Religion and union formation in Italy: Catholic precepts, social pressure, and tradition

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Daniele Vignoli

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Background: Italy is customarily viewed as a traditional Catholic country. At the same time, couples are increasingly living together without marrying. Establishing links between religion and family formation is a complex issue and little is known about specific mechanisms through which religion shapes family change in the country. Objective: We aim to shed light on which aspects of religion are important in decisions about family formation. Methods: We analyze data from eight focus group interviews conducted in Florence. In the transcripts we identify any references to religion and systematically compare categories to investigate how religiosity intertwines with relationship choices. We apply bottom-up coding procedures to identify meaning and concepts within three theoretically relevant areas: Catholic precepts, social pressure, and tradition. Results: Despite the predominance of religion in the studied setting, Italians behave without according much importance to Catholic precepts and dogmas. Religion seems to influence people's family behaviors through social pressures to marry generated by the family of origin and the judgment of 'others'. Tradition also plays an important role. Conclusions: The widely prevailing pressure of parents and peers and the hedonistic aspects of the traditional Church wedding seem to be more important in partnership formation than Catholic prescripts. Thus, we posit that the direct effect of religion on individual choices is overestimated when interpreting the Italian family. In addition, we note the divergence that exists between the lack of state laws concerning consensual unions and the acceptance of cohabitation on an individual basis.

RELIGION AND HUMANITIES: PRACTICING RELIGION WHILE CELEBRATING DIFFERENCES

OpenAIRE

Nur Syam

2007-01-01

Religion is a human phenomenon which often determines human behaviour. Apart from the divinity, religion is related to man and humanity. But man often differentiate between themselves on religious grounds and come into conflict in the name of religion although the root cause of such conflicts is social misunderstanding, crime or politics. This article examines the religious conflicts in Indonesia during the last two decades as had erupted in Poso, Ambon and Sambas and argues how religion had ...

"You Must Know Where You Come From": South African Youths' Perceptions of Religion in Time of Social Change

Science.gov (United States)

Brittian, Aerika S.; Lewin, Nina; Norris, Shane A.

2013-01-01

This study examined South African youths' perceptions of religion during a period of social and economic transition. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 Black South African youth (age 18) living in the Johannesburg-Soweto metropolitan area. Data were analyzed in a manner consistent with grounded theory methodology and structural coding.…

The ‘Friendship Dynamics of Religion,’ or the ‘Religious Dynamics of Friendship’? A Social Network Analysis of Adolescents Who Attend Small Schools*

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Cheadle, Jacob E.; Schwadel, Philip

2012-01-01

Longitudinal social network data on adolescents in seven schools are analyzed to reach a new understanding about how the personal and interpersonal social dimensions of adolescent religion intertwine together in small school settings. We primarily address two issues relevant to the sociology of religion and sociology in general: (1) social selection as a source of religious homophily and (2) friend socialization of religion. Analysis results are consistent with Collins’ interaction ritual chain theory, which stresses the social dimensions of religion, since network-religion autocorrelations are relatively substantial in magnitude and both selection and socialization mechanisms play key roles in generating them. Results suggest that socialization plays a stronger role than social selection in four of six religious outcomes, and that more religious youth are more cliquish. Implications for our understanding of the social context of religion, religious homophily, and the ways we model religious influence, as well as limitations and considerations for future research, are discussed. PMID:23017927

Religiosity as identity: toward an understanding of religion from a social identity perspective.

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Ysseldyk, Renate; Matheson, Kimberly; Anisman, Hymie

2010-02-01

As a social identity anchored in a system of guiding beliefs and symbols, religion ought to serve a uniquely powerful function in shaping psychological and social processes. Religious identification offers a distinctive "sacred" worldview and "eternal" group membership, unmatched by identification with other social groups. Thus, religiosity might be explained, at least partially, by the marked cognitive and emotional value that religious group membership provides. The uniqueness of a positive social group, grounded in a belief system that offers epistemological and ontological certainty, lends religious identity a twofold advantage for the promotion of well-being. However, that uniqueness may have equally negative impacts when religious identity itself is threatened through intergroup conflict. Such consequences are illustrated by an examination of identities ranging from religious fundamentalism to atheism. Consideration of religion's dual function as a social identity and a belief system may facilitate greater understanding of the variability in its importance across individuals and groups.

"You Must Know Where You Come From": South African Youths' Perceptions of Religion in Time of Social Change.

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Brittian, Aerika S; Lewin, Nina; Norris, Shane A

2013-11-01

This study examined South African youths' perceptions of religion during a period of social and economic transition. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 Black South African youth (age 18) living in the Johannesburg-Soweto metropolitan area. Data were analyzed in a manner consistent with grounded theory methodology and structural coding. Beliefs about the function of religion were captured by the following themes: provides support, connection to the past, moral compass, promotes healthy development, and intersections between African traditional practices and Christian beliefs. Themes are discussed and directions for future research are presented. In addition, applications of the current research and implications for promoting youths' resilience are offered.

A Case Study of Social and Media Influence on Religion

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Emery, Miranda Dawn

2011-01-01

This paper seeks to understand different religions and cultures by comparing and contrasting the similarities, differences, and opinions found within two religious/cultural groups. This case study uses the Social Learning Theory of communication to illustrate how perceptions of others are formed in a community with a growing Muslim population. It…

Appropriating religion: understanding religion as an object of science

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Donald Wiebe

1999-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, the author focuses on the study of religion as a scientific project, for it is the scientific interest in religion which has constituted the grounds for admitting the study of religion into the curriculum of the modern Western university. Despite that academic legitimation, however, the study of religion in the setting of the modern research university is not held in high esteem relative to the other sciences. It if the scientific study of religion is to be legitimately ensconced in the modern research university, the notion of religion will have to be wholly appropriated by science; only then will we be able to establish a conceptual foundation from which to make valid knowledge claims about religion on a level commensurate with the pronouncements of the natural and social sciences. Indeed, to go one step further, given the hold on the concept of religion by those committed to the humanistic study of religion, we might need to talk here not of the appropriation but of expropriation of religion by science—that is, of wresting ownership of the concept from the humanists by using it solely as a taxonomic device to differentiate and explain a peculiar range of human behaviour demonstrated in religious practices.

Religion, civil society and conflict: What is it that religion does for and to society?

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Jaco Beyers

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Human consciousness instinctively tries to make sense of reality. Different human interpretations of reality lead to a world consisting of multiple realities. Conflict occurs when differing realities (worldviews encounter one another. Worldviews are socially created and determine human behaviour and, as such, most often find expression in religion. The discussion of conflict and the role of religion in civil society take place within the discourse of the sociology of religion. Religion is socially determined. Peter Berger’s insight into the sociology of religion therefore plays an important role in establishing the relationship between religion and civil society as one that takes on different forms. Thus, a clear definition of both civil society and religion was needed to understand the nature of these relationships. The role of religion in civil society with regard to the presence of conflict in society was further investigated in this article. The conditions under which conflict in society occurs were discussed, as were the conditions for tolerance in society, for religion ultimately becomes the provider of moral discernment when conflict occurs in civil society.

The Role of Agent and Social Context in Judgments of Freedom of Speech and Religion.

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Helwig, Charles C

1997-06-01

This study examined children's, adolescents', and college students' judgments of the rights of child and adult agents to freedom of speech and religion in 3 social contexts: the general level of society, the school, and the family. Two hundred forty participants, evenly divided into 5 grade levels (mean ages 6,6, 8,5,10,6,12,4, and 22,7) made judgments of the legitimacy of authority prohibition, rule evaluation, generalizability, and rule violation for all freedom/social context/agent combinations. Concepts of freedom of speech and religion were found to emerge in the early elementary school years, and endorsements of freedoms were increasingly affected by social context and agent with age. College students were less likely than any other age group to affirm children's freedom of religion in the family context. Considerations of the mental competence and maturity of agents and the potential for harm to ensue from acting on freedoms played an important part in the decisions of older, but not younger, participants.

Religion, Nonreligion, and Deviance: Comparing Faith's and Family's Relative Strength in Promoting Social Conformity.

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DeCamp, Whitney; Smith, Jesse M

2018-04-25

The view that religion, as a source of moral guidance and social support, can function to prevent or protect individuals, especially children and adolescents, from a range of deviant and delinquent behaviors is largely (but not completely) born out in the literature. In nations with strong religious identities such as the USA, there is a normative expectation that adolescents who identify with religion are less likely to engage in deviant behavior than those who claim no religion. The present study explores this issue using data from over 10,000 American middle school and high school youth to examine the relationship between religion, nonreligion, and various forms of deviance. Results indicate that youth who identify with a religious (rather than nonreligious) label are not less likely to be involved in deviant acts after controlling for protective factors. The effects from some of these protective factors are significant and stronger than the effects from religion.

“You Must Know Where You Come From”: South African Youths' Perceptions of Religion in Time of Social Change

Science.gov (United States)

Brittian, Aerika S.; Lewin, Nina; Norris, Shane A.

2014-01-01

This study examined South African youths' perceptions of religion during a period of social and economic transition. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 Black South African youth (age 18) living in the Johannesburg-Soweto metropolitan area. Data were analyzed in a manner consistent with grounded theory methodology and structural coding. Beliefs about the function of religion were captured by the following themes: provides support, connection to the past, moral compass, promotes healthy development, and intersections between African traditional practices and Christian beliefs. Themes are discussed and directions for future research are presented. In addition, applications of the current research and implications for promoting youths' resilience are offered. PMID:24932064

The young adult’s perception of religion and formal structures: A postmodern perspective

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Herna Hall

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The postmodern era has an impact on different dimensions of the contemporary young adult’s social functioning which incorporates perceptions regarding religion and formal structures. This contemporary young adult refers to an individual between the ages of 18 and 25 years. Therefore the goal of this article was to report on research results regarding the perceptions of young adults on religion and formal structures. Within a mixed methods research approach, the exploratory mixed methods research design was utilised. Qualitative data was collected from 47 young adults by means of focus group interviewing. Quantitative data was collected from 1019 respondents utilising a questionnaire. Both groups were selected through the utilisation of purposive sampling. Qualitative data were analysed through thematic analysis, whilst a range of descriptive and inferential statistical procedures was used to analyse quantitative data. The findings indicated that the postmodern young adult displays a tendency to value conventional religious norms and practices, but the element of choice is of importance, as young adults seem to choose the aspects of religion that suit them. An increased interest in and a need for spirituality or a form of transcendence was found. Guidance by formal structures was favoured, but did not necessarily refer to ‘church’ or religious structures. The results illustrated that the contemporary young adult explores and experiments in terms of identity and lifestyle. Views and values seem to be person-specific and based on emotions and experiences with a tendency towards ‘own authority’ and an emphasis on the self. The rise of individualism which characterises the postmodern era has led to the creation of meaning by drawing on personal resources and on own personal moral beliefs and values.

The young adult’s perception of religion and formal structures: A postmodern perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Herna Hall

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The postmodern era has an impact on different dimensions of the contemporary young adult’s social functioning which incorporates perceptions regarding religion and formal structures. This contemporary young adult refers to an individual between the ages of 18 and 25 years. Therefore the goal of this article was to report on research results regarding the perceptions of young adults on religion and formal structures. Within a mixed methods research approach, the exploratory mixed methods research design was utilised. Qualitative data was collected from 47 young adults by means of focus group interviewing. Quantitative data was collected from 1019 respondents utilising a questionnaire. Both groups were selected through the utilisation of purposive sampling. Qualitative data were analysed through thematic analysis, whilst a range of descriptive and inferential statistical procedures was used to analyse quantitative data. The findings indicated that the postmodern young adult displays a tendency to value conventional religious norms and practices, but the element of choice is of importance, as young adults seem to choose the aspects of religion that suit them. An increased interest in and a need for spirituality or a form of transcendence was found. Guidance by formal structures was favoured, but did not necessarily refer to ‘church’ or religious structures. The results illustrated that the contemporary young adult explores and experiments in terms of identity and lifestyle. Views and values seem to be person-specific and based on emotions and experiences with a tendency towards ‘own authority’ and an emphasis on the self. The rise of individualism which characterises the postmodern era has led to the creation of meaning by drawing on personal resources and on own personal moral beliefs and values.

Das unsichtbare neue Zeitalter : "New Age", privatisierte Religion und kultisches Milieu

OpenAIRE

Knoblauch, Hubert

1989-01-01

As modernity is usually called disenchanted, new religious movements, New Age and occultism are taken to mark a u-turn in the social development of religion. They are regarded as indicators of a "postmodern" religion. It is suggested that these movements follow the pattern of the invisible religion observed by Thomas Luckmann in the 1960s. They are syncretistic and individualistic as an "esoteric culture"; their structure, the "cultic milieu", can be characterized by a low degree of...

Media, Religion and Public Space

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Gheorghe FALCĂ

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Relations between religion and politics are complex and paradoxical. Both strive to achieve and maintain power. Both politics and religion involve control over social relations and emphasiye social integration (politics in its concern for order in society, and religion in its concern for observance of order and obligations within the congregation. But they differ in respect of specific goals, the values ​​that ascribe to power and differences in their conceptions of the nature and source of power. In the modern world, power, embodied in political institutions, is secular; in the past, its association with religion created a transcendental relationship, causing the possession of power to be of different quality, to come from another world. But, while politics is focused on interpersonal relationships, religion is more oriented towards relations between humans and gods or other spiritual forces.

Understanding the anatomy of religion as basis for religion in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article sprung from previous structural analyses of religion as onticity, but went somewhat further by placing more emphasis on encounters with the numinous as the core of religion, as well as on the dynamic character of religion. In doing so, this analysis methodologically transcended the limitations of a structuralist ...

Kosovar Society through Secularism and Religion

OpenAIRE

MSc. Dritero Arifi; Dr.Sc. Ylber Sela

2013-01-01

This paper will analyze the importance and the effects of religion, in Kosovar society. A great part of the paper, will analyze the social and the political relations in Post-War Kosovo. Initially it will elaborate religion and secularism, especially in theoreticall aspect, what impact have these definitions in modern societies. In order to explain what the importance of the religion in Kosovo is, we will focus on analyzing ethnical, social and political relations within Kosovo society. A...

Religion, civil society and conflict: What is it that religion does for and to society?

OpenAIRE

Jaco Beyers

2011-01-01

Human consciousness instinctively tries to make sense of reality. Different human interpretations of reality lead to a world consisting of multiple realities. Conflict occurs when differing realities (worldviews) encounter one another. Worldviews are socially created and determine human behaviour and, as such, most often find expression in religion. The discussion of conflict and the role of religion in civil society take place within the discourse of the sociology of religion. Religion is so...

The religion paradox: if religion makes people happy, why are so many dropping out?

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Diener, Ed; Tay, Louis; Myers, David G

2011-12-01

As we estimate here, 68% of human beings--4.6 billion people--would say that religion is important in their daily lives. Past studies have found that the religious, on average, have higher subjective well-being (SWB). Yet, people are rapidly leaving organized religion in economically developed nations where religious freedom is high. Why would people leave religion if it enhances their happiness? After controlling for circumstances in both the United States and world samples, we found that religiosity is associated with slightly higher SWB, and similarly so across four major world religions. The associations of religiosity and SWB were mediated by social support, feeling respected, and purpose or meaning in life. However, there was an interaction underlying the general trend such that the association of religion and well-being is conditional on societal circumstances. Nations and states with more difficult life conditions (e.g., widespread hunger and low life expectancy) were much more likely to be highly religious. In these nations, religiosity was associated with greater social support, respect, purpose or meaning, and all three types of SWB. In societies with more favorable circumstances, religiosity is less prevalent and religious and nonreligious individuals experience similar levels of SWB. There was also a person-culture fit effect such that religious people had higher SWB in religious nations but not in nonreligious nations. Thus, it appears that the benefits of religion for social relationships and SWB depend on the characteristics of the society.

Kosovar Society through Secularism and Religion

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MSc. Dritero Arifi

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This paper will analyze the importance and the effects of religion, in Kosovar society. A great part of the paper, will analyze the social and the political relations in Post-War Kosovo. Initially it will elaborate religion and secularism, especially in theoreticall aspect, what impact have these definitions in modern societies. In order to explain what the importance of the religion in Kosovo is, we will focus on analyzing ethnical, social and political relations within Kosovo society. A considerable component of the paper is also, the elaboration of secularism in Kosovo conditions. This implies that the formulation of the problem and the objective of this research, are the substance of the paper’s theme, which is, religion in Kosovo; its definition and the outlook of the Kosovar society on religion. Is Kosovo post-war society more or less religious? That means the elements of Religions and Secularism will be part of the analysis of developments in post-war Kosovo.

Conceptualising spirituality and religion for healthcare.

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Pesut, Barbara; Fowler, Marsha; Taylor, Elizabeth J; Reimer-Kirkham, Sheryl; Sawatzky, Richard

2008-11-01

To discuss some of the challenges of conceptualising spirituality and religion for healthcare practice. With the growing interest in spirituality in healthcare, has come the inevitable task of trying to conceptualise spirituality, a daunting task given the amorphous nature of spirituality, the changing understandings of spirituality among individuals and the diverse globalised society within which this task is taking place. Spirituality's relationship to religion is a particularly challenging point of debate. Critical review. Three social and historical conditions - located in the context of Western thought - have contributed to current conceptualisations of spirituality and religion: the diminishment of the social authority of religion as a result of the Enlightenment focus on reason, the rise of a postmodern spirituality emphasising spiritual experience and current tensions over the ideological and political roles of religion in society. The trend to minimise the social influence of religion is a particular Western bias that seems to ignore the global megatrend of the resurgence of religion. Current conceptualisations are critiqued on the following grounds: that they tend to be ungrounded from a rich history of theological and philosophical thought, that a particular form of elitist spirituality is emerging and that the individualistic emphasis in recent conceptualisations of spirituality diminishes the potential for societal critique and transformation while opening the door for economic and political self interest. Constructing adequate conceptualisations of spirituality and religion for clinical practice entails grounding them in the wealth of centuries of philosophical and theological thinking, ensuring that they represent the diverse society that nursing serves and anchoring them within a moral view of practice.

Religion and Social Hidden Curriculum--The Educative Influences of Christianity and Islam in Women

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Llorent-Bedmar, Vincente; Llorent, Vicente J.

2014-01-01

In this paper we highlight the similarities and differences between Christianity and Islam, on the social functions of women based on the sacred texts of both, references to a hidden social curriculum in the history. Faced with the growing religious pluralism in contemporary societies, we believe that the debate on how the two main religions in…

Health as the religion of our time

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stenbak Larsen, Christian

This paper sees health as religion through the lens of social theory, starting with classical sociology. The common point being that religion is about the social bond ('relgio' in Latin), to be a society we keep something sacred. Since classical sociology the breaking down of religion has continued...... uses the vocabulary of discourse analysis and calls health a hegemon. Pointing out that it is not a consensus but a sedimentation that prevent us from being against health. But this cannot only be seen as a limitation of personal freedom, but also - through the lens of social theory - as a historical...

Religion, civil society and conflict: What is it that religion does for ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2011-08-01

Aug 1, 2011 ... Religion is something essentially social (Dürkheim, cited in Robertson 1969:53). The one cannot ... city-states never reached the level of autonomy that Aristotle ..... social assistance, through which society takes responsibility.

Religion in Education in South Africa: Was Social Justice Served?

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van der Walt, Johannes L.

2011-01-01

The promulgation of South African policy regarding the place of religion in public education was delayed until 2003, after a lively debate. The National Policy on Religion in Education effectively banned confessional, sectarian religion from public schools, but allowed for the teaching of Religion Studies as an academic subject and for religious…

Religion and the secularisation of health care.

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Paley, John

2009-07-01

To assess the claim that conceptualisations of religion and spirituality should be grounded in theology, and acknowledge the global resurgence of religion. Although there is widespread agreement in the nursing literature that 'spirituality' is a broader concept than 'religion,' and should be understood generically, this approximate consensus has occasionally been challenged. A recent paper by Barbara Pesut and colleagues argues that the generic view not only empties spirituality of powerful religious symbols and narratives, but underestimates the continuing social influence of religion, and its resurgence on a global scale. Accordingly, these authors suggest three principles for conceptualising spirituality and religion in health care, one of which is that conceptualisations should be grounded in philosophical and theological thinking, and should not ignore the global resurgence of religion. Critical review. The Pesut principle privileges theology, disregarding other disciplines which theorize religion. Arguably, it privileges specifically Christian theology, the history of which suggests a politics of orthodoxy and an epistemology of authority and obedience. The global resurgence of religion is not, in fact, global, as the industrialised countries have experienced a marked shift towards secular-rational values; and the postindustrial phase of development is associated with self-expression values, which represent a challenge not merely to religious institutions (arguably an affirmation of 'spirituality') but to traditional elites and structures of all kinds. Finally, religion 'resurgent' is not an attractive model for health care, since many of its most obvious manifestations are incompatible with the ideology of health professionals. In the secular societies of Europe, if not North America, there should be no expectation that nurses provide spiritual care. It is a requirement of the great separation between civil order and religion that the health services, as a

Sociology of religion and the occult revival

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Lennart Ejerfeldt

1975-01-01

Full Text Available The "new" that makes the cults of the occult revival to "new religions" of the Western world, is their recently increased social significance. Historically most of modern occultism is anything but new. From the research and theorizing about the occult revival we have picked up some main themes. The first is the social diffusion of the new occultism. In this field, we find some studies of superstition, especially astrology. These illuminate the differences in social connotation between the consumers of superstition and the followers of institutional religion. Secondly the study of the occult revival has made valuable contributions to the conceptualizing of "cult" and the cultic phenomenon. Thirdly, we will look upon the connection between the occult revival and the counter-culture. The problem of the rise of cults as a symptom of socio-cultural change will be briefly discussed with reference to Bell's thesis of "the disjuntion of culture and social structure". Lastly, we proffer some reflections on the occult revival and the new spiritual trends in the churches, which so sharply contrast with the theology and churchmanship of the sixties.

Religion and Suicide Risk: A Systematic Review.

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Lawrence, Ryan E; Oquendo, Maria A; Stanley, Barbara

2016-01-01

Although religion is reported to be protective against suicide, the empirical evidence is inconsistent. Research is complicated by the fact that there are many dimensions to religion (affiliation, participation, doctrine) and suicide (ideation, attempt, completion). We systematically reviewed the literature on religion and suicide over the last 10 years (89 articles) with a goal of identifying what specific dimensions of religion are associated with specific aspects of suicide. We found that religious affiliation does not necessarily protect against suicidal ideation, but does protect against suicide attempts. Whether religious affiliation protects against suicide attempts may depend on the culture-specific implications of affiliating with a particular religion, since minority religious groups can feel socially isolated. After adjusting for social support measures, religious service attendance is not especially protective against suicidal ideation, but does protect against suicide attempts, and possibly protects against suicide. Future qualitative studies might further clarify these associations.

What is religion? an African understanding

OpenAIRE

Beyers, Jaco

2010-01-01

Western thought has influenced the way that religion is understood. Western philosophy supported the separation between the sacred and the profane. Modernism, focusing on human rationality, reduced religion to a set of correctly formulated dogmas and doctrines. Western thought, dominated by Christianity, created a hierarchical structure of world religions through a theology of religions. Can an African understanding of religion make a contribution to the understanding of what religion is? Suc...

Perceived ethnic discrimination and depressive symptoms: the buffering effects of ethnic identity, religion and ethnic social network.

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Ikram, Umar Z; Snijder, Marieke B; de Wit, Matty A S; Schene, Aart H; Stronks, Karien; Kunst, Anton E

2016-05-01

Perceived ethnic discrimination (PED) is positively associated with depressive symptoms in ethnic minority groups in Western countries. Psychosocial factors may buffer against the health impact of PED, but evidence is lacking from Europe. We assessed whether ethnic identity, religion, and ethnic social network act as buffers in different ethnic minority groups in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Baseline data were used from the HEalthy Living In a Urban Setting study collected from January 2011 to June 2014. The random sample included 2501 South-Asian Surinamese, 2292 African Surinamese, 1877 Ghanaians, 2626 Turks, and 2484 Moroccans aged 18-70 years. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. PED was measured with the Everyday Discrimination Scale. Ethnic identity was assessed using the Psychological Acculturation Scale. Practicing religion was determined. Ethnic social network was assessed with the number of same-ethnic friends and amount of leisure time spent with same-ethnic people. PED was positively associated with depressive symptoms in all groups. The association was weaker among (a) those with strong ethnic identity in African Surinamese and Ghanaians, (b) those practicing religion among African Surinamese and Moroccans, (c) those with many same-ethnic friends in South-Asian Surinamese, Ghanaians, and Turks, and (d) those who spend leisure time with same-ethnic people among African Surinamese and Turks. Ethnic identity, religion, and ethnic social network weakened the association between PED and depressive symptoms, but the effects differed by ethnic minority group. These findings suggest that ethnic minority groups employ different resources to cope with PED.

Religion in human evolution: on some generative and selective mechanisms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Jeppe Sinding

2012-01-01

On the use of moral psychology in reconstructing the evolutionary role of religion in human social development......On the use of moral psychology in reconstructing the evolutionary role of religion in human social development...

Predicting College Students' Intergroup Friendships across Race/Ethnicity, Religion, Sexual Orientation, and Social Class

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Goldstein, Susan B.

2013-01-01

This study seeks to expand the literature on predicting friendship diversity beyond race/ethnicity to include religion, social class, and sexual orientation. Survey packets elicited information regarding up to four close friendships developed during college. Additional measures assessed pre-college friendship diversity, participation in college…

Religion as Bridging or Bonding Social Capital: Race, Religion, and Cross-Racial Interaction for College Students

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Park, Julie J.; Bowman, Nicholas A.

2015-01-01

Religion is the most segregated arena of American life, but its effect on collegiate diversity outcomes has been overlooked, despite the significance of both race and religion in many students' lives. This study examines whether religious observance, religious worldview identification, and participation in a religious student organization are…

Digital Religion, Social Media and Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Contributions on religion and computer-mediated communication cohere around the question: how will core religious understandings of identity, community and authority shape and be (re)shaped by the communicative possibilities of Web 2.0?...

Religion as a solvent: a lecture

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Antônio Flávio Pierucci

Full Text Available Contrary to Durkheim, for whom the role of religion is to reconnect the individual with the society to which he belongs, this essay argues that nowadays religion's social power lies in its capacity to dissolve old religious bonds and lineages. Taking Max Weber's work as its base, the text maintains that the universal religion of individual salvation, the religious form that tends to predominate above all others, works as a device that disconnects people from their mother-culture.

Sacred content, secular context: a generative theory of religion and spirituality for social work.

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Liechty, Daniel

2013-01-01

Although a secular profession, social work practitioners and educators do explore human spirituality, and this is embraced now by the profession as integral to a holistic view of the human being. Social workers in hospice and end-of-life care are on the front line of this shift. Still needed is for the profession to coalesce around a generative theory of religion to inform the discipline. The author proposes that a synthesis of ideas, particularly from anthropologists Ernest Becker and Fredrick Streng, provides a generative theory of religion that advances meaningful interface between diverse religious and spiritual ideations of clients and clinicians alike. This theory of generative death anxiety locates the basic religious urge as response to the human awareness of the ontological condition of mortality, which then becomes expressed existentially in all of its diverse particularities. This approach avoids being overly reductionist, yet does provide categories for clear analysis. It cultivates critical respect for human religiosity and fosters productive and creative incorporation of human spirituality into the practical and pragmatic clinical perspective.

Social support and religion: mental health service use and treatment of schizophrenia.

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Smolak, A; Gearing, R E; Alonzo, D; Baldwin, S; Harmon, S; McHugh, K

2013-08-01

The perceptions and religious beliefs held by family members, mental health and health care professionals, and the community may affect the treatment of individuals with schizophrenia. To better identify and understand the influence of families, professionals and community members on individual's treatment for schizophrenia, this review paper examines: (1) the religious perceptions of families, professionals, and the public towards schizophrenia; (2) religious perceptions of the etiology of schizophrenia; (3) how others perceive religion as a coping mechanism; and (4) how religion influences treatment engagement and help-seeking behaviors. MEDLINE and PsycInfo databases were systematically searched from 1980 to 2010 using the terms schizophrenia, schizoaffective, schizophreniform, psychotic disorder not otherwise specified and religion, religiosity, spirituality, and faith. Forty-three (n = 43) original research studies met the inclusion criteria. This study found that religious beliefs influence the treatment of schizophrenia in the following ways: Religious themes were positively associated with coping, treatment engagement and help-seeking behavior. Evidence of religious underpinnings was found in perceptions of etiology. The findings also indicate that there is often both a preference among family members and caregivers to utilize religious-based professionals and caution toward mental health professionals. Researchers and professionals may find avenues for improving treatment through examining the interaction of religious and schizophrenia at the social support level.

[Civic religion, civil religion, secular religion. a historiographical investigation].

Science.gov (United States)

Boucheron, Patrick

2013-01-01

Because of its conceptual plasiticity, the term civic religion is now widely used by historians, particularly historians of the Middle Ages. Yet, as this article suggests, historians would do well to interrogate the relationships (which can be hidden) that this term bears to similar concepts such as Greek Roman civic religion, Enlightenment civil religion or even the secular religion that emerged in the work of 20(th) century thinkers.

Spirituality and religion among HIV-infected individuals.

Science.gov (United States)

Szaflarski, Magdalena

2013-12-01

Spirituality and religion are important to many people living with HIV (PLWH). Recent research has focused on special populations (ethnic-minorities, women, and youth), spirituality/religion measurement, mediating/moderating mechanisms, and individual and community-level interventions. Spirituality/religion in PLWH has been refined as a multidimensional phenomenon, which improves health/quality of life directly and through mediating factors (healthy behaviors, optimism, social support). Spirituality/religion helps people to cope with stressors, especially stigma/discrimination. Spiritual interventions utilizing the power of prayer and meditation and addressing spiritual struggle are under way. Faith-based community interventions have focused on stigma and could improve individual outcomes through access to spiritual/social support and care/treatment for PLWA. Community engagement is necessary to design/implement effective and sustainable programs. Future efforts should focus on vulnerable populations; utilize state-of-the-art methods (randomized clinical trials, community-based participatory research); and, address population-specific interventions at individual and community levels. Clinical and policy implications across geographic settings also need attention.

Unbelievable?! Theistic/Epistemological Viewpoint Affects Religion-Health Relationship.

Science.gov (United States)

Speed, David

2017-02-01

Research suggests that Religion/Spirituality promotes a variety of positive health outcomes. However, despite reporting lower levels of Religion/Spirituality, non-believers report comparable levels of health to believers. The current study tested the hypothesis that Religion/Spirituality does not have a uniform effect on health for all persons, and tested theological/epistemological categories as moderators. Using the 2012 and 2014 General Social Survey (N = 2670), the relationship between Religion/Spirituality and happiness and self-rated health was investigated. Results indicated that Gnostic Theists experienced Religion/Spirituality more positively than their peers did; Agnostic Theists experienced Religion/Spirituality less positively than their peers did; and Negative Atheists experienced Religion/Spirituality less positively than their peers did. These findings suggested that Religion/Spirituality is not associated with salutary effects for all persons, and that whether a person believes in god(s) and how confident he/she was in god(s)' existence, influenced his/her experience with Religion/Spirituality.

DSM-III-R and religion.

Science.gov (United States)

Post, S G

1992-07-01

The interpretation of religion in DSM-III-R contains considerable negative bias and contributes to unfair stereotypes of religious persons. Particularly new religious movements and religious conversion are unfairly interpreted under the DSM-III-R heading, 'Dissociative Disorder Not Otherwise Specified'. It is suggested that a more balanced and respectful interpretation of religion is needed in DSM-III-R, since psychiatry through its official nomenclature should not contribute to social intolerance of religious nonconformity.

The Intersectionality of Religion and Social Welfare: Historical Development of Richmond’s Nonprofit Health and Human Services

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Ellen Netting

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Studying the intersectionality of religion and social welfare in Richmond, Virginia requires going back to the beginning of the Virginia colony. In the crucible of the colony, the religious and social welfare functions of a parish community were one and the same. However, after the Revolutionary War it was just a matter of time before the entire system was disassembled. The process of disentanglement of church and state created an identity crisis in Virginia. In the late 1700s, the emergence of charitable efforts began with leading men of Richmond who tried to address the temporary needs of travelers, followed by groups of women who discovered new roles they could play through charitable works. The new “system” became a potpourri of societies, congregations, associations, and county units attempting to provide for the social welfare of the populous. The intersectionality of religion and social welfare continued as a diverse landscape of small and large organizations and congregations performing the social welfare functions in Richmond and throughout the Commonwealth emerged. Today, to attempt to separate the church from the state in this conglomerate of agencies is neither possible nor desirable. However, understanding its’ historical complexity is essential if one is to engage in contemporary practice within Richmond’s health and human service system.

Religion and Substance Use among Youths of Mexican Heritage: A Social Capital Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Hodge, David R.; Marsiglia, Flavio F.; Nieri, Tanya

2011-01-01

Despite elevated levels of substance use among many Latino youths, there has been little research on protective factors against such use. In keeping with federal commitments to address health disparities, this prospective study examined the protective influence of religion on substance use among a school-based sample (N = 804) of youths of Mexican heritage in the American Southwest. Drawing from the social capital literature, the authors posited that both integration into religious networks and trust in religious values at time 1 (Tl) would predict less likelihood of using substances at time 2 (T2) but that exposure to religious norms at Tl would not predict subsequent substance use at T2. The hypotheses regarding religious networks and religious norms were largely confirmed, whereas little support emerged for the hypothesis regarding religious values. The results are discussed in light of the various pathways through which religion may exhibit a protective influence. PMID:22140302

La religione una risorsa formativa?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlo Nanni

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The text aims to show how religion can contribute to the achievement of the human person. Religion, connected to the social and cultural framework, joins the individual world in its complexity. Is godlinesses a possible teaching resource? Yes, when read according to a pedagogical perspective, which support human advancement, historical and cultural being. The dialogue, good practice for any learning, it poses as a means to fight the life fragmentation in the discovery of common traces to all humanity.

Teaching Religion and Material Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Carp, Richard M.

2007-01-01

Because religions discipline and interpret bodies; create and define sacred spaces; generate, adore and study images in all media; regulate the intake of food; structure temporal experience; and in general interpenetrate and are permeated by the cultural landscapes in which they exist, religious studies must engage material religion and religious…

Sociology of religion in the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Groot, Kees; Sengers, Erik; Blasi, Anthony J.; Giordan, Giuseppe

In 1960, the Dutch journal of the Catholic Social-Ecclesial Institute (Kaski) Sociaal Kompas became Social Compass. This shift rounded off a period now considered as the heyday of Dutch sociology of religion. Ironically, in those years, Catholic sociologists in particular contested the legitimacy of

Television: The New State Religion?

Science.gov (United States)

Gerbner, George

1977-01-01

Outlines the special characteristics of television that make it a formula-bound, ritualistic, repetitive, and nonselectively used system; concludes that television's social symbolic functions resemble preindustrial religions more than they do the media that preceded it. (GT)

Religion as a Source of Evil

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jonkers, Peter

2017-01-01

The starting point is that there is a structural, although not necessary link between religion and two important expressions of religious evil, religious intolerance and violence. The origin of this link lies in the radicalism that is inherent in all religions. Although this radicalism often has

Searching for religion and mental health studies required health, social science, and grey literature databases.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Judy M; Cottrell, David J; Mir, Ghazala

2014-07-01

To determine the optimal databases to search for studies of faith-sensitive interventions for treating depression. We examined 23 health, social science, religious, and grey literature databases searched for an evidence synthesis. Databases were prioritized by yield of (1) search results, (2) potentially relevant references identified during screening, (3) included references contained in the synthesis, and (4) included references that were available in the database. We assessed the impact of databases beyond MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PsycINFO by their ability to supply studies identifying new themes and issues. We identified pragmatic workload factors that influence database selection. PsycINFO was the best performing database within all priority lists. ArabPsyNet, CINAHL, Dissertations and Theses, EMBASE, Global Health, Health Management Information Consortium, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Sociological Abstracts were essential for our searches to retrieve the included references. Citation tracking activities and the personal library of one of the research teams made significant contributions of unique, relevant references. Religion studies databases (Am Theo Lib Assoc, FRANCIS) did not provide unique, relevant references. Literature searches for reviews and evidence syntheses of religion and health studies should include social science, grey literature, non-Western databases, personal libraries, and citation tracking activities. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sexual Stratification and Sex-Role Socialization

Science.gov (United States)

VanFossen, Beth Ensiminger

1977-01-01

Data on sex-role values of a sample of college women are examined to ascertain the effect of family structure, social class, and religion on sex-role values, and to support a structural theory of sex-role socialization. (Author)

Does the 'old' media's coverage of religion matter in times of 'digital' religion?

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Teemu Taira

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The study of digital religion and religion in the ‘new’ media, especially in tracing the transformation of communities, ideas, practices and forms of interaction which people tend to classify as religious, has already proved fruitful. What is not well-justified is the assumption that the ‘old’ media does not really matter anymore. This is something to be examined, although the structures and business models of the mainstream media are changing because of the ‘new’, digital media. Furthermore, we need to explore the interactions between ‘old’ and ‘new’ media, what emerges from their convergence, and start theorising about its implications in the context of religion. Some of the things that will be dealt with apply to the media in general. Only some are religion-specific. However, the intention is not to repeat what media scholars have already said about intermediality, media convergence and the relationship between ‘old’ and ‘new’ media. The reflections shared here are rather based on empirical research of religion in the media, especially in the ‘old’ mainstream mass media in Britain and Finland.

First Handbooks on History of Religion and Comparative Religion Abroad

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Barashkov Viktor

2016-01-01

Full Text Available One of the important aspects of institutionalization of the religious studies in 1870– 1910s was the publishing of the fi rst handbooks on history of religion and comparative religion. The aim of the paper is to analyze methods and approaches of religious studies, as they described in these handbooks. The main characteristic of religion for the historians of religion was its universality. The most important methods, according to them, were historical approach, comparative approach, using of the notion «development». It is important, that we deal foremost with the «history of religion» in these handbooks, not with the «history of religions». Primitive religions were usually excluded from these handbooks, because they «have not history». First handbooks on history of religion often were edited in the series of theological handbooks, that’s why Christianity was described in them quite often as «higher» religion. Researches on comparative religion were based upon the history of religion. One of the main principles of comparative religion was that it should not deal with religious values, but only with a comparison of facts. The author concludes that scholars of religion nowadays should not only collect the facts, but also realize projects on the general history (theory of religion.

Predicting civil religion at a cross-cultural level

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Lavrič Miran

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The concept of civil religion has caught major attention among scholars studying the junction of religion and politics (J.-J. Rousseau, E. Durkheim, R. Bellah. The notion focuses on the phenomenon of cultural contents sacralizing and ritualizing the ruling political institutions of a society, extending support to the integration of the political and social system at a cultural level. The notion of civil religion has recently been operationalized crossculturally, but light has not been shed upon its predictors. In this paper authoritarianism is tested as a predictor of civil religion cross-culturally. Four student samples of Bosnian, Serbian, Slovenian and US students were analyzed. Very strong, significant associations between authoritarianism, as operationalized by a modified Lane scale, and civil religion were found in all cases. Moreover, upon introducing femininity, anxiety and gender into the analysis, a strong, dominant and significant impact on the part of authoritarianism was still found when civil religion was observed crossculturally. When the same predictors were applied to explaining general religiosity, authoritarianism fell short of being a significant predictor in most of the environments observed. Such results suggest an especially close link between civil religion and authoritarianism.

Hvorfor, hvorfra (og hvornår) kom religion?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Geertz, Armin W.

2018-01-01

dyr færdiggjort inden for en specifik kultur. Når man ser på de seneste landvindinger inden for neuropsykologien, er der fire kendetegn, som jeg mener, er konstituerende for mennesket. Disse er: en finudviklet social kognition, en kommunikations- og samarbejdsdrift, en bedragerisk hjerne samt en...... overtroisk hjerne med tendens til ualmindelige mentale og/eller emotionelle oplevelser. Disse egenskaber er en nødvendig forudsætning for religiøst adfærd. Når man ser på de arkæologiske vidnesbyrd i jagten på det religiøse menneske, skal man gå betydeligt længere tilbage end Homo sapiens, ja, man skal langt...... tilbage i homininlinjen. De første proto-religiøse træk synes at komme til syne med Homo heidelbergensis (mellem 600.000 og 400.000 år siden). KEYWORDS: religion; evolution; cognitive science of religion; definition of religion; neurobiology of religion; method and theory in the study of religion....

