On the Role of Religion in the Process of Adaptation of (Forced) Migrants

Within an ample study on the role of religion in the migratory and integration processes, this chapter illustrates some of the results of an original research carried out in Italy and based on different sources, among those 20 in-depth interviews with migrants and asylum seekers who, regardless of the entry channel and of their current legal status, have been significantly influenced by their religious belongings, as for both their decision to migrate and the development of migration and insertion processes. In particular, the Chapter explores the “space” dedicated to the religious dimension and to the spiritual needs of migrants, also during the delicate phase of first reception and re-elaboration of the migratory distress. Thanks to the involvement of a sociologist of migration and of a theology scholar as co-author, the Chapter also investigates the “functions” and meanings that (forced) migrants for religious reasons attribute to religion and spirituality, seen both in their individual and communitarian declinations. Finally, through a de-instrumentalization of religion and the acknowledgement of migrants’ human subjectivity, the Authors discuss the results of the study through the concepts of identity, religious freedom, citizenship, and common good