Gdańsk, a coastal city in northern Poland, holds a significant place in both Polish and European history. Situated at the mouth of the Vistula River on the Baltic Sea, it has been a major maritime and trade hub for centuries. The historical context of Gdańsk as a “Free City”, straddling Polish, German, and Kashubian identities, especially during the interwar period, highlights its unique status and crucial role in shaping Polish national consciousness. This period consolidated Gdańsk’s identity as a space of contested sovereignties and cultural intermingling, setting a precedent for its contemporary image and aspirations as an open, multicultural urban center.

In the religious field, Gdańsk’s landscape has been predominantly shaped by its Lutheran heritage before World War II, transitioning to a predominantly Catholic demographic post-1945. This shift is mirrored in the city’s architectural narrative, with the austere aesthetic of its Protestant churches juxtaposed against the more recent Catholic influences. Absence is a notable feature of Gdańsk’s religious field.

The Gdańsk Shipyard emerges as a significant locale in this socio-religious context, not only as a site of historical labour and political movements but also as a background reflecting the political, anti-communist, and freedom-oriented engagement of Polish Catholicism.

The Gdańsk coat of arms, prominently featuring two crosses, stands as a profound symbol of the intricate religious and historical narrative of the city. This emblem is not merely a municipal insignia, but serves as a multifaceted representation of Gdańsk’s identity, deeply embedded in both the public consciousness and the city’s governance policies. Incorporated extensively across various facets of the city, from official documents and public buildings to informal uses in local businesses and private entities, the emblem functions as a constant reminder of Gdańsk’s layered past.

Gdańsk showcases alternative forms of art, particularly through its vibrant street art scene that includes murals, stickers, and graffiti. These expressions often resonate with the theme of the “Free City”, reflecting on Gdańsk's historical quest for autonomy and freedom. The use of religious and mythological motifs, including the recurrent symbol of Neptune and references to Norse mythology, enriches this narrative.

Gdańsk is also an important academic hub. Combined with the tourist status of the city, highlighting its historical heritage, religious traditions, and contemporary cultural expressions, Gdańsk presents an intriguing example of urban religion intersecting with discourses of multiculturalism, religious pluralism, and diversity of worldview.

Kraków is located in southern Poland, along the Vistula River and in close proximity to the Tatra Mountains. The city is the historical capital of the country, with an undeniable influence on shaping the Polish cultural and religious hertige. Wawel Castle, situated at the heart of Kraków, bears witness to Poland’s royal past and plays a pivotal role in constructing the country’s historical narrative. During the partitions of Poland, between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries, Kraków maintained its cultural significance despite the political fragmentation of the state. During this period, the city emerged as a vital center of Polish culture in Galicia within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Kraków was spared destruction during World War II, but the postwar era brought significant changes to the urban fabric, including the construction of Nowa Huta, a satellite district to Kraków. Envisioned as an ideal socialist city, Nowa Huta represented a shift towards industrialization and urban planning during the communist regime, contrasting against Kraków’s historical and architectural heritage.

Kraków is widely recognized for its rich Roman Catholic heritage, and is often referred to as the “papal city”. It serves as the administrative center for the Archdiocese of Kraków and houses the Pontifical University of John Paul II, which plays a significant role in theological education in Poland. The city is also a political center of Polish Catholicism, featuring a spectrum of Catholicism from conservative to liberal circles of Catholic intelligentsia. Kraków’s religious landscape is characterized by a dense network of Catholic institutions, including numerous parishes, pilgrimage destinations, educational establishments, monastic communities, and publishing houses, collectively shaping the city’s religious dynamics. Notable shrines, some of international stature like the Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Łagiewniki, are central to Polish Catholic spirituality.

Kraków’s status as an international tourist destination adds another layer to the city’s religious landscape. Religious tourism and pilgrimages, particularly to sites associated with Pope John Paul II and the devotion to the Divine Mercy, position Kraków within global religious mobility networks. The interplay between local and global dimensions of religion in Kraków reflects broader trends in contemporary urban religiosity, where cities become nodes in transnational religious landscapes.