Appropriating religion: understanding religion as an object of science

OpenAIRE

Donald Wiebe

1999-01-01

In this paper, the author focuses on the study of religion as a scientific project, for it is the scientific interest in religion which has constituted the grounds for admitting the study of religion into the curriculum of the modern Western university. Despite that academic legitimation, however, the study of religion in the setting of the modern research university is not held in high esteem relative to the other sciences. It if the scientific study of religion is to be legitimately ensconc...

Religion and the rainbow struggle: does religion factor into attitudes toward homosexuality and same-sex civil unions in Brazil?

Science.gov (United States)

Ogland, Curtis P; Verona, Ana Paula

2014-01-01

The provision of civil liberties to LGBT persons has become part of a global movement in societies across the world. In Brazil, a recent judicial ruling for the first time established the right for homosexual couples to enter into civil unions, despite the presence of widespread disapproval of homosexuality among the population and opposition from prominent religious groups. Picking up on this issue, the following study examines whether religion may factor into the attitudes Brazilians hold toward homosexuality and same-sex civil unions. Using data from the Brazilian Social Research Survey, we find that the most restrictive views toward homosexuality and the strongest opposition to same-sex civil unions are most prevalent among devoted followers of historical Protestant, Pentecostal, and Catholic faith traditions, whereas adherents of Afro-Brazilian and spiritist religions, as well as those with no religious commitment, are inclined to assume a more tolerant moral posture toward such issues. The findings point to religion as a potential influence in future public policy initiatives and social movements involving LGBT issues in Brazil.

Spiritual Medicine in The Multi Perspective of Religion

OpenAIRE

Minhas, Marwa; Akhmad, Syaefudin Ali; Afzal, Nadeem

2017-01-01

Spiritual healing, also known as healing through prayer and meditation, has been widely studied by various scholars from different religions including Islam, Hindu, Buddhism and Christianity. The term spiritual medicine is increasingly popular with increasing mental disorders, degenerative diseases, metabolic, cancer and social illness such as drug abuse. Religions of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity have almost the same tradition in the spiritual aspect to create purity of self and...

Adolescents' and young adults' conceptions of civil liberties: freedom of speech and religion.

Science.gov (United States)

Helwig, C C

1995-02-01

This study examined adolescents' and young adults' conceptions of freedom of speech and religion (civil liberties). 48 adolescents and young adults in 3 grade levels (mean ages 12-8, 16-10, and 19-6) were administered a structured interview containing assessments of civil liberties in general, in straightforward (unconflicted) applications, and in conflict with other social and moral concerns, including law, physical and psychological harm, and equality of opportunity. Freedom of speech and religion were conceptualized as universal rights and applied to social events in unconflicted contexts at all ages. A diverse array of rationales, differentiated according to type of freedom, were used at all ages to ground conceptions of universal freedoms. Judgments of civil liberties in conflicts exhibited several sources of variation, including developmental differences, situational or contextual variation determined by the particular types of issues in conflict, and individual differences. Results are consistent with the proposition that judgments of civil liberties reflect age-related patterns of coordination of delimited social and moral concepts rather than general orientations.

Preservice Teachers and Religion: Serious Gaps in Religious Knowledge and the First Amendment

Science.gov (United States)

Marks, Melissa J.; Binkley, Russell; Daly, James K.

2014-01-01

Recognizing the influence of religion on people's worldview and daily lives, we wondered if elementary and secondary social studies preservice teachers knew enough about religions not only to be culturally responsive in a classroom but also whether they knew enough to teach about these religions within the appropriate curriculum. We used questions…

The religion under the rule of aesthetics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto da Silva Moreira

2015-04-01

Full Text Available This article examines the modern process of aestheticization of culture and religion as consequent unfolding of the expansion of market rationality to the subjective life and the libidinal sphere of subjects. Its main objective is to inquire about the future of religion under the impact of sensation seeking culture and the inflation of aesthetics. Firstly, with the help of Türcke, Welsch, Foucault and Schultze´s investigate the aestheticization process of of social life, its causes and characteristics; Secondly, following Dufour, Türcke Leiss, Kline, Jhally e Welsch, it asks how the dynamics of aesthetical impacts the daily life and the bio-psychic economy of people; thirdly, it applies the results obtained to the analysis of what is happening with religion under the regime of aesthetics and sensational culture. Finally, it asks about the possible emancipatory potential of aestheticized own religious experience and tries to draw some further consequences for religion in the aesthetic field.

Religion, popular culture and social media: the construction of a religious leader image on Facebook

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ioana A. COMAN

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Despite the emergence of religions on Internet and the importance of social media, research dedicated to religious leaders’ construction of symbolic image on social media, is hard to find. Starting from the 2013 Applebee’s social media crisis, which was triggered by a pastor, the present study investigates the frames and themes Facebook users employed in order to give meaning to the crisis, attribute responsibility, and more importantly, define the role of a religious leader in daily life. This study shows the existence on social media of an active religious literate public, a public clearly troubled in their religious faith and convictions by the non-Christian behavior of the pastor. This shows that in a post-secular society the religious imaginary is not only a “canopy” inherited and kept because of convenience, but a cultural frame of signification the real and a vector of dialogue in a (online micro and macro public sphere.

Religion, Self-Regulation, and Self-Control: Associations, Explanations, and Implications

Science.gov (United States)

McCullough, Michael E.; Willoughby, Brian L. B.

2009-01-01

Many of the links of religiousness with health, well-being, and social behavior may be due to religion's influences on self-control or self-regulation. Using Carver and Scheier's (1998) theory of self-regulation as a framework for organizing the empirical research, the authors review evidence relevant to 6 propositions: (a) that religion can…

Kinesisk Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andreasen, Esben; Nielsen, Klaus Bo

Bogen Kinesisk Religion omhandler kongfuzianisme, daoisme, buddhisme, maoisme, folkereligion og nye religioner i ind- og udland. Den indeholder klassiske myter og magiske ritualer, historiske milepæle og moderne udfordringer, politisk religion og levende folkereligiøsitet. Bogen henvender sig...

What is Religion?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Jeppe Sinding

which can be analysed and compared across time and cultures, What is Religion? brings the most up-to-date scholarship to bear on humankind’s most enduring creation. The book opens with a brief history of the idea of religion, then divides the study of religion into four essential topics - types......Religious belief is one of the most pervasive and ubiquitous characteristics of human society. Religion has shadowed and illuminated human lives since primitive times, shaping the world views of cultures from isolated tribes to vast empires. Starting from the premise that religion is a concept......, representations, practices, and institutions – and concludes with a final, eye-opening chapter on religion today. Packed with case studies from a wide range of religions, past and present, What is Religion? offers a very current, comprehensive, yet intellectually challenging overview of the history, theories...

Religion and Politics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bandak, Andreas

2018-01-01

Religion and politics provide an interesting juxtaposition. On the one hand, both may initially come across as rather self-evident categories, with religion dealing with human perceptions and what people hold as sacred, and politics addressing the control and governance of fellow human beings....... Nonetheless, such a simple opposition should only work as a starting point for an interrogation of both terms and how they have come to look and function as empirical and analytical categories. Focusing on the ways that religion is played out in relation to politics reveals different historical and cultural...... constellations and positions, which can be highlighted as variations of religion as politics, religion in politics, religion out of politics, and religion not politics....

Objects of Worship in South Asian Religions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Objects of worship are an aspect of the material dimension of lived religion in South Asia. The omnipresence of these objects and their use is a theme which cuts across the religious traditions in the pluralistic religious culture of the region. Divine power becomes manifest in the objects and fo...... objects of worship, the book contributes to an understanding of the central significance of these objects in the religious and social life of South Asia. It will be of interest to students and scholars of Religious Studies and South Asian Religion, Culture and Society....

How to Talk about Religion

Science.gov (United States)

Kunzman, Robert

2012-01-01

Given the prevalence of religion talk in today's world, another form of fluency is needed. Civic multilingualism is the ability to converse across different religious and ethical perspectives in search of understanding, compromise, and common ground. According to the author, this may represent the greatest social challenge of the 21st century.…

Fiktionsbaseret religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Davidsen, Markus

2010-01-01

Jediismen er en ny religion, der bygger på George Lucas' Star Wars-film. Kernen i jediismen er medlemmernes identifikation med jedi-ridderne fra Star Wars, troen på, at Kraften eksisterer uden for det fiktive univers, samt rituel interaktion med Kraften. På baggrund af en analyse af syv jediistiske...... gruppers hjemmesider skitserer artiklen jediismens selvforståelse med fokus på selv-identifikation, læren om Kraften, praksis og etik samt forhandlingen af forholdet til Star Wars. Endvidere argumenteres for, hvorfor jediismen må fortolkes som en religion og ikke blot som et fanfænomen. Endelig foreslås...... kategorien 'fiktionsbaseret religion' introduceret i religionsvidenskaben som betegnelse for en række nye religioner baseret på 'fiktive religioner' indlejret i fiktionstekster....

Diffused Religion and Prayer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Cipriani

2011-06-01

Full Text Available It is quite likely that the origins of prayer are to be found in ancient mourning and bereavement rites. Primeval ritual prayer was codified and handed down socially to become a deep-rooted feature of people’s cultural behavior, so much so, that it may surface again several years later, in the face of death, danger, need, even in the case of relapse from faith and religious practice. Modes of prayer depend on religious experience, on relations between personal prayer and political action, between prayer and forgiveness, and between prayer and approaches to religions. Various forms of prayer exist, from the covert-hidden to the overt-manifest kind. How can they be investigated? How can one, for instance, explore mental prayer? These issues regard the canon of diffused religion and, therefore, of diffused prayer.

Religion, morality, evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Bloom, Paul

2012-01-01

How did religion evolve? What effect does religion have on our moral beliefs and moral actions? These questions are related, as some scholars propose that religion has evolved to enhance altruistic behavior toward members of one's group. I review here data from survey studies (both within and across countries), priming experiments, and correlational studies of the effects of religion on racial prejudice. I conclude that religion has powerfully good moral effects and powerfully bad moral effects, but these are due to aspects of religion that are shared by other human practices. There is surprisingly little evidence for a moral effect of specifically religious beliefs.

Spirituality, Religion, and Suicidality Among Veterans: A Qualitative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Lusk, Jaimie; Dobscha, Steven K; Kopacz, Marek; Ritchie, Mary Frances; Ono, Sarah

2018-01-01

This qualitative study explores the relationship between veterans' spirituality/religion and suicide ideation and attempts. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 veterans who either endorsed chronic suicidal ideation or had made suicide attempt(s). Interviews explored the bi-directional relationship between spirituality/religion (e.g., beliefs, practices, and experiences), and suicide ideation and behaviors. Interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Veterans' responses indicate that spirituality/religion can discourage or permit suicidal ideation, help in coping with ideation, and facilitate meaning making and coping in the presence of self-perceived suffering. Veterans who survived a suicide attempt explored the impact of their spirituality/religion on their recovery. Findings highlight a complex and diverse relationship between spirituality/religion and suicidality. These findings may inform further research on treatment strategies that assess the function of spirituality/religion, and incorporate protective aspects of spirituality/religion into mental health treatment.

Religion, Culture, and Tax Evasion: Evidence from the Czech Republic

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Wadim Strielkowski

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Our paper analyzes the impact of culture and religion on tax evasions in the Czech Republic, which represents one of the most atheistic countries in Europe, and a very interesting example of attitudes to the church and religion, as well as the influence of religion on the social and economic aspects of everyday life. Our results suggest that, in the Czech Republic, religion plays the role of tax compliance, but only through a positive effect of visiting the church. National pride supports tax morality while trust in government institutions and attitudes towards government are not associated with tax compliance. These results suggest that the Czech Republic is no different from other countries regarding the relationship between religion and tax compliance. Moreover, the role of government as the authority for improving tax compliance is different from what is observed in other countries.

Religion and covenantal praxis in first century Judeanism

African Journals Online (AJOL)

p1243322

long term. Indeed, religion and covenantal praxis combined to make Judeanism a ... Socialization into all three social domains, the Temple, the synagogue, .... the American flag over an entrance to the mosque in Mecca. ..... The meat was to be eaten in the Temple, on the same day, sharing it ...... Celebrated by all Judeans.

Religion, Spirituality, and the Hidden Curriculum: Medical Student and Faculty Reflections.

Science.gov (United States)

Balboni, Michael J; Bandini, Julia; Mitchell, Christine; Epstein-Peterson, Zachary D; Amobi, Ada; Cahill, Jonathan; Enzinger, Andrea C; Peteet, John; Balboni, Tracy

2015-10-01

Religion and spirituality play an important role in physicians' medical practice, but little research has examined their influence within the socialization of medical trainees and the hidden curriculum. The objective is to explore the role of religion and spirituality as they intersect with aspects of medicine's hidden curriculum. Semiscripted, one-on-one interviews and focus groups (n = 33 respondents) were conducted to assess Harvard Medical School student and faculty experiences of religion/spirituality and the professionalization process during medical training. Using grounded theory, theme extraction was performed with interdisciplinary input (medicine, sociology, and theology), yielding a high inter-rater reliability score (kappa = 0.75). Three domains emerged where religion and spirituality appear as a factor in medical training. First, religion/spirituality may present unique challenges and benefits in relation to the hidden curriculum. Religious/spiritual respondents more often reported to struggle with issues of personal identity, increased self-doubt, and perceived medical knowledge inadequacy. However, religious/spiritual participants less often described relationship conflicts within the medical team, work-life imbalance, and emotional stress arising from patient suffering. Second, religion/spirituality may influence coping strategies during encounters with patient suffering. Religious/spiritual trainees described using prayer, faith, and compassion as means for coping whereas nonreligious/nonspiritual trainees discussed compartmentalization and emotional repression. Third, levels of religion/spirituality appear to fluctuate in relation to medical training, with many trainees experiencing an increase in religiousness/spirituality during training. Religion/spirituality has a largely unstudied but possibly influential role in medical student socialization. Future study is needed to characterize its function within the hidden curriculum. Copyright �

Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lægaard, Sune

2018-01-01

Article on the different ways on which religion is relevant to discussions of discrimination and the normative issues this gives rise to.......Article on the different ways on which religion is relevant to discussions of discrimination and the normative issues this gives rise to....

Functions of Narrative Genres for Lived Religion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tuija Hovi

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The article presents the object and results of a study which combines the psychology of religion and folkloristics in the form of a qualitative analysis of empirical ethnographic material compiled from sources in a local neo-charismatic congregation called the ‘Word of Life’. Personal narrative is discussed as a genre which represents the collective tradition of a religious community. It is a socially-learned speech act and a means of interpreting and sharing religious experience, thus constructing and confirming the faith of the community, both individually and collectively. In the neo-charismatic tradition, everyday speech draws on a literal (biblical tradition as well as on socially-shared narrative genres such as ritual testimonies, prophecies, sermons and casual, personal narratives of co-believers. The faith-creative power of these stories can be found in their performative utterances and evaluative structures as well as in non-communication.

Student Agency in Negotiating the Relationship Between Science and Religion

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Kok-Sing; Yang, Xiangyu

2017-08-01

Research examining the relationship between science and religion has often painted a narrative of conflict for students with various religious beliefs. The purpose of this paper is to present a counter-narrative based on a study carried out in Singapore, which provides a unique multi-ethnic and multi-religious environment and geopolitical context to study the phenomenon. Informed by the theories of collateral learning, situated cognition and agency, the study examined how a group of high school biology students viewed and negotiated the relationship between biological evolution and their beliefs in Christianity. Case study methodology and semi-structured interviews were used to generate thick descriptions of their views. Findings from the study illustrate how the students exhibited agency in deliberately creating multiple resolution mechanisms as they recognised and negotiated the conceptual and social tensions between the worldviews of evolution and creationism. The findings suggest that the students exhibited more agency in resolving the perceived conflict between science and religion than we tend to ascribe based on previous interpretative accounts that emphasised confrontation, alienation and marginalisation. The implication is that students' agency in negotiating the differing worldviews between science and religion should be seen as a resource for the learning of evolution, rather than a hindrance.

Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Welz, Claudia

2017-01-01

In the world of Greek Comedy, the traditionally austere gods of Tragedy are lowered to fit the streets of Athens. Religion is omnipresent in comedy on many levels, and we find gods on stage, prayers and oaths performed, sacrifices narrated, festivals performed. Religion in comedy is generally...

Danmark. Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lausten, Martin Schwarz

1991-01-01

Danmarks kirkehistorie fra begyndelsen til nyere tid. Kirkehistorie, historie, folkekirke, religion......Danmarks kirkehistorie fra begyndelsen til nyere tid. Kirkehistorie, historie, folkekirke, religion...

Ethnic vs. Evangelical Religions: Beyond Teaching the World Religion Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Tishken, Joel E.

2000-01-01

Offers background information on the formation of comparative religion. Demonstrates that the world religion approach is inadequate by examining case studies of Mithraism, Santeria, Mormonism, and Baha'i to illustrate the shortcomings of this approach. Advocates the use of an ethnic versus evangelical religion approach to teaching global…

Redefining Womanhood (?: Gender, Power, and the “Religion of Thinness”

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Michelle Lelwica

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Ce travail examine la manière dont les femmes utilisent les régimes amincissants comme moyen de surmonter les normes culturelles dominantes concernant les genres, aux Etats-Unis, au cours des dernières décennies. Bien que les femmes qui se consacrent à la perte de poids ne constituent pas un « groupe religieux » dans l’acception traditionnelle du terme, les symboles, rituels et croyances qui accompagnent leur quête de la minceur finissent par fonctionner exactement comme une religion. A partir de discours de femmes aux prises avec leur nourriture et l’image de leur corps, ainsi qu’avec toute une série d’images, rituels et croyances de la culture populaire, je mène l’analyse de cette religion séculière, que je nomme « la Religion de la Minceur » ; je vise à éclairer la manière dont les femmes s’en servent pour tenter d’obtenir le type de pouvoir et de visibilité qui est longtemps demeuré l’apanage des hommes. Enfin, je soutiens que la Religion de la Minceur ressuscite les dynamiques d’une religion patriarcale, dans laquelle le « salut » (libération de la femme passe par son sacrifice et son obéissance aux normes sociales dominantes.This paper examines women’s use of dieting as a means for negotiating dominant cultural gender norms in the United States during the past few decades. Although women who are devoted to losing weight do not constitute a “religious” group in the traditional sense of the word, the symbols, rituals, and beliefs surrounding their pursuit of thinness have come to function much like a religion. Drawing on women’s narratives about their struggles with food and body image, as well as a variety of popular cultural images, rituals, and beliefs, I analyze this secular religion, which I call the “Religion of Thinness,” highlighting how it serves as a vehicle through which women seek the kind of power and visibility that has historically been the prerogative of men. In the

Teaching World Religions without Teaching "World Religions"

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Locklin, Reid B.; Tiemeier, Tracy; Vento, Johann M.

2012-01-01

Tomoko Masuzawa and a number of other contemporary scholars have recently problematized the categories of "religion" and "world religions" and, in some cases, called for its abandonment altogether as a discipline of scholarly study. In this collaborative essay, we respond to this critique by highlighting three attempts to teach…

Religious Engagement and Attitudes to the Role of Religion in Society: Their Effect on Civic and Social Values in an Asian Context

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Cheung, Chris Hin Wah; Kennedy, Kerry J.; Leung, Chi Hung; Hue, Ming Tak

2018-01-01

This paper explored the impact of religious engagement (religious background, religious service attendance and religious activities participation) on adolescents' civic and social values. Attitudes towards the influence of religion on society were investigated as a possible mediator/moderator of religious engagement. A model based on Western…

Exposure to science, perspectives on science and religion, and religious commitment in young adulthood.

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Uecker, Jeremy E; Longest, Kyle C

2017-07-01

Social scientists know very little about the consequences of exposure to scientific knowledge and holding different perspectives on science and religion for individuals' religious lives. Drawing on secularization and post-secular theories, we develop and test several hypotheses about the relationships among exposure to scientific knowledge, perspectives on religion and science, and religious commitment using panel data from the National Study of Youth and Religion. Our findings indicate that religious faith is strongest among young adults who: (1) accommodate scientific knowledge into their religious perspective, or (2) reject scientific knowledge that directly contradicts their religious beliefs about the origins of the world. Young adults are also more likely to have lower religious commitment when they view science and religion as independent institutions, lending support to secularization ideas about how social differentiation secularizes individuals. We further find that mere exposure to scientific knowledge, in terms of majoring in biology or acknowledging conflict between the teachings of religion and science, is usually not sufficient to undermine religious commitment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Religion insulates ingroup evaluations: the development of intergroup attitudes in India.

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Dunham, Yarrow; Srinivasan, Mahesh; Dotsch, Ron; Barner, David

2014-03-01

Research on the development of implicit intergroup attitudes has placed heavy emphasis on race, leaving open how social categories that are prominent in other cultures might operate. We investigate two of India's primary means of social distinction, caste and religion, and explore the development of implicit and explicit attitudes towards these groups in minority-status Muslim children and majority-status Hindu children, the latter drawn from various positions in the Hindu caste system. Results from two tests of implicit attitudes find that caste attitudes parallel previous findings for race: higher-caste children as well as lower-caste children have robust high-caste preferences. However, results for religion were strikingly different: both lower-status Muslim children and higher-status Hindu children show strong implicit ingroup preferences. We suggest that religion may play a protective role in insulating children from the internalization of stigma. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

An Over-View of Niger Delta Indigenous Religion | Tasie | Lwati: A ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This essay is an outline and interpretation of Niger Delta indigenous religion. It examines the structure of the indigenous religion and points out that as heterogeneous and diverse as the people of Niger Delta are, so also is the indigenous religion of the people. Thus, an ethnic group may emphasize a belief system or an ...

Religion and Completed Suicide: a Meta-Analysis.

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Wu, Andrew; Wang, Jing-Yu; Jia, Cun-Xian

2015-01-01

Suicide is a major public health concern and a leading cause of death around the world. How religion influences the risk of completed suicide in different settings across the world requires clarification in order to best inform suicide prevention strategies. A meta-analysis using search results from Pubmed and Web of Science databases was conducted following PRISMA protocol and using the keywords "religion" or "religious" or "religiosity" or "spiritual" or "spirituality" plus "suicide" or "suicidality" or "suicide attempt". Random and fixed effects models were used to generate pooled ORs and I2 values. Sub-analyses were conducted among the following categories: young age (Religion plays a protective role against suicide in a majority of settings where suicide research is conducted. However, this effect varies based on the cultural and religious context. Therefore, public health professionals need to strongly consider the current social and religious atmosphere of a given population when designing suicide prevention strategies.

(ReMaking a Difference. Religion, Mediatisation and Gender

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Mia Lövheim

2015-11-01

Full Text Available This article presents and discusses how mediatisation as a theory can be used to analyse two commercial videos, one promoting the organisation Catholics Come Home and the other Coca Cola. A core question in the current debate on mediatisation and religion concerns if and how mediatisation changes not only the social forms of communication about religion but also the meaning of religion in society. The issue in focus for the analysis is whether these videos mirror attributes and roles traditionally associated with men and women within religious institutions or offer an alternative to these. By using gender as a lens, we can see that mediatisation challenges religious institutions to adapt their narratives and symbols to commercial media culture, but that also within this new setting some traditional female gender norms seem to remain or even become reinforced.

Religious identity and social instability in Nigeria: Interogating social ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The importance of religion towards enhancing social stability cannot be over- emphasized. Emily Durkheim viewed religion as a unified system of beliefs and practices whose purpose is to maintain and foster social stability and cohesion by removing tension that can disrupt social order. He believed that a cohesive society ...

Computing Religion

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Nielbo, Kristoffer Laigaard; Braxton, Donald M.; Upal, Afzal

2012-01-01

The computational approach has become an invaluable tool in many fields that are directly relevant to research in religious phenomena. Yet the use of computational tools is almost absent in the study of religion. Given that religion is a cluster of interrelated phenomena and that research...... concerning these phenomena should strive for multilevel analysis, this article argues that the computational approach offers new methodological and theoretical opportunities to the study of religion. We argue that the computational approach offers 1.) an intermediary step between any theoretical construct...... and its targeted empirical space and 2.) a new kind of data which allows the researcher to observe abstract constructs, estimate likely outcomes, and optimize empirical designs. Because sophisticated mulitilevel research is a collaborative project we also seek to introduce to scholars of religion some...

Religion and cognition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Geertz, Armin W.

2008-01-01

This is an introductory article in a special issue of a bulletin for researchers and teachers in religion in the USA. The article sketches the main positions and recent trends in the cognitive science of religion, and it attempts to attract scholars of religion to this field. It also profiles...

Cultural Consonance, Religion and Psychological Distress in an Urban Community

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William W. Dressler

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals approximate prototypes encoded in cultural models. Low cultural consonance is associated with higher psychological distress. Religion may moderate the association between cultural consonance and psychological distress. Brazil, with substantial variation in religion, is an important society for the examination of this hypothesis. Research was conducted in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, using a mixed-methods design. Measures of cultural consonance were derived using ethnographic methods and then applied in a survey of 271 individuals drawn from four distinct social strata. Low cultural consonance was associated with higher psychological distress in multiple regression analysis ( B = -.430, p < .001. Members of Pentecostal Protestant churches reported lower psychological distress independently of the effect of cultural consonance ( B = -.409, p < .05. There was no buffering effect of religion. Implications of these results for the study of religion and health are discussed.

Laborde’s religion

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Lægaard, Sune

2018-01-01

Cécile Laborde’s Liberalism’s Religion proposes liberal principles to address political controversies over religion. One is the public reason requirement that reasons for state policies should be accessible. Another is the civic inclusiveness requirement according to which symbolic religious...... establishment is wrong when it communicates that religious identity is a component of civic identity. A third is the claim that liberal states have meta-jurisdictional authority to settle the boundary between what counts as religion and what counts as non-religion. The article considers whether Laborde has...... managed to articulate these three principles in a way that is operationalisable and can serve to provide solutions to practical controversies over religion. It is argued that Laborde’s formulations leave important issues open, and some ways of settling these issues are considered....

How to eat: 1 vegetarianism, religion and law

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Irma Kroeze

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The approach of Critical Legal Studies that law is a cultural artefact that can be criticised is taken as point of departure in this paper. This insight is applied to food as a very important cultural artefact that permeates virtually every aspect of our personal and social lives. The paper then examines three types of restrictive diets, namely Kosher food production, halal food rules and vegetarianism. From this study it concludes that all three perform a vital social function of providing adherents with a unifying and identifying set of rules to foster social coherence. But it also provides adherents with a strong moral foundation that serves to justify a sense of moral superiority. Most importantly, all three these diets rest on a modernist view of morality in which absolute, unquestioning and universal truths are possible. It therefore serves to provide certainty in the postmodern condition of uncertainty and relativism. For that reason this study concludes that vegetarianism is the new religion – it provides people who no longer believe in traditional religions with a new certainty.

Soviet psyhology of religion in 1960–1970s: marginalia

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Elena Orel

2018-12-01

Full Text Available This brief outline deals with the history of development of psychology of religion in the USSR. The author concentrates on the analysis of the historical, social, ideological context, i. e. the analysis of those particular circumstances of the early 1960s when Russian thinkers in the domain of the Humanities turned to the subject of psychology of religion. Particular emphasis is given to the importance of the so-called Khrushchev’s thaw in the formation and development of this research area. The key metaphor of the study is seeing the psychology of religion as an opening in the austere ice of Soviet dictatorship. The author gives a description of the main trends and topics that were raised in discussions on psychology of religion in the 1960–1970s. Ideological interpretation of the position and role of psychology of religion in Soviet science draws on studies by D. Ugrinovich, one of the most infl uential authors of the period in question. The paper suggests that the change of the ideological background in the early 1970s naturally effected the refusal of most of the authors to carry out research in this area and their “switch” to problems of sociology of religion.

Sociology, Protestant Theology, and the Concept of Modern Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jung, Dietrich

2015-01-01

'scientification' of religion by the emerging disciplines of the humanities and social sciences. In taking the life and work of William Robertson Smith (1846-94) as an example, the article analyzes the transformation of some specific elements of liberal Protestant theology into a set of universal features......This article looks at the intersection between Protestant theology and sociology in the construction of the modern concept of religion. Set against the theoretical background of the functional differentiation of modern society, it identifies the origin of this concept in the discursive...

Sekularisering og religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Kirsten Margrethe

2015-01-01

Sammendrag: Sekularisering og religion: En studie i fortællingens nøglerolle i folkeskolens religionsundervisning Kirsten M. Andersen Ph.d. afhandling, indleveret ved institut for Uddannelse og Pædagogik, Aarhus Universitet, d. 23. oktober 2014 Indledning Afhandlingens sigte er at bidrage til en...... fortsat udvikling af religionsundervisningen i skolen ud fra en almen pædagogisk interesse. Skolen har sit eget formål og derfor må religion ombrydes, så den gøres pædagogisk. Religionshistorisk, religionssociologisk og antropologisk opfattes religion og kultur i et kontinuum. Det betyder, at religion...... fænomenologiske overvejelser over, hvorfor filosofien har behov for at formulere en religionshermeneutik med henblik på en almen pædagogisk begrundelse for skolens religionsundervisning. I Del: Kap. 2: Afhandlingen indledes med at indkredse og definere både religion og sekularisering som kulturelle og kollektive...

Spirituality and religion in patients with HIV/AIDS.

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Cotton, Sian; Puchalski, Christina M; Sherman, Susan N; Mrus, Joseph M; Peterman, Amy H; Feinberg, Judith; Pargament, Kenneth I; Justice, Amy C; Leonard, Anthony C; Tsevat, Joel

2006-12-01

Spirituality and religion are often central issues for patients dealing with chronic illness. The purpose of this study is to characterize spirituality/religion in a large and diverse sample of patients with HIV/AIDS by using several measures of spirituality/religion, to examine associations between spirituality/religion and a number of demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables, and to assess changes in levels of spirituality over 12 to 18 months. We interviewed 450 patients from 4 clinical sites. Spirituality/religion was assessed by using 8 measures: the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spirituality-Expanded scale (meaning/peace, faith, and overall spirituality); the Duke Religion Index (organized and nonorganized religious activities, and intrinsic religiosity); and the Brief RCOPE scale (positive and negative religious coping). Covariates included demographics and clinical characteristics, HIV symptoms, health status, social support, self-esteem, optimism, and depressive symptoms. The patients' mean (SD) age was 43.3 (8.4) years; 387 (86%) were male; 246 (55%) were minorities; and 358 (80%) indicated a specific religious preference. Ninety-five (23%) participants attended religious services weekly, and 143 (32%) engaged in prayer or meditation at least daily. Three hundred thirty-nine (75%) patients said that their illness had strengthened their faith at least a little, and patients used positive religious coping strategies (e.g., sought God's love and care) more often than negative ones (e.g., wondered whether God has abandoned me; Pself-esteem, greater life satisfaction, and lower overall functioning (R2=.16 to .74). Mean levels of spirituality did not change significantly over 12 to 18 months. Most patients with HIV/AIDS belonged to an organized religion and use their religion to cope with their illness. Patients with greater optimism, greater self-esteem, greater life satisfaction, minorities, and patients who drink less alcohol tend

The return of religion

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S. Griffioen

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Religion is back in Philosophy as a respectable subject. Part 1 first charts what MacIntyre, Taylor and Derrida have meant in this regard. Subsequently, it turns to the Enlightenment to determine what constituted the breakthrough. It is found that even where the Enlightenment gave maximum room to religion i.e. as a civic religion and as “religion of the heart” it still excluded a constitutive relation to a transcendent revelation. Part 2 centres on the religion-faith distinction in reformational philosophy. Similar to the Enlightenment, religion is understood as part of human nature. However, human nature itself is conceived as intrinsically religious and depending for its light on revelation. Secondly, “religion” in this context also encompasses idols and religious substitutes. Thus, it directs attention to shopping malls, football stadiums, health policy, et cetera, as possible contexts of a return of religion. Examples show that this has become a popular approach. However, most of the publications surveyed fail to distinguish between an “analogical” and a “pistically qualified” use of religion, and are open to exaggerations (the shopping mall and football stadiums as temples, etc.. At this junction, the relevance is shown of the religion-faith distinction as well as of Elaine Botha’s theory of metaphors. The epilogue offers an integration of parts one and two.

Religion and attitudes toward abortion and abortion policy in Brazil.

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Ogland, Curtis P; Verona, Ana Paula

2011-01-01

This study examines the association between religion and attitudes toward the practice of abortion and abortion policy in Brazil. Drawing upon data from the 2002 Brazilian Social Research Survey (BSRS), we test a number of hypotheses with regard to the role of religion on opposition to the practice of abortion and its legalization. Findings indicate that frequently attending Pentecostals demonstrate the strongest opposition to the practice of abortion and both frequently attending Pentecostals and Catholics demonstrate the strongest opposition to its legalization. Additional religious factors, such as a commitment to biblical literalism, were also found to be significantly associated with opposition to both abortion issues. Ultimately, the findings have implications for the future of public policy on abortion and other contentious social issues in Brazil.

Religion insulates ingroup evaluations : the development of intergroup attitudes in India

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dunham, Yarrow; Srinivasan, Mahesh; Dotsch, Ron; Barner, David

Research on the development of implicit intergroup attitudes has placed heavy emphasis on race, leaving open how social categories that are prominent in other cultures might operate. We investigate two of India's primary means of social distinction, caste and religion, and explore the development of

Religion insulates ingroup evaluations: the development of intergroup attitudes in India

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dunham, Y.; Srinivasan, M.; Dotsch, R.; Barner, D.

2014-01-01

Research on the development of implicit intergroup attitudes has placed heavy emphasis on race, leaving open how social categories that are prominent in other cultures might operate. We investigate two of India's primary means of social distinction, caste and religion, and explore the development of

Ambivalent Sexism and Religion: Connected Through Values.

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Mikołajczak, Małgorzata; Pietrzak, Janina

2014-01-01

Sexist attitudes do not exist in a limbo; they are embedded in larger belief systems associated with specific hierarchies of values. In particular, manifestations of benevolent sexism (Glick and Fiske 1996, 1997, 2001) can be perceived as a social boon, not a social ill, both because they are experienced as positive, and because they reward behaviors that maintain social stability. One of the strongest social institutions that create and justify specific hierarchies of values is religion. In this paper, we examine how the values inherent in religious beliefs (perhaps inadvertently) propagate an unequal status quo between men and women through endorsement of ideologies linked to benevolent sexism. In a survey with a convenience sample of train passengers in Southern and Eastern Poland ( N  = 180), we investigated the relationship between Catholic religiosity and sexist attitudes. In line with previous findings (Gaunt 2012; Glick et al. 2002a; Taşdemir and Sakallı-Uğurlu 2010), results suggest that religiosity can be linked to endorsement of benevolent sexism. This relationship was mediated in our study by the values of conservatism and openness to change (Schwartz 1992): religious individuals appear to value the societal status quo, tradition, and conformity, which leads them to perceive women through the lens of traditional social roles. Adhering to the teachings of a religion that promotes family values in general seems to have as its byproduct an espousal of prejudicial attitudes toward specific members of the family.

State formation, religion, and land tenure in Cameroon

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schilder, K.; African Studies Centre, Leiden

1988-01-01

The purpose of this analytical bibliography is to provide an overview of the recently published social science literature on State formation, religion, and land tenure in Cameroon. The 800 entries have been arranged under the following subject headings: The Cameroon State (nation building, political

Brain Matters: Practicing Religion, Forming the Faithful

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Hogue, David A.

2012-01-01

Religious practices have long drawn on the social sciences to broaden our understanding of how human beings develop, learn, relate, and are formed. While the religion and science conversations have not always been friendly, a growing number of theologians and scientists are engaged in promising dialogues where the interests of both parties…

Exploring the social without a separate domain for religion: on actor-network theory and religion

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Peik Ingman

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In post-secular societies—after secularisation—it may increasingly be the case that the connecting and structuring of religious matter is done outsidedesignated religious sites and without appointed religious experts. The centres of calculation have changed and so the connections between these are different. The former ways of translation and ordering are transforming into new ones. By exiting the designated sites religious matter has found new freedom with the new associations and inventions in the processes of translation. Less control leads to more heterogeneous agencies and facilitates the mobility of religious materials. This less controlled mobility of religious actants can also produce an apparent increase of religious matter, but this does not necessarily mean the return of religion. In any case, this increased plurality combined with increased mobility calls for perspectives which can recognise novelty, andnot just in comparison with previous states of affairs. Actor-network theory (ANT is about tracing the webs of associations between myriad actants whose collective actions produce what we call ‘society’. Dismissing the notion of ‘the social’ as a kind of ‘stuff ’, ANT insists that sociology should focus on the interactional processes—the circulation of ‘the social’ among human and non-human actants—collectively assembling emerging states of affairs.

Religion and Science: What Can Anthropology Offer?

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Skalník Peter

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This short tribute to Ján Podolák comments on the space between two extremes: pure science and blind belief. If religion is not susceptible to scientific proof because it is a belief in an invisible world inhabited by spirits who influence human existence on earth then science in its strictest sense is the opposite of religion because it is not based on any beliefs but solely on provable facts. However, the anthropology of science should be based on the pluralism of knowledge and the seeking of truth in different cultural settings around the world. Everything human, also science, is a social and cultural phenomenon. This means that rationality is not a preserve of the Western mind only and that without falling into the trap of postmodernist excessive relativism, we should admit that rationality is not only universal but also not hierarchized evolutionistically or qualitatively by giving preference to its Western brand. Science thus ceases to be the only realm of rational knowledge. Religion in its turn is a kind of non-scientific knowledge.

From the History of Religions to the Study of Religion in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Tim; Geertz, Armin W.

2014-01-01

The history of the academic study of religion in Denmark resembles developments in other Nordic and European countries as it has moved from a primarily historical-philological and comparative ‘history of religions’ towards a broader ‘study of religion(s)’ that includes history of religions together...

Differential Effects of Family Structure on Religion and Spirituality of Emerging Adult Males and Females.

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Handal, Paul J; Lace, John W

2017-08-01

This study examined measures of religion and spirituality in a sample of male and female emerging adult college students whose parents were either divorced or intact using the Personal Religious Inventory, the Duke University Religion Index, the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale, the Spiritual Transcendence Scale, and the Spiritual Involvement and Beliefs Scale. Data were collected online, and 66% of participants received extra credit for participating. A main effect of sex was found, as females reported significantly higher scores than men on all but one measure of religion and spirituality, and the dataset was separated by sex. No differences were found between males from divorced and intact families. However, females from intact families scored significantly higher on all religion and spirituality measures than females from divorced families. This study suggests that females may respond differently than males to their parents' divorce in the context of religion and spirituality, and discusses possible reasons.

Patriarchy, religion and women's political participation in Kwara ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study examines the relationship between patriarchy and religion and how they impact on women's political participation in Kwara State. The Gender and Development (GAD) approach is employed to examine the impact of social construct on women's political participation. Primary and secondary data were utilized for ...

Ethnicity and Social Stability in Nigeria: The Place of Religion ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Often times, these ethnic tensions translate into religious differences. There is a general notion that religion, especially Christianity and Islam, underpins the ethnic crises in the contemporary times. The consequences of the above observed situation amount to national instability. This paper has therefore investigated the ...

Is Asia a 'Post-Religional' Society? The Post-Religional Paradigm and its Others

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Daniel Franklin Estepa Pilario

2015-04-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the relevance and applicability of the 'post-religional paradigm' as proposed by EATWOT (Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians in the Asian contexts. It also inquires on how the Asian phenomenon and its interpretations relate to the crisis of religions in Western societies. It attempts to answer this problematic through four steps: a summary of the theological proposal and its relationship with the Western sociologies of religion; a search for a viable framework with which to understand religions in post-secular societies; discussion on the "discourses of Asia" and the corresponding view on religion; an elaboration of my preferred framework with some examples from the Asian situation. I argue that a viable theological proposal on post-religional paradigm should start from the analysis of how religious discourses and practices navigate with concrete socio-historical forces on the ground. Consequent to this view is the assertion that there is no universal sociology/theology of religion's development but multiple and complex religious discourses in specific contexts.

