Undergraduate Studies in Pedagogy and Psychology
Faculty of Philosophy, University of Sarajevo
Conference Presentation
My Pilgrimage to Israel: Personal Experiences and Observations as a Christian in Jerusalem and Other Holy Sites
Speaker
Prof. Dr. Zorica Kuburić
Personal pilgrimage experiences and observations
Date & Time
Tuesday, 26 January 2027
16:00–17:00 CET
Format
Live Online via Zoom
Contact
zoricakuburic@gmail.comProf. Dr. Zorica Kuburić
Sociologist of Religion
Full Professor (retired)
Department of Sociology
Faculty of Philosophy
University of Novi Sad
Serbia
President, Center for Empirical Research on Religion (CEIR), Novi Sad
Co-Editor-in-Chief, Religija i tolerancija / Religion and Tolerance
Presentation Details
Date
Tuesday, 26 January 2027
Time
16:00–17:00 CET (Europe/Belgrade, UTC+01:00)
Conference
Christians and Muslims in Israel — Facts, Myths and Lived Reality
Series
Religion, Society & Interreligious Studies
International Academic Conference Series
Organiser
Institute for Hebrew Language and Literature
Belgrade, Serbia
Format
Live online via Zoom
Academic Profile
Zorica Kuburić is a Serbian sociologist of religion and a retired full professor at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Novi Sad. She is President of the Center for Empirical Research on Religion (CEIR), Novi Sad, and Co-Editor-in-Chief of Religija i tolerancija / Religion and Tolerance.
Her research addresses religion, education, family life, religious tolerance, religious and social distance, youth religiosity, and the position of women within religious communities. Her work also includes research on reconciliation and trust-building in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Her academic background brings together pedagogy, psychology, social psychiatry, sociology of religion, and systemic family therapy. For this conference, she shares her own experiences and observations as a Christian pilgrim visiting Jerusalem and other holy sites in Israel.
Abstract
This presentation offers Zorica Kuburić’s personal account of her pilgrimage to Israel, focusing on her own experiences and observations as a Christian visitor to Jerusalem and other holy sites. Its starting point is her individual encounter with places connected to faith and biblical memory, viewed through both a pilgrim’s experience and a sociologist of religion’s perspective.
The talk explores the relationship between personal faith, sacred places, and the meanings that a visitor brings to—and takes away from—a pilgrimage. It invites reflection on how visiting places previously known through scripture, religious tradition, and imagination can become a deeply personal experience.
Within the conference’s wider discussion of Christians and Muslims in Israel, this contribution offers an individual visitor’s perspective on religious life and sacred space. It is a personal testimony and reflective account, rather than a comprehensive description of Christian communities or a claim to represent the experiences of all pilgrims.
Research Interests
Sociology of ReligionEmpirical Research on ReligionReligious ToleranceReligious and Social DistanceReligion and EducationFamily and SocialisationYouth ReligiosityWomen and ReligionReconciliation and Trust-Building
Academic Background
1983
Master’s Degree in Medical Sciences — Social Psychiatry
Faculty of Medicine, University of Zagreb
PhD
Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade
Doctoral dissertation: The Self-Image of Adolescents in the Protestant Family
Training in Systemic Family Therapy
Institute of Mental Health, Belgrade
Selected Books, Monographs and Research Publications
English-Language Monograph and Research Reports
Kuburić, Zorica. (2013). Self-Image of Adolescents in the Protestant Family: A Study of Seventh-Day Adventist Families in Predominantly Orthodox Serbia. The Edwin Mellen Press. 632 pages. ISBN: 978-0-7734-4331-0. Author · English-language monograph
An empirical monograph examining Protestant family life and adolescent self-image, religious identity, social relationships, and mental health.
