the three main sections contains a key article and two responses, with the methodological questions addressed by invited contributors commented upon, discussed critically and developed further by members of the mentioned research groups. JrfM’s aCaDeMiC CONTexT JRFM is a project situated at the intersection of a number of research teams that are working on aspects of the interaction of media and religion: International Research Group Film and Theology,1 Media and Religion,2 Commun(icat)ing Bodies,3 and Interna- tional Exchange on Media and Religion.4 for two decades the International Research Group Film and Theology has been undertaking research in an interdisciplinary setting that encompasses theology, the study of religion, cinema and media, and educational sciences. With a membership 1 http://www.film-und-theologie.de [accessed 21 September 2015]. 2 http://www.religionswissenschaft.uzh.ch/medien [accessed 21 September 2015]. 3 http://communicating-bodies.net [accessed 21 September 2015]. 4 http://media-religion.net/ [accessed 21 September 2015]. Marie-Therese Mäder and Daria Pezzoli-Olgiati Editorial