It's Not "All in Your Head": Understanding Religion From an Embodied Cognition Perspective.

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Soliman, Tamer M; Johnson, Kathryn A; Song, Hyunjin

2015-11-01

Theorists and researchers in the psychology of religion have often focused on the mind as the locus of religion. In this article, we suggest an embodied cognition perspective as a new dimension in studies of religion as a complement to previous research and theorizing. In contrast to the Cartesian view of the mind operating distinctly from the body, an embodied cognition framework posits religion as being grounded in an integrated and dynamic sensorimotor complex (which includes the brain). We review relevant but disparate literature in cognitive and social psychology to demonstrate that embodied cognition shapes the way that people represent the divine and other spiritual beings, guides people's moral intuitions, and facilitates bonding within religious groups. Moreover, commitments to a religious worldview are sometimes manifested in the body. We suggest several promising future directions in the study of religion from an embodied cognition perspective. © The Author(s) 2015.

Danish Regulation of Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christoffersen, Lisbet; Vinding, Niels-Valdemar

Presentation and analysis of current and upcoming conflicts in relations between religion and family; labour market; religion in the public sphere and state support to religion. Part of a comparative European analysis in the context of www.religareproject.eu. based on 18 Danish elite interviews...

Does Ideological Education in China Suppress Trust in Religion and Foster Trust in Government?

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Ying Xie

2017-05-01

Full Text Available A major goal of ideological education in China is to promote loyalty to the party-state and to instill atheism among the people. How effective is this ideological education? This article examines the relationship between education and trust in government and trust in religion using data from the 2010 Chinese General Social Survey. We find that education is negatively associated with trust in government, while positively related to trust in religion. Our findings suggest that policies aimed at displacing religion in favor of the Communist ideology have largely failed to shape the public mindset; rather, the more educated, the more people tend to trust religion instead of the government.

Historical intersections of psychology, religion, and politics in national contexts.

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Kugelmann, Robert; Belzen, Jacob A

2009-08-01

Various types of psychology have come into existence in and have been interacting with a plurality of contexts, contexts that have been radically varying in different states or nations. One important factor in the development of psychology has been the multiple relationships to the Christian religion, whether understood as an institution, a worldview, or a form of personal spirituality. The articles in this issue focus on the intertwinements between institutional religion and national political structures and on their influence on developing forms of psychology in four different national contexts: Spain, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Within these four settings, aspects of the ways in which varying forms of Christian religion coconstituted, facilitated, and shaped psychology, theoretically, practically, and institutionally, are examined. The formative power of the religions was not independent of the relationships between religion and political power, but rather mediated by these.

Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Niels Rosendal

2017-01-01

Anmeldelse af Niels Reehs "Secularization Revisited. Teaching of Religion and the State of Denmark" med afsæt i de nutidige kampe om kristendom og islam og med fremhævelse af Reehs forståelse af staten/religionen som en 'survival unit'.......Anmeldelse af Niels Reehs "Secularization Revisited. Teaching of Religion and the State of Denmark" med afsæt i de nutidige kampe om kristendom og islam og med fremhævelse af Reehs forståelse af staten/religionen som en 'survival unit'....

Religion, Schooling, Community, and Security: Exploring Transitions and Transformations in England

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Lundie, David

2017-01-01

Education is a complex social practice. In the United Kingdom context, schooling is further nested within the complex social practices of community governance, quasi-market public choice, and religion. This essay explores the shifting definitions of community and education in the context of the Counter Terrorism and Security Act 2015, which places…

Religion and morality.

Science.gov (United States)

McKay, Ryan; Whitehouse, Harvey

2015-03-01

The relationship between religion and morality has long been hotly debated. Does religion make us more moral? Is it necessary for morality? Do moral inclinations emerge independently of religious intuitions? These debates, which nowadays rumble on in scientific journals as well as in public life, have frequently been marred by a series of conceptual confusions and limitations. Many scientific investigations have failed to decompose "religion" and "morality" into theoretically grounded elements; have adopted parochial conceptions of key concepts-in particular, sanitized conceptions of "prosocial" behavior; and have neglected to consider the complex interplay between cognition and culture. We argue that to make progress, the categories "religion" and "morality" must be fractionated into a set of biologically and psychologically cogent traits, revealing the cognitive foundations that shape and constrain relevant cultural variants. We adopt this fractionating strategy, setting out an encompassing evolutionary framework within which to situate and evaluate relevant evidence. Our goals are twofold: to produce a detailed picture of the current state of the field, and to provide a road map for future research on the relationship between religion and morality. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

Religion as culture: religious individualism and collectivism among american catholics, jews, and protestants.

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen, Adam B; Hill, Peter C

2007-08-01

We propose the theory that religious cultures vary in individualistic and collectivistic aspects of religiousness and spirituality. Study 1 showed that religion for Jews is about community and biological descent but about personal beliefs for Protestants. Intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity were intercorrelated and endorsed differently by Jews, Catholics, and Protestants in a pattern that supports the theory that intrinsic religiosity relates to personal religion, whereas extrinsic religiosity stresses community and ritual (Studies 2 and 3). Important life experiences were likely to be social for Jews but focused on God for Protestants, with Catholics in between (Study 4). We conclude with three perspectives in understanding the complex relationships between religion and culture.

Beyond Freud in psychoanalytic psychology of religion? On the discussion of religion as projection

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Belzen, J.A.

2010-01-01

In 1907, Sigmund Freud initiated the psychoanalytic psychology of religion, until the present day the most important contributor to the psychology of religion literature in general, and the branch of psychological critique of religion best known outside of psychology circles (having drawn attention

Religion 2.0

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, René Dybdal

17 artikler som hver især fremviser og diskuterer aktuelle temaer i forhold til religion i Danmark i dag......17 artikler som hver især fremviser og diskuterer aktuelle temaer i forhold til religion i Danmark i dag...

Lesbians, gays and religion.

Science.gov (United States)

Newmanxy, Bernie Sue

2002-10-01

SUMMARY This study measured the effects of religious affiliation and gender on attitudes about lesbians and gay men among 2,846 college graduates who were beginning graduate study in social work or counseling. Males were more negative than females in their attitudes toward both lesbians and gay men. Conservative Protestants were the most negative in their attitudes toward lesbians and gay men, while those who were Atheist, Agnostic, Jewish or claimed no religion were most positive. Beliefs that the Bible forbids homosexuality are discussed and readings and arguments challenging this belief that can be used as class content are presented.

Religion and finance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Renneboog, L.D.R.; Spaenjers, C.; Baker, H.K.; Nofsinger, J.R.

2012-01-01

Individuals' economic attitudes are frequently observed to vary in a systematic manner with religious affiliation or religiosity. As a consequence, religion is also correlated with a range of financial-economic outcomes. Research has established the importance of religion at the macro-economic

JOURNAL OF RELIGION 2014 CURVEEE

African Journals Online (AJOL)

IK

religion specifically x-rays the role religion play in nation-building. Since ... been found to be positively neglected to such organizational characteristics, as ... However, the power of religion to perform its function in any society depends on.

Religion, an obstacle to workplace spirituality and employee wellness?

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Alan Bester

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A desperate need for employee wellness is echoed in work-related stories. Workplace spirituality is presented as an integral part of achieving and maintaining employee wellness. However, there is an observed gap of spirituality in employee wellness programmes and in the absence of the workplace spiritual helper in multidisciplinary wellness teams. Using a postfoundational notion of practical theology, I have explored one of the reasons for this gap, namely workplace spirituality�s association to religion. When spirituality is viewed through the lens of religion, it is overlooked as a vehicle of help. This is a consequence of the obstacles of the taboo of religious discussion, the complexity of religious plurality, the dominant voice of secularism and unhelpful religiosity. A proposal is made for a definition of spirituality that describes the relationship between spirituality and religion that overcomes the religionrelated obstacles to the development of workplace spirituality and so enable spirituality�s contribution in wellness.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The research includes an interdisciplinary collaboration with a Human Resource (HR manager, social worker, arts therapist, clinical pastoral counsellor, medical practitioner, psychologist, businessperson and two psychiatrists that underscores the collaborative effort in wellness. There is an intradisciplinary challenge to those who restrict the view of spirituality to the experience of religion.

Rastafari: Alternative Religion and Resistance against “White” Christianity

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Jérémie Koubo Dagnini

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Depuis le début du seizième siècle, l’histoire de la Jamaïque a successivement été associée à l’esclavage, l’évangélisation, la colonisation et le néo-colonialisme, ce qui a engendré de nombreuses révolutions, émeutes et autres formes d’agitation sociale. Les Jamaïcains noirs ont toujours vécu dans un état de résistance, une mentalité qui a donné naissance, au début des années 1930, à une religion jamaïcaine appelée rastafari. Le but de cet article n’est pas seulement d’étudier les origines et le symbolisme de rastafari, mais également de définir le mouvement rasta comme une religion née en réponse légitime à l’oppression et l’évangélisation. En d’autres termes, cette étude analyse rastafari comme une version panafricaine et afrocentrique du christianisme « blanc ».  Since the early sixteenth century, the history of Jamaica has been associated successively with slavery, Christian Evangelization, colonialism and neocolonialism, which gave rise to numerous revolutions, riots and various other forms of social unrest. Black Jamaicans have always lived in a constant state of resistance, a mentality that gave birth, in the early thirties, to a Jamaican religion called Rastafari. Besides studying the roots and symbolism of Rastafari, my paper is aimed at defining the Rasta movement as a religion born as a legitimate response to oppression and Christian Evangelization. In other words, my work examines Rastafari as a Pan-African and Afrocentric version of “White” Christianity.

Ethics, religion and humanity: Rethinking religion in 21 st century ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Thus, there is a relationship between religion, ethics and humanity. However, more often than not, religion is alleged for being a root cause of all human predicaments; that it provides viable and abundant fuel for conflict such that in every continent of the world, there are troubled spots rooted in religious conflicts. Although ...

Religion til Hverdag

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Dorthe Refslund

2006-01-01

Live rollespil er ikke religion men rollespillet bruges ofte hvor man ellers ville bruge religionens univers fx til mytologisering og ritualisering Udgivelsesdato: september......Live rollespil er ikke religion men rollespillet bruges ofte hvor man ellers ville bruge religionens univers fx til mytologisering og ritualisering Udgivelsesdato: september...

SOBERANIA E RELIGIÃO | SOVEREIGNTY AND RELIGION

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Mádson Ottoni de Almeida Rodrigues 

2016-08-01

Full Text Available This article highlights the mystical content that involves the exercise of political power. In analyzing the link between sovereignty and religion, religion’s strong influence reveals itself, particularly of Christianity, on the political and state functions, including the adjudicative function. The formation of the Christian conscience has strengthened the bond that unites sovereignty and divinity, and the modern state’s formation observed largely the Catholic Church’s structure. The problem that arises lies not in dogmatic religion discussion, but in the question of the religion’s morality, understood from the perspective of the behavior of people towards politics. The aim is to reflect on the real need to link politics and beliefs in certain pattern of religiosity, since the commitment to human values are not dependent of that belief. Furthermore, the objective is to demonstrate how religion influences the sacredness sense of justice, impregnating the judicial courts of a false aura of divinity.

Understanding the anatomy of religion as basis for religion in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2011-07-04

Jul 4, 2011 ... My aim is to approach the problem of religion in and/or education from a different viewpoint. I contend that the ... religion that I proffer to the test by applying it to the South .... Modern humanism is the faith that through science humankind can know the ..... This will be detrimental to their mastering of their.

On religion and hospitality cultures in economic relations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Greve, Anni

Recently prominent scholars (as Beckford 2003, Casanova 2004, Habermas 2008) have offered an argument for integrating the sociology of religion into the corpus of sociology and to rethink religion sociologically. This has given rise to questioning the fact that after the European Enlightenment th...... the role of these intermediaries in disseminating the rules of the marketplace from other port cities with direct access to the Atlantic and Indian Ocean. And it takes a closer look into how these rules have structured particular ‘spaces of hospitality’ in the city of Copenhagen....

Despite their inevitable conflicts--science, religion and New Age spirituality are essentially compatible and complementary activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Charlton, Bruce G

2006-01-01

Until recently it seemed that the continued expansion of scientific ways of thinking was destined to render religion extinct and spirituality unfeasible. But the example of the United States disproves this, since America is the most successful scientific nation of this era, church-going remains strong and New Age spiritualities are thriving. Therefore, despite the obvious conflicts; science, religion and spirituality are essentially compatible. Future science will continue to win territory from religion since its validation procedures are more objective and reliable. However, churches can survive and grow by dropping those aspects of doctrine which clash with science, and expanding their social functions. The fast-growing US 'mega-church' movement shows the way - since these organizations are minimally dogmatic but instead provide a family-orientated and morally-cohesive social milieu. Like organized religion, New Age spirituality comes into conflict with science when it makes incredible or bizarre factual claims. However, in practice modern spirituality is based on subjective evaluations which do not clash with the procedures of science. Indeed, the reliance upon individual, emotion-based evaluations (e.g., 'my truth', 'whatever works for you') renders New Age spirituality 'science-proof', and has enabled it to expand massively in an age of science. Science, religion and spirituality perform different functions in the modern world, and their relationship is therefore one of mutual-dependence. Borderline disputes will inevitably occur, but as part of a broader context of complementarity. Science, 'social' churches and New Age spirituality all have a bright future.

Borderline Personality Disorder and Religion: A perspective from a Muslim country.

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Sina Hafizi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available There are still many unanswered questions about psychological and social factors that may affect the development and treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD. Religion/spirituality (R/S is a factor that could influence the lives of people with BPD.The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between religiosity, religious attendance and borderline personality traits.Four hundred twenty- nine medical students of Tehran University of medical sciences participated in this study, and their information on demographics, responses to the Duke University Religion Index (DUREL, and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Disorders (the self-administered section on BPD was obtained.The total score of SCID-II questionnaire and the number of positive borderline personality characteristics on the SCID-II were inversely related with the DUREL total score and individual DUREL items. Those with higher levels of borderline personality traits had lower total DUREL score and lower DUREL subscale scores.Religiosity and religious attendance are negatively correlated with borderline personality traits, especially with anger, instability of mood, feeling of emptiness and self-harming behaviors. These findings are important for understanding the causes of BPD and in developing treatments for this disorder.

Jaina Religion and Psychiatry*

OpenAIRE

Gada, Manilal

2015-01-01

Jaina religion has existed for thousands of years. Lord Mahavir was the last of the 24 Tirthankaras, 23 having preceded him. The principals of Jaina religion teach us: (1) Self-control, which includes: (a) Control over physiological instinct of hunger and sex; (b) control over desires; (c) control over emotions; (2) meditation; (3) introspection; (4) concentration; and (5) healthy interpersonal relationship. The principles of Jaina Religion can contribute to Positive Mental Health.

Suicide and religion.

Science.gov (United States)

Cook, Christopher C H

2014-01-01

Much of the evidence that religion provides a protective factor against completed suicide comes from cross-sectional studies. This issue of the Journal includes a report of a new prospective study. An understanding of the relationship between spirituality, religion and suicide is important in assessing and caring for those at risk.

Teaching Religion, Teaching Truth: Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives. Religion, Education and Values. Volume 1

Science.gov (United States)

Astley, Jeff, Ed.; Francis, Leslie J., Ed.; Robbins, Mandy, Ed.; Selcuk, Mualla, Ed.

2012-01-01

Religious educators today are called upon to enable young people to develop as fully-rounded human beings in a multicultural and multi-faith world. It is no longer sufficient to teach about the history of religions: religion is not relegated to the past. It is no longer sufficient to teach about the observable outward phenomena of religions:…

The Relationship Between Death and Religion in Cultural Scripts on Death and Dying Among the Sample of Tehran Residents

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Sare Mazinani Shariati

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This article aims at understanding ordinary Tehran residents’ attitudes towards Death and Dying and recognizes the relationship between Death and Religion in their thoughts. Using Grounded Theory as method and semi structured interview as a technique, we reached to nine different Cultural scripts of death and dying among interviewees, including: fatalistic death, resurrection-oriented death, martyrdom-oriented death, mystical death, secular death, aesthetic/nihilistic death, agnostic death, and ambiguity-oriented death. Furthermore, we recognized religious and non-religious cultural scripts besides the rationalization and individualization of religion among them. According to our findings, there is no accordance between some interviewees’ thoughts and beliefs with their behavior and lifestyle so that one cannot guess people’s attitudes towards death and dying from their behavior or their appearance. In other words, we face no structural Homology between their ideas and their lifestyle. Moreover, most interviewees had mixed ideas and beliefs about death and dying, and it can indicate the social and cultural complexity of Tehran society.

Social Studies Education in Turkey and Islam

Science.gov (United States)

Tonga, Deniz

2016-01-01

Religion is one of the important factors that affect the human life. The concept of religion has a significant place within the scope of social studies education. Religion is a concept closely related to citizenship and value educations. As for the studies conducted in the field of social studies in Turkey, there have been few studies on Islam.…

New religious movements and alternative religions in France: the use of digital media as a counter-strategy against social and legal exclusion

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Christiane Königstedt

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The internet is widely used internationally by individuals and groups who otherwise perceive and experience a lack of influence and even repression by authorities and whose opinions remain invisible in or are ignored by the mass media. The new media are a frequently-used means of expression in the political struggles of social and religious movements, especially as part of attempts to increase the number of supporters and to mobilise public opinion. The extent, of the usage as well as its degree of success, does vary and because of this variety, a comparative analysis can illuminate parts of the whole conflictuous configuration as well as the chances and limits of resistance and opposition via these media channels. Organisations which were chosen to be investigated here were the so-called ‘new religious movements’, or more precisely, the many forms of alternative religion in France who face significant levels of social and legal exclusion, while most of their members are themselves usually strongly committed to democracy and their identities as equal French citizens. Therefore, they choose to perform counter-actions which are within the law and act strategically, which makes them a special case compared to revolutionary political movements which may question the social order of the state as a whole. France, with its ‘anti-cult’ policy, has come to a unique standing within the Western world in this respect. Though religious freedom and state neutrality in relation to religious issues are constitutionally granted, a differentiation is made – and partially even legally enforced – between good religions and harmful ones which attempt to manipulate their adepts mentally. The debates are held in a constant dynamic between the struggling parties of ‘anti-cult’ movements and alternative religions. The exclusion of the latter from the mass media is revealed be one central means of hindering them from gaining approval within society

Plurality of religion, plurality of justice : exploring the role of religion in disputing processes in Gorongosa, Central Mozambique

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jacobs, C.

2010-01-01

Religion is alive, especially - and increasingly - in the global South. What impact does religion have in everyday life as provider of normative orientations? This research investigates the role of religion in disputing processes in Gorongosa, Mozambique, where both traditional religion and

Religion, politics and gender in the context of nation-state formation: the case of Serbia.

Science.gov (United States)

Drezgić, Rada

2010-01-01

This article argues that nationalism has connected religion with secular politics in Serbia but that their rapprochement has been a gradual process. In order to demonstrate the transition from a limited influence of religion on politics to a much tighter relationship between the two, this article discusses the abortion legislation reform and the introduction of religious education in public schools, respectively. It argues that, while illustrative of different types of connection between religion and politics, these two issues had similar implications for gender equality-they produced discourses that recreated and justified patriarchal social norms. After religion gained access to public institutions, its (patriarchal) discourses on gender were considerably empowered. The article points to some tangible evidence of a re-traditionalisation and re-patriarchalisation of gender roles within the domestic realm in Serbia.

Religion in the face of uncertainty: an uncertainty-identity theory account of religiousness.

Science.gov (United States)

Hogg, Michael A; Adelman, Janice R; Blagg, Robert D

2010-02-01

The authors characterize religions as social groups and religiosity as the extent to which a person identifies with a religion, subscribes to its ideology or worldview, and conforms to its normative practices. They argue that religions have attributes that make them well suited to reduce feelings of self-uncertainty. According to uncertainty-identity theory, people are motivated to reduce feelings of uncertainty about or reflecting on self; and identification with groups, particularly highly entitative groups, is a very effective way to reduce uncertainty. All groups provide belief systems and normative prescriptions related to everyday life. However, religions also address the nature of existence, invoking sacred entities and associated rituals and ceremonies. They are entitative groups that provide a moral compass and rules for living that pervade a person's life, making them particularly attractive in times of uncertainty. The authors document data supporting their analysis and discuss conditions that transform religiosity into religious zealotry and extremism.

Overview of religions.

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Nicky

2004-01-01

This article provides a brief overview of 9 religions: Christianity, Judaism, Jehovah's Witnesses, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Christian Science, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism. Basic information on the origins, language, naming practices, diet, personal hygiene, and dress requirements is provided. For additional information, Web sites for each of these religions are also provided.

The cultural evolution of prosocial religions.

Science.gov (United States)

Norenzayan, Ara; Shariff, Azim F; Gervais, Will M; Willard, Aiyana K; McNamara, Rita A; Slingerland, Edward; Henrich, Joseph

2016-01-01

We develop a cultural evolutionary theory of the origins of prosocial religions and apply it to resolve two puzzles in human psychology and cultural history: (1) the rise of large-scale cooperation among strangers and, simultaneously, (2) the spread of prosocial religions in the last 10-12 millennia. We argue that these two developments were importantly linked and mutually energizing. We explain how a package of culturally evolved religious beliefs and practices characterized by increasingly potent, moralizing, supernatural agents, credible displays of faith, and other psychologically active elements conducive to social solidarity promoted high fertility rates and large-scale cooperation with co-religionists, often contributing to success in intergroup competition and conflict. In turn, prosocial religious beliefs and practices spread and aggregated as these successful groups expanded, or were copied by less successful groups. This synthesis is grounded in the idea that although religious beliefs and practices originally arose as nonadaptive by-products of innate cognitive functions, particular cultural variants were then selected for their prosocial effects in a long-term, cultural evolutionary process. This framework (1) reconciles key aspects of the adaptationist and by-product approaches to the origins of religion, (2) explains a variety of empirical observations that have not received adequate attention, and (3) generates novel predictions. Converging lines of evidence drawn from diverse disciplines provide empirical support while at the same time encouraging new research directions and opening up new questions for exploration and debate.

The liquidation of the church : From Parochial Religion to Religion on Stage

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Groot, Kees

2017-01-01

Is religion dying out in Western societies? Is personal spirituality taking its place? Both stories are inadequate. Institutional religion is not simply coming to an end in Western societies. Rather, its assets and properties are redistributed: large parts of the church have gone into liquidation.

Religion, evolution, and mental health: attachment theory and ETAS theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Flannelly, Kevin J; Galek, Kathleen

2010-09-01

This article reviews the historical origins of Attachment Theory and Evolutionary Threat Assessment Systems Theory (ETAS Theory), their evolutionary basis and their application in research on religion and mental health. Attachment Theory has been most commonly applied to religion and mental health in research on God as an attachment figure, which has shown that secure attachment to God is positively associated with psychological well-being. Its broader application to religion and mental health is comprehensively discussed by Kirkpatrick (2005). ETAS Theory explains why certain religious beliefs--including beliefs about God and life-after-death--should have an adverse association, an advantageous association, or no association at all with mental health. Moreover, it makes specific predictions to this effect, which have been confirmed, in part. The authors advocate the application of ETAS Theory in research on religion and mental health because it explains how religious and other beliefs related to the dangerousness of the world can directly affect psychiatric symptoms through their affects on specific brain structures.

“Right to life” in monotheistic religions

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Muhammad Reza Ehsani Mutlaq

2016-01-01

Full Text Available  " Right to life" as the fundamental rights of every person, from the beginning, has been important in the different schools of thought and religions, especially the monotheistic religions. In this paper, we discuss about "execution" and "abortion" as two of the most fundamental issues surrounding the "right to life", which has existed in human societies from the past to present. In Zoroastrianism, the punishment of "whip" has been more significant than other punishments, including the execution, however, in several cases, the execution is imported, such as eating human flesh, banditry, etc. Also the act of "abortion" is never excused or ignored and it is known equal murder. In Judaism, the Torah puts the execution as the punishment of manslaughter. Among other crimes based on Judaism punishable by death, include: polytheism, kidnapping, sodomy, etc. There are different opinions among Jewish scientists in the case of abortion. Some of them prohibited this act, except when the mother's life is in danger. In addition risk for the mother, some others allow abortion for the reason of genetic diseases as well, and some recognize right to abortion just for mothers. In Christianity, the laws are more moral than criminal and penal. Perhaps only in the case of apostasy, the execution is prescribed. However, in the thirteenth century, church announced death as punishment of heresy, so it could not be rooted in original Christian faith. In Catholics and Protestants view, the embryo, from the moment of conception, is the perfect man with the right to life. Therefore, abortion is prohibited and punishable by apostasy known. Of course, there are other opposite opinions between different Christian schools. In Islam, the execution as criminal law divides into three types: retaliatory execution runs against murder, the penalty execution runs against some crimes such as sexual assault, working against religion and social security, etc., and the sentence

Disaggregating Corporate Freedom of Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lægaard, Sune

2015-01-01

The paper investigates arguments for the idea in recent American Supreme Court jurisprudence that freedom of religion should not simply be understood as an ordinary legal right within the framework of liberal constitutionalism but as an expression of deference by the state and its legal system...... to religion as a separate and independent jurisdiction with its own system of law over which religious groups are sovereign. I discuss the relationship between, on the one hand, ordinary rights of freedom of association and freedom of religion and, on the other hand, this idea of corporate freedom of religion...

Implications of social structure

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brask, Josefine Bohr

Social systems in nature are characterised by heterogeneous social structures. The pattern of social interactions or associations between individuals within populations (i.e. their social network) is typically non-random. Such structuring may have important implications for the expression...... and evolution of behaviour, and for individual fitness. In this thesis I investigated implications of social structure for fitness and behaviour, with focus on three main areas: social structure & fitness, social structure & communication, and social structure & cooperation. These areas were investigated......, we investigate empirically the role of the social environment of individuals for their communication patterns. Our study species is a song bird, the black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus). The results suggest that individual communication in this species is influenced by features of the local...

RELIGION IN FREUD’S APPROACH

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Mukrimin Mukrimin

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This article aimed to examine the essence of religion by using Sigmund Freud’ psychoanalysis. It looks at the Freud’s theories: “the ontogenic” and “the phylogenenic”. The origins of religious and belief traditions, as Freud had mapped, are neurosis, precarious future, and religion’s masculine roots. Freud’s realist approach on religion brought a controversy on the study of religion, i.e., by associating his patients and order cultural phenomena (art, literature, and philosophy. His falsification over religion mad Freud as the most controversial man in his time. For Freud, the truth-value of religious doctrines does not lie within the scope of the present enquiry. It is enough for us, as Freud asserts that we have recognized them as being, in their psychological nature, illusions. Key Words: religion, Freud, philosophy, psycho-analysis.

New Religions and Globalization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bogen er en antologi af bidrag fra en konference under Research Network on New Religions (RENNER). Med bidrag fra specialister i nye religioner og globalisering fra hele verden introduceres empiriske resultater samt teoretiske og metodiske reflektioner over emnet....

Religion is natural, atheism is not

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Geertz, Armin W.; Markússon, Gudmundur Ingi

2010-01-01

After discussing evidence of irreligion and the rise of the so called "New Atheism", the authors refute the claim that this poses a problem for the cognitive science of religion and its hypothesis that religion is natural. The "naturalness hypothesis" is not deterministic but probabilistic and thus...... leaves room for atheism. This, the authors maintain, is true of both the by-product and adaptationist stances within the cognitive science of religion. In this context the authors also discuss the memetic or "unnaturalness" hypothesis, i.e. that religion is a "virus of the mind". The authors criticize...... accounts of atheism offered by cognitive scientists of religion as being based on unfounded assumptions about the psychology of atheists, and object to the notion that the natural aspects of religion by corollary make atheism unnatural. By considering human cognition in a semiotic framework and emphasizing...

Galileo's Religion Versus the Church's Science? Rethinking the History of Science and Religion

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, D. B.

Galileo's conflict with the Catholic Church is well recognized as a key episode in the history of physics and in the history of science and religion. This paper applies a new, historiographical approach to that specific episode. It advocates eliminating the science and religion. The Church concluded that the plainest facts of human experience agreed perfectly with an omniscient God's revealed word to proclaim the earth at rest. Supported by the Bible, Galileo, God-like, linked the elegance of mathematics to truths about nature. The Church, in effect, resisted Galileo's claim to be able to think like God, instead listening to God himself - and paying close attention to what man himself observed. We can thus see that the phrase ``Galileo's religion versus the Church's science'' is as meaningful (or meaningless) as the usual designation ``Galileo's science versus the Church's religion.''

Nietzsche – Psychologist of Religion

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Remedios Ávila Crespo

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of the following article is to fight some common misconceptions with respect to Nietzsche’s views on religion, and to show that these views are considerbly complex. Starting from the close relation between the human experience of suffering and the need for religion, as pointed out by Eliade, Freud and Schopenhauer, this essay focuses on the continuity between psychology and genealogy in Nietzsche’s analyses of religion and morality, it then responds to the questions about the essence, kinds and limits of the fact of religion, and ends by pointing out the different ontological status of Nietzsche’s principal philosophical positions.

Prosociality and religion: History and experimentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin

2016-01-01

Norenzayan et al. are praised for choosing to deal with significant questions in the understanding of religion. They are then criticized for refusing to define religion and for relying on problematic theoretical concepts. The authors discuss Abrahamic religions as the best-known prosocial religions, but the evidence shows that the case does not fit their conceptual framework. Finally, an extension of the authors' ideas about the meaning of priming effects is proposed.

When did religion, cognition and culture emerge?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Geertz, Armin W.

2015-01-01

Et bidrag om religion, kognition og kultur i evolutionistisk perspektiv ved en Engelsberg konference om "Religion" afholdt i Avesta, Sverige i 2014.......Et bidrag om religion, kognition og kultur i evolutionistisk perspektiv ved en Engelsberg konference om "Religion" afholdt i Avesta, Sverige i 2014....

The Religion Teachers Performance at Aliya Madrasa after their Completing Training Program in Province of West Nusa Tenggara

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AM Wibowo

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This research aims to evaluated the religions teachers performance at Aliya Madrasa after attending training functional programs which managed by Balai Diklat Keagamaan on province of West Nusa Tenggara. This research important to do to seeing the change of religion teacher performance on Aliya Madrasa whether increase or decrease after attending training functional program. By using analysis of context, input, process, product (CIPP this study had 4 findings, there are: (1 In pedagogic competency, personality, social and professional, the performances of religion teachers in Aliya Madrasa after attending training functional programs were include into fairly category. However in competition achivement the religion teacher is under expectation. (2 Performance of the religion teacher in Aliya Madrasa after attending   training functional programs give positive impact on students achievement. 3 The facilities of school like management, regulation and commitment of principal of Aliya Madrasa give positive impact to teacher performance, whereas support facilities in Aliya Madrasa is not support the increasing of religion teacher performance. (4 The Religion teachers performance after participated training functional programs gave positive impact to other teachers.

Religion and Labour Force Participation in Nigeria: Is there any ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

AJRH Managing Editor

Dept of Demography & Social Statistics, Federal University, Oye-Ekiti1; Dept of Sociology, University of Ibadan2 ... women from the trap of poverty and give them a voice in decision making in Nigeria. (Afr J Reprod Health ... lack required capital to participate in large scale ... Does religion influence female inequality in labour.

Religion in a global vortex

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Telebaković Boško

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Religions have been separated from a state, but they could have never been kept apart from the sphere of politics. They cannot be hidden from globalisation too, and are present in different forms. Only some world's religions actively participate in globalisation and try to make their believers part of their globalisation projects. The Roman Catholic Chuch and Islam are strong enough to make an attempt to shape themselves as global religions and political forces, but obstacles are so big that they cannot reach their goal in the near future. Does the USA take multireligious approach and disturb all monoreligious globalisation? Can globalisation developing a multireligious approach be the most penetrating? What can be achieved by fuzzy religion being formed in the Western Europe? Localisation in the Balkans, serving globalisation, is taking place with religious communities participating in the process. The use of religion in globalisation easily causes political concussions.

Inadvertent Evangalisms (Or Not): Teachers' Views on Religion, Religious Beliefs, Positionality and Presence and Their Influence on Their Curricular Choices in the Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Lipmen, Sara-Jean

2017-01-01

There has been very limited research on the possible role religion has in its influence on teacher choices, especially within a Social Science classroom. The purpose of this study was to examine how secondary Social Studies teachers explicitly and implicitly treat religion as a factor in the teaching of history and how their own affinity with/to a…

Religion, a social determinant of mortality? A 10-year follow-up of the Health and Retirement Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Idler, Ellen; Blevins, John; Kiser, Mimi; Hogue, Carol

2017-01-01

The social determinants of health framework has brought a recognition of the primary importance of social forces in determining population health. Research using this framework to understand the health and mortality impact of social, economic, and political conditions, however, has rarely included religious institutions and ties. We investigate a well-measured set of social and economic determinants along with several measures of religious participation as predictors of adult mortality. Respondents (N = 18,370) aged 50 and older to the Health and Retirement Study were interviewed in 2004 and followed for all-cause mortality to 2014. Exposure variables were religious attendance, importance, and affiliation. Other social determinants of health included gender, race/ethnicity, education, household income, and net worth measured at baseline. Confounders included physical and mental health. Health behaviors and social ties were included as potential explanatory variables. Cox proportional hazards regressions were adjusted for complex sample design. After adjustment for confounders, attendance at religious services had a dose-response relationship with mortality, such that respondents who attended frequently had a 40% lower hazard of mortality (HR = 0.60, 95% CI 0.53-0.68) compared with those who never attended. Those for whom religion was "very important" had a 4% higher hazard (HR = 1.04, 95% CI 1.01-1.07); religious affiliation was not associated with risk of mortality. Higher income and net worth were associated with a reduced hazard of mortality as were female gender, Latino ethnicity, and native birth. Religious participation is multi-faceted and shows both lower and higher hazards of mortality in an adult US sample in the context of a comprehensive set of other social and economic determinants of health.

Spirituality and religion in older adults with dementia: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Agli, Océane; Bailly, Nathalie; Ferrand, Claude

2015-05-01

Religious and spiritual issues are clearly important to the older adult population and may play a positive role in maintaining health and recovering from illness. This study systematically reviewed the literature examining the effects of religion and spirituality on health outcomes such as cognitive functioning, coping strategies, and quality of life in people with dementia. First, 51 articles with defined keywords were collected from online databases. Then, using inclusion and exclusion criteria, 11 articles were selected. These were classified according to methodological quality before being analyzed one by one. The findings highlight the benefits of spirituality and religion on health outcomes. Three articles showed that in participants who used their spirituality or religion more, through their faith, their practices and in maintaining social interactions, their cognitive disorders tended to reduce or stabilize. In the other eight articles, use of spirituality or faith in daily life enabled people to develop coping strategies to help accept their disease, maintain their relationships, maintain hope, and find meaning in their lives, thereby improving their quality of life. Spirituality and religion appear to slow cognitive decline, and help people use coping strategies to deal their disease and have a better quality of life. This literature review allows us to take stock of research over the last decade on spirituality/religion and health outcomes. The benefits observed should be considered with caution and included in rigorous experimental research in the future.

Skepticism, truth as coherence, and constructivist epistemology: grounds for resolving the discord between science and religion?

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Staver, John R.

2010-03-01

Science and religion exhibit multiple relationships as ways of knowing. These connections have been characterized as cousinly, mutually respectful, non-overlapping, competitive, proximate-ultimate, dominant-subordinate, and opposing-conflicting. Some of these ties create stress, and tension between science and religion represents a significant chapter in humans' cultural heritage before and since the Enlightenment. Truth, knowledge, and their relation are central to science and religion as ways of knowing, as social institutions, and to their interaction. In religion, truth is revealed through God's word. In science, truth is sought after via empirical methods. Discord can be viewed as a competition for social legitimization between two social institutions whose goals are explaining the world and how it works. Under this view, the root of the discord is truth as correspondence. In this concept of truth, knowledge corresponds to the facts of reality, and conflict is inevitable for many because humans want to ask which one—science or religion—gets the facts correct. But, the root paradox, also known as the problem of the criterion, suggests that seeking to know nature as it is represents a fruitless endeavor. The discord can be set on new ground and resolved by taking a moderately skeptical line of thought, one which employs truth as coherence and a moderate form of constructivist epistemology. Quantum mechanics and evolution as scientific theories and scientific research on human consciousness and vision provide support for this line of argument. Within a constructivist perspective, scientists would relinquish only the pursuit of knowing reality as it is. Scientists would retain everything else. Believers who hold that religion explains reality would come to understand that God never revealed His truth of nature; rather, He revealed His truth in how we are to conduct our lives.

Fiction-based Religion : Conceptualising a New Category against History-based Religion and Fandom

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Davidsen, M.A.

2013-01-01

During the last decade, scholars of religion have researched Star Wars-based Jediism, the Tolkien-inspired Elven community, and other religious movements inspired by popular fiction. This article raises two related questions about this new kind of religion: what should we call it?, and what

Religions without God? Hans Kelsen, Anthropologist of Modernity

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Paolo Di Lucia

2015-11-01

Full Text Available In 2012 an unpublished book by the Austrian legal philosopher Hans Kelsen, Secular Religion, has been posthumously published. This book, written by Kelsen between 1952 and 1964 in the United States, severely criticizes those theories of politics and culture that misinterpret modern social philosophy, science and politics as new religions, mainly adopting the controversial concept of “secular religión.” In the first part of the paper, we reconstruct the genesis of the book and the complex events that led to its final version, and we underline the motives that led Kelsen to write this vehement polemic in defense of the spirit of modernity, and eventually to withdraw it. In the second part of the paper, we investigate some of the main methodological and theoretical contributions that this work, albeit its critical tenor, is able to give to an anthropology of modernity.

Grænser for religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lüchau, Peter

2013-01-01

Paper om hvor og under hvilke betingelser danskerne finder religion acceptabel og/eller passende......Paper om hvor og under hvilke betingelser danskerne finder religion acceptabel og/eller passende...

Gender, religion, and adolescent patterns of self-disclosure in the divided society of Northern Ireland.

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Hargie, O D; Tourish, D; Curtis, L

2001-01-01

Adolescence is a period when levels of self-disclosure are often lowest. While studies have revealed a clear preference for female targets of disclosure, little research has been carried out on the effects of religion upon disclosure. The impact of religion was of importance in this investigation, given that it was conducted in Northern Ireland, where religion affects almost every aspect of social life. The aim was to ascertain the effects of gender and religious affiliation on adolescent disclosure to friends and strangers. Results revealed that while females were significantly higher disclosers than were males, religion per se did not play a key role. This suggests that even in a highly polarized society, gender is the central determinant of disclosure and is even more important than political identity. The implications of these findings are discussed, particularly with regard to the difficulty young males have in terms of revealing personal information.

Religion, theology and cosmology

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John T. Fitzgerald

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Cosmology is one of the predominant research areas of the contemporary world. Advances in modern cosmology have prompted renewed interest in the intersections between religion, theology and cosmology. This article, which is intended as a brief introduction to the series of studies on theological cosmology in this journal, identifies three general areas of theological interest stemming from the modern scientific study of cosmology: contemporary theology and ethics; cosmology and world religions; and ancient cosmologies. These intersections raise important questions about the relationship of religion and cosmology, which has recently been addressed by William Scott Green and is the focus of the final portion of the article.

Homosexuality, Religion, and the Family: The Effects of Religion on Americans' Appraisals of the Parenting Abilities of Same-Sex Couples.