Publisher’s record →Wilkes, George; Zotova, Ana; Kuburić, Zorica; Andrejč, Gorazd; Brkić, Marko-Antonio; Jusić, Muhamed; Popov-Momčinović, Zlatiborka; and Marko, Davor. (2013). Factors in Reconciliation: Religion, Local Conditions, People and Trust: Results From a Survey Conducted in 13 Cities Across Bosnia and Herzegovina in May 2013. Sarajevo: CEIR — Center for Empirical Research on Religion in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 66 pages. Co-author · English-language research report
Research report on religion, local conditions, people and trust in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
University of Edinburgh record and report →Wilkes, George; Kuburić, Ana; Andrejč, Gorazd; Kuburić, Zorica; Brkić, Marko-Antonio; Jusić, Muhamed; and Popov-Momčinović, Zlatiborka. (2012). Reconciliation and Trust Building in Bosnia-Herzegovina: A Survey of Popular Attitudes in Four Cities and Regions. Sarajevo: CEIR — Center for Empirical Research on Religion in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 32 pages. ISBN: 978-9958-1981-4-4. Co-author · English-language research report
University of Edinburgh record and report →Zotova, Ana; Kuburić, Zorica; Popov-Momčinović, Zlatiborka; Brkić, Marko-Antonio; and Wilkes, George. (2021). Building Trust and Reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Different Approaches. CEIR, Novi Sad. Co-author · abridged English-language research report
An English-language report arising from research on reconciliation, religion, and trust-building in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This is an abridged report, not a complete English translation of the longer regional-language monograph.
Publication record →Other Authored and Co-Authored Books
Kuburić, Zorica. (2021). Religija i psihičko zdravlje vernika [Religion and the Mental Health of Believers]. Novi Sad: CEIR. 243 pages. ISBN: 978-86-84111-38-0. Author · Serbian-language book
A study presenting empirical research on religion and mental health, including comparisons involving Christian believers, the general population, and psychiatric patients.
Book information →Kuburić, Zorica. (2008). Religija, porodica i mladi [Religion, Family and Youth]. Second edition. Beograd–Novi Sad: Čigoja štampa / CEIR. Author · Serbian-language book
Academic CV → · University-hosted scholarly source →Kuburić, Zorica. (2001). Porodica i psihičko zdravlje dece [Family and Children’s Mental Health]. Third edition. Beograd: Čigoja štampa. Author · Serbian-language book
Academic reference → · Academic CV →Zotova, Ana; Kuburić, Zorica; Popov-Momčinović, Zlatiborka; Brkić, Marko-Antonio; and Wilkes, George. (2021). Izgradnja povjerenja i pomirenja u Bosni i Hercegovini: različite perspektive [Building Trust and Reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Different Perspectives]. CEIR / RELWAR. ISBN: 978-86-84111-34-2. Co-author · research monograph
The longer regional-language publication, distinct from the abridged English-language report listed above.
Read complete publication →Kuburić, Zorica. (2010). Verske zajednice u Srbiji i verska distanca [Religious Communities in Serbia and Religious Distance]. Novi Sad: Center for Empirical Research on Religion. ISBN: 978-86-84111-17-5. Author · Serbian-language book
Books and publication listing →Kuburić, Zorica, and Slađana Zuković. (2010). Verska nastava u školi [Religious Education in Schools]. Co-authored book · Serbian-language publication
Books and publication listing →Kuburić, Zorica, and Srđan Sremac, eds. (2009). Konverzija i kontekst: teorijski, metodološki i praktični pristupi religijskoj konverziji [Conversion and Context: Theoretical, Methodological and Practical Approaches to Religious Conversion]. Novi Sad: Center for Empirical Research on Religion. Edited volume · Serbian-language publication
Books and publication listing →Edited Scholarly Volumes
