Empowerment aims to provide life assistance that enables individuals to trust in their own abilities and lead their lives independently. This requires specific skills and competencies on one hand, and strength, power, and courage on the other. When addressing empowerment, both the resources of the individual (personal potential) and the available resources (structural potential) need to be considered. Ultimately, the goal is to explore how, from a Christian perspective, possibilities can be expanded so that people can live self-determined lives.

For example, we ask what encourages individuals to trust in their own abilities and lead their lives independently, and how the communication of the Gospel can play a role in this. We want to examine more closely what it means to live, pray, celebrate, bless, and be blessed as a Christian. This interests us especially when supportive factors in culture and society are losing significance, as we are currently seeing in Germany. Therefore, we are particularly interested in new movements and rituals that emerge in the context of secularization.

The CES works in three research units and involves additional projects and partners. An interdisciplinary approach of theology, social sciences, and humanities characterizes the research of the CES.