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Whitehead, Andrew L

2018-01-01

Although a growing body of research focuses on Americans' attitudes toward same-sex couples as parents, very few include measures of religion, and those that do fail to capture its multidimensional nature. Furthermore, many past studies relied on convenience samples of college students, or samples gathered outside the United States. Multivariate analyses of the 2012 General Social Survey-a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States-reveal that a slim majority of Americans still do not believe same-sex couples can parent as well as male-female couples, and the religious beliefs, behaviors, and affiliations of Americans are significantly and at times differentially associated with appraisals of same-sex couples' parenting abilities. It appears that although religion is generally associated with more negative appraisals of the parenting abilities of same-sex couples, it is not uniformly so. Americans' immediate religious and cultural context can shape their appraisals of homosexuality in diverse ways.

Self-Adaptive Operator Scheduling using the Religion-Based EA

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thomsen, Rene; Krink, Thiemo

2002-01-01

of their application is determined by a constant parameter, such as a fixed mutation rate. However, recent studies have shown that the optimal usage of a variation operator changes during the EA run. In this study, we combined the idea of self-adaptive mutation operator scheduling with the Religion-Based EA (RBEA......), which is an agent model with spatially structured and variable sized subpopulations (religions). In our new model (OSRBEA), we used a selection of different operators, such that each operator type was applied within one specific subpopulation only. Our results indicate that the optimal choice...

Pensiero post-moderno e religione (Post-modern thought and religion - DOI: 10.5752/P.2175-5841.2010v8n16p99

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Paul Gilbert

2010-09-01

ção de um esse in, em um plano radicalmente distinto da experiência religiosa autêntica, que tem sua origem na interioridade pessoal, na afetividade de um esse ad. Palavras-chave: Religião, razão, pensamento pós-moderno, modernidade, cultura   Abstract The present article highlights the similarities and differences among religion, modern and postmodern thought. They all belong to cultures and their social histories, but such convergence does not guarantee the identification of their perspectives. Religion has consented in making irrational statements, beyond social and cultural conditions. The thought, even the postmodern one should be comprehended in its ideological and self-referential bias, and not separated from the concepts organized in a particular culture. Post-modernity, which has the intention to release itself from the tyranny of modern rationality, could offer an open horizon of though in order to establish an alliance with religion. But, after all, it has not worked. Postmodernism is still based in a conception of the individual under the emotion of the so called esse in, within a plan which is totally distinct of genuine religious experience, which has its origin in the inner personal emotion of the so called esse ad. Key words: Religion, reason, postmodern thought, modernity, culture

The Distinction Between the Essence and Reality of Religion: Resolving an Ambiguity in the Method of Phenomenology of Religion

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Mohammadreza Ghaeminik

2014-01-01

Full Text Available During recent centuries, under the influence of modern and postmodern ideas, religious studies have been exposed to new approaches and views. On the one hand, these approaches are not an extension of theology in the traditional sense and on the other hand, they give a remarkable role to method in religious studies. The importance of phenomenology and the eyes it has caught as a "method" in study of religion, as well as in such disciplines as philosophy of religion, sociology of religion, psychology of religion, history of religion  and so on,‌ have been due to the compatibility of this method or approach with different religions and as a result due to preparing the ground for comparative studies of religions, on the one hand, and because of being descriptive and non-judicative about beliefs and thoughts, on the other. Historically speaking, this method or approach is a product of the mixture of two intellectual currents in the nineteenth century west. These two currents comprise scientific research of religion and the philosophical phenomenology of the German philosopher, "Edmund Husserl". As compared to philosophical phenomenology, phenomenology of religion has undergone through dramatic changes in all its aspects. But we can't understand phenomenology of religion, particularly in the twentieth century, apart from philosophical phenomenology, specifically Husserl's phenomenology and its important concepts. However, there are two challenging problems in phenomenology of religion both historically and regarding its essential complexity as such: first, the existing variety of phenomenologies of religion in Rudolf Otto, Mircea Eliade, Max scheler, C. Jouco bleeker, Ninian Smart, Gerardus van der Leeuw and many others works has hardened the process of understanding of this method and thus it seems necessary to outline the underlying characteristics of this method. The second and more significant point is that the works of early phenomenologists

The Distinction Between the Essence and Reality of Religion: Resolving an Ambiguity in the Method of Phenomenology of Religion

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Mojtaba Zarvani

2013-12-01

Full Text Available During recent centuries, under the influence of modern and postmodern ideas, religious studies have been exposed to new approaches and views. On the one hand, these approaches are not an extension of theology in the traditional sense and on the other hand, they give a remarkable role to method in religious studies. The importance of phenomenology and the eyes it has caught as a "method" in study of religion, as well as in such disciplines as philosophy of religion, sociology of religion, psychology of religion, history of religion  and so on,‌ have been due to the compatibility of this method or approach with different religions and as a result due to preparing the ground for comparative studies of religions, on the one hand, and because of being descriptive and non-judicative about beliefs and thoughts, on the other. Historically speaking, this method or approach is a product of the mixture of two intellectual currents in the nineteenth century west. These two currents comprise scientific research of religion and the philosophical phenomenology of the German philosopher, "Edmund Husserl". As compared to philosophical phenomenology, phenomenology of religion has undergone through dramatic changes in all its aspects. But we can't understand phenomenology of religion, particularly in the twentieth century, apart from philosophical phenomenology, specifically Husserl's phenomenology and its important concepts. However, there are two challenging problems in phenomenology of religion both historically and regarding its essential complexity as such: first, the existing variety of phenomenologies of religion in Rudolf Otto, Mircea Eliade, Max scheler, C. Jouco bleeker, Ninian Smart, Gerardus van der Leeuw and many others works has hardened the process of understanding of this method and thus it seems necessary to outline the underlying characteristics of this method. The second and more significant point is that the works of early phenomenologists

Methodological remarks on studying prehistoric Greek religion

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Petra Pakkanen

1999-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a methodological approach to the study of Greek religion of the period which lacks written documents, i.e. prehistory. The assumptions and interpretations of religion of that time have to be based on archaeological material. How do we define religion and cultic activity on the basis of primary archaeological material from this period, and which are the methodological tools for this difficult task? By asking questions on the nature and definition of religion and culture scholars of religion have provided us with some methodological apparatus to approach religion of the past in general, but there are models developed by archaeologists as well. Critical combination of these methodological tools leads to the best possible result. Archaeology studies the material culture of the past. History of religion studies the spiritual culture of the past. In the background the two have important theoretical and even philosophical speculations since they both deal with meanings (of things or practices and with interpretation.

Religion in the public sphere: What can public theology learn from Habermas’s latest work?

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Jaco S. Dreyer

2010-10-01

Full Text Available The complex and problematic role of religion in the public sphere in modern, democratic societies raises many questions for a public theology. The aim of this article is to contribute to the ongoing debate about the task and methods of public theology by asking what we can learn from the ideas of Jürgen Habermas. Habermas was a leading participant in the thinking process on the secularisation thesis in Western societies. His view was that religion will eventually disappear from the public scene due to the rationalisation of society. In recent years he seems to have changed this view in the light of new developments in the world. He now maintains that religion has something important to offer in the public sphere. Religion could thus participate in this public discussion, provided that it satisfies strict conditions. We argue that public theology can learn from Habermas’s recent ideas regarding religion in the public sphere: attention should be paid to the cognitive potential of religion, especially regarding the importance of the lifeworld and the role of religion in social solidarity with the needy and vulnerable; hermeneutical self-reflection is important; a distinction should be made between the role of religion in faith communities and in public life; we have to accept that we live in a secular state; and we have to learn the possibilities and impossibilities of translating from religious vocabulary into a secular vocabulary in order to be able to participate in the discussions in the public sphere.

The "Make Your Own Religion" Project

Science.gov (United States)

Bauman, Chad M.; Hege, Brent A. R.; Kleckley, Russell; Willsky-Ciollo, Lydia; Lopez, Davina C.

2016-01-01

The "Make Your Own Religion" class project was designed to address a perceived need to introduce more theoretical thinking about religion into a typical religion survey course, and to do so in such a way that students would experience the wonder of theoretical discovery, and through or because of that discovery hopefully both better…

Kant and Demystification of Ethics and Religion

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Qodratullah Qorbani

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Kant's demystification is meant to put away any metaphysical and revealed elements from ethics and religion. Kant, fulfilling this, first argues that metaphysical questions of reason, from theoretical aspect, have no certain answers. In practical reason, he establishes his moral foundations, based on own human being without any referring to metaphysical bases. In fact, Kant places human being as the base, legislator and finally the end of ethics, so that the totality of morality is depended on itself him/her and there is no moral reality out of our humanly understanding. Kant, then, by confirming the necessity of rational religion, believes that the age of revealed religions have been expired, since they were belonged to the childhood age of human being’s reason, while in Kant’s rational religion, this is human being’s subjective intellect that defines the nature and function of God. Therefore, for Kant’s moral and rational religion, there is no credibility for affairs like miracles, blessings and prayers, since they indicate religious misguidance. In Kant’s rational pure religion, the religion is relied on human being’s pure reason in which his/her reason is the only criterion of religious beliefs. Therefore, for Kant, religion means recognizing our duties as divine judgments, and that such religion pertains to our mundane life not for worshiping God in order to get his satisfaction or benefitting his grace. In short, Kant’s religion and morality are totally depended on our humanly and earthy rationality and understanding, and that there is no mystery out of our humanly willing. So the mysteries that are claimed by revealed religions are meaningless, since our reason, itself, determines the nature, function and virtues of God, moral axioms and religious beliefs.

Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This is a thematic issue of the journal Religion 47 (3) entitled Exploring Aniconism. It contains elleven research articles on the use of aniconism in different religious traditions. Table of Content 1. Aniconism: definitions, examples and comparative perspectives (Milette Gaifman, concluding...

Journal for the Study of Religion

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Journal for the Study of Religion is published twice a year in March and September by the Association for the Study of Religion in Southern Africa as a forum for scholarly contributions of up to 6000 words on topics of contemporary significance in the academic study of religion, in the form of articles, responses to articles, ...

Religion and suicide: Buddhism, Native American and African religions, Atheism, and Agnosticism.

Science.gov (United States)

Lizardi, D; Gearing, R E

2010-09-01

Research has repeatedly demonstrated that religiosity can potentially serve as a protective factor against suicidal behavior. A clear understanding of the influence of religion on suicidality is required to more fully assess for the risk of suicide. The databases PsycINFO and MEDLINE were used to search peer-reviewed journals prior to 2008 focusing on religion and suicide. Articles focusing on suicidality across Buddhism, Native American and African religions, as well as on the relationship among Atheism, Agnosticism, and suicide were utilized for this review. Practice recommendations are offered for conducting accurate assessment of religiosity as it relates to suicidality in these populations. Given the influence of religious beliefs on suicide, it is important to examine each major religious group for its unique conceptualization and position on suicide to accurately identify a client's suicide risk.

Contemporary Limitations to Religious Solution to Social Problems ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In addition, cultural differences, political pressures, and plurality of values weaken the therapeutic strength of religion as it attends to social problems. Finally, this paper argues that religion as a social capital can reduce the menace of social problems if its institutions can be trusted by the people in the society. Key Words: ...

How to Capture the Wow : R.R. Marett’s Notion of Awe and the Study of Religion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meyer, B.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/141961236

2016-01-01

Current scholarship in the social sciences and humanities, including the study of religion, shows a marked appraisal of bodily sensations, emotions, and experiences as eminently social and politico-aesthetic phenomena (rather than reducing them to a matter of mere individual psychology). How to

Religion and stock price crash risk: Evidence

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Wenfei Li

2016-09-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates whether religious traditions influence firm-specific crash risk in China. Using a sample of A-share listed firms from 2003 to 2013, we provide evidence that the more intense the religious environment, the lower the stock price crash risk, implying that religion plays an important role in Chinese corporate governance. Further, we find that (1 religion affects stock price crash risk by reducing earnings management and the management perk problem; (2 different religions have different effects, and Taoism, in particular, is unrelated to crash risk; and (3 the effects of religion are more pronounced with higher quality corporate governance and a stronger legal environment. Religion constrains the management agency problem, thus reducing stock price crash risk in China. Our paper enriches the literature on stock price crash risk and religion, and on new economic geography.

Lived religion in a plural society: a resource or liability

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Ashok Kaul

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Recently there is a renewed academic interest in religion bringing it back on the global political agenda. Religion in the post modern global order is fast emerging as a new organizing principle in the face of multi-polarity, trans-nationality and sweeping pluralisation of peoples. Contrary to the secularist self believe, the modern has failed to take over the tradition including religion. Rather a logical opposite seems to be happening, questioning the very presumptions of the modernity project. The present paper is a narrative on this creative tension in the religious modern and post modern. The paper is crafted into four sections. First section seeks to pin down the genesis of “religious” in the search for social order and consciousness beyond the material world. Second section deals with the unfolding of enlightenment project and its manifest consequence with the birth of secularism master theory. Third section delves deep into the immediate Indian religious lived experiences under foreign rule up to the sweeping spell of globalisation. Fourth and last part of the essay makes a case for universality of a multicultural world and religious secularism.

The Urgency Of Ijtihad By Judges In Effort Law Invention At The Religion Court In Indonesia

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Kiljamilawati

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The presence of renewals in Islamic law resulting in the emergence of various changes in the social order of Muslims either in relation to ideology political social cultural and so on. It later brings new challenges that must be answered and therefore ijtihad must be continuously made to find a solution to the various problems of new law which is required by Muslims. The type of research is a normative-juridical and empirical research. Normative research is trying to examine the problem of law invention by the judge in the Religion Courts with a case approach. Ijtihad has a very urgent role in efforts to carry out duties as law enforcer and justice by digging follow and understand the legal values that live and develop in the peoples and accommodate the developments of Islamic law. The method of ijtihad by judges in the Religion Court use maqashid al-sharia and maslahah and istihsan method. At the practical level so characteristic inherent in the religion courts persists then should any verdict must include argument of Islamic law sources.

Psychiatry and Religion: Opponents or Collaborators? The Power of Spirituality in Contemporary Psychiatry.

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Jakovljević, Miro

2017-04-01

Religion and psychiatry have had complicated, sometimes neutral or friendly and cooperative, sometimes competitive and antagonistic relations over their long histories. Relations between psychiatry and religion are influenced by complex belief systems, each diverse and changing. Psychiatry has often ignored spiritual and religious dimension in health and illness while religions influenced the treatment of mental disorders directly by defining mental disorders as evil spirit possessions and prescribing exorcism as treatment. It has been a long way to prevail looking for natural over supra-natural explanations for mental disorders. Psychiatry and religion as social practices should be regarded as allies against pseudoscientific nonsense and superstitions. This alliance is based on the next evidence: 1. religious and spiritual well-being is an important component of mental health as well as of health in general; 2. research and empirical evidence reveals that healthy-minded and distorted or sick faith are quite distinct in the effects in the lives of the faithful; 3. psychiatrists are professionally expected to always respect and be sensitive to the spiritual and religious beliefs and practices of their patients; 4. religious and spiritual beliefs and practice is very important aspect of person-centered psychiatry. The enduring task for both psychiatry and religion is to enable human beings to live their lives with courage, sense, and optimism, to strive towards creating conditions of well-being and individual, public and global mental health as well as to dispel beliefs and patterns which trap people in lives of misery and mental disorders. Psychiatry and religion in creative dialogues as allies can significantly contribute to the healing of our broken world and promoting compassionate society and empathic civilization. When psychiatry and religion see each other as opponents or even enemies this is only because of their mutual misreading and pseudoscientific

Limits to expression on religion in France

OpenAIRE

Janssen, E.

2009-01-01

During the last decade conflicts about expression on religion have increased globally. Generally, these conflicts are regarded as a conflict between freedom of speech and freedom of thought, conscience and religion. In France there are many active religious interest groups that aim to protect a certain religion in society. They often initiate judicial proceedings seeking to prohibit certain kinds of speech on their religion. This practice has resulted in a rich case law on the limits of expre...

Religion and bioethics: toward an expanded understanding.

Science.gov (United States)

Brody, Howard; Macdonald, Arlene

2013-04-01

Before asking what U.S. bioethics might learn from a more comprehensive and more nuanced understanding of Islamic religion, history, and culture, a prior question is, how should bioethics think about religion? Two sets of commonly held assumptions impede further progress and insight. The first involves what "religion" means and how one should study it. The second is a prominent philosophical view of the role of religion in a diverse, democratic society. To move beyond these assumptions, it helps to view religion as lived experience as well as a body of doctrine and to see that religious differences and controversies should be welcomed in the public square of a diverse democratic society rather than merely tolerated.

Religion and violence in a globalised world

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Wolfgang Huber

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Violent religious extremism is seen as one of the mega-problems of the 21st century. This article � based on a key lecture at the conference on �Violence in a democratic South Africa� at the University of Pretoria and the David de Villiers memorial lecture at the University of Stellenbosch, both held during August 2010 � critically discussed the interaction between religion and violence in our present-day, globalised world. Three different propositions on the relationship between religion and violence were scrutinised. In countering the proposition that religion, or more specifically monotheism, necessarily leads to violence, it was argued that violence is not an inherent, but rather an acquired or even an ascribed quality of religion. The second proposition that religion leads to non-violence was affirmed to the extent that religions do provide a strong impulse to overcome violence. However, they also tend to accept violence as an inevitable part of reality and even justify the use of violence on religious grounds. The third proposition was regarded as the most convincing, for it argues that the link between religion and violence is contingent. Some situations do seem to make the use of violence inevitable; however, religions should refrain from justifying the use of violence and maintain a preferential option for nonviolence.

Mapping the Curriculum-Making Landscape of Religion Education ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Together with other scholars, Roux, a scholar-activist, has played a seminal role in conceptualising religion in the curriculum as religion in education (RiE) and more recently, religion and education (RaE). In disrupting the boundaries of religion, she has also made human rights the departure point for engagement with RaE.

Religious Education and Freedom of Religion and Belief. Religion Education and Values. Volume 2

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, Stephen, Ed.; Freathy, Rob, Ed.; Francis, Leslie J., Ed.

2012-01-01

What opportunities and challenges are presented to religious education across the globe by the basic human right of freedom of religion and belief? To what extent does religious education facilitate or inhibit "freedom of religion" in schools? What contribution can religious education make to freedom in the modern world? This volume…

Research Approaches in the Study of Religion

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Szocik Konrad

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Despite development of secular ideas and concepts in the Western world, we can observe increasing interest in the study of religion. However, this popularity of the study of religion and different research approaches has caused that in some sense scholars that were studying religion came to a dead point. Here I show that the most optimal research approach in the study of religion is pluralistic, integral paradigm which connects old traditional methods with naturalistic, cognitive and sometimes experimental approach.

FAITH, INTOLERANCE, VIOLENCE AND BIGOTRY: Legal and Constitutional Issues of Freedom of Religion in Indonesia

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Adam J. Fenton

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Religious intolerance and bigotry indeed is a contri­buting factor in social and political conflict including manifestations of terrorist violence. While freedom of religion is enshrined in Indonesia’s Constitution, social practices and governmental regulations fall short of constitutional and international law guarantees, allowing institutionalised bias in the treatment of religious minorities. Such bias inhibits Indonesia’s transition to a fully-functioning pluralistic democracy and sacrifices democratic ideals of personal liberty and freedom of expression for the stated goals of religious and social harmony. The Ahok case precisely confirms that. The paper examines the constitutional bases of freedom of religion, Indonesia’s Blasphemy Law and takes account of the history and tenets of Pancasila which dictate a belief in God as the first principle of state ideology. The paper argues that the Indonesian state’s failure to recognise the legitimacy of alternate theological positions is a major obstacle to Indonesia recognising the ultimate ideal, enshrined in the national motto, of unity in diversity.

Religion and Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sabih, Joshua

group breaks totally with the existing Arabic Bible translations that they were in the habit of using. In this translation, the previously strenuous relationship between culture and religion is flattened in a binary sets of oppositions between an unaltered Devine message preserved in ancient Bible...... translation of the Holy Scriptures, and address how an originally-American Christian group re-constructs the relationship of religion –universality of one truth and its embodiment in one community of faith – and culture; and specifically, Arabic culture. Culture, in its manifold forms -Jehovah’s witnesses...

Clinical psychology of religion. A training model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Uden, M.H.F. van; Pieper, J.Z.T.

2003-01-01

In this paper we will show you a part of a course "Clinical Psychology of Religion" that has been developed in the Netherlands for introducing mental health professionals in the field of clinical psychology of religion. Clinical psychology of religion applies insights from general psychology of

The origin and mission of material religion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meyer, B.; Morgan, D.; Paine, C.; Plate, S.B.

2010-01-01

Beginning its sixth year of publication, Material Religion is an interdisciplinary journal that seeks to gather the best work from around the world engaged in materializing the study of religions. The editors welcome original scholarship on any religion and from any period in human history that

POST-RELIGION: TRADITIONALISTS’ ANALYSIS

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Kirill M. Tovbin

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Aim of the study is to describe the phenomenon of post-religion as a specific spiritual sphere of the Post-modernity. Methodology. In the introduction analyzed a variety of methodological approaches, opening his inadequacy applied to the spiritual sphere of Post-modernity: «classic» religious studies, religious studies of traditional spiritual movements and the post-modern religious studies, partly produced Traditionalist school, could - according to the author's hypothesis - become a methodological basis for the most complete analysis of post-religion. Scientific novelty. In the main part of the article crystallized the authorized concept of post-religion, its relation with traditional and religious spiritual realms. Post-religion is positioned as the top of secularism enshrined in the departure from the straight and aggressive secularism of the Modernity, but without recourse to Tradition. Post-religion a simulation spirituality, skillfully imitating the outer areas of traditional spirituality and creates a planar religiosity, radically preventing attached to the vertical line of Traditions. In this regard, are the main artificially selected parameters of post-religion: deconstruction, splitting, virtualization, and collage. Deconstruction is a transformation of spirituality in semiotic set for egocentric selectivity of modern believer. Post-religion’s splitting is deprivation of spirituality center, destruction of sacral Center and the transformation of spirituality in the plane on which the intellectual and sensual wandering post-believer from one semiotic island to another. Virtualization is a displacement field of spiritual tension in a completely virtual area, isolated from the natural conditions of existence and created as his replacement, network discussion sites and galleries. Collage is an arbitrary combination of different semiotic pieces of Tradition with the aim of creating a believable picture of tradition; it is collage leads

How Teachers Can Still Teach about Religion

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Joanne M.

2004-01-01

The line between public and private expression of religion requires balancing the constitutional guarantee of the free exercise of religion and the constitutional prohibition against the establishment of religion. Public schools, as government entities, and the teachers in them are allowed neither to inhibit the free exercise of religious…

Immigration and Religion in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christoffersen, Lisbet

2009-01-01

An overview over legal framework for immigration into Denmark, special clauses on religion as a parameter for residence permit and asylum in churches......An overview over legal framework for immigration into Denmark, special clauses on religion as a parameter for residence permit and asylum in churches...

Spirituality, Religion, and Peace Education

Science.gov (United States)

Brantmeier, Edward J., Ed.; Lin, Jing, Ed.; Miller, John P., Ed.

2010-01-01

"Spirituality, Religion, and Peace Education" attempts to deeply explore the universal and particular dimensions of education for inner and communal peace. This co-edited book contains fifteen chapters on world spiritual traditions, religions, and their connections and relevance to peacebuilding and peacemaking. This book examines the…

Religion in the Labour Market

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christoffersen, Lisbet

overview over case law in Denmark regarding religion on the labour market. From pragmatism to ideological secularisation and confessionalisation as result of politisation......overview over case law in Denmark regarding religion on the labour market. From pragmatism to ideological secularisation and confessionalisation as result of politisation...

Iconic Religion in Urban Space

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meyer, B.; Knott, Kim; Krech, Volkhard

2016-01-01

In order to understand current dynamics of religious diversity, a focus on the tangible presence of religion and the co-existence of new and longstanding religious buildings, sites and artifacts in urban spaces is a fruitful starting point. Launching the notion of iconic religion, this introduction

Crime fiction and mediatized religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Kim Toft

Scandinavian media where religion has become mediatized. Consumers of popular culture no longer endorse confidence in institutionalized religion, but that does not mean that people are losing faith: Faith only seems to adjust itself and tiptoe into popular media and popular fiction. Hence, this paper seeks...

Religion in Scandinavian Crime Fiction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Kim Toft

Scandinavian media where religion has become mediatized. Consumers of popular culture no longer endorse confidence in institutionalized religion, but that does not mean that people are losing faith: Faith only seem to adjust itself and tiptoe into popular media and popular fiction. Hence, this paper seeks...

Feminisms and Challenges to Institutionalized Philosophy of Religion

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Nathan Eric Dickman

2018-04-01

Full Text Available For my invited contribution to this special issue of Religions on “Feminisms and the Study of ‘Religions,’” I focus on philosophy of religion and contestations over its relevance to the academic field of Religious Studies. I amplify some feminist philosophers’ voices—especially Pamela Sue Anderson—in corroboration with recent calls from Religious Studies scholars to diversify philosophy of religions in the direction of locating it properly within the current state of Religious Studies. I want to do this by thinking through two proposals in productive tension: first, any philosophy of religions worthy of the name is intrinsically feminist; second, any philosophy of religions worthy of the name is intrinsically traditional. I want to use the productive tension between these two to illuminate ways calls for broadening the field can be enhanced when such calls are seen as both feminist and traditional. I proceed as follows. First, I note three instances of explicitly feminist work in philosophy of religions that do not suffer from the same narrowness as so-called “traditional” philosophy of religion. Religious Studies critics of philosophy of religion overstate the case in claiming feminist philosophy of religion is too narrow. Second, I develop a useful distinction between the concepts of “tradition” and “institution” to locate forces of oppression more precisely in dynamics of institutionalization so that we might rehabilitate tradition as a resource for combating institutionalized oppressiveness. I do this in response to the hegemony of current philosophers of religion who claim to speak about “the traditional god.” And third, I briefly coordinate four topics in religions from diverse feminist perspectives to help refine paths of inquiry for future philosophy of religions that is both feminist and traditional. My hope is that these clarify a philosophy of religions renewed through feminisms—moving from fringe to

[The role of religion in the promotion of health, in the prevention of violence and in the rehabilitation of individuals involved in criminal activity: literature review].

Science.gov (United States)

Ribeiro, Fernanda Mendes Lages; Minayo, Maria Cecília de Souza

2014-06-01

This is a review of the literature on the role of religion in the promotion of health, the prevention of violence and the rehabilitation of individuals involved in criminal activities. Research was conducted in the Medline through PubMed, Lilacs, Scopus, Social Index with full text, Sociological abstracts and Social services abstracts databases. Twenty-nine essays in Portuguese, English and Spanish were selected and analyzed between 1990 and 2011. The results indicate the function of the religious group and the role of religion in the rehabilitation of individuals, the prevention of criminal involvement, corrective orientations and in social iniquity environments. A debate is presented on the main themes revealed, highlighting the multiplicity of religious roles, their influence over prisoners, as a social control and support base and its influence on mental health promotion and quality of life. The relation between religion and the public sphere is discussed, emphasizing the role of religious groups and the fragility of the State in providing basic public policies. Despite revealing the successful role of religion in violence prevention and in rehabilitation, some studies question this relation and highlight the conflicts between the concepts employed and the final results.

La religion à l’école en Allemagne

OpenAIRE

Schreiner, Peter

2012-01-01

L’Allemagne est un État séculier, philosophiquement neutre. La liberté de religion, garantie par la Constitution, comprend aussi bien la liberté d’avoir ou non une religion (liberté de religion négative) que la libre expression de cette religion (liberté de religion positive). La population appartient en majorité à l’une des deux grandes confessions chrétiennes : l’Église catholique ou l’Église protestante. Le nombre de musulmans est en augmentation ; les autres confessions représentent une p...

Religion zwischen Zugehörigkeit und Differenz Religion between Belonging and Difference

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Veronika Springmann

2007-03-01

Full Text Available Der vorliegende zweisprachige Sammelband präsentiert elf Beiträge einer Tagung, die 2003 an der Humboldt Universität zu Berlin stattfand. Vorgestellt werden unterschiedliche Zugriffe auf den Themenkomplex Geschlecht, Gewalt und Religion.The dual-language collected volume at hand presents eleven contributions based on a conference that took place at Humboldt University in 2003. The volume introduces different manners of accessing the network of themes of gender, violence, and religion.

Teaching religions in Indonesia Islamic Higher education: from comparative religion to Religious Studies

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Media Zainul Bahri

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This article focuses on how the study of Comparative Religion conducted in Indonesian Islamic higher institutions, i.e. on both UIN Yogyakarta and Jakartasince the beginning of the New Order (1960s to Reform era (2014. The focus of the study was on models/approaches and main issues. In general, for more than half a century, the comparative study of religion is not been done for academic purposes an sich. Just within the new last decade that theoretical studies of Comparative Religion began developed. Another important thing that the study of Comparative Religion in Indonesia, although mostly referring to the methodological sources of the West and the Middle East, but ithas always been associated with religious and cultural context of Indonesia.Therefore, the study on both UIN Yogyakarta and Jakarta always deliver courseson religions that live in Indonesia alongside with Indonesian contemporary issues. In the reform era, though still using Comparative Religion’s term, butit looks religious studies such as used in the West. Thus, its “form” or “clothes”is Comparative Religion but it is religious studies. Artikel ini fokus pada bagaimana studi Perbandingan Agama yang dilakukan di lembaga-lembaga pendidikan tinggi Islam Indonesia, yaitu pada UIN Yogyakarta dan Jakarta sejak awal Orde Baru (1960 Reformasi era (2014. Fokus penelitian adalah pada model/pendekatan dan isu-isu utama. Secara umum, selama lebih dari setengah abad, studi perbandingan agama tidak dilakukan untuk tujuan akademik an sich. Hanya dalam dekade terakhir studi teoritis Perbandingan Agama mulai dikembangkan. Hal lain yang penting bahwa studi Perbandingan Agama di Indonesia, meskipun sebagian besar mengacu padasumber-sumber metodologi Barat dan Timur Tengah, tetapi selalu dikaitkan dengan konteks agama dan budaya Indonesia. Oleh karena itu, penelitian pada kedua UIN Yogyakarta dan Jakarta selalu memberikan kursus tentang agamayang hidup di Indonesia bersama dengan isu

Life Interpretation and Religion among Icelandic Teenagers

Science.gov (United States)

Gunnarsson, Gunnar J.

2009-01-01

Does religion play any specific part in Icelandic teenagers' life interpretation? This paper examines Icelandic teenagers' talk about religion and presents some of the findings in interviews with teenagers in a qualitative research project. The focus is especially on how three individuals express themselves about the influence of religion on their…

Freedom of religion in the 21st century : A human rights perspective on the relation between politics and religion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ziebertz, Hans-Georg; Hirsch Ballin, Ernst

2015-01-01

Freedom of religion consists of the right to practice, to manifest and to change one’s religion. The modern democratic state is neutral towards the variety of religions, but protects the right of citizens to practice their different religious beliefs. Recent history shows that a number of religious

“An atheistic American is a contradiction in terms”: Religion, Civic Belonging and Collective Identity in the United States

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Amandine Barb

2011-02-01

Full Text Available Through the analysis of the status and perception of atheists in American history, from the colonial times to the beginning of the 21st century, this article explores the importance of religion in the structuring of Americans’ national and civic imaginaries. Starting from the assumption that atheists have always tended to be a distrusted minority in the United States, this essay seeks more precisely to explain how and why not to believe in God came to be regarded through the centuries not only as a moral and social deviance, but also as essentially “un-American” behavior. It further demonstrates that the historical “otherness” of the atheist tends to indicate that religion has functioned as one of the “moral boundaries” of a certain American “imagined community”, perceived as an essential warranty of both individual virtue and “good citizenship” and as a basic attribute of the American “self”.I. Introduction

Religion, symbols and the human condition : An analysis of the basic ideas of Jan van Baal

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kuiper, Yme; Hubbeling, Hubertus G.; Kippenberg, Hans G.

1986-01-01

The anthrology of religion of the eminent Dutch scholar Jan van Baal is a lucid synthesis of existentialm and structuralism. Van Baal interprets religion and ritual as symbols for communication. His fieldwork among the Marind-anim in Dutch New Guinea has strongly been inspired by Dutch and French

Religion and Politics by Other Means

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José Fernando Serrano Amaya

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The article discusses the 2016 debate over egalitarian adoption in Colombia in order to suggest that in the fields of gender and sexuality, religion and politics constitute the same flow of signifiers. That flow is dislocated, temporary, and unstable, since it depends on the dynamics of social conflicts and political transitions. Thus, the Colombian case can be interpreted as the emergence of a religious project in political terms, which secularizes its discourse in order to spiritualize society.  In turn, both the legal debate, with its appeal to State authority, and populism, with its longing to return to founding principles, are means for that emergence.

Fantasy som religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Davidsen, Markus

2010-01-01

Artiklen redegør for George Lucas' religionspædagogiske projekt med Star Wars og jediismens brug af Star Wars som religiøs tekst i en fantasybaseret religion. Afslutningsvist gives en række forslag til hvordan man kan anvende Star Wars og jediismen i folkeskolens religionsundervisning.......Artiklen redegør for George Lucas' religionspædagogiske projekt med Star Wars og jediismens brug af Star Wars som religiøs tekst i en fantasybaseret religion. Afslutningsvist gives en række forslag til hvordan man kan anvende Star Wars og jediismen i folkeskolens religionsundervisning....

MAIN PROBLEMS OF THE PHILOSOPHICAL CRITIQUE OF RELIGION

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Jowita Guja

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The paper is a synthetic overview of main problems of the philosophical critique of religion. In the beginning I identify and characterize three general threads of the critique: the enlightenment, the alienational and the thread which focuses on the problem of theodicy. The greater part of my article is devoted to the alienational critique of religion n its two types: atheistic (Feuerbach, Marx, Freud, Nietzsche, Sartre and theistic (Barth. The subjects of my analysis are the sources and foundations of the alienational critique of religion and the most important problems implied by it: the essence of religion, the ideal of the irreligious man, the prospect to remove religion. The analysis presents troubles and confusions connected to these subjects: they emerge in atheistic type of alienational critique of religion.

A qualitative investigation of Muslim and Christian women's views of religion and feminism in their lives.

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, Saba Rasheed; Mahmood, Amina; Moel, Joy; Hudson, Carolyn; Leathers, Leslie

2008-01-01

This qualitative investigation explored a relatively understudied aspect of cultural diversity: feminism and religion in the lives of religiously diverse women. More specifically, structured interviews were used to investigate views of religion, women's issues, gender roles, culture, and feminism for a small group of Muslim and Christian women living in the United States. The data were analyzed using consensual qualitative research methods (Hill, Thompson, & Williams, 1997). Findings indicated a complex relationship between feminism, gender roles, culture, and religion for these women with the majority of the Muslim women reporting that their religion supports feminist principles and identifying themselves as feminist. Christian women were less willing to endorse the feminist label. Implications for multicultural feminist practice are discussed. 2008 APA

Identifying the Core Content and Structure of a Schema for Cultural Understanding

Science.gov (United States)

2009-06-01

Guatemala, Haiti, Holland, Honduras, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia , Mexico, Nassau, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines... Leisure Orientation toward U.S. Military/Civilian Religion Technology Time Work Taboos Social structure Similarities and differences Key

Religion, Sexuality, and Internalized Homonegativity: Confronting Cognitive Dissonance in the Abrahamic Religions.

Science.gov (United States)

Meladze, Pikria; Brown, Jac

2015-10-01

This research was aimed at investigating how religious beliefs and internalized shame predicted homonegativity. An online survey, which consisted of a self-report questionnaire assessing religious orientation, internalized shame, and internalized homonegativity, was completed by 133 Caucasian and Asian gay men. The respondents also were asked to write a short answer in which they had to explain how they integrated their religion and sexual practices. The quantitative analyses of data demonstrated no significant difference in internalized homonegativity among the two cultural groups. Internalized homonegativity was predicted by the main Abrahamic faiths (i.e. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism) and internalized shame. Qualitative analysis showed that gay men who adhere to a monotheistic religious faith follow a different path to reconciling their religion and homosexuality compared to gay men who adhere to Philosophical/New Age religions or to gay men who have no religious faith. The implications of these findings as well as directions for future research studies were discussed.

Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus and Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Stig Børsen

2011-01-01

This paper explores the relevance of Wittgenstein’s early work for treatments of religion. The first section briefly outlines some different interpretive possibilities with respect to early Wittgenstein’s thinking. The following section explores the idea that what is important about early...... play a role in treatments of religion. This they do either by exhibiting parallels between themes in theology and themes in logic, or they do so by playing a role in assessing cosmological arguments in the philosophy of religion....

Science and Religion in Liberal Democracy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jønch-Clausen, Karin

The dissertation explores the role of scientific rationality and religious reasoning in democratic law and policymaking. How does legitimate law and policymaking proceed in light of disagreements on science and religion? This question is addressed within the framework of public reason. Roughly pu...... concerning the role science and religion in political deliberation challenge the public reason framework as viable vehicle for pursuing democratic legitimacy? The dissertation discusses these and other questions related to the special role of science and religion in liberal democracy....

Why religion deserves a place in secular medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Biggar, Nigel

2015-03-01

As a science and practice transcending metaphysical and ethical disagreements, 'secular' medicine should not exist. 'Secularity' should be understood in an Augustinian sense, not a secularist one: not as a space that is universally rational because it is religion-free, but as a forum for the negotiation of rival reasonings. Religion deserves a place here, because it is not simply or uniquely irrational. However, in assuming his rightful place, the religious believer commits himself to eschewing sheer appeals to religious authorities, and to adopting reasonable means of persuasion. This can come quite naturally. For example, Christianity (theo)logically obliges liberal manners in negotiating ethical controversies in medicine. It also offers reasoned views of human being and ethics that bear upon medicine and are not universally held-for example, a humanist view of human dignity, the bounding of individual autonomy by social obligation, and a special concern for the weak. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Religion and Education in Ireland: Growing Diversity--or Losing Faith in the System?

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Rougier, Nathalie; Honohan, Iseult

2015-01-01

This paper examines the evolution of the state-supported denominational education system in Ireland in the context of increasing social diversity, and considers the capacity for incremental change in a system of institutional pluralism hitherto dominated by a single religion. In particular, we examine challenges to the historical arrangements…

Religion Education Teaching in Zimbabwe Secondary Schools: The Search for an Authentic Values-Oriented Multi-Faith Religion Education Pedagogical Model

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Ndlovu, Lovemore

2014-01-01

Religion Education teaching in post-independence Zimbabwe has remained bible-oriented and confessional at a time when most Religion Education stakeholders expect an "open", plural and authentic multi-faith Religion Education curriculum. Despite curriculum innovation initiatives aimed at introducing new approaches such as experiential…

Ontological forms of religious meaning and the conflict between science and religion

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Hathcoat, John D.; Habashi, Janette

2013-06-01

Epistemological constructions are central considerations in vivisecting an expressed conflict between science and religion. It is argued that the conflict thesis is only meaningful when examined from a specific socio-historical perspective. The dialectical relation between science and religion should therefore be considered at both a macro and micro level. At the macro level broad changes in the meaning of science and religion occur; whereas at the micro level individuals immersed within particular expressions of these concepts socially construct, re-construct, and appropriate meaning. Specific attention is given to expressions of meaning surrounding sacred texts in this dialectical relation. Two ontological forms of meaning are examined through a qualitative content analysis of 16 interviews with individuals from various religious affiliation and academic attainment. A monistic ontology constructs textual meaning as facts that have the qualities of being both self-evident and certain. Potential tension arises with scientific discourse given empirical evidence may either confirm or conflict with scriptural interpretation. The pluralistic ontology constructs textual meaning with multiple categories, which in turn have the qualities of being mediated by human consciousness and uncertain. The science-religion dichotomy appears to be less susceptible to conflict given the uncertainty embedded in this construction of scriptural meaning. This paper implies that truth as correspondence may not necessitate the conflict thesis.

Effects of religion, economics, and geography on genetic structure of Fogo Island, Newfoundland.