Kuburić, Zorica, and Ljiljana Ćumura, eds. (2024). Kultura hodočašća [The Culture of Pilgrimage]. Novi Sad: Center for Empirical Research on Religion. ISBN: 978-86-84111-52-6. Co-editor · edited volume
View complete volume →Kuburić, Zorica; Ćumura, Ljiljana; and Kuburić Zotova, Ana, eds. (2023). Vera, znanje, sumnja [Faith, Knowledge, Doubt]. Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference. Novi Sad: CEIR; Beograd: Porodični razgovori. ISBN: 978-86-84111-51-9. Co-editor · proceedings
Read full text →Kuburić, Zorica; Zotova, Ana; and Ćumura, Ljiljana, eds. (2020). Mesto stida i ponosa u religiji, filosofiji i umetnosti [The Place of Shame and Pride in Religion, Philosophy and Art]. Novi Sad: CEIR; Beograd: Porodični razgovori. ISBN: 978-86-84111-30-4. Co-editor · scholarly volume
Read full text →Kuburić, Zorica; Ćumura, Ljiljana; and Zotova, Ana, eds. (2018). Mir i pomirenje. I. [Peace and Reconciliation. Volume I]. Novi Sad: CEIR / Faculty of Philosophy. ISBN: 978-86-84111-28-1. Co-editor · scholarly volume
Read full text →Kuburić, Zorica; Ćumura, Ljiljana; and Zotova, Ana, eds. (2017). Lica i naličja društvene i lične slobode [The Faces and Reverse Sides of Social and Personal Freedom]. Novi Sad: CEIR. ISBN: 978-86-84111-26-7. Co-editor · scholarly volume
Read full text →Selected English-Language Book Chapter
Kuburić, Zorica. (2018). “The Analysis of the Textbooks for Orthodox Religious Education in Serbia.” In Gorana Ognjenović and Jasna Jozelić, eds., Education in Post-Conflict Transition: The Politicization of Religion in School Textbooks. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, pp. 273–297. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-56605-4_13. Chapter author · English
Publisher’s chapter page →Additional Chapter in a Serbian-Language Volume
Kuburić, Zorica. (2024). “Hodočašća bogomoljačkog pokreta.” In Kultura hodočašća, pp. 377–388. Chapter author · English explanatory translation: “Pilgrimages of the Bogomoljci Movement”
View chapter in complete volume →Academic and Institutional Links
Center for Empirical Research on Religion — CEIR
Visit CEIR →Religion and Tolerance
Editorial Information
View editorial information →Academia.edu
Scholarly profile and publications
View scholarly profile →Academic CV
Curriculum vitae
View CV →Books and Edited Volumes
View publications →ORCID
0009-0008-1383-5644
View ORCID profile →Conference Participation
Prof. Dr. Zorica Kuburić presents “My Pilgrimage to Israel: Personal Experiences and Observations as a Christian in Jerusalem and Other Holy Sites” on Tuesday, 26 January 2027, from 16:00 to 17:00 CET.
Her presentation forms part of “Christians and Muslims in Israel — Facts, Myths and Lived Reality,” within the Religion, Society & Interreligious Studies International Academic Conference Series, organised by the Institute for Hebrew Language and Literature, Belgrade, Serbia. The session takes place live online via Zoom. The presentation is a personal account of her own pilgrimage experiences and observations, not a statement on behalf of all Christians.
Presentation Keywords
Zorica KuburićChristian PilgrimagePilgrimage to IsraelPersonal ExperienceChristian PilgrimJerusalemHoly SitesHoly LandLived ReligionPersonal FaithReligious ExperienceSacred SpaceBiblical MemorySociology of Religion
Suggested Citation
Kuburić, Zorica. “My Pilgrimage to Israel: Personal Experiences and Observations as a Christian in Jerusalem and Other Holy Sites.” Presentation at Christians and Muslims in Israel — Facts, Myths and Lived Reality, Religion, Society & Interreligious Studies International Academic Conference Series, Institute for Hebrew Language and Literature, 26 January 2027.
Attend Prof. Dr. Zorica Kuburić’s Presentation
Join Prof. Dr. Zorica Kuburić for a personal account of her pilgrimage to Israel and her experiences as a Christian visitor to Jerusalem and other holy sites. Attend live online on Tuesday, 26 January 2027, from 16:00 to 17:00 CET, and take part in the discussion.