About this book:

*When Faith Travels: Religion in Diaspora and Migration* explores how the movement of people across borders fundamentally reshapes religious belief, practice, and community structure. Rather than viewing faith as a static baggage carried by migrants, the book frames it as a dynamic social infrastructure that organizes care, facilitates economic remittances, and provides a moral framework for navigating displacement. Through diverse case studies from Latin America, Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East, the text illustrates how traditional rituals are reinterpreted in new urban landscapes, often leading to hybrid theological forms that blend ancestral heritage with host-country norms.

The book analyzes the multifaceted nature of "religion on the move" across institutional and intimate scales. It examines the rise of domestic religiosity through home altars, the digital transformation of piety via apps and social media, and the emergence of congregations as vital civic hubs that offer language classes, job networking, and legal aid. Significant attention is paid to the intersection of gender and generation, noting how youth often act as "bridge-builders" who adapt faith to contemporary multicultural contexts, while religious leaders navigate complex legal pluralism and the increasing securitization of minority faiths in host societies.

Beyond theoretical analysis, the work serves as a practical resource for social workers, urban planners, and educators. It offers a "toolkit" for providing culturally sensitive care and designing inclusive multifaith neighborhoods that accommodate diverse needs, from ritual ablution water access to the scheduling of public festivals. By highlighting the "economies of devotion"—the financial and social capital flowing through transnational religious networks—the book demonstrates that religious institutions are central players in global migration systems.

Ultimately, the text argues that religion is a primary theater for the politics of belonging. Whether through the expansion of Pentecostalism in Latin American diasporas, the resilient Sufi networks of West Africa, or the reconstruction of pluralistic traditions by Middle Eastern refugees, faith provides the tools for displaced populations to reclaim agency. The book concludes that understanding the "traveling sacred" is essential for building just, pluralistic societies and for comprehending the interconnected nature of modern global cities.

What You'll Find Inside:

• The book examines how migration transforms religious practices through ritual adaptation, religious hybridity, and transnationalism, showing how beliefs are maintained while being reshaped by new contexts.
• It explores religious institutions in diaspora as multifunctional civic hubs that provide education, employment support, mental health services, and mutual aid beyond their spiritual roles.
• The text analyzes how digital technologies create transnational religious networks, enabling virtual participation in rituals and reshaping religious authority through online platforms and algorithmic piety.
• It investigates the intersection of religion with law, security, and urban planning, examining how legal frameworks, surveillance practices, and public space negotiations affect religious expression in host societies.
• Through regional case studies from Latin America, South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, the book demonstrates how diverse religious traditions adapt to migration while maintaining transnational ties and rebuilding communities.

Who's It For:

This book is essential for social workers, urban planners, educators, and community organizers working with migrant populations, as well as researchers in migration studies, religious studies, and transnationalism. It provides practical tools for faith-based partnerships, design principles for inclusive neighborhoods, insights into congregations as civic hubs, and a comparative theoretical framework for understanding how faith transforms across borders.