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Crawford, M H; Koertevlyessy, T; Huntsman, R G; Collins, M; Duggirala, R; Martin, L; Keeping, D

1995-01-01

The population structure of Fogo Island, Newfoundland is described using geography, religious affiliation, economic factors (such as the presence of a fish-packing plant), and genetic markers. Five different analytic methods, R-matrix analysis, r ii VS. mean per locus heterozygosity, predicted kinship (ϕ), mean first passage time, and Mantel matrix comparisons, were applied to the Fogo Island genetic and demographic data. The results suggest that geography plays a role on Fogo Island in the distribution of genes, while religion, ethnicity, and economic factors play less significant roles. The communities with fish-packing plants and tourism serve as migratory "sinks" for Fogo islanders seeking employment. Reproductively, the most isolated village on Fogo Island is Tilting, and this is reflected in its genetic uniqueness, initially caused by Irish settlement and subsequently the action of stochastic processes. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Copyright © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc., A Wiley Company.

Religion as a Risk Factor for Suicide Attempt and Suicide Ideation Among Depressed Patients.

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Lawrence, Ryan E; Brent, David; Mann, J John; Burke, Ainsley K; Grunebaum, Michael F; Galfalvy, Hanga C; Oquendo, Maria A

2016-11-01

We aimed to examine the relationship between religion and suicide attempt and ideation. Three hundred twenty-one depressed patients were recruited from mood-disorder research studies at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. Participants were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM Disorders, Columbia University Suicide History form, Scale for Suicide Ideation, and Reasons for Living Inventory. Participants were asked about their religious affiliation, importance of religion, and religious service attendance. We found that past suicide attempts were more common among depressed patients with a religious affiliation (odds ratio, 2.25; p = 0.007). Suicide ideation was greater among depressed patients who considered religion more important (coefficient, 1.18; p = 0.026) and those who attended services more frequently (coefficient, 1.99; p = 0.001). We conclude that the relationship between religion and suicide risk factors is complex and can vary among different patient populations. Physicians should seek deeper understanding of the role of religion in an individual patient's life in order to understand the person's suicide risk factors more fully.

Structure Mapping for Social Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Christie, Stella

2017-07-01

Analogical reasoning is a foundational tool for human learning, allowing learners to recognize relational structures in new events and domains. Here I sketch some grounds for understanding and applying analogical reasoning in social learning. The social world is fundamentally characterized by relations between people, with common relational structures-such as kinships and social hierarchies-forming social units that dictate social behaviors. Just as young learners use analogical reasoning for learning relational structures in other domains-spatial relations, verbs, relational categories-analogical reasoning ought to be a useful cognitive tool for acquiring social relations and structures. Copyright © 2017 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Religion, Education and Citizenship Education: The Challenge of Turning Religion Upside Down

OpenAIRE

Bakker, Cok

2013-01-01

Reflecting on the link between religion and religious tradition(s) on the one hand and school and education on the other, and reflecting on the reasoning strategy to make sense of this link, people seem to tend strongly to think, argue and reflect in a deductive mode (this point is elaborated in par. 3). This part of the argument is followed by considering the religious claims people make concerning the impact of religion on the day-to-day educational practice, it is, empirically speaking. It...

Religion and Sexual Identity Fluidity in a National Three-Wave Panel of U.S. Adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Scheitle, Christopher P; Wolf, Julia Kay

2018-05-01

Research has shown that cross-sectional estimates of sexual identities overlook fluidity in those identities. Research has also shown that social factors, such as competing identities, can influence sexual identity fluidity. We contributed to this literature in two ways. First, we utilized a representative panel of US adults (N = 1034) surveyed in 2010, 2012, and 2014 by the General Social Survey. The addition of a third observation allowed us to examine more complexity in sexual identity fluidity. We found that 2.40% of US adults reported at least one change in sexual identity across the 4 years, with 1.59% reporting one change and 0.81% reporting two changes. Our second contribution came from examining the role of religion, as past research has suggested that religion can destabilize and prolong sexual identity development. We found that lesbian or gay individuals (N = 17), bisexuals (N = 15), and females (N = 585) showed more sexual identity fluidity compared to heterosexuals (N = 1003) and males (N = 450), respectively. Marital status, age, race, and education did not have significant associations with sexual identity fluidity. Regarding the role of religion, we found that participants identifying as more religious in Wave 1 showed more fluidity in sexual identity across later observations. Further analysis showed that higher levels of religiosity make it more likely that lesbian or gay individuals will be fluid in sexual identity, but this is not the case for heterosexual individuals. This finding reinforces past qualitative research that has suggested that religion can extend or complicate sexual minorities' identity development.

The emergence of Islam through the theoretical prism of Max Weber: The role of spatial context, social actors and social strata in the process of defining and expansion of the Islamic religion

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Jovanović Nataša

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Weber's theoretical legacy contains only fragments of thinking about Islam, primarily in the texts and monographs that as the main object of study did not have this religion. This fact is a big problem to contemporary researchers who want to reconstruct Weber's perception of Islam and positioning it in its theoretical and methodological coordinates. However, this barrier gives rise to modern researchers to engage in the challenge of reconstruction of the mentioned segment Weber's thoughts. This paper is an attempt of such a reconstruction. The paper analyzes the emergence of Islam, ie. spatial and social context of the founding of the Islamic religious dogma. The author starts from the hypothesis that in Weber's theoretical and analytical equation the importance of urban areas for the development and spread of Islam is absent. Also, in the paper author points to another error that Weber makes. Weber classified Islam in the category of warrior religion, and ignored the role of trade and commercial bed in the formulation of Islamic dogma and the (economic practices. In order to more adequately respond to the request 'placement' of Islam in the theoretical coordinates of Weber's sociology (of religion, author of the paper emphasizes the universality of the rationalization process, proving that Islam is one of the better examples of substantive rationality in the religious domain (because Islamic dogma implies a holistic approach to the believer and the high level of submission to the sacred text in all areas of its life.

Religions in Fiction for Junior and Senior High Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Knafle, June D.

2001-01-01

Examines current adolescent fiction of award-winning and widely read authors according to religious themes concerning Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Native American religions, African spirit religions, and the occult, supernatural, and New Age. Finds that the portrayal of religions and its adherents is very mixed, depending upon the religion.…

The religion of thinness

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Michelle Lelwica

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the almost religious-like devotion of especially women in pursuing the goal of a thinner body. The quest for a slender body is analysed as a ‘cultural religion’, which the author calls the ‘Religion of Thinness’. The analysis revolves around four observations. The first is that for many women in the US today, the quest for a slender body serves what has historically been a ‘religious’ function: providing a sense of purpose that orients and gives meaning to their lives, especially in times of suffering and uncertainty. Second, this quest has many features in common with traditional religions, including beliefs, myths, rituals, moral codes, and sacred images—all of which encourage women to find ‘salvation’ (i.e., happiness and well-being through the pursuit of a ‘better’ (i.e., thinner body.Third, this secular faith draws so many adherents in large part because it appeals to and addresses what might be referred to as spiritual needs—including the need for a sense of purpose, inspiration, security, virtue, love, and well-being—even though it shortchanges these needs, and, in the long run, fails to deliver the salvation it promises. Fourth, a number of traditional religious ideas, paradigms and motifs tacit­ly inform and support the Religion of Thinness. More specifically, its soteri­ology resurrects and recycles the misogynist, anti-body, other-worldly, and exclusivist aspects of patriarchal religion. Ultimately, the analysis is not only critical of the Religion of Thinness; it also raises suspicions about any clear-cut divisions between ‘religion’, ‘culture’, and ‘the body’. In fact, examining the functions, features, and ideologies embedded in this secular devotion gives us insight into the constitutive role of the body in the production and apprehension of religious and cultural meanings.

The Need to Re-Conceptualize African 'Traditional' Religion

African Journals Online (AJOL)

First Lady

definitions of religion, point out the areas of misconception about African religion ... concrete deity or not‖ by William James (1902) opens up the idea of religion .... a belief which is also very central in the Judeo-Christian faith, especially in.

Religion, Psychology and Globalisation Process: Attitudinal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A key consequence of globalisation is the integrative approach to reality whereby emphasis is ... between psychology and religion has revolutionised the field of psychology of religion ..... paranormal or abnormal. In this wise, one is able to ...

No Religion Is an Island: Teaching World Religions to Adolescents in a Jewish Educational Context

Science.gov (United States)

Reimer, Joseph

2013-01-01

What is the place of teaching about other world religions in a Jewish educational curriculum for adolescents? This article explores a course in world religions that has been taught at the Genesis Program at Brandeis University since 2001. Based on a participant observational study during 2002 and 2012, the author traces how the teachers construct…

The School and Religion: Do They Need One Another?

Science.gov (United States)

Anisimova, R. A.

1993-01-01

Asserts that certain issues that are connected in some way to religion continue to endure. Reports on a study of 227 Russian teachers regarding their views toward religion, atheism, and religion's role in society. Concludes that Russian educators should define their attitudes toward churches and use religion to help improve society. (CFR)

On Religion and Language Evolutions Seen Through Mathematical and Agent Based Models

Science.gov (United States)

Ausloos, M.

Religions and languages are social variables, like age, sex, wealth or political opinions, to be studied like any other organizational parameter. In fact, religiosity is one of the most important sociological aspects of populations. Languages are also obvious characteristics of the human species. Religions, languages appear though also disappear. All religions and languages evolve and survive when they adapt to the society developments. On the other hand, the number of adherents of a given religion, or the number of persons speaking a language is not fixed in time, - nor space. Several questions can be raised. E.g. from a oscopic point of view : How many religions/languages exist at a given time? What is their distribution? What is their life time? How do they evolve? From a "microscopic" view point: can one invent agent based models to describe oscopic aspects? Do simple evolution equations exist? How complicated must be a model? These aspects are considered in the present note. Basic evolution equations are outlined and critically, though briefly, discussed. Similarities and differences between religions and languages are summarized. Cases can be illustrated with historical facts and data. It is stressed that characteristic time scales are different. It is emphasized that "external fields" are historically very relevant in the case of religions, rending the study more " interesting" within a mechanistic approach based on parity and symmetry of clusters concepts. Yet the modern description of human societies through networks in reported simulations is still lacking some mandatory ingredients, i.e. the non scalar nature of the nodes, and the non binary aspects of nodes and links, though for the latter this is already often taken into account, including directions. From an analytical point of view one can consider a population independently of the others. It is intuitively accepted, but also found from the statistical analysis of the frequency distribution that an

Religion and family planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Pinter, Bojana; Hakim, Marwan; Seidman, Daniel S; Kubba, Ali; Kishen, Meera; Di Carlo, Costantino

2016-12-01

Religion is embedded in the culture of all societies. It influences matters of morality, ideology and decision making, which concern every human being at some point in their life. Although the different religions often lack a united view on matters such contraception and abortion, there is sometimes some dogmatic overlap when general religious principles are subject to the influence of local customs. Immigration and population flow add further complexities to societal views on reproductive issues. For example, present day Europe has recently faced a dramatic increase in refugee influx, which raises questions about the health care of immigrants and the effects of cultural and religious differences on reproductive health. Religious beliefs on family planning in, for example, Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism have grown from different backgrounds and perspectives. Understanding these differences may result in more culturally competent delivery of care by health care providers. This paper presents the teachings of the most widespread religions in Europe with regard to contraception and reproduction.

Grænser for religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lüchau, Peter

2015-01-01

Analyse af danskernes holdning til religion i det private og offentlige rum med fokus på en distinktion mellem religiøs autoritetsudøvelse og religiøs selvudfoldelse.......Analyse af danskernes holdning til religion i det private og offentlige rum med fokus på en distinktion mellem religiøs autoritetsudøvelse og religiøs selvudfoldelse....

A complicated answer to a simple question: Are believers and members of minority religions, churches and religious communities in postdayton BiH discriminated?

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Nagradić Slobodan

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The work treats the real social position of minority religions, denominations, religious communities and churches in postdayton Bosnia and Herzegovina. In other words, the author researches real social, political, legislative, mass-media-communicational, economic status and a status of so called small religious communities and churches in other spheres of existence like education, culture, public health etc., and seeks to answer to, from rhetorical point of view, simple question: are minority religions, denominations, religious communities and churches, as defined and treated by the Law on Freedom of Religion and Legal Position of Churches and Religious Communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, discriminated or not. In the focus of the author's analyses are equally institutional sphere or so called minority religious communities as such, but also and individuals, believers and followers of those institutionalized and formalized religious-denominational- ecclesial subjects having been named religious communities and churches. The results of the author's empirical-theoretical researches can be condensed into nuanced and complex answer whose content leads to conclusion that minority religions, churches and their members in several spheres of life are, after all, in inferior position, in spite of declarative equality of all religions, denominations, religious communities and churches. The author supports such conclusion with numerous and plausible arguments.

Renegotiating religious imaginations through transformations of "banal religion" in Supernatural

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Line Nybro

2010-01-01

implies long-term processes in which media play a role in cultural and social change. The theory of cognitive anthropology of religion allows us to understand how the series activates shared implicit knowledge of supernatural agents and events to evoke recognition and emotion; but by transforming...... applies these narrative devices, which heighten plausibility and familiarity, while simultaneously offering viewers a change in perspective, thus creating opportunities for viewers to renegotiate existing religious imaginations....

Renegotiating religious imaginations through transformations of "banal religion" in Supernatural

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Line Nybro

implies long-term processes in which media play a role in cultural and social change. The theory of cognitive anthropology of religion allows us to understand how the series activates shared implicit knowledge of supernatural agents and events to evoke recognition and emotion; but by transforming...... applies these narrative devices, which heighten plausibility and familiarity, while simultaneously offering viewers a change in perspective, thus creating opportunities for viewers to renegotiate existing religious imaginations....

Background and Perspectives of Introducing the Course on Religion / Religions into Syllabi in Belarus (Based on the Results of Sociological Survey of 2011–2013, Minsk

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S. KARASSYOVA

2015-06-01

Full Text Available In order to get the full vision of the background and perspective of possible introduction of the course on religion into syllabi, the Centre for Research in Religious Studies at the Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences of Belarusian State University initiated in 2011 a complex study of the problem based on the combination of quantitative and qualitative sociological methods. In 2011–2013, in Minsk, questioning of senior pupils and school parents was conducted (2011, questionnaire, as well as questioning of school teachers and headmasters (2012–2013, focused interview, questionnaire. It was found that senior pupils and school parents do not mind the course on religion would be introduced into schools in case it is of secular nature, optional, and telling about various religions. Senior pupils and parents hold hand—they prefer to make their opinion about the course and then decide. School teachers add that, in case the course is introduced as compulsory, it is better it would be studied in all stages of school education and only by the professionally educated specialists. The analysis of the collected data is provided in the context of characterizing religious situation, as well as legal principles and the practice of collaboration of religious and educational institutions in Belarus.

The social structure of schooling.

Science.gov (United States)

Dornbusch, S M; Glasgow, K L; Lin, I C

1996-01-01

The term social structure refers to a relatively enduring pattern of social arrangements or interrelations within a particular society, organization, or group. This chapter reviews how the social structure of the larger society and the organizational structure of schools affect the educational process within American schools. The institutional context of schooling is first discussed. The ideology of mass education, social stratification, status attainment, credentialism, and the emphasis on ability differences are considered. The focus then shifts to the organizational structure of schools, beginning with a discussion of the external social context for school organization. Attention is given to professionalism and bureaucracy, institutional forms of organization, decentralized control, and community influences. Finally, the internal structure of school organization is considered: teachers' working conditions, status differences among students, and curriculum tracking. Throughout, the emphasis is on ways in which social structure influences what is taught in school, how it is taught, and what is learned.

Trisection of forces: gender, religion and the state--the case of state-run religious schools in Israel.

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Herzog, Hanna

2006-06-01

This article discusses the theoretical claims that 'gender', 'religion' and 'state' are not universal nor essentialist entities, but rather contingent phenomena embedded in time, place, and changing historical circumstances. Historical analysis of social processes reveals the complex relations between the three categories, as they individually and as a whole are re/constituted as changing co-tangential and often unpredictable phenomena. One case study presented in this article that of state-run religious schools in Israel demonstrates how state, religion and gender intersect. Through the analysis presented here, we see examples of the permeable boundaries between these social categories as well as the inter-relationships and unintended consequences of the interplay between the three. Paradoxically, graduates of these schools, especially women, have evolved from being members of a marginalized - even ignored - social category, to being active participants in the religious and political life of their community and in the political struggle over state policy regarding the future of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Apologising for the study of religion - no way!

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Tim

2017-01-01

the role of the scholar of religion,–and yet another example of the necessity of approaching Islam as any other religion, i.e. from a comparative, historical and critical-analytical point of view. Though the book (rightly) suggests that the academic study of religions is more novelty than norm...

Religion, ethnic groups and processes of social stratification in the United States. Mexicans and Chinese citizens’ situation from a comparative perspective

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Rafael Arriaga Martínez

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract. Through this article we are offering a global view of a theory that explains and contributes to the understanding of the position of ethnic groups in the United States within the social hierarchy. This research is focused toward a comparative analysis of Mexican and Chinese groups starting considering the following Weberian statements: a one that considers the influence of ideas and religious beliefs in the economic behavior of individuals, b and, another one that conceives religions as ethical vehicles liable to inhibit or stimulate the process of social stratification. In sum, this deals trying to consider the influence of diverse elements of religious culture in the makeup of certain economic behavior and context which is capable of vitalizing or hindering group dynamism in the social scale. This behavior is remarkably related to: a money in all its modalities, savings, expenses, investments, loans, etc., b work and entrepreneur business, and c family and communitarian solidarity. We also would like to emphasize on problems stemming from the practical applications of theory and method to the above mentioned phenomenon, emphasizing the productivity of concepts and analytical categories which are representative of a Methodological Individualism and Rational General Theory.

Geology and religion in Portugal

Science.gov (United States)

Carneiro, Ana; Simoes, Ana; Diogo, Maria Paula; Mota, Teresa Salomé

2013-01-01

This paper addresses the relationship between geology and religion in Portugal by focusing on three case studies of naturalists who produced original research and lived in different historical periods, from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. Whereas in non-peripheral European countries religious themes and even controversies between science and religion were dealt with by scientists and discussed in scientific communities, in Portugal the absence of a debate between science and religion within scientific and intellectual circles is particularly striking. From the historiographic point of view, in a country such as Portugal, where Roman Catholicism is part of the religious and cultural tradition, the influence of religion in all aspects of life has been either taken for granted by those less familiar with the national context or dismissed by local intellectuals, who do not see it as relevant to science. The situation is more complex than these dichotomies, rendering the study of this question particularly appealing from the historiographic point of view, geology being by its very nature a well-suited point from which to approach the theme. We argue that there is a long tradition of independence between science and religion, agnosticism and even atheism among local elites. Especially from the eighteenth century onwards, they are usually portrayed as enlightened minds who struggled against religious and political obscurantism. Religion—or, to be more precise, the Roman Catholic Church and its institutions—was usually identified with backwardness, whereas science was seen as the path to progress; consequently men of science usually dissociated their scientific production from religious belief.

Rethinking the Space for Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

What happens to people’s sense of belonging when globalization meets with proclaimed regional identities resting heavily on conceptions of religion and ethnicity? Who are the actors stressing cultural heritage and authenticity as tools for self-understanding? In Rethinking the Space for Religion...... as a political and cultural argument. The approach makes a nuanced and fresh survey for researchers and other initiated readers to engage in....

The Religion Teacher's Handbook: A Primer on the Vocation of Teaching Catholic High School Religion

Science.gov (United States)

Mueting, Timothy R.

2017-01-01

All Catholic school teachers are called to be evangelists and catechists. Religion teachers have a special duty to teach religion systematically in a classroom. This book is meant to be a handbook or guidebook with practical elements of teaching and sample lesson plans and projects.

Criminalising defamation of religion and belief

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Noorloos, L.A.

2014-01-01

This article deals with the role of criminal law in dealing with defamatory expressions about religion or belief. Defamation of religion and belief is a form of indirect defamation ‘via identification’ which, as the discussion about the Dutch group defamation law shows, stretches up the notion of

Shifting boundaries: religion, medicine, nursing and domestic service in mid-nineteenth-century Britain.

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Helmstadter, Carol

2009-06-01

The boundaries between medicine, religion, nursing and domestic service were fluid in mid-nineteenth-century England. The traditional religious understanding of illness conflicted with the newer understanding of anatomically based disease, the Anglican sisters were drawing a line between professional nursing and the traditional role of nurses as domestic servants who looked after sick people as one of their many duties, and doctors were looking for more knowledgeable nurses who could carry out their orders competently. This prosopographical study of the over 200 women who served as government nurses during the Crimean War 1854-56 describes the status of nursing and provides a picture of the religious and social structure of Britain in the 1850s. It also illustrates how religious, political and social factors affected the development of the new nursing. The Crimean War nurses can be divided into four major groups: volunteer secular ladies, Roman Catholic nuns, Anglican sisters and working-class hospital nurses. Of these four groups I conclude that it was the experienced working-class nurses who had the greatest influence on the organization of the new nursing.

Religion in Chinese Education: From Denial to Cooperation

Science.gov (United States)

Nanbu, Hirotaka

2008-01-01

In China, from the founding of the People's Republic of China to the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, it was thought that religion would disappear with the development of society and the freedom not to believe in religion was stressed. During the Cultural Revolution religion became the object of oppression. However, from the end of the…

The World Religions Paradigm Time for a Change

Science.gov (United States)

Owen, Suzanne

2011-01-01

The teaching of religions has long relied on the World Religions paradigm to guide curricula throughout education, which has led to a widening gap, on the one hand, between what is taught in schools and in universities and, on the other, between research and teaching. While the World Religions paradigm has allowed the inclusion of non-Christian…

Black Tribal African Religion with Some Emphasis on Christianity and Islam in Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Emmons, Marian

This 6th grade social studies unit delves into the belief systems and external religious, cultural practices of Black Africans. It is part of a series of guides developed by the Public Education Religion Studies Center at Wright State University. Study is focused upon the Ashanti tribe of Ghana knowing that although the multiplicity of tribes have…

Religion and International Migration: A Case Study of Ukraine

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Wadim Strielkowski

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This paper studies the relationships between religion and migration in modern-day Ukraine. We focus on Ukraine’s numerous churches and their attitude toward the phenomenon of emigration, their relevant activities with regard to the outward migration from the country, and the migration experiences and intentions of the believers. We find that the Greek Catholic Church has put special attention on the emigration phenomenon in its social doctrine, while the doctrines of other churches have been less elaborate, both in general terms and with regard to the issue of external migration in particular. Moreover, we demonstrate that worshippers belonging to the different churches have very similar growing concerns about the negative effects of Ukraine’s economic development—social divide and unemployment in particular.

Indigenous religions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Geertz, Armin W.

2009-01-01

Dette essay diskuterer en publikation af James L. Cox med titlen From Primitive to Indigenous (2007). Bogen analyserer forskellige forfatteres holdninger til studiet af indfødte kulturers religioner. Cox's analyser tages op i dette essay og de problematiseres i forhold til mit eget arbejde....

La religione come tecnica difensiva dell'identità soggettiva

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Sergio Fabio Berardini

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Religion as a Defensive Technique for Subjective Identity - From a naturalistic perspective, the study of religion immediately leads to a problematic point: if religion is so widespread, to the extent that it seems to be a trait inscribed in human nature, then it should have adaptive advantages or, at the very least, it should not have disadvantages that would stand in the way of the survival of those who practice religion. In the former case, we need to understand the function of religion, viz. a utility it confers that may justify its persistence across human history. Against the backdrop of an anthropological model that considers subjectivity identity to be characterized by ontological fragility, this article will offer a special version of the claim that religion, viewed as a byproduct, has a positive function: we will make the hypothesis that it contributes to the defense of the unity of self-consciousness. Thus our focus will be on religion construed as a repertoire of strategies designed to protect the self.

E-"jing": Using Information Technology to Teach about Chinese Religions

Science.gov (United States)

Deitrick, Jim

2008-01-01

This article discusses ways in which modern online information technologies may be used to enhance students' understanding of Chinese religions and religious texts. This discussion is predicated upon a model of linguistic communication that places significant weight on the structures and "sedimented presuppositions" of language in determining the…

Religion, Heuristics, and Intergenerational Risk Management

OpenAIRE

Rupert Read; Nassim Nicholas Taleb

2014-01-01

Religions come with risk-​managing interdicts and heuristics, and they carry such interdicts and heuristics across generations. We remark on such facets of religion in relation to a propensity among some decision scientists and others to regard practices that they cannot understand as being irrational, biased, and so on.

Christianity's Response to the Discovery of Extraterrestrial Intelligent Life: Insights from Science and Religion and the Sociology of Religion

Science.gov (United States)

Bertka, Constance M.

The question of whether or not extraterrestrial life exists and its potential impact for religions, especially Christianity, is an ancient one addressed in numerous historical publications. The contemporary discussion has been dominated by a few notable scientists from the SETI and astrobiology communities, and by a few Christian theologians active in the science and religion field. This discussion amounts to scientists outside of the faith tradition predicting the demise of Christianity if extraterrestrial intelligent life is discovered and theologians within the tradition predicting the enrichment and reformulation of Christian doctrine. Missing from this discussion is insight drawn more broadly from the science and religion field and from the sociology of religion. A consideration of how possibilities for relating science and religion are reflected in the US public's varied acceptance of the theory of evolution; the growth of Christianity in the Global South; and a revised theory of secularization which inversely correlates religiosity to existential security, gives credence to the proposal that the response from those outside of academia would be much more varied and uncertain.

Beyond Dualism: Expanded Understandings of Religion and Global Justice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wilson, Erin

2010-01-01

The world’s religions have strong traditions of contributing to theories and practices around justice. Recent debates on global justice within International Relations (IR), however, have largely overlooked possible contributions from religion. This article explores why religion is neglected, despite

Pretensiones normativas de la religión como problema. Una aproximación desde las teorías sobre secularización y diferenciación social de Habermas y Luhmann

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Cecilia Dockendorff

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the challenges posed by the current modus operandi of today's society with respect to understanding emergent religious phenomena, associated to major changes in the structure of complex modern society affecting the social function of religion. The debate builds on Habermas and Luhmann´s sociological theses regarding the current normative claims of religion and its corollary in the public sphere. Based on a case study of such emergent phenomena, it is argued that they are better understood by observing the consequences of the type of social differentiation that increasingly expands in today´s society, as they question and redefine the viability of current normative claims of religion.

Robert Bellah, religion og menneskelig evolution

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Hans Jørgen Lundager

2013-01-01

in the middle of 1st mill. BC, where new radical and intellectual ideas and practices, sceptial or world renouncing, appeared in China, India and Greece. Hopefully, Bellah's book will be a standard reference work in the academic study of religion and an inspiration for the history of religion in the future...

"World Religions" in Introductory Sociology Textbooks

Science.gov (United States)

Carroll, Michael P.

2017-01-01

A section on "world religions" (WRs) is now routinely included in the religion chapters of introductory sociology textbooks. Looking carefully at these WR sections, however, two things seem puzzling. The first is that the criteria for defining a WR varies considerably from textbook to textbook; the second is that these WRs sections…

The troubled relationship of state and religion in Eritrea

OpenAIRE

Mekonnen, Daniel R; Kidane, Selam

2014-01-01

Eritrea is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and multi-religion country. The country does not have an official state religion. However, since the country's independence in 1991, the relationship between state and religion has been a troubled one. At least four religions are officially recognised by the state: Islam, of the Sunni rite; the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church, part of the worldwide Coptic Orthodox Church of the eastern rite; the Eritrean Catholic Church, part of the worldwide Roman Ca...

Religion, migration og integration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Borup, Jørn

2010-01-01

Sammenhængen mellem religion og integration har de sidste år været genstand for debat. Artiklen kommer ind på begreber og sammenhænge relateret til området (migration, diaspora, assimilation, etnicitet, kultur) og ser på religionens mulige rolle som negativ eller positiv ressource i integrationss......Sammenhængen mellem religion og integration har de sidste år været genstand for debat. Artiklen kommer ind på begreber og sammenhænge relateret til området (migration, diaspora, assimilation, etnicitet, kultur) og ser på religionens mulige rolle som negativ eller positiv ressource i...

Truth, body and religion

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Jarl-Thure Eriksson

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This paper is based on the words of welcome to the symposium on Religion and the Body on 16 June 2010. In a religious context ‘truth’ is like a mantra, a certain imperative to believe in sacred things. The concept of truth and falseness arises, when we as humans compare reality, as we experience it through our senses, with the representation we have in our memory, a comparison of new information with stored information. If we look for the truth, we have to search in the human mind. There we will also find religion.

Perceptions of Parents on How Religion Influences Adolescents’ Sexual Behaviours in Two Ghanaian Communities: Implications for HIV and AIDS Prevention

OpenAIRE

Osafo, Joseph; Asampong, Emmanuel; Langmagne, Sussan; Ahiedeke, Clement

2014-01-01

To understand the role of religion in the sexual behaviours of adolescents, the views of parents who are key agents of socialization were examined from two south-eastern communities in Ghana. Focus Group interviews were conducted with mothers (and female caregivers) of adolescents and one with fathers (and male caregivers) of adolescents. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings indicated that parents from one community perceived religion as playing a double-edged role in adol...

Social inheritance can explain the structure of animal social networks

Science.gov (United States)

Ilany, Amiyaal; Akçay, Erol

2016-01-01

The social network structure of animal populations has major implications for survival, reproductive success, sexual selection and pathogen transmission of individuals. But as of yet, no general theory of social network structure exists that can explain the diversity of social networks observed in nature, and serve as a null model for detecting species and population-specific factors. Here we propose a simple and generally applicable model of social network structure. We consider the emergence of network structure as a result of social inheritance, in which newborns are likely to bond with maternal contacts, and via forming bonds randomly. We compare model output with data from several species, showing that it can generate networks with properties such as those observed in real social systems. Our model demonstrates that important observed properties of social networks, including heritability of network position or assortative associations, can be understood as consequences of social inheritance. PMID:27352101

Do spiritual patients want spiritual interventions?: A qualitative exploration of underserved cancer patients' perspectives on religion and spirituality.

Science.gov (United States)

Stein, Emma M; Kolidas, Evelyn; Moadel, Alyson

2015-02-01

This study examines religion and spirituality among advanced cancer patients from an underserved, ethnically-diverse population by exploring patient conceptualizations of religion and spirituality, the role of religion and spirituality in coping with cancer, and patient interest in spiritual support. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with patients who had participated in a study of a "mind-body" support group for patients with all cancer types. Analysis based on grounded theory was utilized to identify themes and theoretical constructs. With regard to patient conceptualizations of religion and spirituality, three categories emerged: (1) Spirituality is intertwined with organized religion; (2) Religion is one manifestation of the broader construct of spirituality; (3) Religion and spirituality are completely independent, with spirituality being desirable and religion not. Religion and spirituality played a central role in patients' coping with cancer, providing comfort, hope, and meaning. Patients diverged when it came to spiritual support, with some enthusiastic about interventions incorporating their spiritual values and others stating that they already get this support through religious communities. Spirituality plays a central role in the cancer experience of this underserved ethnically-diverse population. While spirituality seems to be a universal concern in advanced cancer patients, the meaning of spirituality differs across individuals, with some equating it with organized religion and others taking a more individualized approach. It is important that psychosocial interventions are developed to address this concern. Future research is needed to further explore the different ways that patients conceptualize spirituality and to develop spiritually-based treatments that are not "one size fits all."

Global Halal: Meat, Money, and Religion

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S. Romi Mukherjee

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The following article deconstructs (and demystifies Halal with a view to unraveling how the religious, racial, economic, and ethico-political are articulated in and around material technologies of meat production and bodily techniques of religious consumption/the consumption of religion. It, thus, attempts to rethink the nexus of food, politics, and contesting visions of the sacred and the profane, from within the folds of the global and global Islam. Halal emerges as a terrain replete with paradigmatic juridical and political questions about the impasses of social and culinary conviviality and cosmopolitanism. Although there is certainly nothing new about religious taboos on food on the body, Halal is far from being a personal or strictly communal set of strictures and practices. On the contrary, global Halal emerges as a new agonistic field typified by charged debates concerning the place of secularism, recognition, and “food diversity” in the global marketplace. This paper offers a cartography, both phenomenological and social scientific, of this multi-tiered site of meat, power, and belief.

Later Wittgenstein and the Philosophy of Religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Stig Børsen

2010-01-01

This article sets out by distinguishing Wittgenstein’s own views in the philosophy of religion from a school of thought in the philosophy of religion that relies on later Wittgenstein’s philosophy of language. After a survey of distinguishing features of Wittgenstein’s later philosophy, the third...... section explores Wittgenstein’s treatment of Frazer’s account of magic among primitive peoples. The following section offers an account of Wittgensteinian philosophy of religion, including the use of the notions of a language game and superstition. I conclude by criticizing a very influential argument...

The Green Revolution in the World’s Religions: Indonesian Examples in International Comparison

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Thomas A. Reuter

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Similar to progressive political movements, the programs of many religious and spiritual groups today are converging around a shared commitment to address the impending global ecological crisis. The paper explores this convergence by looking at the impact of environmentalist thought on religious discourses in modern Indonesia, the author’s primary research area, and comparing the findings to similar trends elsewhere. The research shows that the environmental movement is causing a transformation in how people understand the character and practical relevance of religion and spirituality today, in Indonesia and beyond. For some eco-spiritual groups, a heightened environmental awareness has become the central tenet of their monistic religious cosmology. The more significant phenomenon, however, is a socially much broader shift toward more science-friendly and contemporary religious cosmologies within the mainstream of major world religions. Islam and Christianity now officially accept that other forms of life have a right to exist and that humanity has a custodial obligation to protect nature. This new outlook rectifies the previous tendency within dualist religions to view nature as vastly inferior and servile to human interests. It simultaneously is a rejection of materialist-scientific cosmologies widely prevalent in late modern consumer societies, which deny any notion of the sacred. This trend in the world’s religions toward a re-evaluation of the cosmological status of humanity in relation to nature and the sacred, I argue, will enhance the prospects of the global environmental movement’s campaign for environmental sustainability.

Religion promotes a love for thy neighbour: But how big is the neighbourhood?

Science.gov (United States)

McKay, Ryan; Whitehouse, Harvey

2016-01-01

The term prosocial has often been taken to mean nice or neighbourly, but many acts that further in-group interests are hostile and aggressive towards out-groups. According to Norenzayan et al., religion's ability to foster social cohesion within religious groups has been a key factor in the human transition to complex societies. But what are the prospects for nonparochial "religious prosociality"?

Why do you hate me so much? An exploration of religious freedom from the perspective of African religion(s

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Sibusiso T. Masondo

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The advent of the 1996 constitution and the promotion of freedom of religion gave space to previously discriminated religious traditions to flourish. There have been a number of revivals of aspects of African Traditional Religion. The Bill of Rights guarantees Religious Freedom but tends to limit it to Freedom of belief. People have every right to believe and practice as long as their practice is in line with the law. This paper is a reflection on the difficulties posed by the notion of Religious Freedom as contained in the 1996 South African constitution for practitioners of African Indigenous Religions and other minority religions. In a case that captured the imagination of the legal fraternity, Gareth Prince, a practicing Rastafarian, was prevented from joining the Bar of the Western Cape because of a prior conviction of being caught in possession of dagga, an illegal substance. He argued that he used cannabis as part of his religious observance. Justice Ngcobo, in his judgement dismissing the case, made it very clear that ‘the right to freedom of religion is not absolute’. In other words, religious practices need to fall within the provisions of the law of the land. At the core of our argument is that the intellectual and cultural resources that were mobilised in writing the South African constitution failed to reflect on the religious practices of indigenous people and other minority religions.

The influence of religion on sexual HIV risk.

Science.gov (United States)

Shaw, Stacey A; El-Bassel, Nabila

2014-08-01

This systematic review examines the relationship between religion and sexual HIV risk behavior. It focuses primarily on how studies have conceptualized and defined religion, methodologies, and sexual risk outcomes. We also describe regions where studies were conducted and mechanisms by which religion may be associated with sexual risk. We included 137 studies in this review, classifying them as measuring: (1) only religious affiliation (n = 57), (2) only religiosity (n = 48), and (3) both religious affiliation and religiosity (n = 32). A number of studies identified lower levels of sexual HIV risk among Muslims, although many of these examined HIV prevalence rather than specific behavioral risk outcomes. Most studies identified increased religiosity to be associated with lower levels of sexual HIV risk. This finding persists but is weaker when the outcome considered is condom use. The paper reviews ways in which religion may contribute to increase and reduction in sexual HIV risk, gaps in research, and implications for future research on religion and HIV.

Material Religion - Hinduism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aktor, Mikael

2017-01-01

Comprehensive bibliography on material religion in Hinduism. Monographs, anthologies, anthology chapters, journal articles, web articles, documentation on cultic elements of the landscape (mountains, rivers, trees, stones), three- and two-dimensional cultic artefacts, textiles, ritual accessories...

Doctors discussing religion and spirituality: A systematic literature review.

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Best, Megan; Butow, Phyllis; Olver, Ian

2016-04-01

Discussion of religion and/or spirituality in the medical consultation is desired by patients and known to be beneficial. However, it is infrequent. We aimed to identify why this is so. We set out to answer the following research questions: Do doctors report that they ask their patients about religion and/or spirituality and how do they do it? According to doctors, how often do patients raise the issue of religion and/or spirituality in consultation and how do doctors respond when they do? What are the known facilitators and barriers to doctors asking their patients about religion and/or spirituality? A mixed qualitative/quantitative review was conducted to identify studies exploring the physician's perspective on discussion of religion and/or spirituality in the medical consultation. We searched nine databases from inception to January 2015 for original research papers reporting doctors' views on discussion of religion and/or spirituality in medical consultations. Papers were assessed for quality using QualSyst and results were reported using a measurement tool to assess systematic review guidelines. Overall, 61 eligible papers were identified, comprising over 20,044 physician reports. Religion and spirituality are discussed infrequently by physicians although frequency increases with terminal illness. Many physicians prefer chaplain referral to discussing religion and/or spirituality with patients themselves. Such discussions are facilitated by prior training and increased physician religiosity and spirituality. Insufficient time and training were the most frequently reported barriers. This review found that physician enquiry into the religion and/or spirituality of patients is inconsistent in frequency and nature and that in order to meet patient needs, barriers to discussion need to be overcome. © The Author(s) 2015.

Psychology of religion: perspectives from cultural psychology

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Belzen, J.A.

2010-01-01

After a brief introduction, this paper tries to establish what type of psychology the psychology of religion is. Having introduced cultural psychology in general, some theories applicable in research on religion are presented, and some examples of cultural psychological research of religious

Critiquing Borders: Teaching about Religions in a Postcolonial World

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Ramey, Steven W.

2006-01-01

In a postcolonial environment, our students will encounter multiple representations and diverse followers of various religions outside the classroom. Students need to think critically about the representations of all religions and recognize the humanity of all people. Too often, students leave courses discussing one or more world religions with an…

Predicting Religion

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Revell, Lynn

2015-01-01

This article reviews the influence of liberal ideas on the capacity for Religious Education (RE) to consider religions critically in a climate of increasing government intervention in education. It finds that criticality in some areas of RE is absent or limited but that in key areas criticality is evident if not always deeply embedded. It…

Religion and body weight: a review of quantitative studies.

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Yeary, Karen Hye-Cheon Kim; Sobal, Jeffery; Wethington, Elaine

2017-10-01

Increasing interest in relationships between religion and health has encouraged research about religion and body weight, which has produced mixed findings. We systematically searched 11 bibliographic databases for quantitative studies of religion and weight, locating and coding 85 studies. We conducted a systematic review, analysing descriptive characteristics of the studies as well as relevant religion-body weight associations related to study characteristics. We summarized findings for two categories of religion variables: religious affiliation and religiosity. For religious affiliation, we found evidence for significant associations with body weight in both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. In particular, Seventh-Day Adventists had lower body weight than other denominations in cross-sectional analyses. For religiosity, significant associations occurred between greater religiosity and higher body weight in both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. In particular, greater religiosity was significantly associated with higher body weight in bivariate analyses but less so in multivariate analyses. A greater proportion of studies that used a representative sample, longitudinal analyses, and samples with only men reported significant associations between religiosity and weight. Evidence in seven studies suggested that health behaviours and psychosocial factors mediate religion-weight relationships. More longitudinal studies and analyses of mediators are needed to provide stronger evidence and further elucidate religion-weight relationships. © 2017 World Obesity Federation.

Limits to expression on religion in France

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Janssen, E.

