Contribution short abstract:

Despite the crisis of Catholicism in Cologne, Italian religious life remains vibrant. I explore how the “experience group” of the Italian Catholic Mission uses religious knowledge and practices to navigate migration, religious decline, and existential crises in this shifting religious landscape.

Contribution long abstract:

The Catholic Church in Cologne and North-Rhine-Westphalia is undergoing a significant crisis, with thousands of members leaving its fold. This decline reflects broader challenges to Catholicism in Europe. Amidst this crisis, Italian religious life in Cologne remains vibrant, raising questions about its survival within this shifting religious landscape: can migrants mobilize their religious knowledge and practices as a source of power to resist and navigate the challenges of daily life in this context?

Drawing on Ernesto de Martino’s concept of the “crisis of presence,” I re-examine the role of religion in dealing with experience of ‘crisis’ and modes of revitalising ‘presence’ in the transforming religious landscape of catholic life in Cologne and (Southern) Europe. I explore how Italians in Cologne leverage religion to address (1) the challenges of migration in the multi-cultural context of the city, (2) the broader religious decline and (3) their personal existential crises.

Among the different constellations of Italian Catholics in Cologne, I focus on the “experience group” of the Italian Catholic Mission. I examine how members of this group navigate the transnational space between Naples and Cologne to forge and re-mediate religious practices. By creating spaces for sharing knowledge and practices—both religious and beyond—and offering mutual support, the group empowers its members to confront their crises. I argue that religious agency emerges “between crisis and presence” and must be reworked continuously among those on the move and their networks to provide tools for navigating instability and fostering revitalization in times of crisis.