Especially new readers who are not yet familiar with Religioscope may be curious to know more about its background and purpose. We have attempted here to summarize our answers to frequently asked questions.

What is Religioscope?

Launched in January 2002, Religioscope is a independent website about religions in today's world.

It offers news and analyses. Religioscope pays attention to current developments and trends, but would also like to put them into historical perspective when needed. It would like to offer to its readers some keys for a better understanding of the role and place of different religions.

Religioscope ® is a registered trademark.

Who is behind Religioscope?

The founder and chief editor of Religioscope is Jean-François Mayer, born in Switzerland in 1957. J.-F. Mayer received his doctoral degree in history in 1984 from the University of Lyon, France.

Jean-François Mayer, editor of Religioscope, during a research trip in Uganda in 2001.

J.-F. Mayer is the author of several books and many articles on different aspects of religion in today's world. He is currently working as a lecturer in religious studies at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, as a scientific advisor to the project "Religion and Politics" (PSIO, Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva), and as a consultant in international affairs; he is the Director of JFM Recherches et Analyses LLC.

Why did you launch Religioscope?

Religioscope would like to contribute to a deeper understanding of the role and place of religions in our world. It would also like to create bridges between the results of academic research and a wider audience.

Is there any religious group behind Religioscope?

No. We do not want to promote or propagate any belief or ideology. Our goal is not to teach people what they should believe or not believe, but provide them with information.

There is no religious group financing Religioscope.

Nobody can claim to be completely neutral. Sometimes, personal views of authors may appear in some articles. But we are doing our best in order to be honest and intellectually rigorous, independently from our own beliefs.

From the very beginning of Religioscope, we have been pleased to see that many readers, coming from all corners and representing the widest possible variety of viewpoints, have understood what our perspective is. Those readers know that Religioscope won't be advertising their views, but they appreciate our efforts to report honestly, in a non polemical way.

Is there any commercial interest behind Religioscope?

No. As you can see for yourself, there is no advertisement on Religioscope, access is entirely free and nothing is sold.

We hope to find some day a financial support in order to fully professionalize Religioscope. Proposals are welcome - but only if a grant would not compromise our independence and freedom, which are the main assets of this website.

What is the content of Religioscope?

For an overview of our different sections, please see our site map.

Beside articles, interviews and documents, Religioscope also offers other types of information, for instance a directory of links (in French, but many of the listed websites are in English) and a regularly updated international calendar of academic conferences related to religion in today's world.

Moreover, you might be interested to visit our News Center, which offer daily updated newsfeeds on a variety of topics.

Is there a difference between the content in English and the content in French?

Yes. Both contents are completely different. Readers able to read both languages are encouraged to access Religioscope through its bilingual listing of newly added articles.

The mother tongue of Religioscope's chief editor is French. Originally, Religioscope was launched with French as its primary language, but it has increasingly attempted to give space to material in English as well, as a service to a wider circle of readers.

At this stage, the percentage of articles in both languages is roughly similar. Among articles specifically produced for Religioscope, there are still more in French than in English. But several agreements we have passed allow us to also offer selected articles in English from other sources, different from mainstream media, thus giving you access to material you are unlikely to read in your daily newspaper.

Did the design of the website change over time?

Definitely! When it was launched in 2002, Religioscope used to have a simpler, less professional design. It was changed first in early 2003, at the time we began to use a content management system in order to publish articles. The website was completely redesigned in April 2004: this is the current design of Religioscope.

Religioscope in 2002.	Religioscope in 2003.

This explains why some archived documents (i.e. articles published before April 2004) have a slightly different outlook, since it was not possible to reformat each of them completely.

There is another legacy of those successive steps. In 2002, Religioscope was published at the URL www.religioscope.com. In 2003, it switched to www.religioscope.info for new articles. Since April 2004, our main address has become www.religion.info. But all previously published articles can still be accessed at their original location: one of our rules is to keep permanent addresses for published material.

If you explore the archives, this means that you will sometimes reach articles at www.religioscope.com and www.religioscope.info. But it is one and the same website: you will be surfing seamlessly and barely notice that you are actually switching from one domain name to another.

Who produced the new, elegant design of Religioscope?

We are glad to be able to seize this opportunity to thank the two people behind the current design.

Our new logo has been created by Ken Harper. An expert in visual communications, Ken Harper has already worked for several leading American media as well as international organizations. More information on his work can be found on his website.

The website itself has been redesigned by Nigel Parry. Since 1995, Nigel Parry has been designing and developing websites and website content for educational, advocacy, non-profit, and business organizations. Together with an experienced network of consultants around the world, Nigel offers complete website, multimedia, and print solutions for clients of all sizes, in any geographical location. Visit his website and look at his portfolio! His motto is: "Website design for clients who have something to say." If you are a webmaster for a website with news content, consider hiring him, you won't be disappointed!

If I am looking for information on some topic related to religion in today's world, is it possible to send questions and queries to the editor?

Sorry: you should understand that we are providing this website free of charge, and that it means a lot of work. We just have no staff available in order to handle such requests.

We recommend that you use our search engine in order to explore our website's ressources and Google in order to find material on the Web. And don't forget your local library!

We are willing to consider some requests against a fee, if deadlines are not too tight. If you have a serious inquiry, contact JFM Recherches et Analyses and ask for our consulting rates.

25 April 2004 - Revised 16 February 2006