2009-01-01

During the last decade conflicts about expression on religion have increased globally. Generally, these conflicts are regarded as a conflict between freedom of speech and freedom of thought, conscience and religion. In France there are many active religious interest groups that aim to protect a

La nuova qualificazione dei docenti di religione: note a margine del D.P.R. n. 175 del 2012

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Simona Attollino

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Il contributo, sottoposto a valutazione, è destinato alla pubblicazione negli atti del Convegno nazionale ADEC "Insegnamenti e insegnanti di religione nella scuola pubblica italiana" (Catanzaro, 25-27 ottobre 2012. SOMMARIO: 1. Il piano dei diritti: incompiute acquisizioni giurisprudenziali - 2. La qualificazione professionale dei docenti alla luce del D.P.R. n. 175 del 20 agosto 2012 - 3. Verso l’accentuazione del carattere culturale dell’I.R.C. - 4. L’ermeneutica del pluralismo sociale: un’offerta formativa aperta. ABSTRACT This essay regards the new professional status of teacher's religion in public school, in the light of juridical discipline approved in 2012. It analyses the rules as well as the abundant case-law in this field, underling the trend that considers the cultural value of catholicism teaching in public school in respect to the context of religious and social pluralism.

Hamlet’s Religions

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Peter Iver Kaufman

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Pastoral challenges prompted pietists among Elizabethan Catholics and Calvinists to commend what historians now call an inward turn whereby the faithful, in a sense, become their own confessors. This article suggests that spiritual exercises or soliloquies Shakespeare scripted for his Hamlet (and, less so, for Angelo in Measure for Measure compare favorably with the devotional literature that underscored the importance of self-analysis, intra-psychic conflict, and contrition. The argument here is not that the playwright’s piety resembled his Hamlet’s but that the latter reflected efforts to structure desire in the religions of the time struggling for survival and recognition. References to passages in Shakespeare plays (act, scene appear parenthetically in the text. Unless otherwise indicated in the bibliography appended to this article, all early printed material is accessible at the Early English Books database, http://eebo.chadwyck.com/home, verified June 1, 2011.

The Hebrew Bible in contemporary philosophy of religion

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Jacobus W. Gericke

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Some dialogue among these specialists, especially between biblical scholars and philosophers of religion, is unquestionably long overdue.(Stump 1985:1�Over the last few decades, there has been an increased concern for the establishment of more sustained interdisciplinary dialogue between biblical scholars and philosophers of religion. In this article, aimed at biblical scholars, the author as biblical scholar offers a descriptive and historical overview of some samples of recourse to the Hebrew Bible in philosophical approaches in the study of religion. The aim is to provide a brief glimpse of how some representative philosophers from both the analytic and continental sides of the methodological divide have related to the biblical traditions in the quest for a contemporary relevant Christian philosophy of religion.

European Religious Education and European Civil Religion

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Gearon, Liam

2012-01-01

This paper challenges a foundational conjecture of the Religion in Education Dialogue or Conflict (REDCo) project, that increased interest in religion in public and political life as manifested particularly in education is evidence of counter-secularisation. The paper argues that rather than representing counter-secularisation, such developments…

VOLTAIRE’S PHILOSOPHY: HUMAN NATURE AND INTERPRETATION OF RELIGION

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Yu. Zimaryova

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the article is to determine and reconsider Voltaire’s ideas concerning religion and human nature. In order to achieve this purpose it is necessary to complete the following tasks: to analyse academic literature on Voltaire’s interpretation of the phenomenon of religion; to expose Voltaire’s basic ideas about human nature; to substantiate the importance of anthropological approach to the phenomenon of religion with the ideas of Voltaire’s philosophical works. Methodology. The achievements of anthropocentric philosophical thought of the XIX century possess great potential in the process of constructive comprehension and theoretical reconstruction of the anthropological intention that accompanies the process of philosophising. The research extensively applies hermeneutical method for interpreting Voltaire’s philosophy. Scientific novelty. In academic literature on Voltaire’s works we have ascertained the basic anthropological component of his philosophy and reconsider Voltaire’s ideas about religion as something that is rooted in human nature. Conclusions. In academic literature the interpretation of the phenomenon of religion in Voltaire’s heritage is a rather controversial one. At the one hand, Voltaire criticizes religion for its superstitions and fanaticism. On the other hand, he recognises the existence of God. In our opinion, the phenomenon of religion should be examined in the context of human nature and basic problems related to it such as the problem of soul and the problem of free will. The anthropological approach to the phenomenon of religion allows to avoid the extremity of atheistic and metaphysical approaches and to enable its anthropological interpretation.

Religion as dialogical resource: a socio-cultural approach.

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Baucal, Aleksandar; Zittoun, Tania

2013-06-01

William James proposed a psychological study of religion examining people's religious experiences, and to see in what sense these were good for them. The recent developments of psychology of religion moved far from that initial proposition. In this paper, we propose a sociocultural perspective to religion that renews with that initial stance. After recalling Vygtotsky's core ideas, we suggest that religion, as cultural and symbolic system, participates to the orchestration of human activities and sense-making. Such orchestration works both from within the person, through internalized values and ideas, and from without, through the person's interactions with others, discourses, cultural objects etc. This leads us to consider religions as supporting various forms of dialogical dynamics-intra-psychological dialogues, interpersonal with present, absent or imaginary others, as well as inter-group dialogues-which we illustrate with empirical vignettes. The example of religious tensions in the Balkans in the 90's highlights how much the historical-cultural embeddedness of these dynamics can also lead to the end of dialogicality, and therefore, sense-making.

Christianity and the African traditional religion(s: The postcolonial round of engagement

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David T. Adamo

2011-03-01

Full Text Available This article concerned itself with the modern encounter between Christianity and African Indigenous Religion (AIR in Africa. It is essentially a postcolonial approach to what AIR and its essential characteristics is: God and humanity, sacrifices, afterlife and ancestors. The rapid growth of many religions in Africa and the revival of AIR in postcolonial Africa have made inter-religious dialogue an urgent necessity. Unlike the colonial encounter with AIR, which was characterised by hostility and the condemnation of AIR, the postcolonial encounter should be characterised by mutual respect, understanding, tolerance, and some level of freedom, liberation and genuineness. In this way, suspicion will be reduced, because despite the adherents� confession of Christianity, AIR is not about to be extinct.

Naturalisms and religion

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Drees, Willem

1997-01-01

Such terms as materialism, naturalism, and near synonyms evoke strong negative reactions among many believers. However, the notion of naturalism has various meanings; implications for religion differ for the several varieties of naturalism. In this paper I analyze epistemological and ontological

Local Politics and Religion in Papua

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Idrus Al Hamid

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Local political conflicts become an integral part of Indonesia. Various cause roots are assumed come from a religious dimension, in addition to ethnicity. In cases of Jayapura, Papua, local political dimensions of the conflict was obviously display as factors that religion should be integrating factor, but in fact religion become disintegrating factor. The various power of groups interconnect with a religious impulse that local political tensions grew louder and spread. The aim of this study is to describe analytically about the emergence of a strain on the local level in Jayapura Papua in the field of religion. To elaborate the analysis in this article, the excavation data through in-depth interviews, focus group discussion, and literature studies or documents on issues that occur on local level.

Critical Exchange: Religion and Schooling in Conversation

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Stern, Julian

2017-01-01

Given the complex and messy contexts of schooling, conversations between religion and schooling can be "admitted" as examples of the sort of situated conversation that goes beyond the "false necessity" of universal state-controlled school-based education. There are distinct claims to be made about religion and schooling in…

Freedom of Religion and the Public Schools.

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Williams, Mary Louise

1991-01-01

Presents activities for teaching high school students about the freedom of religion. Includes student handouts that explain basic constitutional principles and summarize leading U.S. Supreme Court cases concerning religious liberty. Encourages teachers to invite students to speculate on the future relationship of religion and public education. (SG)

Debating Modernity as Secular Religion: Hans Kelsen’s futile exchange with Eric Voegelin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thomassen, Bjørn

2014-01-01

This article reviews the mysterious and recently published last book by Hans Kelsen, “Secular Religion. A Polemic Against the Misinterpretation of Modern Social Philosophy, Science and Politics as ‘New Religions’”, contextualizing it with reference to the little known dialogue between Hans Kelsen...... and Eric Voegelin. The confrontation between Kelsen and Voegelin, two of the most illustrious émigré scholars who found in America their new home, is important to revisit because it touches upon several axes of debate of crucial importance to postwar intellectual history: the religion/secularity debate......, the positivist/anti-positivist debates, and the controversy that also led to the famous Voegelin/Arendt debate: how to read the horrors of totalitarianism into a historical trajectory of modernity. Although the Kelsen/Voegelin exchange ended in failure and bitterness its substance matter goes to the heart...

Human Rights in The Monotheistic Religions : Justification of Human Rights in the perspective of monotheistic religion according to Human Rights Theories

OpenAIRE

Ali, Sadaqat

2018-01-01

The discourse of human rights has been very prominent in the post-world wars which led various international organizations and institutes to generate awareness on this subject and pave a path for implementation of fundamental human rights in the world. Many theories have been coined and proliferated in the world to look the matter more seriously. The question mark on the role of religion in this regard has led the discussion sidelining divinely revealed monotheistic religions. Thus, religions...

Religion and gender inequality: The status of women in the societies of world religions

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Klingorová Kamila

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The status of women in society is very diverse worldwide. Among many important traits associated with the differentiation of gender inequality is religion, which itself must be regarded as a fluid concept with interpretations and practices ‘embedded’ and thus varying with respect to cultural and historical relations. Admitting the complexity of the issues, some religious norms and traditions can contribute to the formation of gender inequalities and to subordinate the role of women in society. Using an exploratory quantitative analysis, the influence of religiosity on gender inequality in social, economic and political spheres is examined. Three categories of states have emerged from the analysis: (a states where the majority of inhabitants are without religious affiliation, which display the lowest levels of gender inequality; (b Christian and Buddhist societies, with average levels of gender inequality; and (c states with the highest levels of gender inequality across the observed variables, whose inhabitants adhere to Islam and Hinduism.

State, religion and toleration

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Huggler, Jørgen

2009-01-01

Contribution to Religion and State - From separation to cooperation? Legal-philosophical reflections for a de-secularized world. (IVR Cracow Special Workshop). Eds. Bart. C. Labuschagne & Ari M. Solon. Abstract: Toleration is indeed a complex phenomenon. A discussion of the concept will have...... to underline not only the broadmindedness and liberty of individuals or of groups, but also the relevant distinctions and arguments in political philosophy, epistemology, philosophy of religion and philosophical anthropology and their connection with educational issues. Through a discussion of these relations......, the essay argues three theses: (1) Toleration is not reducible to an ethics of spiritual freedom. (2) Toleration is not neutral to fanatism. (3) Toleration involves esteem for the person....

Religion in Public Spaces in Contemporary Southeast Asia

OpenAIRE

Afrianty, Dina

2012-01-01

Religion is among the most overlooked factors in the development of nation-states in Southeast Asia. Some reasons for this include a bias emphasizing religious ideology in the study of anti-colonial organizations that dates to the origins of the politics of state formation; the influence of many ideas on the patterns of modern elite formations that stress the need for religion to shape national constitutions, and the fact that religion is difficult to neglect in shaping the behavior of...

Religion and Animal Welfare—An Islamic Perspective

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Rahman, Sira Abdul

2017-01-01

Simple Summary Cruelty to animals occurs during production, handling, transport, and slaughter in most countries where Islam is a major religion. Most of the people involved in this, such as those involved in the transport of animals, animal handlers, and butchers, are Muslims. However, many Muslims and Islamic religious leaders are not aware of this cruelty. Islam is a religion that shows compassion to animals as mentioned in the holy book Qur’an and sayings of the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh). This paper highlights what Islam says of the welfare of animals and how animal welfare can be improved by sensitizing all Muslims and religious leaders to the teachings on animal welfare in the Qur’an and the Hadiths so that they can influence their followers. Abstract Islam is a comprehensive religion guiding the lives of its followers through sets of rules governing the personal, social, and public aspects through the verses of the Holy Qur’an and Hadiths, the compilation of the traditions of Prophet Mohammed (pbuh), the two main documents that serve as guidelines. Islam is explicit with regard to using animals for human purposes and there is a rich tradition of the Prophet Mohammad’s (pbuh) concern for animals to be found in the Hadith and Sunna. Islam has also laid down rules for humane slaughter. In many countries animals are killed without pre-stunning. Regardless of pre-stunning, such meat should not be treated as halāl or at least be considered as Makrooh (detestable or abominable), because the animals have been beaten or treated without compassion during production, handling, transport, and slaughter. Many Muslims and Islamic religious leaders are not aware of the cruelty that is routinely inflicted on animals during transport, pre-slaughter, and slaughter in many Islamic countries. There is an urgent need to sensitize all Muslims to the teachings of animal welfare in the Qur’an and the Hadiths. A campaign is needed to apprise religious leaders of the current

Special issue on evolutionary theories of religion

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McKay, Ryan

Redaktionen af et temanummer i Journal for the Cognitive Science of Religion 4 (1) 2016: 1-90 med en række bidrag som respons til en targetartikel skrevet af Jonathan H. Turner med titlen "Using Neurosociology and Evolutionary Sociology to Explain the Origin and Evolution of Religions". Der er ko...

Votives, Places and Rituals in Etruscan Religion

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Etruscans were deemed “the most religious of men” by their Roman successors and it is hardly surprising that the topic of Etruscan religion has been explored for some time now. This volume offers a contribution to the continued study of Etruscan religion and daily life, by focusing on the less...

“Right to life” in monotheistic religions

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Muhammad Reza Ehsani Mutlaq

2015-12-01

Full Text Available " Right to life" as the fundamental rights of every person, from the beginning, has been important in the different schools of thought and religions, especially the monotheistic religions. In this paper, we discuss about "execution" and "abortion" as two of the most fundamental issues surrounding the "right to life", which has existed in human societies from the past to present. In Zoroastrianism, the punishment of "whip" has been more significant than other punishments, including the execution, however, in several cases, the execution is imported, such as eating human flesh, banditry, etc. Also the act of "abortion" is never excused or ignored and it is known equal murder. In Judaism, the Torah puts the execution as the punishment of manslaughter. Among other crimes based on Judaism punishable by death, include: polytheism, kidnapping, sodomy, etc. There are different opinions among Jewish scientists in the case of abortion. Some of them prohibited this act, except when the mother's life is in danger. In addition risk for the mother, some others allow abortion for the reason of genetic diseases as well, and some recognize right to abortion just for mothers. In Christianity, the laws are more moral than criminal and penal. Perhaps only in the case of apostasy, the execution is prescribed. However, in the thirteenth century, church announced death as punishment of heresy, so it could not be rooted in original Christian faith. In Catholics and Protestants view, the embryo, from the moment of conception, is the perfect man with the right to life. Therefore, abortion is prohibited and punishable by apostasy known. Of course, there are other opposite opinions between different Christian schools. In Islam, the execution as criminal law divides into three types: retaliatory execution runs against murder, the penalty execution runs against some crimes such as sexual assault, working against religion and social security, etc., and the sentence execution

Religion and Family in the 1980s: Discovery and Development.

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Thomas, Darwin L.; Cornwall, Marie

1990-01-01

Reviewed articles from journals in fields of family, religion, sociology, psychology, and therapy that examined both religion and the family. Review reveals pressing need for more serious theoretical and conceptual work that incorporates multidimensional approaches and is specifically designed to illuminate interrelationships between religion and…

Regulating the Relationship between State and Religion: An Economic Approach

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A.M.I.B. Vandenberghe (Ann-Sophie)

2012-01-01

markdownabstract__Abstract__ In defining its relationship towards religion, the Dutch government is committed to the values of freedom of religion and neutrality. This article uses the economic approach to freedom of religion and state neutrality as a tool for looking at the existing Dutch policy

Religion and covenantal praxis in first century Judeanism

African Journals Online (AJOL)

p1243322

This article indicates how the two cultural features of religion and covenantal praxis .... and the home, introduced Judeans into a world where religion and covenantal ... states that Judeans from Mesopotamia made “dedicatory offerings” to the.

Religion, Democratic Community, and Education: Two Questions

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D'Souza, Mario Osbert

2012-01-01

This paper examines the mediating role that education plays between religion and democratic community. The paper is situated in the Canadian context and examines this mediation through two questions: First, what is the relationship between religion and education and what is the contribution of this relationship to and within a pluralist society?…

Journal for the Study of Religion: Submissions

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Foucault, Michel 1977. Discipline and Punish. Trans. by A. Sheridan. New York: Pantheon. Chapter in an edited book. Smart, N. 1985. “The history of religions and its conversation partners.” In The History of Religions, Retrospect and Prospect, pp. 73-85. Edited by J. M. Kitagawa. New York: Macmillan. Encyclopaedia article

Religion in School: Experience of a Study of the Problem.

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Metlik, I. V.

1992-01-01

Presents observations concerning religion study in 150 Moscow schools. Reports that, although there are still some extracurricular activities promoting traditional former Soviet atheistic ideology, religion is now taught openly. Indicates that religion and atheism also are being studied on a scientific-philosophical basis. Examines how various…

Desvendando a religião e as religiões mundiais em Max Weber (Revealing religion and the world religions in Max Weber - DOI: 10.5752/P.2175-5841.2009v7n14p136

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Arilson Silva Oliveira

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Apresentamos Max Weber como um dos sociólogos e historiadores mais importantes dentre aqueles que se dedicaram ao estudo do fenômeno religioso. Na verdade, é possível afirmar que a análise da religião compreende um dos aspectos mais fundamentais de sua obra sócio-histórica. De modo geral, esse tema aparece em seus textos de duas maneiras diferentes, quais sejam: enquanto um objeto analisado em sua singularidade e enquanto uma manifestação social que influencia de maneira significativa os demais aspectos da vida comunitária. Aqui, observamos como ele muniu-se de um método particular e o utilizou como parâmetro para compreender historicamente a religião. Ao se debruçar sobre as religiões mundiais (confucionismo-taoísmo, judaísmo-cristianismo e hinduísmo-budismo, Weber estuda a racionalização cultural de suas cosmovisões. Todavia, para ele, a influência da religião sobre a vida prática varia muito segundo o caminho da salvação/libertação que é prescrito e segundo a qualidade psíquica (ou imaginada da salvação que se pretende alcançar. Palavras-chave: Max Weber; Religião; Religiões Mundiais; Racionalização.   AbstractWe present Max Weber as one of the most important sociologists and historians among those who dedicated themselves to the study of the religious phenomenon. Actually, it is possible to say that the analysis of religion involves one of the most fundamental aspects of his socio-historical work. As a whole, this subject appears in his texts in two different forms, i.e., as an analyzed object in its particularities, and as a social manifestation which influences, in a significant way, the other aspects of communitarian life. Here, we observe how he equipped himself with a particular method, rescued Kantian rationality and applied it as a parameter to historically understand religion. While he dedicated himself to study world religions (Confucianism-Taoism, Judaism-Christianity, and Hinduism

WHEN RELIGION GOES TO THE WORKPLACE: The Sociology of Knowledge about Religiosity

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Rr. Suhartini

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to examine the religiosity of Muslim professional workers and the position of religion for them in their daily life. This paper takes two steps: first, studying the religiosity of those Muslim professional workers within their workplace by using Peter L Berger’s framework of the Construction of Social Theory; second, examining the thoughts and expressions of those workers when they are faced with a dilemma in work conditions through in-depth interview. This study concludes that the Muslim professional workers who live in the modern society with diverse conditions of a dilemma between the religious values and the demands of expertise in their job tend to be more faithful to their religious beliefs. Berger’s thesis about secularization does not occur in the case of workers of this kind. Religion stays functional for these workers through deconstruction strategy as it is assumed by Derrida. The so-called “traces of God” can still be seen in these workers in Surabaya.

Religion as a means to assure paternity.

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Strassmann, Beverly I; Kurapati, Nikhil T; Hug, Brendan F; Burke, Erin E; Gillespie, Brenda W; Karafet, Tatiana M; Hammer, Michael F

2012-06-19

The sacred texts of five world religions (Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism) use similar belief systems to set limits on sexual behavior. We propose that this similarity is a shared cultural solution to a biological problem: namely male uncertainty over the paternity of offspring. Furthermore, we propose the hypothesis that religious practices that more strongly regulate female sexuality should be more successful at promoting paternity certainty. Using genetic data on 1,706 father-son pairs, we tested this hypothesis in a traditional African population in which multiple religions (Islam, Christianity, and indigenous) coexist in the same families and villages. We show that the indigenous religion enables males to achieve a significantly (P = 0.019) lower probability of cuckoldry (1.3% versus 2.9%) by enforcing the honest signaling of menstruation, but that all three religions share tenets aimed at the avoidance of extrapair copulation. Our findings provide evidence for high paternity certainty in a traditional African population, and they shed light on the reproductive agendas that underlie religious patriarchy.

God and religion in post-modern philosophers

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José J. Queiroz

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper is an essay on the positions of some post-modern philosophers on religion, with the debate about post-modernity as a background. Its preliminary objective is to situate post-modernity taking a position between plain acceptance and categorical refusal in contemporary society. In this polemical field, the paper focuses on three important post-modern philosophers by pointing their contributions for a new thinking about religion today. The procedure consists in the reading of the authors´ texts looking for an interpretation of their discourses on God, religion and the sacred. The conclusion is that post-modernity is not as new era overcoming modernity, but that it is comprised of new themes  that are on the fringes  or even  in opposite directions of modernity´s parameters . One can find these themes in many fields of human knowledge including theology and science of religion. On Derrida´s position, who is the most focused philosopher, the text is still embryonic as it comes from ongoing research.  

The appropriation of a religion: The case of Zoroastrianism in contemporary Russia

OpenAIRE

Stausberg, Michael; Tessmann, Anna

2013-01-01

This paper distinguishes between the (ontological) creation, (historical) emergence and (legal) ‘making’ of religion. Many religions claim plausibility by invoking long chains of (invented) traditions, while some post-modern religions positively affirm their invented character. The case of Zoroastrianism in contemporary Russia is discussed as an example of a cross-cultural ‘appropriation’ of religion, rather than a transfer of an extant religion through, for example, migration. This means tha...

The role of religion and spirituality in mental health.

Science.gov (United States)

Weber, Samuel R; Pargament, Kenneth I

2014-09-01

There has been increased interest in the relationship between religion and spirituality and mental health in recent years. This article reviews recent research into the capacity of religion and spirituality to benefit or harm the mental health of believers. We also examine the implications this may have for assessment and treatment in psychiatric settings. Studies indicate that religion and spirituality can promote mental health through positive religious coping, community and support, and positive beliefs. Research also shows that religion and spirituality can be damaging to mental health by means of negative religious coping, misunderstanding and miscommunication, and negative beliefs. Tools for the assessment of patients' spiritual needs have been studied, and incorporation of spiritual themes into treatment has shown some promise. Religion and spirituality have the ability to promote or damage mental health. This potential demands an increased awareness of religious matters by practitioners in the mental health field as well as ongoing attention in psychiatric research.

The structural dynamics of social class.

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Kraus, Michael W; Park, Jun Won

2017-12-01

Individual agency accounts of social class persist in society and even in psychological science despite clear evidence for the role of social structures. This article argues that social class is defined by the structural dynamics of society. Specifically, access to powerful networks, groups, and institutions, and inequalities in wealth and other economic resources shape proximal social environments that influence how individuals express their internal states and motivations. An account of social class that highlights the means by which structures shape and are shaped by individuals guides our understanding of how people move up or down in the social class hierarchy, and provides a framework for interpreting neuroscience studies, experimental paradigms, and approaches that attempt to intervene on social class disparities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Role of Religion in Colombia’s Reconciliation

Science.gov (United States)

2016-12-15

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED The Role of Religion in Colombia’s Reconciliation By CH (MAJ) John M. Sedwick Operations...populations of urban and rural Colombia. This paper addresses the role that organized religion can play in this daunting process that includes...about the ministry of reconciliation from the First Century imply that religion has a role to play in bringing an end to the Colombian civil war and

Happiness in Economics as Understood Across Ism and Religion

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Abdul Ghafar Ismail

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The concept of happiness has been discussed long time ago by economists. Recently, it became the most related and important thing to be studied because of its impact in societies. Discussion about happiness basically interprets within two separate views. First, happiness related with economic variable, for instance, how money can create happiness. Second happiness is discussed within the context of religion. However, the discussion did not combine both contexts, economic variable and religion, to interpret happiness. Therefore, it is important to highlight the concept of happiness in a different way such as in this article. Different cultures will have their own perspective on the determination of happiness. From just “individual perspective” of happiness, they then formed an ism through involvement of a big society from the same culture. Some isms such as hedonism and materialism are synonyms in characterizing the concept of happiness in this modern world. At the same time, the isms are actually working with the economic and non-economic indicators as elements to strengthen the ism itself. On the other hand, the concept of happiness from the perspective of religion will also be a part of discussion in this article. Therefore, this article will reveal that the meaning of happiness is different in terms of religion and ism. So, to carry out both ism and religion simultaneously in shaping a more intrinsic value of happiness is not an easy task. Furthermore, religion is always associated with spiritual value that makes it hard for some people to practice religion and their isms at the same time. Thus, this article will propose that the right interpretation of isms based on their faith in religion can contribute to the concept of genuine happiness.

Gandhi on Religion, Faith and Conversion: Secular Blueprint Relevant Today*

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Ajai R.; Singh, Shakuntala A.

2004-01-01

Gandhi believed in judging people of other faiths from their stand point rather than his own. He welcomed contact of Hinduism with other religions, especially the Christian doctrines, for he did not want to be debarred from assimilating good anywhere else. He believed a respectful study of other's religion was a sacred duty and it did not reduce reverence for one's own. He was looking out for those universal principles which transcended religion as a dogma. He expected religion to take account of practical life, he wanted it to appeal to reason and not be in conflict with morality. He believed it was his right and duty to point out the defects of his own religion, but to desist from doing so with other's faith. He refused to abuse a man for his fanatical deeds for he tried to see them from the other person's point of view. He believed Jesus expressed the will and spirit of God but could not accept Jesus as the only incarnate son of God. If Jesus was like God or God himself, then all men were like God or God Himself. But neither could he accept the Vedas as the inspired word of God, for if they were inspired why not also the Bible and the Koran? He believed all great religions were fundamentally equal and that there should be innate respect for them, not just mutual tolerance. He felt a person wanting to convert should try to be a good follower of his own faith rather than seek goodness in change of faith. His early impressions of Christianity were unfortunate which underwent a change when he discovered the New Testament and the Sermon on the Mount, whose ideal of renunciation appealed to him greatly. He thought Parliament of Religions or International Fellowship of Religions could be based only on equality of status, a common platform. An attitude of patronising tolerance was false to the spirit of international fellowship. He believed that all religions were more or less true, but had errors because they came to us though imperfect human instrumentality. Religious

Access to health care and religion among young American men.

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Gillum, R Frank; Jarrett, Nicole; Obisesan, Thomas O

2009-12-01

In order to elucidate cultural correlates of utilization of primary health services by young adult men, we investigated religion in which one was raised and service utilization. Using data from a national survey we tested the hypothesis that religion raised predicts access to and utilization of a regular medical care provider, examinations, HIV and other STD testing and counseling at ages 18-44 years in men born between 1958 and 1984. We also hypothesized that religion raised would be more predictive of utilization for Hispanic Americans and non-Hispanic Black Americans than for non-Hispanic White Americans. The study included a national sample of 4276 men aged 18-44 years. Descriptive and multivariate statistics were used to assess the hypotheses using data on religion raised and responses to 14 items assessing health care access and utilization. Compared to those raised in no religion, those raised mainline Protestant were more likely (p Religion raised was not associated with testicular exams, STD counseling or HIV testing. In multivariate analyses controlling for confounders, significant associations of religion raised with insurance coverage, a physician as usual source of care and physical examination remained which varied by race/ethnicity. In conclusion, although religion is a core aspect of culture that deserves further study as a possible determinant of health care utilization, we were not able to document any consistent pattern of significant association even in a population with high rates of religious participation.

Textbook Religion and Lived Religion: A Comparison of the Christian Faith as Expressed in Textbooks and by Young Church Members

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Vestøl, Jon Magne

2016-01-01

Drawing on perspectives from sociocultural theory, this article investigates how Christian denominations are represented in Norwegian textbooks of religious education and by young believers. The main finding is that textbooks and young adherents present religion in substantially different ways. While textbooks relate religion to global and…

Beyond Cinematic Stereotypes. Using Religion to Imagine Gender Differently

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Sofia Sjö

2016-11-01

Full Text Available In films, religious characters are often gendered in quite traditional ways, but there are some notable exceptions. This article discusses two Scandinavian films that partly break the mold. The analysis illustrates how in films varied forms of religion are gen¬dered quite differently, and explores the ways in which religious themes can open up for alternative male and female characters. Different ways of understanding the representations are discussed and related to views on the place and role of religion in the contemporary Scandinavian context. The article draws on the mediatization of religion theory as a theoretical framework, but also highlights the challenges that complex images of gender and religion pose to this theory.

Ethnic Religion in nowadays Europe: renaissance of the historical pagan beliefs or Political Paganism? Exemplified by the Asatru in Denmark and the Mari Native Religion in Russia

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Christensen Carsten Sander

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the history and the problems of ethnic religions in nowadays Europe. Based on a definition and discussion of Paganism and Neopaganism, and a thereby following definition and discussion of differences between ethnic religion and monotheistic religion, the article tries to get the answer as to whether ethnic religion, nowadays, is a Political Paganism, a renaissance of historical pagan beliefs or a mixture. To answer the question, the problem of the article will be exemplified by an analysis of two types of paganism in contemporary Europe: the Asatru in Denmark and the Mari Native Religion in Russia. Revived in the 1970s, the Asatru is a rather new phenomenon as well in Denmark as in other countries of the world. On 15 November 1997 the Forn Siðr association, the Asatru and Vanatru Association in Denmark, was established, in 2003 recognized, and registered as an official religion in Denmark. Whereas the Mari Native Religion, a religion practiced by the Mari people in a Russian region of Mari El Republic, 800 kilometres east of Moscow, can lead its roots several thousand years back.

An exploration of religion and spirituality among young, HIV-infected gay and bisexual men in the USA.

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Jeffries, William L; Okeke, Janice O; Gelaude, Deborah J; Torrone, Elizabeth A; Gasiorowicz, Mari; Oster, Alexandra M; McCree, Donna Hubbard; Bertolli, Jeanne

2014-01-01

Although religion and spirituality can promote healthy behaviours and mental well-being, negative religious experiences may harm sexual minority men's health. Despite increasing vulnerability to HIV infection among young gay and bisexual men, few studies examine how religion and spirituality might affect them. To this end, we interviewed young gay and bisexual men who were diagnosed with HIV infection during January 2006-June 2009. Questionnaires assessed religious service attendance, disclosure of sexuality within religious communities, and beliefs about homosexuality being sinful. A subset described religious and spiritual experiences in qualitative interviews. We calculated the prevalence of religion- and spirituality-related factors and identified themes within qualitative interviews. Among men completing questionnaires, 66% currently attended religious services, 16% believed they could disclose their sexuality at church, and 37% believed homosexuality was sinful. Participants who completed qualitative interviews commonly discussed religious attendance and negative experiences within religious settings. They often expressed their spirituality through prayer, and some used it to cope with adverse experiences. These data suggest that religion and spirituality are notable factors that shape young, HIV-infected gay and bisexual men's social contexts. Programmes and interventions that constructively engage with religious institutions and are sensitive to spiritual beliefs may promote these men's health.

Challenges to the reproductive-health needs of African women: on religion and maternal health utilization in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Gyimah, Stephen Obeng; Takyi, Baffour K; Addai, Isaac

2006-06-01

How relevant is religion to our understanding of maternal health (MH) service utilization in sub-Saharan Africa? We ask this question mainly because while the effect of religion on some aspects of reproductive behavior (e.g., fertility, contraception) has not gone unnoticed in the region, very few studies have examined the possible link with MH service utilization. Understanding this link in the context of sub-Saharan Africa is particularly relevant given the overriding influence of religion on the social fabric of Africans and the unacceptably high levels of maternal mortality in the region. As African countries struggle to achieve their stipulated reductions in maternal and child mortality levels by two-thirds by 2015 as part of the Millennium Development Goals, the need to examine the complex set of macro- and micro-factors that affect maternal and child health in the region cannot be underestimated. Using data from the 2003 Ghana Demographic Survey, we found religion (measured by denominational affiliation) to be a significant factor in MH use. This is true even after we had controlled for socio-economic variables. In general, Moslem and traditional women were less likely to use such services compared with Christians. The findings are discussed with reference to our theoretical framework and some policy issues are highlighted.

THE STUDY OF AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGION AND ITS CHALLENGES IN CONTEMPORARY TIMES

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Rotimi Williams Omotoye

2011-01-01

African Traditional Religion is the traditional religion of the African people before the coming of Islam and Christianity. However, the missionaries of the two foreign religions succeeded in converting some African people to the new religions. The African religion was condemned by the Early European scholars, travelers, investigators and missionaries. The educated Elite who were products of the schools established by the Christian missionaries in particular and the converts in general did no...

Melacak Pemikiran Masyarakat sebagai Jiwa Agama

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Purwanto Purwanto

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Being understood of human life included in the way of thinking and behavior basically need to rely on three elemental points or social dimensions of society; social structure, social interaction and social institutions. The whole activities of human life, morality and laws, Jobs and relaxation, family and personality, knowledge, art and everything named as religion come and pass through those social dimensions.  Religion is considered as the essential value that controls behavior of each individual of society. Functionalism says that superstructure of ideology is the main standard which affects the framework in social structure and infra-structure. To understand religiosity of a certain society depends on how we deeply know the life style of them. Later, it also depends on their social structure. In this context religion is commonly seen as the agent of moral socialization. Religion becomes the principal values that organize the attitude of society. To perform their activities, religious people will attempt to unify three elements of beliefs, symbols and rituals. This article tries to describe how the role of religion plays on the level of social through which elemental aspects of human life following and joining in shaping the condition of human life, behavior, ethic, culture, tradition and etcetera.

Development of essentialist thinking about religion categories in Northern Ireland (and the United States).

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Smyth, Kirsty; Feeney, Aidan; Eidson, R Cole; Coley, John D

2017-03-01

Social essentialism, the belief that members of certain social categories share unobservable properties, licenses expectations that those categories are natural and a good basis for inference. A challenge for cognitive developmental theory is to give an account of how children come to develop essentialist beliefs about socially important categories. Previous evidence from Israel suggests that kindergarteners selectively engage in essentialist reasoning about culturally salient (ethnicity) categories, and that this is attenuated among children in integrated schools. In 5 studies (N = 718) we used forced-choice (Study 1) and unconstrained (Studies 2-4) category-based inference tasks, and a questionnaire (Study 5) to study the development of essentialist reasoning about religion categories in Northern Ireland (Studies 1-3 & 5) and the U.S. (Study 4). Results show that, as in Israel, Northern Irish children selectively engage in essentialist reasoning about culturally salient (religion) categories, and that such reasoning is attenuated among children in integrated schools. However, the development trajectory of essentialist thinking and the patterns of attenuation among children attending integrated schools in Northern Ireland differ from the Israeli case. Meta-analysis confirmed this claim and ruled out an alternative explanation of the results based on community diversity. Although the Northern Irish and Israeli case studies illustrate that children develop selective essentialist beliefs about socially important categories, and that these beliefs are impacted by educational context, the differences between them emphasize the importance of historical, cultural, and political context in understanding conceptual development, and suggest that there may be more than one developmental route to social essentialism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Religion and atheism from a gender perspective

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Tiina Mahlamäki

2012-06-01

Full Text Available In August 2010 the Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE, summarising the results of the World Values 2005 survey, released them under the headline ‘Religion is a women’s issue’. Is atheism and secularity then, by contrast, an issue for men? It is tempting to answer the question positively when one looks at the names of the new atheist bestselling authors, or the names in the index lists in the back pages of books with reference to atheism, as well as the names of the researchers into atheism and secularity: they tend to be male much more often than female. In this paper I will examine the ways in which both religiosity and non-religiosity and atheism are gendered phenomena. I also look at feminists’ views on religion by pointing out in which ways they intersect with the opinions of the new atheist texts. Because both (second wave feminists and atheists consider religion from a relatively narrow point of view, I’ll bring out the ways in which the contemporary study of religion defines, sees and studies religion and religiousness, while it takes the concept of gender seriously. I also discuss the seemingly indisputable fact which the stat­istics point to; namely that women tend to be more religious than men and men tend to be more often atheist than women (my examples are mostly from the Finnish context. I also present some models of explanation which scholars have applied to these problems.

Science and religion: implications for science educators

Science.gov (United States)

Reiss, Michael J.

2010-03-01

A religious perspective on life shapes how and what those with such a perspective learn in science; for some students a religious perspective can hinder learning in science. For such reasons Staver's article is to be welcomed as it proposes a new way of resolving the widely perceived discord between science and religion. Staver notes that Western thinking has traditionally postulated the existence and comprehensibility of a world that is external to and independent of human consciousness. This has led to a conception of truth, truth as correspondence, in which our knowledge corresponds to the facts in this external world. Staver rejects such a conception, preferring the conception of truth as coherence in which the links are between and among independent knowledge claims themselves rather than between a knowledge claim and reality. Staver then proposes constructivism as a vehicle potentially capable of resolving the tension between religion and science. My contention is that the resolution between science and religion that Staver proposes comes at too great a cost—both to science and to religion. Instead I defend a different version of constructivism where humans are seen as capable of generating models of reality that do provide richer and more meaningful understandings of reality, over time and with respect both to science and to religion. I argue that scientific knowledge is a subset of religious knowledge and explore the implications of this for science education in general and when teaching about evolution in particular.

The study of African traditional religion and its challenges in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Traditional Religion is the traditional religion of the African people before the coming of Islam and Christianity. However, the ... The paper has been able to highlight the problems of African religion in the contemporary time, while some suggestions are given, so as to make it meet the challenges of the modern times.

On World Religion Adherence Distribution Evolution

Science.gov (United States)

Ausloos, Marcel; Petroni, Filippo

Religious adherence can be considered as a degree of freedom, in a statistical physics sense, for a human agent belonging to a population. The distribution, performance and life time of religions can thus be studied having in mind heterogeneous interacting agent modeling. We present a comprehensive analysis of 58 so-called religions (to be better defined in the main text) as measured through their number of adherents evolutions, between 1900 and 2000, - data taken from the World Christian Trends (Barrett and Johnson, "World Christian Trends AD 30 - AD 2200: Interpreting the Annual Christian Megacensus", William Carey Library, 2001): 40 are considered to be "presently growing" cases, including 11 turn overs in the twentieth century; 18 are "presently decaying", among which 12 are found to have had a recent maximum, in the nineteenth or the twentieth century. The Avrami-Kolmogorov differential equation which usually describes solid state transformations, like crystal growth, is used in each case in order to obtain the preferential attachment parameter introduced previously (Europhys Lett 77:38002, 2007). It is not often found close to unity, though often corresponding to a smooth evolution. However large values suggest the occurrence of extreme cases which we conjecture are controlled by so-called external fields. A few cases indicate the likeliness of a detachment process. We discuss a few growing and decaying religions, and illustrate various fits. Some cases seem to indicate the lack of reliability of the data, but others some marked departure from Avrami law. Whence the Avrami evolution equation might be surely improved, in particular, and somewhat obviously, for the decaying religion cases. We point out two major difficulties in such an analysis: (1) the "precise" original time of apparition of a religion, (2) the time at which there is a maximum number of adherents, both information being necessary for integrating reliably any evolution equation.

Religion: Source of Conflict or Basis for Reconciliation?

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Saint-Laurent, George E.