The presence of numerous outsourcing companies and a thriving academic sector positions Kraków as a significant urban center within international educational and economic migration networks. This has gradually increased the visibility of religions and spiritualities associated with migrants and emerging ethnic/national diasporas.

Beyond the pervasive Roman Catholic context, Kraków holds a rich Jewish heritage. The Kazimierz district, historically a Jewish part of the city, is home to several synagogues and religious institutions, manifesting the enduring influence of the Jewish community on Kraków’s cultural landscape. Jewish heritage is intricately woven into the city’s contemporary socio-cultural fabric, ambiguously manifested in the rivalry between football fans of Wisła Kraków and Cracovia, which employs religious symbols extending beyond the realms of sport and religion.

The visibility of Neo-Pagan groups and various Protestant denominations is also growing. The influx of new residents has increased the visibility of Orthodox Christianity, Greek Catholicism, Hinduism, and Islam.

In Kraków, the use of religious symbols in street art and the incorporation of religion into social protests and civic demands exemplify the creativity of the religious field and its recontextualization in secular and public discourses. The city’s public spaces serve as a backdrop for murals, stickers, and graffiti that reinterpret religious motifs, integrating them into social movements, and negotiating significant sociocultural issues. Kraków exemplifies a city where religion significantly shapes urban ecologies.

Lublin, located in the eastern part of Poland, acts as a significant cultural and political hub in the region. Its strategic location has allowed it to play a pivotal role in the Polish- Lithuanian Commonwealth, reflecting a religious and cultural pluralism through the established presence of Catholic, Orthodox and Jewish communities.

The city’s history has been marked by the partitions of Poland and events such as the Nazi-led Operation Reinhardt and the Holocaust. The proximity of the Majdanek concentration camp highlights the tragic aspects of the city’s past. The postwar period saw Lublin transform into a focal point of resistance and civil liberty, particularly through the “Lublin July 1980” strikes, contributing to the “Solidarity” movement. This era also initiated urban and demographic changes, notably in the reconstruction of areas that constituted the Jewish district before the war, aligning with the urban narrative of void and reconstruction.

In the contemporary religious landscape, Lublin’s proximity to Ukraine and Belarus becomes particularly significant amidst the ongoing war in Ukraine, positioning the city as a critical transit point for war migrants, including Orthodox and Greek Catholic adherents.

The presence of the Catholic University of Lublin (KUL), one of Poland’s leading theological and academic institutions, underscores the city’s enduring role in shaping Roman Catholic intellectual and spiritual discourse. Lublin has emerged as a university town and, in recent years, has become an important educational center for international students from Eastern Europe and Africa (mainly Zimbabwe, Nigeria, and Rwanda). The presence of new migrants has a noticeable impact on the religious reconfiguration of Lublin.

Lublin’s tourist appeal plays an important role in the city’s current economic and cultural development. As one of the largest cities in eastern Poland, Lublin attracts visitors from all over the region and serves as a key academic and cultural hub.

Internationally, Lublin is a destination for a significant number of visitors from Israel, emphasizing the importance of the city’s Jewish heritage as an essential element of its urban identity.

Moreover, the diversity of urban formations, encompassing rural areas and large residential complexes, directly influences the spatial distribution and characteristics of religious icons documented within the city’s administrative boundaries. The correlation between Lublin’s geographical character and the spatial data in the RUM Archive highlights the relationship between urban planning, historical legacy, and the contemporary dynamics of religion in the city.

Lublin’s municipal policies aim to reinforce the city’s image of tolerance, multiculturalism, pluralism, and diversity, encapsulated in the slogan “City of Inspiration”, represented by the so-called “Tzadik's Eye.” This branding campaign seeks to promote Lublin as a modern, inclusive urban center, celebrating its historical legacy of diversity and cultural richness. However, Lublin’s urban space also reveals influences of nationalist, ultra-Catholic (often centered around the anti-LGBTQ+ movement), and conservative viewpoints.