1994-01-01

Discusses five causes of unjust conflict that may originate in religious commitment including arrogant intolerance; hostile remembrance; ethnocentrism; fundamentalism; and religious myths. Causes of conflict other than religion are suggested, and religion as a force for peace and unity is discussed. (KRN)

Structural Model of Drug Use among Students: The Role of Spirituality, Social Modeling and Attitude to Drugs

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samira yavari

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: This study was an attempt to explore the structural relationship between religious activity, religious struggle, attitude to drugs, social modeling, spiritual well-being, and cigarette and tobacco smoking among students. Method: For this purpose, 504 male and female students from Kharazmi University, Agricultural Paradise, and Azad University of Karaj were selected by cluster sampling and they were asked to complete spiritual well-being scale, religious activity scale, religious struggle scale, social modeling scale, negative beliefs about drugs, and the tobacco section of the high-risk behavior questionnaire. Results: The results showed that the effect of religious activity on cigarette and tobacco smoking was mediated by negative beliefs about drugs, social modeling, spiritual well-being, and incentives for drug use. Similarly, the effect of religious struggle on cigarette and tobacco smoking was mediated by spiritual well-being. Conclusion: It seems that religion prevents people joining the unhealthy peer groups by the establishment of moral discipline, internal and external rules, and healthy coping styles therefore, people get less attracted to cigarette and tobacco smoking. Accordingly, these factors should be paid more attention in prevention programs for drug use, particularly cigarette and tobacco that are considered as the gateway to other drugs.

What’s God got to do with it ? The role of religion in the internal dynamics of migrants’ networks in Turkey

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Sebnem Koser Akcapar

2012-03-01

Full Text Available So far, immigration scholars have mostly taken up the religion issue in terms of adaptation or non-adaptation to the host society and research on the role of religion as carriers of positive social capital in transit countries has not given enough attention. Drawing on the migration histories of two groups of Iranian asylum seekers in Turkey, converted cases to Christianity and Bahais, this paper will examine the differences and similarities between these two groups. It will further discuss the religious identity of these two groups of Iranian asylum seekers in Turkey and how they use their social and religious networks within different congregations and Bahai spiritual assemblies in Turkey to determine destination countries in the transit country and to reach ultimately the West as refugees.

What is religion? An African understanding | Beyers | HTS ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Western thought has influenced the way that religion is understood. Western philosophy supported the separation between the sacred and the profane. Modernism, focusing on human rationality, reduced religion to a set of correctly formulated dogmas and doctrines. Western thought, dominated by Christianity, created a ...

Czym zajmuje się filozofia religii? ( What does philosophy of religion deal with?

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Andrzej Bronk

2010-12-01

Full Text Available I take a methodological point view, i.e. my interest is not so much in the religion itself but in the epistemological status of the discipline called philosophy of religion – its subject, main goals, problems, and how it justifies its theses. I discuss in succession: 1. the concept of the philosophy of religion; 2. the subject-matter of cognition in general, as it determines the object of the philosophy of religion; 3. the epistemological peculiarity of religious phenomena as an object of study of (a the philosophy of religion, (b classical philosophy of religion, and (c Anglo-Saxon philosophy of religion. I conclude with some general comments on the notion and methodological status of the philosophy of religion, which is far from being a methodologically uniform discipline. There is no one generally accepted definition or conception of the philosophy of religion. Different types of philosophy of religion have different objects and use differing methods. There is a broad and a narrow concept of philosophy itself which decide why some kinds of research are recognized as philosophical, and there is no way to separate (demarcate sharply philosophical and empirical study of religion. Different types of philosophy of religion operate on very different objects according to the tradition of the given research milieu. The way philosophy of religion is done today and what its object is has been influenced by the fact that it originated and was for a long time practised within the limits of Christianity. The problems and priorities of Christianity, therefore, were imposed on the subject: first and foremost the view of religion as the relation of the human being to a personal Absolute.

Catholic Religion Teachers in Chile: An Approach to Identity Building with Regard to Existing Mission-Profession Tension

Science.gov (United States)

Vargas-Herrera, Francisco; Moya-Marchant, Loreto

2018-01-01

Religion classes are found throughout the entire school system in Chile. These are mostly conducted by Catholic teachers who form their own professional identity from internal demands (imposed by the Catholic Church) and external demands (imposed by the school culture, social media, students and their families). This paper presents a reference…

The Making of Social Theory

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Balon, Jan

2012-01-01

Roč. 34, č. 4 (2012), s. 515-528 ISSN 1210-0250 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP401/11/2338 Institutional support: RVO:67985955 Keywords : social theory * styles of writing * commentary * interpretation * canon * social knowledge Subject RIV: AA - Philosophy ; Religion

ethics, religion and humanity: rethinking religion in 21 century africa.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

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cause of all human predicaments; that it provides viable and abundant fuel for ... have its older roots in Marx and Lenin, however, the condemnation it has received in recent times is ... beings, it is not out of place to say that his .... religion functions in the culture of a people; ..... zombies and robots having no freedom and.

Multiculturalism on the Back Seat? Culture, Religion, and Justice

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Jocelyn Maclure

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Alan Patten’s Equal Recognition is a major contribution to the normative literature on minority rights. I nonetheless suggest that liberal culturalism as a normative theory, even in Patten’s sophisticated version, is ill suited to deal with the challenges related to the status of religion in the public sphere that are so prevalent in contemporary democracies. In addition, I submit that Patten did not supply a fully convincing answer to the argument that liberal egalitarianism, well understood, is capacious enough to secure fair terms of social cooperation for members of cultural minorities, making the (allegedly burdensome language of “cultural rights” and “cultural recognition” superfluous.

Fiction and Religion : How Narratives About the Supernatural Inspire Religious Belief

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Davidsen, M.A.

2016-01-01

Thematic issue on 'Fiction and Religion: How Narratives About the Supernatural Inspire Religious Belief', volume 46(4) of Religion. The thematic issue inclues the following articles: Davidsen, Markus Altena, "Fiction and Religion: How Narratives About the Supernatural Inspire Religious Belief –

Manifiesto del Parlamento Mundial de las Religiones. Introducción

OpenAIRE

Gómez Caffarena, José

1994-01-01

Introducción al número monográfico de Isegoría "Ética y filosofía de la religión" (No. 10, 1994).-- Índice del número: Manifiesto del Parlamento Mundial de las Religiones. Introducción / José Gómez Caffarena.- Manifiesto del Parlamento Mundial de las Religiones. Parlamento de las religiones del mundo: Principios de una ética mundial / Equipo Editorial.- Manifiesto del Parlamento Mundial de las Religiones. Historia, sentido y método de la Declaración en pro de una ética mundial / Hans Küng.- R...

Religion og kognition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Geertz, Armin W.

2008-01-01

Artiklen indleder et temanummer som er resultat af et udviklingskursus om kognition for religionslærerne arrangeret af Afdeling for Religionsvidenskab i samarbejde med Religionslærerforeningen. Artiklen indtroducerer emnet religion og kognition således at lærerne får indsigt i emnets væsentligste...

Religion and Public Health: Moral Tradition as Both Problem and Solution.

Science.gov (United States)

Rozier, Michael

2017-06-01

Despite strong religious influence in the development of medicine and medical ethics, religion has been relatively absent in the rise of preventive medicine and population health. Episodic, clinical medicine has a powerful hold on the religious imagination in health care. Nevertheless, Hebrew Scripture, elements of rabbinical teaching, and modern concepts of social justice all can be used to inspire action in health care that goes beyond clinical medicine. The Christian tradition can call upon the corporal works of mercy, virtue ethics, and Catholic social teaching, as well as the modern history Catholic sisters in the U.S. to do the same. By considering the moral imperative for public health, Jewish and Christian individuals and organizations reaffirm the notion that the human person is both sacred and social. This article suggests a need for religious traditions to consider their moral traditions anew with an eye toward prevention and population health.

Religions and Psychotherapies—Special Issue

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Klaus Baumann

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The birth of modern psychotherapies—along with the birth of psychology as a science on one side and with psychoanalysis, other depth-psychological treatments and behavioral therapies in addition to medical treatments of psychological disorders on the other side—in the 19th and 20th centuries was accompanied by positivistic and mechanistic paradigms underlying empirical research and claims of scientific dignity [1]. Affirmations which could not be tested or observed empirically had to be excluded from science—including any kind of metaphysics and religious belief, notwithstanding pioneering studies by William James [2], Granville Stanley Hall, James Henry Leuba and Edwin Diller Starbuck [3] for psychology in general and for psychology of religion(s in particular. In particular, the critique of religions by Sigmund Freud has continuously exerted a strong impact in the fields of psychiatry and psychotherapies; in addition, regarding psychodynamics and symptoms of psychic disorders, religious phenomena in the lives of patients may be just as affected as other cognitive and emotional aspects and behaviors [4]. Consequently, religious experience and religious behavior of patients in psychiatry and psychotherapies have rarely been object of research and teaching apart from predominantly symptomatic and pathogenic perspectives [5].

Comment on "Rachel Oliver's article on religion and environment"

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wardekker, J.A.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/306644398

2008-01-01

I enjoyed reading Rachel Oliver's article on religion and environment. These differences (both between and within religions) in how people see the relation between mankind, nature and God are quite interesting indeed.

Helisaeus Röslin and freedom of religion

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Miguel A. Granada

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Helisaeus Röslin does not figure significantly in historical surveys of religious tolerance. Nevertheless, Carlos Gilly has shown in several works that the Swabian-Alsatian physician tirelessly defended throughout his life the need to uphold the freedom of religion and of conscience, both as a religious postulate and as a factor for economic progress and social peace. This article focuses on Röslin’s concept of religious freedom in relation to his concept of history, his work on chronology and his interpretation of the celestial novelties of the period, particularly the nova of 1604 and Galileo’s discovery of the Medicean planets in 1610, just as they appear in two of Röslin’s later works: Mitternächtige Schiffarth (1611 and the Tabella des Welt Spiegels (1612.

African Traditional Religion and the African Cinema: The Case of Nollywood

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Akua Agyeiwaa Manieson

2014-01-01

This study aims at a discussion of the portrayal of African Traditional Religion in some selected Nollywood films. It is herein argued that Nollywood is deliberately bent on denigrating the African traditional religion. Three main religious groups are represented in Nigeria. These are Muslims forming about 50.4%, followed by Christians 48.2% while followers of other religions especially African Traditional religion, comprises 1.4% 1. This statistic has earned for Nigeria an accolade: a multi-...

32 CFR 1630.43 - Class 4-D: Minister of religion.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Class 4-D: Minister of religion. 1630.43 Section... CLASSIFICATION RULES § 1630.43 Class 4-D: Minister of religion. In accord with part 1645 of this chapter any registrant shall be placed in Class 4-D who is a: (a) Duly ordained minister of religion; or (b) Regular...

Teaching Introductory Upper-Level Religion and Theology Classes

Science.gov (United States)

Clingerman, Forrest; O'Brien, Kevin J.

2015-01-01

The undergraduate study of religion is predominantly undertaken by non-majors who are meeting a general education requirement. This means that, while curricular discussions make important distinctions between the work of lower- and upper-division courses, many religion and theology faculty are teaching hybrid courses that we call…

Storby og religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Connie Carøe

2014-01-01

Det kan diskuteres, hvor bogstavelig man skal tage forudsigelsen om sekularisering eller religionens forsvindende betydning, men i dag kan en nærmere undersøgelse af livet og infrastrukturen i storbyerne bekræfte, at religion som sådan ikke er forsvundet fra byernes offentlige rum. Kan København på...

Controversy or consensus? Recommendations for psychiatrists on psychiatry, religion and spirituality.

Science.gov (United States)

Verhagen, Peter J

2012-12-01

Although there is still a lot of controversy surrounding the debates on religion and psychiatry, working toward consensus based on clinical experience and research seems to be far more fruitful. DISCOURSE: The main idea in this contribution runs as follows. It is no longer appropriate to treat psychiatry and religion as enemies. It is argued here that they are in fact allies. This position is elucidated in the light of two statements. (1) The World Psychiatric Association, indeed representing world psychiatry, needs to change its position toward religion and psychiatry. It should do so by crossing narrow-minded scientific boundaries like reductionist and materialistic boundaries. (2) Science and religion should not be regarded as opposing adversaries against each other, but as allies against nonsense and superstition. Two recommendations are formulated. First, science-and-religion, and in our case psychiatry-and-religion, is not purely about description based on gathering evidence, systematic empirical testing and mathematical modeling. We need an approach of both descriptive and prescriptive aspects of our daily reality, not only how our world is, but also how it should be. Secondly, science-and-religion, in our case psychiatry-and-religion as allies should formulate sensible criteria and develop an appropriate attitude to discernment based on intellectual, moral and spiritual sincerity. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Religion, Psychology and Globalisation Process: Attitudinal Appraisal

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Emmanuel Orok Duke

2016-10-01

Full Text Available A key consequence of globalisation is the integrative approach to reality whereby emphasis is placed on interdependence. Religion being an expression of human culture is equally affected by this cultural revolution. The main objective of this paper is to examine how religious affiliation, among Christians, influences attitudes towards the application of psychological sciences to the assuagement of human suffering. The sociological theory of structural functionalism was deployed to explain attitudinal appraisal. Ethnographic methodology, through quantitative analysis of administered questionnaire, was also used. The study reveals that religious tenets largely shape attitudinal appraisal and redefine the borders of globalisation’s metanarratives.

Spiritual Politics, Political Religion, and Religious Freedom in Burma

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gravers, Mikael

2013-01-01

A state of the art artcle on academic work on religion, politics, and religious freedom in Burma......A state of the art artcle on academic work on religion, politics, and religious freedom in Burma...

Reflections on the differences between religion and culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Bonney, Richard

2004-01-01

Culture may be thought of as a causal agent that affects the evolutionary process by uniquely human means. Religion, on the other hand, is considered a process of revelation and contains the concept of the "faithful" who receive the message of revelation. Culture permits the "self-conscious evaluation of human possibilities" and therefore presents a device for increasing human control over species change. There are dangers, however, in accepting cultural relativism without any constraint, such as respect for human life and dignity. In this article, the author attempts to clarify the boundaries between religion and culture and acknowledges that further research is needed on the religion/culture dichotomy.

The Counter Terrorist Classroom: Religion, Education, and Security

Science.gov (United States)

Gearon, Liam

2013-01-01

The article identifies international cases--from the United States, Europe, and the United Nations--of an emergent interface of religion, education, and security. This is manifest in the uses of religion in education to counter religious extremism, the notional "counter terrorist classroom." To avoid an over-association of extremism with…

"Convivencia," Abrahamic Religions and Study Abroad in Spain

Science.gov (United States)

McCoy, Mitchell A.; Holt, Sally

2018-01-01

As a point of departure for understanding the complexities of Spanish national and individual identities, it is incumbent that a student begin by investigating Spanish iterations of the three Abrahamic religions. This presupposition of religion's centrality in the pursuit of better informed understandings of the Spanish nation, people, history and…

Three Monotheistic Religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam. Slide Exercise.

Science.gov (United States)

Michalak, Laurence

This slide exercise is intended to communicate information about the three major monotheistic religions of the Middle East: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The exercise focuses on beliefs, events, symbols, institutions, and practices important to the three religions, but the main purpose is to impress upon students the many things that these…

Religion and Lunar Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Pop, V.

1969: The Eagle lands on the Moon. A moment that would not only mark the highest scientific achievement of all times, but would also have significant religious impli- cations. While the island of Bali lodges a protest at the United Nations against the US for desecrating a sacred place, Hopi Indians celebrate the fulfilment of an ancient prophecy that would reveal the "truth of the Sacred Ways". The plaque fastened to the Eagle - "We Came in Peace for All Mankind" would have contained the words "under God" as directed by the US president, if not for an assistant administrator at NASA that did not want to offend any religion. In the same time, Buzz Aldrin takes the Holy Communion on the Moon, and a Bible is left there by another Apollo mission - not long after the crew of Apollo 8 reads a passage from Genesis while circling the Moon. 1998: Navajo Indians lodge a protest with NASA for placing human ashes aboard the Lunar Prospector, as the Moon is a sacred place in their religion. Past, present and fu- ture exploration of the Moon has significant religious and spiritual implications that, while not widely known, are nonetheless important. Is lunar exploration a divine duty, or a sacrilege? This article will feature and thoroughly analyse the examples quoted above, as well as other facts, as for instance the plans of establishing lunar cemeteries - welcomed by some religions, and opposed by others.

Religious pro-sociality? Experimental evidence from a sample of 766 Spaniards.

Science.gov (United States)

Brañas-Garza, Pablo; Espín, Antonio M; Neuman, Shoshana

2014-01-01

This study explores the relationship between several personal religion-related variables and social behaviour, using three paradigmatic economic games: the dictator (DG), ultimatum (UG), and trust (TG) games. A large carefully designed sample of the urban adult population in Granada (Spain) is employed (N = 766). From participants' decisions in these games we obtain measures of altruism, bargaining behaviour and sense of fairness/equality, trust, and positive reciprocity. Three dimensions of religiosity are examined: (i) religious denomination; (ii) intensity of religiosity, measured by active participation at church services; and (iii) conversion out into a different denomination than the one raised in. The major results are: (i) individuals with "no religion" made decisions closer to rational selfish behaviour in the DG and the UG compared to those who affiliate with a "standard" religious denomination; (ii) among Catholics, intensity of religiosity is the key variable that affects social behaviour insofar as religiously-active individuals are generally more pro-social than non-active ones; and (iii) the religion raised in seems to have no effect on pro-sociality, beyond the effect of the current measures of religiosity. Importantly, behaviour in the TG is not predicted by any of the religion-related variables we analyse. While the results partially support the notion of religious pro-sociality, on the other hand, they also highlight the importance of closely examining the multidimensional nature of both religiosity and pro-social behaviour.

Religious pro-sociality? Experimental evidence from a sample of 766 Spaniards.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pablo Brañas-Garza

Full Text Available This study explores the relationship between several personal religion-related variables and social behaviour, using three paradigmatic economic games: the dictator (DG, ultimatum (UG, and trust (TG games. A large carefully designed sample of the urban adult population in Granada (Spain is employed (N = 766. From participants' decisions in these games we obtain measures of altruism, bargaining behaviour and sense of fairness/equality, trust, and positive reciprocity. Three dimensions of religiosity are examined: (i religious denomination; (ii intensity of religiosity, measured by active participation at church services; and (iii conversion out into a different denomination than the one raised in. The major results are: (i individuals with "no religion" made decisions closer to rational selfish behaviour in the DG and the UG compared to those who affiliate with a "standard" religious denomination; (ii among Catholics, intensity of religiosity is the key variable that affects social behaviour insofar as religiously-active individuals are generally more pro-social than non-active ones; and (iii the religion raised in seems to have no effect on pro-sociality, beyond the effect of the current measures of religiosity. Importantly, behaviour in the TG is not predicted by any of the religion-related variables we analyse. While the results partially support the notion of religious pro-sociality, on the other hand, they also highlight the importance of closely examining the multidimensional nature of both religiosity and pro-social behaviour.

Religions and religiosity: the challenge to know and to recognize the other

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonia Kramer

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Discourses that value religious plurality coexist in various contexts with actions of humiliation, exclusion, violence and attempts to eliminate religious groups. Committed to such questions, this text analyzes the lack of knowledge that exists about religions, even when there is coexistence between people, stands out the urgency of this recognition and discusses the role that should be exercised by the schools. The first item presents interactions between teachers and students in different institutions of Higher Education in Brazil and in the United States. These situations evidence express the difficulty of accepting the other of recognizing the religion of the other as having equal value, spirituality and relevance. The second item focuses on two philosophers whose work have an important impact in academic production, in social movements and in education conceived as community building: Martin Buber, his conception of religion and religiosity, the recognition of the other and his otherness as responsible engagement, unique ethical act; and Abraham Heschel, his vision of mankind, his passion for truth and the human search for God. The analyses of their texts invites us to bring Paulo Freire. The third item reflects on what can be done in school and specially in teacher education. And how to educate educators? How to build authentic dialogue? How to accept and educate the human being as a person (mensch, weaving the in between ourselves and others, trusting in the humanity of man, the bond and interfaith dialogue?

A postcolonial philosophy of religion and interreligious polylogue

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Willy Pfändtner

2011-05-01

Full Text Available In this article, an agenda for the development of a philosophy of religion which is informed by the challenges and possibilities of religious plurality is suggested. It is argued that the philosophy of religion as an academic discipline is in need of a kind of reconstruction if it is to maintain its relevance and connection to actual religious phenomena as they present themselves globally. The problem originates in the fact that the modern concept of religions has a distorting effect when applied to non-western traditions. The article focuses on a way to understand religious diversity by using aspects of Heidegger’s fundamental ontology to illuminate different ways of being religious within the same tradition and also to find similar religious dispositions across traditions. It is argued that this can inform interreligious dialogue so that this dialogue—or rather, polylogue—itself can serve as a tool to develop a postcolonial existential philosophy of religion. Part of this project would be to find and apply concepts and categories by reading religious traditions and subtraditions through each other. The article ends with a few suggestions on how this can be done, in this case by drawing on traditions from India.Willy Pfändtner is Senior Lecturer, Study of Religions, Södertörn University, Sweden.

32 CFR 1645.2 - The claim for minister of religion classification.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false The claim for minister of religion classification. 1645.2 Section 1645.2 National Defense Other Regulations Relating to National Defense SELECTIVE SERVICE SYSTEM CLASSIFICATION OF MINISTERS OF RELIGION § 1645.2 The claim for minister of religion...

Recent Observations on Religion Education in South Africa

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Nogueira-Godsey, Elaine

2016-01-01

Thirteen years have passed since the Minister of Education, Kader Asmal, implemented the National Policy on Religion and Education in 2003 (South African Government 2003). The policy provided a new framework to promote diversity by educating young people about the religions of others as well as respect towards freedom of religious expression, a…

The role of visual appearance in Punch’s early-Victorian satires on religion

OpenAIRE

Janes, Dominic

2014-01-01

Satires on various aspects of contemporary religion can frequently be found in the early Victorian editions of Punch. The more strident forms of Protestant evangelicalism, in the earlier 1840s, and Roman Catholic revivalism, around 1850, came in for particular attack. This pattern was partly the result of a drift in the editorial policy of the publication towards a less radical social and political position. However, Catholicism, in both its Roman and Anglican varieties, was particularly vuln...

An Ethnographic Eye on Religion in Everyday Life

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Berglund, Jenny

2014-01-01

There are many pitfalls associated with teaching about religions. One such pitfall entails the risk of presenting religions as stereotypical monolithic systems; that is, all who belong to a particular religious tradition think and act in the same way. I like to call this sort of stereotyping the "robotic tendency" because it has a habit…

Religion, Education, and Religious Education in Irish Schools

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Hyland, Áine; Bocking, Brian

2015-01-01

This essay is part of a collection of short essays solicited from authors around the globe who teach religion courses at the college level (not for professional religious training). They are published together with an introduction in "Teaching Theology and Religion" 18:3 (July 2015). The authors were asked to provide a brief overview of…

Family, Religion, and Work among Arab American Women

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Ghazal Read, Jen'nan

2004-01-01

Using data from a national survey of 501 Arab American women, this study examines the extent to which family behavior mediates the influence of religion on women's labor force activity. Prior research on families has largely overlooked the role of religion in influencing women's labor force decisions, particularly at different stages of the life…

Religions in South-Eastern Europe: The Historico-Anthropological Approach

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Michael Mitterauer

2008-06-01

Full Text Available The article approaches religious phenomena in South-Eastern Europe in a historico-anthropological manner. With the aid of historical comparison, the author tries to throw light on the religious phenomena of South-Eastern Europe and to present them in a lucid review. A significant place in this process is given to historical sociology as a discipline which, among other, also deals with the religious conditioning of social processes. The text consists of two parts. In the first, the author deals with the question of the religious particularity of South-Eastern Europe and considers it from several viewpoints. The author regards the most important features of the religious situation in that part of Europe as being particularism, archaicism and syncretism. He analyses the historical conditioning of the viability of the three monotheistic world religions in the region, their influence on the social development of South-Eastern Europe, the stance of the authorities towards religious communities and the existence of diverse traditions within individual religious cultures. Along with analysis of the presence of ancient elements and the continuity of pre-Christian rituals and beliefs, the author also stresses the strong syncretism marking the religious traditions of South-Eastern Europe. In the second part of the text the author compares religious phenomena in South-Eastern Europe and analyses regional religious traditions. He presents from the historico-anthropological aspect the religious rituals, the bearers of rituals, the place and time of rituals and the ritual languages of each of the world religions represented in the region. Emphasising the continuity of religious life and religious traditions in South-Eastern Europe, the author ends with the period of Communist rule in the second half of the 20th century, and deliberation that Communism, too, with its atheist doctrine in the secular form of cult, in fact carried on from religious tradition.

New ways of believing or belonging: is religion giving way to spirituality?

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Glendinning, Tony; Bruce, Steve

2006-09-01

In this article, the presence of alternative spirituality and practices within the general culture and their relationship to institutional religion are examined using national survey data collected as part of the 2001 Scottish Social Attitudes Survey. Alternative practices are found to divide into two groups of interests: concerns with personal well-being and interest in divination. Better-educated women are much more likely to engage with holistic practices associated with well-being; a minority of younger, less well-educated women are more likely to have found horoscopes, astrology, fortune-telling and tarot 'important in their lives'. Churchgoers find divination antithetical to religion while the use and salience of a range of holistic practices is as acceptable among churchgoers as it is among non-attenders and the secular (once allowance has been made for the connections between putatively alternative practices, gender, age and education). This underscores a focus on personal well-being rather than alternative spirituality in the consumption of holistic products and practices within the general culture. The study findings are used to assess claims for a spiritual revolution in modern Britain.

The Faith of Sacrifice: Leadership Trade-Offs in an Afro-Brazilian Religion.

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Soler, Montserrat

2016-12-01

Despite secular trends in some countries, prestige-based authority in the form of religious leadership remains hugely influential in the everyday lives of millions of people around the world. Here, the costs and benefits of religious leadership are explored in an urban setting in northeastern Brazil. An economic game, within-group cooperation questionnaires, and social network analyses were carried out among adherents of an Afro-Brazilian religion. Results reveal that leaders display high levels of religious commitment and disproportionally provide cooperative services to group members. On the other hand, initiates cooperate less than leaders but do not differ in levels of received cooperation or social cohesion measures. This may indicate some level of exploitation or free-riding. Demographic and group variables also appear to play an important role in the degree of social cohesion a group achieves. These findings are discussed in the context of non-Western urban settings where religious leadership may represent both an alternative to social advancement and a crucial source of material aid, social support, and a strong sense of community.

Religion as Political Instrument: The Case of Japan and South Africa ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Religion can be an effective instrument in politics. This has been a phenomenon all over the ages and different political contexts. Politicians utilise religion in order to gain political goals. This paper wants to investigate the reasons why religion is such an effective instrument within politics. The investigation is as much a ...

Ideologies of Religion and Diversity in Australian Public Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Byrne, Catherine

2012-01-01

In many multicultural democracies, education has a Christian history. However, teaching religion has ideological variation. Progressives teach about many religions, while conservatives favor (often exclusive) instruction into one tradition. Australian secular education controversially prioritizes faith-forming instruction (mostly Christian). In…

Religiosity, Religious Acceptance, Social Interaction, and Satisfaction with University Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Mohebpour, Ida; Reysen, Stephen; Gibson, Shonda; Hendricks, LaVelle

2017-01-01

We tested a mediated moderation model with the interaction of students' degree of religiosity and perception of the university environment as accepting of one's religion predicting satisfaction with the university mediated by positive social relations. When the university was perceived as accepting of one's religion (vs less accepting), greater…

One Size Does Not Fit All: Complexity, Religion, Secularism and Education

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Davies, Lynn

2014-01-01

The continuing incidence of extremist acts committed in the name of religion underscores the need to examine the interplay between religion and learning. This article argues for a secular foundation in society and school to protect against religion contributing to conflict and extremism. However, this is not a hard version of secularism, but a…

Between Politics and Religion – In Search of the Golden Mean

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Pawel Tarasiewicz

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The author undertakes the problem of the identity of Western civilization in the light of a correlation between politics and religion. First, he traces the theoretical debates about the mutual correspondence of politics and religion in ancient Greece. Following two extreme errors depicted by Sophocles in his “Antigone,” and by Plato in his “Apology of Socrates,” he infers that the “Golden Mean” is necessary in resolving the problem of politics and religion. Then, he examines the underlying errors put forward in the history. His investigations show the erroneousness of endowing either politics or religion with sovereign status in culture. There is always a conflict between politics and religion unless man regains his own sovereignty from them. Ultimately the author arrives at the conclusion that the “Golden Mean” correlating politics and religion distinctly strengthens the identity of the Western Civilization, and consists in respecting all real and universal parameters of human person life, such as cognition, freedom (and responsibility, love, agency in law, ontological sovereignty, and religious dignity.

The enlightenment and religion, knowledge and pedagogies in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Winther-Jensen, Thyge

2009-01-01

Artiklen behandler indflydelse strømninger inden for pædagogik, religion og vidensopfattelse i tiden under og op til Oplysningstiden.......Artiklen behandler indflydelse strømninger inden for pædagogik, religion og vidensopfattelse i tiden under og op til Oplysningstiden....

Psychiatry, religion, positive emotions and spirituality.

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Vaillant, George E

2013-12-01

This paper proposes that eight positive emotions: awe, love/attachment, trust/faith, compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, joy and hope constitute what we mean by spirituality. These emotions have been grossly ignored by psychiatry. The two sciences that I shall employ to demonstrate this definition of spirituality will be ethology and neuroscience. They are both very new. I will argue that spirituality is not about ideas, sacred texts and theology. Rather, spirituality is all about emotion and social connection that are more dependent on the limbic system than the cortex. Specific religions, for all their limitations, are often the portal through which positive emotions are brought into conscious attention. Neither Freud nor psychiatric textbooks ever mention emotions like joy and gratitude. Hymns and psalms give these emotions pride of place. Our whole concept of psychotherapy might change, if clinicians set about enhancing positive emotions, rather than focusing only on the negative ones. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Goodwill in the valley of the shadow: religion, psychotherapy, and politics in Britain from 1945 to the early 1960s.

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Richards, Graham

2009-08-01

The author hypothesizes that the British psychological climate following World War II, from 1945 to approximately 1960, created the conditions for an unusually frank, honest, and collaborative debate on matters related to religion and spirituality generally as well as broader social and political issues. The author first sketches the nature of this climate, before looking more specifically at the interrelationships among religion, psychotherapy and, very briefly, politics during this period. Suggestions regarding the dissipation of this phase after 1960 are examined. The final section considers some qualifications to the case previously outlined and identifies issues and questions that the author feels need addressing further.

Religion og film

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hvithamar, Annika; Eskjær, Mikkel Fugl

2007-01-01

Artiklen søger at stipulere en ramme for analyse af religion og film. Dels ved at række ud over den blotte konstatering af tilstedeværelse af religiøse elementer i film, dels ved at anslå en række temaer, der kan anvendes til analyse af sådanne film (individualisering, (de-)sekularisering, banal...

THE CONCEPTIONS OF MODESTY AND MODEST DRESS IN THE SCRIPTURES OF ABRAHAMIC RELIGIONS

OpenAIRE

Dr. Zohreh. Sadatmoosavi; Wan Zailan Kamaruddin Wan Ali; Mohammad Ali Shokouhi

2017-01-01

Over the past two decades, the issue of modesty norms and women's wearing modest dress were widely discussed in academic and media discourse. Basically, modesty does not belong to any specific culture but today it has become the subject of intense scrutiny in the Islamic context. However, all scriptures of Abrahamic religions; the Qur‘an, Old and New Testaments have emphasized on the observing modesty as a moral and social virtue for both men and women and recommended modest dress for women d...

Religion and attitudes toward the environment: a comparison of Mormons and the general U.S. population

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, Lori M.; Toney, Michael B.

2011-01-01

Religion has been shown to influence attitudes toward an array of social issues. This manuscript focuses specifically on environmental issues, with empirical examination of the distinctiveness of contemporary Mormon environmental perspectives as contrasted with the general U.S. population. A belief in the importance of dominion over the environment is noted, by some, to be reflected in anti-environmental stance characterizing Mormon Culture Region political leaders and church members [Foltz, R. C. (2000). Mormon values and the Utah environment. Worldviews: Environment, Culture, Religion, 4, 1–19]. Yet, a set of highly regarded essays by a diverse group of Mormons, including some in church leadership positions, expresses strong personal commitments to environmental causes and point to Mormon teachings and doctrines promoting environmentalism (Williams, Smith, and Gibbs, 1998). We examine variation in environmental concern as expressed by Mormons in a local community survey undertaken in Logan, Utah, as contrasted with the nationally-representative General Social Survey (1993). We find substantial differences between Mormons and the national sample; While Mormons tended to express greater levels of environmental concern, they were less likely to have undertaken specific behaviors reflective of such concern. PMID:21909183

Philosophy and Religion in service of the Philosophia Christi

NARCIS (Netherlands)

N. Linkels (Nicole)

2013-01-01

textabstractDesiderius Erasmus proposed a philosophia Christi, in which – at least to the Renaissance humanist – both religion and philosophy dictate the Christian way of living. The very term implies that philosophy and religion share a common ground. It fails, however, to acknowledge the

Exploring the Sacred-Secular Dialect in Everyday Social Work Practice: An Analysis of Religious Responses to Managerialism among Outreach Social Workers in Hong Kong.

Science.gov (United States)

Groves, Julian M; Ho, Wai-Yip; Siu, Kaxton

2016-07-01

We examine the recent proliferation of religious discourses among front line social workers in the former British Colony of Hong Kong in order to explore the nature of 're-enchantment' in modern social work practice. In-depth qualitative interviews with twenty social workers who identify as 'Christian social workers' in a variety of social work organisations (both religious and secular) reveal the adoption of religious identities and discourses to navigate the encroachment of managerialism. A systematic analysis of these narratives suggests that Christian social workers evoke religion to reclaim feelings of authenticity in their work, to facilitate more personalised relationships with their clients, and to empower themselves following the introduction of managerialist policies. We illuminate the dialectical relationship between religious discourses and managerialism to critique claims in the literature about a 're-enchantment' in social work, and to understand the essence of religion in modern social work practice.

Evangelization and Causes of Religion Conversion from Hindu to Christian at Badung District Bali

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Ni Kadek Surpi

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This research focuses on the effort of evangelization and religious conversion factors from Hinduism to Christianity in Badung, Bali. Bali as a unique island and famous all over the world has long been used as a target of missionary. In the early stages, the process of spreading Christianity is very slow. Even, Dutch East Indies government closed the door to evangelization and prohibited its activities in Bali. This study uses a cross field of knowledge and find that there are many causes behind the religion conversion in the area of study. Findings of this research shows that the reason for religious conversion is the social upheavals because of dissatisfaction on system and religion, individual crises, eco- nomic and socio-cultural factors, the influence of mysticism, spiritual thirst and the promise of salvation, family breakdown and urbanization, wedding and birth order in the family, education and professional evangelistic activity and lack understand- ing of Hinduism.

Friedrich Heiler and the Psychology of Religion

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Tatiana Samarina

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The author examines the work of the celebrated German religious researcher Friedrich Heiler in relation to the problematic surrounding the psychology of religion. Heiler himself subtitled his first classic work, Prayer , with the words a study of religious-history and of religious-psychology . This presumably meant that he considered himself a student of the psychology of religion. The author contrasts Heiler’s ideas on this subject with those put forward by his contemporaries, all of whom studied the psychology of religion: William James, Evelyn Underhill, and Sigmund Freud. The author’s analysis reveals that Heiler was very familiar with the studies produced by several early students of the psychology of religion: Leub, Starbuck, and Sabbate. He often employs them to glean examples for his own research but does not take any of them seriously. James’ division of religious believers into the twice-born and the once-born has similarities with Heiler’s own types of mystic and prophetic religiosity. There are also many similarities between the theory of mystical ascension proposed by Evelyn Underhill and the examples of religious mysticism proposed by Heiler. While analyzing the phenomenon of matrimonial mysticism, Heiler often refers to elements of Freud’s psychoanalysis, thinking it adequate to explain certain erotic elements inherent in religious reflection, but at the same time, unable to explain the religious phenomenon on the whole.

Religion Does Matter for Climate Change Attitudes and Behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Morrison, Mark; Duncan, Roderick; Parton, Kevin

2015-01-01

Little research has focused on the relationship between religion and climate change attitudes and behavior. Further, while there have been some studies examining the relationship between environmental attitudes and religion, most are focused on Christian denominations and secularism, and few have examined other religions such as Buddhism. Using an online survey of 1,927 Australians we examined links between membership of four religious groupings (Buddhists, Christian literalists and non-literalists, and Secularists) and climate change attitudes and behaviors. Differences were found across religious groups in terms of their belief in: (a) human induced climate change, (b) the level of consensus among scientists, (c) their own efficacy, and (d) the need for policy responses. We show, using ordinal regression, that religion explains these differences even after taking into account socio-demographic factors, knowledge and environmental attitude, including belief in man's dominion over nature. Differences in attitude and behavior between these religious groups suggest the importance of engaging denominations to encourage change in attitudes and behavior among their members.

Valhall and Helgafell: syncretistic traits of the Old Norse religion

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Odd Nordland

1969-01-01

Full Text Available The religion of the Viking age, the pre-Christian faith, presents itself as a syncretism, It is quite peculiarly evident from the tradition surrounding the origin of the gods in Åsgard. The gods behind the palisade of this mythological dwelling place were of two kinds, the result of an exchange of hostages after war between the æsir and the vanir. From the flock of vanir came the two fertility-gods: Njgrbr and Freyr to dwell in Åsgard and be accepted there on equal terms with the other gods around the "allfather", Othin. This quite remarkable information, concerning the syncretism of the eddic religion, is generally interpreted as a historic reminiscence of a contrast between a fertility religion, and a more aristocratic and warlike religion attached to the cult of Othin. The fertility religion then is often conceived of as old traits belonging to the indigenous population of Scandinavia, while the Othin-cult as something which was introduced by the same innovations that brought the Indo-European boat-axe people to our part of the world. We know the result of the process that created the heathen religion which reigned in our countries at the time Christianity was introduced here, but we are highly bewildered when faced with the task of describing the syncretistic process itself, and the religions that were a part of it. This is true despite our abundant material of mythological poetry, legends and 13th century information. This too, despite our extremely favorable situation of being in possession of the exiting amount of theoforic place-names.

Involving immigrant religious organizations in HIV/AIDS prevention: The role of bonding and bridging social capital.

Science.gov (United States)

Leung, ManChui R; Chin, John J; Petrescu-Prahova, Miruna

2016-08-01

Immigrant religious organizations in the United States are uniquely positioned to address critical issues beyond religion because of their moral, social and cultural prominence in community life. Increasingly, religious organizations have taken on a leadership role around health issues such as decreasing HIV/AIDS stigma and misinformation. However, there are barriers for some religious leaders and organizations in adopting new health programs, especially if the issue is seen as controversial. Our study examines how social network structures among religious members influence organizational acceptance of new information or controversial ideas, like HIV/AIDS. Using social network analysis methods on data from 2841 contacts in 20 immigrant Chinese Buddhist temples and Christian churches in New York City, we tested whether an immigrant religious organization's likelihood of being involved in HIV/AIDS activities was associated with the presence of bonding or bridging social capital. These two forms of social capital have been found to mediate the levels of exposure and openness to new ideas. We found HIV/AIDS-involved religious organizations were more likely to have lower levels of bonding social capital as indicated by members having fewer ties and fewer demographic attributes in common. We also found HIV/AIDS-involved religious organizations were more likely to have higher levels of bridging social capital as indicated by members having significantly more ties to people outside of their organization. Our study highlights the importance of looking beyond religion type and leadership attributes to social network structures among members in order to better explain organization-level receptiveness to HIV/AIDS involvement. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Building a Consonance Between Religion and Science: an Antidote for the Seeming Conflict

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Omomia O. Austin

2014-05-01

Full Text Available It is commonly argued by a school of thought that there is no relationship between religion and science. This extreme position has led to a lasting conflict, which has pitched religion against science and science against religion. The attempt in this paper is to articulate the fact that there can be an enduring consonance between religion and science. No doubt, the conflict and debate on the subject of religion and science has taken the front burner in both religious and philosophical discusses. Some scholars have argued that science has no role in religious or theological domain, while others contest that all religious concerns and considerations must be exposed to empirical investigations, and, proven by the dynamics of our intellect or reason. This paper, therefore, attempts to examine how religion and science complement each other. The author applied philosophical, sociological and historical methodology in his research. It is recommended that there is the need for dialogue between religion and science.

Religion, Education and Citizenship Education: The Challenge of Turning Religion Upside Down

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cok Bakker

2013-01-01

Reflecting on the link between religion and religious tradition(s) on the one hand and school and education on the other, and reflecting on the reasoning strategy to make sense of this link, people seem to tend strongly to think, argue and reflect in a deductive mode (this point is elaborated in

Intersections of Spirituality, Religion and Gender in Children's Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Trousdale, Ann M.

2005-01-01

This paper explores the intersections of spirituality, religion and gender in contemporary children's books published in the United States. Background for the discussion includes a history of religion in children's literature and the history of women's roles in the Christian tradition. Representative works of realistic fiction--historical and…

The role of religion in al-Qaeda’s violence

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nanninga, Pieter; Lewis, James R.

2017-01-01

This chapter explores the role of religion in jihadist violence by applying recent insights from the field of religious studies to the case of al-Qaeda. Whereas religion is often perceived as an explanatory factor in al-Qaeda’s attacks, the chapter demonstrates that the meanings attributed to

Struggling bodies and body struggles: explorations of body and religion in contemporary Nordic film

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Sofia Sjö

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This study focuses on representations of the body and religion in Nordic film. The aim is to illustrate the kinds of representations of religion and the body that can be found in contemporary Nordic films, demonstrate how these representations relate to religion, the body and film more generally, and explore what perceptions of and attitudes to the body and religion the representations suggest. The analysis begins with an introduction to religion and film studies, religion in Nordic film and the themes and films chosen for this study. After this a short overview of earlier studies dealing with the body, film, and religion is presented, before delving into the issue of the body and religion in Nordic film. The article is concluded by reflecting on the more over-arching ideas and attitudes that the material can be argued to point to and the possible changes and challenges the films express.

Fiction and Religion: How Narratives About the Supernatural Inspire Religious Belief

OpenAIRE

Davidsen, M.A.

2016-01-01

Thematic issue on 'Fiction and Religion: How Narratives About the Supernatural Inspire Religious Belief', volume 46(4) of Religion. The thematic issue inclues the following articles: Davidsen, Markus Altena, "Fiction and Religion: How Narratives About the Supernatural Inspire Religious Belief – Introducing the Thematic Issue". Petersen, Anders Klostergaard, "The Difference Between Religious Narratives and Fictional Literature: A Matter of Degree Only". Davidsen, Markus Altena, "The Religious ...

Spirituality: the new religion of our time?

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J. L. van der Walt

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Mainstream religions and their institutions have since the 1960s been gradually bleeding to death because of their members leaving them in search of rather more inspirational experiences elsewhere. Christian educationists are concerned about this development, because it means that these churches have been losing their capacity for entering into meaningful tripartite pedagogical partnerships with family and school. A description of the problem of churches losing members is followed by a brief depiction of spirituality, something that can be experienced both within Christianity and elsewhere. The inability of main- stream churches to let their members experience true Christian spirituality compels the latter to go elsewhere in search of it. It is concluded that spirituality is no “new” religion after all as far as Christianity is concerned. It is in fact the quintessence of Christianity, but has through the ages become deeply buried in the mainstream religions and churches under thick layers of dogmatic and other superficialities.

45 CFR 98.47 - Nondiscrimination in employment on the basis of religion.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... religion. 98.47 Section 98.47 Public Welfare DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES GENERAL ADMINISTRATION... Requirements § 98.47 Nondiscrimination in employment on the basis of religion. (a) In general, except as... religion. (1) Child care providers that receive assistance through grants or contracts under the CCDF shall...

[Psychotherapy and Religion: A Representative Survey Among Psychotherapists in Southern Germany].

Science.gov (United States)

Marquardt, Michael; Demling, Joachim Heinrich

2016-12-01

Objective: Religion and spirituality play an appreciable role as a problem area or as a resource for patients with mental disorders. It is therefore of interest what attitudes psychotherapists assume towards this complex range of issues in their work, but also in their personal lives. The majority of empirical studies on this subject originate from the USA, with little data being available from Europe and Germany. Our own survey among practising psychotherapists was designed to elucidate these questions. Method and Study Population: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the form of a written survey of all accessible practising psychotherapists in the area of Northern Bavaria (Franconian administrative districts; n=1 081, return rate 65%). Results: Around two-thirds of the therapists consider religion to be an important subject in psychotherapy, but only one-fifth of them routinely take a history of the patients' religious beliefs. The therapists' own closeness to religion correlates positively with the tendency to incorporate religion in their therapy. In around one-third of the therapists, religion holds an important place within their own world view, although significantly fewer psychotherapists than the general population of Franconia are bound to a specific confession. Around one-quarter had at least once consulted a pastor due to a patient, while each seventh therapist had at least once actively mediated contact to a pastor. Conclusions: Religion is a subject that is relevant for therapeutic practice, but a history of religious beliefs is rarely taken on a routine basis. The incorporation of religion into psychotherapy correlates with religious characteristics of the therapists ("personal bias"). There appears to be a "religiosity gap" between psychotherapists and the general population. Advanced training on the subject of "religion/spirituality" and increased consideration in supervision may counteract the danger of religious needs and religion

Corporate Social Responsibility and Workers' Well-being in Nigerian ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

impacts of corporate social responsibility on the well-being of workers in the ... policies have been the healthcare, education, security, housing, agriculture, arts and tourism, sports, charity organization, religion, social clubs, government ...

The use of religion in death penalty sentencing trials.

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Miller, Monica K; Bornstein, Brian H

2006-12-01

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys have presented religious appeals and testimony about a defendant's religious activities in order to influence capital jurors' sentencing. Courts that have objected to this use of religion fear that religion will improperly influence jurors' decisions and interfere with their ability to weigh aggravators and mitigators. This study investigated the effects of both prosecution and defense appeals. Prosecution appeals did not affect verdict decisions; however, use of religion by the defense affected both verdicts and the weighing of aggravators and mitigators. These results could be due to differences in perceived sincerity and remorse that are conveyed in the various appeals.

LA VIDA DESPUÉS DE LA MUERTE: CRISIS DE REPRODUCCIÓN Y ESTRUCTURA SOCIAL DE UN GRUPO EVANGÉLICO / Life after death: crisis of reproduction and social structure of an evangelical group

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Mariana Espinosa

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Este artículo intenta comprender el sentido de los conflictos y cambios que derivaron de la muerte de dos líderes de un grupo evangélico conocido como Hermanos Libres en Santiago del Estero (Argentina. Sostendré que los conflictos y reformas que se desarrollaron expresan los componentes y el dinamismo de la estructura social cuando se juega drásticamente la reproducción del grupo. Las disputas familiares, las iglesias como unidades sociales significativas, los diferentes modos de construir liderazgos y las diferencias generacionales tensan y conjugan la estructura de relaciones en que se desenvuelve la vida del grupo. Delimitar esas formas estructurales permitirá conocer dinámicas procesuales de una situación de crisis y ponderar en rigor qué cambia y qué permanece cuando en el campo de estudios de la religión contemporáneo se habla de radicales transformaciones epocales.  Abstract  This article attempts to make sense of the stresses and directions of changes that occurred after the death of two leaders of an evangelical group. It argues that the conflicts and reforms derived from that conjuncture, in which the reproduction of the group was destabilized, reveal the components and dynamics of the social structure. Family disputes, the churches as significant social units, the different ways to build leadership and generational differences tighten and combine the structure of relationships unfolded by the Free Brethren. A goal of this article is to delineate the structural forms revealed in the procedural dynamics of a reproduction crisis. In the present field of studies of contemporary religion a common attitude of knowledge is to see radical transformation everywhere. Counterbalancing this tendency, my empirical work seek to comprehend what changes and what remains, or the limits unto which a religious or social group can move from traditional culture and social cores.

45 CFR 98.46 - Nondiscrimination in admissions on the basis of religion.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... religion. 98.46 Section 98.46 Public Welfare DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES GENERAL ADMINISTRATION... Requirements § 98.46 Nondiscrimination in admissions on the basis of religion. (a) Child care providers (other... contracts under the CCDF shall not discriminate in admissions against any child on the basis of religion. (b...

Clients' Willingness to Incorporate Religion or Spirituality in Counseling: A Brief Report

Science.gov (United States)

Diallo, Abdoulaye

2013-01-01

A total of 84 individuals with addiction issues (e.g., drugs, sex, weight, food, and codependency) were asked about their willingness to incorporate religion or spirituality in their counseling. These respondents expressed willingness to deal with religion or spirituality in counseling if the counselor was knowledgeable about their religion or…

The unhappy marriage of religion and politics: problems and pitfalls for gender equality.

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Razavi, Shahra; Jenichen, Anne

2010-01-01

This article explores how religion as a political force shapes and deflects the struggle for gender equality in contexts marked by different histories of nation building and challenges of ethnic diversity, different state-society relations (from the more authoritarian to the more democratic), and different relations between state power and religion (especially in the domain of marriage, family and personal laws). It shows how 'private' issues, related to the family, sexuality and reproduction, have become sites of intense public contestation between conservative religious actors wishing to regulate them based on some transcendent moral principle, and feminist and other human rights advocates basing their claims on pluralist and time- and context-specific solutions. Not only are claims of 'divine truth' justifying discriminatory practices against women hard to challenge, but the struggle for gender equality is further complicated by the manner in which it is closely tied up with, and inseparable from, struggles for social and economic justice, ethnic/racial recognition, and national self-determination vis--vis imperial/global domination.

Editorial. The 'Beauty Fallacy' Religion, science and the aesthetics of knowledge

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Arianna Borrelli

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The relationship between science and religion has been, and still is, the subject of much discussion, both among scholars of religion and among historians and philosophers of science. Despite the cultural and historical complexity of the issue, since the nineteenth century the question of the interaction between science and religion has been constantly framed in the rather simple terms of their mutual ‘compatibility’ or ‘exclusion’. The historical roots of such discussions are entwined with the emergence both of modern science as a practice and an ideal, and of the field of the cultural study of religion. It was in the modern period that the assertion of the existence of a ‘conflict’ between science and religion emerged and a series of binary oppositions were constructed, such as those between ‘rational’ scientific knowledge and ‘irrational’ religious belief, or between an ‘objective’ scientific representation of reality and the poetic imagination allegedly characteristic of religious traditions and mythology.

The Religious Identities and Social Stucture of Bosnia-Herzegovina

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Nebojša Šavija-Valha

2009-06-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the structural preconditions of articulation of religious identities in Bosnia-Herzegovina from the historical perspective. These have been produced by the processes of Christianization and Islamization at the intersection of heterogeneous origin of Bosnian-Herzegovinian population, the influence of paganism and folk beliefs, and the geopolitical situation on the border line between the great empires. Due to the influence of these factors, these processes have never been successful in encompassing the entire population, which has always been divided among several simultaneously co-existing religious institutions: Catholicism, Christian Orthodoxy, the Bosnian Church and Islam. Through the institution of Millet, allowing its subjects relative cultural and social freedoms within their religious communities, the Ottoman Empire provides the communities with preconditions for ethnic modelling, but also for “political” articulation. The interplay of these agents has provided a base for interaction among the religious groups, which can be seen at two complementary levels: the vertical one, “the political”, ruled by hierarchical and discriminative relations; and the lateral one, “the social”, which is a sphere of egalitarian trans- and inter-ethnic social practices. Both levels have their religious aspects: at the first, it is about institutionalized religions; at the second, about “folk” religion, a syncretism of pre-Christian tradition and Christian and Islamic elements. Hence, religion has been acting in a totalizing way in Bosnian-Herzegovinian society, appearing both as a primary repertoire of symbolic elements and as a basic mechanism of further group identifications – ethnic and national.

Religion and nurses' attitudes to euthanasia and physician assisted suicide.

Science.gov (United States)

Gielen, Joris; van den Branden, Stef; Broeckaert, Bert

2009-05-01

In this review of empirical studies we aimed to assess the influence of religion and world view on nurses' attitudes towards euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. We searched PubMed for articles published before August 2008 using combinations of search terms. Most identified studies showed a clear relationship between religion or world view and nurses' attitudes towards euthanasia or physician assisted suicide. Differences in attitude were found to be influenced by religious or ideological affiliation, observance of religious practices, religious doctrines, and personal importance attributed to religion or world view. Nevertheless, a coherent comparative interpretation of the results of the identified studies was difficult. We concluded that no study has so far exhaustively investigated the relationship between religion or world view and nurses' attitudes towards euthanasia or physician assisted suicide and that further research is required.

An Islamic Perspective on the Role of Education in Responding to Social Issues among Students in Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Rosila Nik; Yaacob, Nik

2013-01-01

In meeting its economic, social, and political goals, Malaysia and many other countries are challenged with the rise of social problems among their citizens. Being an Islamic country, the question of the role of religion in shaping good behavior has been an issue of concern. In spite of religion, education is seen as a significant instrument to…

Some issues concerning applications of naturalistic paradigm to the study of religion

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Kinga Kowalczyk-Purol

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Viewing religion as a product of evolution already has yielded a new and interesting hypotheses, which could help to integrate entire heritage of scientific study of religion. Nonetheless, there are some objections toward this program. First, despite the fact that evolutionary theories of religion are inherently interdisciplinary, its integration with sociological, anthropological and historical studies should be improve in the future. Second, phenomenological descriptions (that is individual religious experiences are neglected by Darwinians. This fact could negatively affects explanatory potential of this approach. Finally, opponents of analyzed paradigm state that evolutionary hypotheses have still low level of confirmation. It stems from a small number of conducted empirical investigations on evolutionary roots of religion. Nevertheless, application of Darwinian tools to the study of religion remains a very promising scientific venture.

Hospital Social Work and Spirituality: Views of Medical Social Workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Pandya, Samta P

2016-01-01

This article is based on a study of 1,389 medical social workers in 108 hospitals across 12 countries, on their views on spirituality and spiritually sensitive interventions in hospital settings. Results of the logistic regression analyses and structural equation models showed that medical social workers from European countries, United States of America, Canada, and Australia, those had undergone spiritual training, and those who had higher self-reported spiritual experiences scale scores were more likely to have the view that spirituality in hospital settings is for facilitating integral healing and wellness of patients and were more likely to prefer spiritual packages of New Age movements as the form of spiritual program, understand spiritual assessment as assessing the patients' spiritual starting point, to then build on further interventions and were likely to attest the understanding of spiritual techniques as mindfulness techniques. Finally they were also likely to understand the spiritual goals of intervention in a holistic way, that is, as that of integral healing, growth of consciousness and promoting overall well-being of patients vis-à-vis only coping and coming to terms with health adversities. Results of the structural equation models also showed covariances between religion, spirituality training, and scores on the self-reported spiritual experiences scale, having thus a set of compounding effects on social workers' views on spiritual interventions in hospitals. The implications of the results for health care social work practice and curriculum are discussed.

389 The Role of Religion in Human Development Uchenna M ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Europe, Arab and numerous countries of the world. It also contributed to ... Religion laid the foundation for the sanctity of human life, ... favourable attitude to work. .... no other, this is because organized religion, on the balance sheet of history ...

Theology of religions: Models for interreligious dialogue in South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Test

be segregated in terms of their traditions, places of worship and cultures, they .... Theology of Religions that by its very nature the concept of interreligious dialogue is .... religions lead to salvation, one is faced with the issue of relativism, meaning that if all .... 'Towards a Global Ethic articulated several of the moral and ethical ...

Intercultural Education: Religion, Knowledge and the Limits of Postmodernism

Science.gov (United States)

Coulby, David

2008-01-01

This paper commences with an examination of some of the destructive aspects of religion, past and present. Against this it sets the knowledge and tolerance advocated in the Enlightenment. It goes on to consider the current role of religion in some school systems. It concludes by considering the challenge that the institutionalization of religion…

[Psychotherapy and religion: a survey of Northern Bavarian psychotherapists].

Science.gov (United States)

Demling, J H; Wörthmüller, M; O'Connolly, T A

2001-02-01

By taking a survey of physicians and psychologists accredited as psychotherapists in Franconia (northern Bavaria), we attempted to draw conclusions about the importance of religion for the therapists themselves and for their therapeutic settings. 253 physicians and 78 psychologists returned usable questionnaires (a return rate of 70% for each group). 30% of each group were non-denominational, significantly more men than women were not religious or considered themselves "agnostic/atheistic." Catholic therapists appeared to be more loyal toward their church and more open-minded toward religion in general than protestants and non-denominationals, respectively. Around 1/5 of the psychologists had prayed for their patients. Among the psychoanalysts there were no fewer non-denominationals or agnostics/atheists than among physician/psychotherapists or behavioural therapists. The physician/psychoanalysts classified the role of religion as less important than physician/psychotherapists; however, there were marked differences between the psychoanalytic schools. Many therapists could imagine consulting a spiritual counselor in appropriate cases. The results indicate a correlation between the subjective attitude of therapists toward religion and their handling of this topic in therapeutic practice.

Global migration and the selective reimagining of religions

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Peter Beyer

1998-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract It is a commonplace in discussions of immigrant religion to speak of how religion aids in the adjustment of migrants to a new culture and society; how it serves as a dimension of continuity in the process of integration. This article examines theoretical foundations for reconsidering this perspective in the context of globalization in general and global migration in particular. In a global society, it is far less useful to think of migrants as leaving one society to join another, especially insofar as this optic tends to assume a that the new “host” culture remains comparatively unaffected while the immigrants culture faces the dilemma of assimilation versus ethnic preservation; and b that the culture of origin simply loses a few members without much effect by the migrants back onto their cultures of origin. By contrast, the article argues that the consequences of migration are to help (redefine religions in all areas where they are represented; and thus to make distinctions between “core” and “diaspora” far less salient. Instead, different areas where religious traditions are represented are better seen as centres for creating different options for the authentic construction of the same religion; options that are very often in communication with each other.

Religion and Displacement in Africa: Compassion and Sacrifice in Congolese Churches in Kampala, Uganda

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lauterbach, Karen

2014-01-01

This article is about the role of religion in contexts of displacement. The article looks at the role churches and church leaders play in the lives of refugees and more particularly the assistance that these actors provide. The analytical approach is to take into consideration both religious idea...... to refugees, how this is conceptualised as well as the practices in a perspective that includes the intersection between religious ideas (compassion and sacrifice) and ideas around social relationships, gift-giving and reciprocity....

The (Educational) Meaning of Religion as a Quality of Liberal Democratic Citizenship

Science.gov (United States)

Liljestrand, Johan; Olson, Maria

2016-01-01

Religion has become a prominent issue in times of pluralism and in relation to citizenship in school and in society. As religious education (RE) is assigned to be one of the main school subject where issues of what religion is are to be raised, RE teachers' conceptualizations of religion are of vital concern to investigate. In this article, RE…

Religion as an Alleviating Factor in Iranian Cancer Patients: a Qualitative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Rahnama, Mozhgan; Khoshknab, Masoud Fallahi; Seyed Bagher Maddah, Sadat; Ahmadi, Fazlollah; Arbabisarjou, Azizollah

2015-01-01

After diagnosis of cancer, many patients show more inclination towards religion and religious activities. This qualitative study using semi-structured interviews explored the perspectives and experiences of 17 Iranian cancer patients and their families regarding the role of religion in their adaptation to cancer in one of the hospitals in Tehran and a charity institute. The content analysis identified two themes: "religious beliefs "(illness as God's will, being cured by God's will, belief in God's supportiveness, having faith in God as a relieving factor, and hope in divine healing) and "relationship with God during the illness." In general, relationship with God and religious beliefs had a positive effect on the patients adapting to their condition, without negative consequences such as stopping their treatment process and just waiting to be cured by God. Thus a strengthening of such beliefs, as a coping factor, could be recommended through religious counseling.

Presentation: Twentieth-century Dictatorships and Religion

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Jan Nelis

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Este dossier agrupa trabajos que cubren una amplia zona geográfica, ofreciendo diferentes puntos de vista sobre aspectos concernientes a la relación entre políticas dictatoriales y religión. El resultado final es ocho artículos que abordan la cuestión en cuatro continentes: Asia, África, América y Europa. Por la diversidad de enfoques, los artículos tratan, desde perspectivas diferentes, las actitudes “pragmáticas” coloniales y postcoloniales hacia la religión en África (Grandhomme y Kroubo Dagnini, la identidad religiosa africana (Chande, el uso de la religión como una fuente de moral y ética en Argentina (Cousins y Francia (Stevens, el punto de tensión entre la religión y política tradicionales y el mito en China (Lee e Italia (Nelis, y las actitudes de la dictadura hacia la identidad religiosa en España (Beck.____________________ABSTRACT:This dossier contains essays that cover a broad geographic area, offering different points of view on various aspects concerning the relation between dictatorship policies and religion. The final result are eight articles, which deal with the situation on four continents: Asia, Africa, America and Europe. Presenting a great variety of approaches, the articles show different views on the “pragmatic” colonial and post-colonial attitudes towards religion in Africa (Grandhomme and Kroubo Dagnini, African religious identity (Chande, the use of religion as a source of morals and ethics in Argentina (Cousins and France (Stevens, the point of tension between traditional religion and politics and the myth in China (Lee and Italy (Nelis and the dictatorship’s attitude towards the religious identity in Spain (Beck.

Framing (implicitly) matters: the role of religion in attitudes toward immigrants and Muslims in Denmark.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Joel; Antalíková, Radka

2014-12-01

Denmark is currently experiencing the highest immigration rate in its modern history. Population surveys indicate that negative public attitudes toward immigrants actually stem from attitudes toward their (perceived) Islamic affiliation. We used a framing paradigm to investigate the explicit and implicit attitudes of Christian and Atheist Danes toward targets framed as Muslims or as immigrants. The results showed that explicit and implicit attitudes were more negative when the target was framed as a Muslim, rather than as an immigrant. Interestingly, implicit attitudes were qualified by the participants' religion. Specifically, analyses revealed that Christians demonstrated more negative implicit attitudes toward immigrants than Muslims. Conversely, Atheists demonstrated more negative implicit attitudes toward Muslims than Atheists. These results suggest a complex relationship between religion, and implicit and explicit prejudice. Both the religious affiliation of the perceiver and the perceived religious affiliation of the target are key factors in social perception. © 2014 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Reading Nostra Aetate in reverse: a different way of looking at the relationships among religions

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Peter C. Phan

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Nostra Aetate indisputably represented at its promulgation in 1965 a momentous step forward in Catholic theology of religions. But its perspective on other religions still remains deeply "Christianity-centric" in that it views other religions from the Christian vantage-point and uses Christianity as the yardstick to evaluate them. Graphically, its theology of religions may be represented by a series of concentric circles with Christianity occupying the center of the innermost circle and other religions occupying successive circles, with increasing distance from the center, depending on the number of the elements of the true religion, which is Christianity, they possess. How would the "the relation of the Church to non-Christian Religions" (the full title of the Declaration Nostra Aetate look like if we start from other religions and see them on their own terms, as they see themselves, that is, not as "non-Christian," and inquire into their mutual relations?  The essay begins with an examination of the theology of religions implicit in the use of the expression “non-Christian” when referring to religions other than Christianity. It is argued that the “non” is not a neutral descriptive term but represents the “fulfillment theology” of religions prevalent before and during Vatican II. Next a critique of this fulfillment theology is presented showing that it is seriously inadequate for interreligious dialogue. Finally the essay proposes a different way to conceiving the relation between Christianity and other religions (as “other” and not as “non-Christian” by applying the insights of the Jewish-Christian dialogue, especially its rejection of supersessionism, its condemnation of the “teaching of contempt,” and its Trinitarian theology of religion. In summary, the essay attempts to formulate a Christian “kenotic theology of religion,” in which Christianity and the church no longer stand at the normative center toward

Exploring Social Structures in Extended Team Model

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zahedi, Mansooreh; Ali Babar, Muhammad

2013-01-01

Extended Team Model (ETM) as a type of offshore outsourcing is increasingly becoming popular mode of Global Software Development (GSD). There is little knowledge about the social structures in ETM and their impact on collaboration. Within a large interdisciplinary project to develop the next...... generation of GSD technologies, we are exploring the role of social structures to support collaboration. This paper reports some details of our research design and initial findings about the mechanisms to support social structures and their impact on collaboration in an ETM....

Age, sex, education, religion, and perception of tattoos.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Yang

2002-04-01

Tattooing has become more acceptable in the mainstream American culture in recent years. Based on a survey with face-to-face interviews of 335 nontattooed adults randomly selected from a city with a population of 444,000, this study explored the relationship of individuals' demographic variables, attitudes toward religion, and their perceptions of tattoos. The hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed that age and attitude toward religion were associated with individuals' perception of tattoos.

Gender Differences in the Association Between Religion/Spirituality and Simultaneous Polysubstance Use (SPU).

Science.gov (United States)

Acheampong, Abenaa B; Lasopa, Sonam; Striley, Catherine W; Cottler, Linda B

2016-10-01

While religion/spirituality strongly protects against drug use (Cheney et al. in J Drug Issues 44(1):94-113, 2014), little is known about gender differences in the association of religion/spirituality on simultaneous polysubstance use (SPU) among those who use prescription opioids. Data come from a community-based study that recruited community members from the St Louis area (N = 632). Participants were asked whether they used prescription opioids when not prescribed for them or in ways other than prescribed in the past 12 months. Religion/spirituality was categorized as high, medium, or low based on personal views on the importance of religion and spirituality, attendance at religious services, and advice seeking from religious leaders. SPU was defined as non-medical use of opioids simultaneously with use of cocaine, alcohol, ecstasy, or marijuana. Multivariate logistic regression determined the association between religion/spirituality, demographic variables, and SPU. Men with high levels of religion/spirituality had 63 % decreased odds of SPU compared with men with low levels. Other variables associated with SPU in men were four or more arrests (AOR 2.21), multiple sex partners (AOR 2.11), and opioid use without a prescription (AOR 3.04). Women with high or medium levels of religion/spirituality had 58 and 62 % decreased odds of SPU compared with women with low levels. Variables that predicted SPU in women also included 4+ arrests (AOR 5.00) and never being married (AOR 2.13). Being African-American was associated with decreased odds of SPU in women (AOR 0.32). Overall, a high level of religion/spirituality was associated with lower odds of SPU. Gender differences in this association were evident, whereas women with even a medium level of religion/spirituality had significantly decreased odds of SPU. Future drug prevention and interventions should consider the relevance of religion/spirituality in SPU.

Finding Community Structures In Social Activity Data

KAUST Repository

Peng, Chengbin

2015-01-01

Social activity data sets are increasing in number and volume. Finding community structure in such data is valuable in many applications. For example, understand- ing the community structure of social networks may reduce the spread of epidemics

Flaubert et l’histoire des religions

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Philippe Dufour

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Qui est-ce qui a généralisé les religions ? Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire a dit : le crâne est une vertèbre aplatie. Qui est-ce qui a prouvé, par exemple, que la religion est une philosophie devenue art, et que la cervelle qui bat dedans, à savoir la superstition, le sentiment religieux en soi, est de la même matière partout, malgré ses différences extérieures, correspond aux mêmes besoins, répond aux mêmes fibres, meurt par les mêmes accidents, etc. ?Flaubert, à Louise Colet, 7 juillet 1853Le numér...

The associations between religion, bereavement and depression among Hong Kong nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheung, Teris; Lee, Paul H; Yip, Paul S F

2017-07-04

This paper is to examine the associations between religion, bereavement and depression among nursing professionals using a cross-sectional survey design. There is little empirical evidence in Asia suggesting that religion may either increase or lower the likelihood of nursing professionals being depressed. We analyzed the results of a Mental Health Survey soliciting data from 850 Hong Kong nurses (aged 21-59, 178 males) regarding their mental well-being and associated factors, including participants' socio-economic profile and recent life-events. Multiple linear regression analyses examined associations between religion, bereavement and depression. Religious faith is weakly associated with lower self-reported depression in bereavement. Our findings confirm those studies suggesting that religion positively affects mental health and yet healthcare providers have yet to assimilate this insight.

Revitalization of religion and religiousness in Serbia: Reality or a myth?

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Blagojević Mirko

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This article has three parts: in the first part the authors discusses two theoretical ways of interpreting revival and revitalization of religion in Serbia. The first way takes religion as a public institution and implies mutual support of religious and non-religious factors, while the other way describes independent, internal religious revival emerging from the very core of religion and church as a divine institution and individual spiritual needs of believers for religiousness (terminal faith. In the second part, the author points to two different interpretations of empirical data on attachment to religion and church in Serbia accumulated in the last thirty years. The third part compares socio-demographic characteristics of religious people from twenty-five years ago and characteristics of contemporary believers.

Religion in High-Performance Athletes: An exploratory study about the dynamic

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Sónia Morgado

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The religious phenomenon is considered a tool to modulate behaviors or cognitions, and therefore influence every aspect of life, including sports. The religion and its effect on sports, especially in High-Performance Athletes are due to be analyzed. The assessment of the athletes it was used the Interiorization Religious Scale (Barros, 2005. The instrument was applied to athletes from High-Performance Sports Centers, in function of gender, age, and religion. The results showed that religion does not spurs the vision of the athletes. Even though the results makes no evidence of the religion importance in sports, it would be useful for coaches, managers, and team leaders, to insert and contextualize the beliefs and religious rituals of the athletes in training process.

IBN ‘ARABI AND THE TRANSCENDENTAL UNITY OF RELIGIONS

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Media Zainul Bahri

2012-07-01

Full Text Available This essay describes Ibn ‘Arabi’s comprehensive views, captured in his important Futuhat and Fusus, on the concept of wahdat al-adyan, the discrepancy of beliefs, and the Shari’ah as well as its juncture and its unity. Elaborated explanation in this paper is expected to result in a true understanding of this crucial issue, particularly the concept of religious pluralism in the discourse of Islamic studies. Ibn Arabi’ extensively  discusses religion in the sense of the “ideal” versus “historical” or “esoteric” versus “the exoteric”. Ibn ‘Arabi concludes that the absolute unity of religions may only occur within spiritual, ideal, or transcendental realm (or “esoteric”, which is beyond the formal form of religions. Hence, the transcendental unity of religions cannot be found in the formal form of religions nor in the shari’ah.[Artikel ini mengulas pandangan Ibn ‘Arabi’ mengenai wahdat al-adyan seperti dijelaskan dalam dua bukunya; Futuhat dan Fusus, dan perbedaan dan kesamaan antara iman dan shariah. Diharapkan diskusi artikel ini berkontribusi dalam kajian pluralisme, utamanya dalam disiplin studi Islam. Dalam diskusinya, Ibn Arabi’  menjelaskan perbedaan ‘ideal’ dan ‘historikal’ atau antara ‘esoterik’ dan ‘eksoterik’. Ibn ‘Arabi berpendapat bahwa kemanunggalan agama-agama dapat dicapai melalui spiritualitas, ideal, atau dimensi transcendental (esoterik yang ada di luar tampilan formal agama-agama. Dengan kata lain, kemanunggalan tersebut tidak akan ditemukan pada shari’ah.

A masquerade is not watched from one spot: reassessing the study of African religions

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Umar Habila Dadem Danfulani

1999-01-01

Full Text Available The search for an adequate methodological approach to the study of African Religions in their multiformity has been a fervent one. In this paper, approaches to the study of African Religions today are proposed. These are polymethodic and multidimentional approaches, the contextual study of African Religions, the historical approaches (demonstrated in the art of masquerading, the need to balance synchronic and diachronic approaches, the use of art and iconography in the study and female studies. The fifth focuses on studying African Religions as insider. The author also examines the problems of the "insider" and the politics of doing research in history of religions in a Nigerian university.The conclusion strongly recommends a multidisciplinary approach for studying African Religions.

Bulletproof Love : Luke Cage (2016 and Religion

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Derry, Ken

2017-05-01

Full Text Available There are many ways to think about religion and popular culture. One method is to ask where and when we see what might be commonly understood as “religious tradition(s” explicitly on display. Another is to think about superhero narratives themselves as “religious”, using this term as a conceptual tool for categorizing and thereby better understanding particular dimensions of human experience. This article takes a variety of approaches to understanding religion in relation to the recent television series LUKE CAGE (Netflix, US 2016. These approaches take their hermeneutical cues from a range of disciplines, including studies of the Bible; Hip Hop; gender; Black Theology; African American religion; and philosophy. The results of this analysis highlight the polysemic nature of popular culture in general, and of superhero stories in particular. Like religious traditions themselves, the show is complex and contradictory: it is both progressive and reactionary; emphasizes community and valorizes an individual; critiques and endorses Christianity; subverts and promotes violence. Depending on the questions asked, LUKE CAGE (2016 provides a range of very different answers.

The Rastafarian Movement in South Africa: A Religion or Way of Life ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Rastafarians object to the classification of their movement as a religion. Their objection is based on the belief that the movement is more of a way of life than a religion. This is in spite of the fact that the movement is grounded on religious principles which makes non-Rastafarians to view it as a religion. In order to understand ...

Religion, spirituality, health and medicine: Why should Indian physicians care?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Chattopadhyay, S.

2007-01-01

Religion, spirituality, health and medicine have common roots in the conceptual framework of relationship amongst human beings, nature and God. Of late, there has been a surge in interest in understanding the interplay of religion, spirituality, health and medicine, both in popular and scientific

The Word Has Become Game : Researching Religion in Digital Games

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Bosman, Frank

2016-01-01

In this article, the author proposes a multi-layered methodology for researching religion in video games. The author differentiates between five levels at which religion can be encountered in video games and/or video game research: material, referential, reflexive, ritual and meta level. These

Integrating Religion and Spirituality into Counselor Education: Barriers and Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Christopher M.; Puig, Ana; Baggs, Adrienne; Wolf, Cheryl Pence

2015-01-01

Despite a professionally recognized need for training in religion/spirituality, literature indicates that religious and spirituality issues continue to be inconsistently addressed in counselor education. Ten experts were asked to identify potential barriers to integrating religion and spirituality into counselor education and indicate strategies…

There be dragons: effects of unexplored religion on nurses' competence in spiritual care.

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Pesut, Barbara

2016-09-01

On ancient maps unexplored lands were simply labeled 'there be dragons' indicating the fear that attends the unknown. Despite three decades of theoretical and empirical work on spirituality in nursing, evidence still suggests that nurses do not feel competent to engage in spiritual care. In this paper I propose that one of the reasons for this is a theory-theory gap between religion and spirituality. Generalized anxiety about the role of religion in society has led to under-theorizing in nursing about religious care. As a result, when religion and spirituality overlap at the point of care, nurses are left without the substantive knowledge required for practice. Robust religious theorizing should include thick accounts of lived religion and integrative work that enables nurses to understand commonalities across religions that are relevant to practice. As a starting point to this integrative work, nurses can be introduced to the nature and lexicon of lived religion, religious perspectives on suffering, and religious reasoning that holds meaning and mystery in tension. Such an approach will better prepare them for the realities of practice where the complexities of spirituality and religion come to play. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

James R. Lewis, éd., Encyclopedic Sourcebook of UFO Religions

OpenAIRE

Renard, Jean-Bruno

2007-01-01

L'année 2003 a été riche de publications en langue anglaise sur les « religions soucoupistes » (religions des UFO, ou OVNI, ou soucoupes volantes) puisqu'en novembre de cette année, trois mois après la parution de l'ouvrage UFO Religions dirigé par C. Partridge (voir recension dans Arch. 126-3), était publié ce volume, lui aussi collectif. Inévitablement, les thèmes et les groupes traités sont globalement les mêmes, mais seuls quelques auteurs se retrouvent dans les deux publications, avec de...

The Promised Savior in Pre-Islamic Great Religions

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Mahin Arab

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Since the ancient times the belief in the rise of the Reformer has been a fundamental principle. Many of the holy prophets have announced the advent of new prophet. Moreover in the announcements and indications of predecessors there are always allusions to "the Last Promised" and "the Savior of Last Days" under such titles as "Kalki", "Fifth Buddha", "Soshyans", "Messiah", "The Son of Man" and so on and so forth. Of course there are different types of belief in the last reformer in religions. In one place the Savior is merely a social reformer while in another place he is only after the spiritual salvation of people and even sometimes he undertakes both tasks. On the other hand, the Last Promised is once nationalist and once seeks to save the whole world.    This essay seeks to assay the views of pre-Islamic great religions including Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism as to the Promised Savior. This essay is an analytico-descriptive research which has based itself on the first hand works comprising the sacred scriptures of religions and proceeds through the typological analyses of idea of the Promised in religions.    Zoroastrianism: the idea of the Promised has been tied to the notion of Soshyant. Generally speaking, this notion alludes to a group of people who periodically emerge at the end of every millennium of the last three millennia of world's age so as to uproot evil and renew the world, the last one of these reformers is Soshyans. According to the aforementioned typology, Zoroastrian idea of Last Savior is among the Promised who saves the whole world. Moreover Zoroastrian Promised cannot be declared only a social savior as he is not wholly detached from people's spirituality too. From another point of view, Zoroastrian idea of the Promised represents a universal and not nationalist savior who is relatively a human and not divine entity who emerges in the last millennium of world's age.    Judaism: in the

The Promised Savior in Pre-Islamic Great Religions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mahin Arab

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Since the ancient times the belief in the rise of the Reformer has been a fundamental principle. Many of the holy prophets have announced the advent of new prophet. Moreover in the announcements and indications of predecessors there are always allusions to "the Last Promised" and "the Savior of Last Days" under such titles as "Kalki", "Fifth Buddha", "Soshyans", "Messiah", "The Son of Man" and so on and so forth. Of course there are different types of belief in the last reformer in religions. In one place the Savior is merely a social reformer while in another place he is only after the spiritual salvation of people and even sometimes he undertakes both tasks. On the other hand, the Last Promised is once nationalist and once seeks to save the whole world.    This essay seeks to assay the views of pre-Islamic great religions including Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism as to the Promised Savior. This essay is an analytico-descriptive research which has based itself on the first hand works comprising the sacred scriptures of religions and proceeds through the typological analyses of idea of the Promised in religions.    Zoroastrianism: the idea of the Promised has been tied to the notion of Soshyant. Generally speaking, this notion alludes to a group of people who periodically emerge at the end of every millennium of the last three millennia of world's age so as to uproot evil and renew the world, the last one of these reformers is Soshyans. According to the aforementioned typology, Zoroastrian idea of Last Savior is among the Promised who saves the whole world. Moreover Zoroastrian Promised cannot be declared only a social savior as he is not wholly detached from people's spirituality too. From another point of view, Zoroastrian idea of the Promised represents a universal and not nationalist savior who is relatively a human and not divine entity who emerges in the last millennium of world's age.    Judaism: in the

Offspring social network structure predicts fitness in families.

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Royle, Nick J; Pike, Thomas W; Heeb, Philipp; Richner, Heinz; Kölliker, Mathias

2012-12-22

Social structures such as families emerge as outcomes of behavioural interactions among individuals, and can evolve over time if families with particular types of social structures tend to leave more individuals in subsequent generations. The social behaviour of interacting individuals is typically analysed as a series of multiple dyadic (pair-wise) interactions, rather than a network of interactions among multiple individuals. However, in species where parents feed dependant young, interactions within families nearly always involve more than two individuals simultaneously. Such social networks of interactions at least partly reflect conflicts of interest over the provision of costly parental investment. Consequently, variation in family network structure reflects variation in how conflicts of interest are resolved among family members. Despite its importance in understanding the evolution of emergent properties of social organization such as family life and cooperation, nothing is currently known about how selection acts on the structure of social networks. Here, we show that the social network structure of broods of begging nestling great tits Parus major predicts fitness in families. Although selection at the level of the individual favours large nestlings, selection at the level of the kin-group primarily favours families that resolve conflicts most effectively.

Reclaiming Religion: New Historiographic Challenges in the Relationship of Religion and American Higher Education.

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Eisenmann, Linda

1999-01-01

Extends F. Michael Perko's literature review "Religious Higher Education in America: An Historiographic Survey" by discussing recent developments in the history of religion and U.S. higher education. Explores issues in secularization, the influence of Richard Hofstadter, the work of Julie Reuben, Douglas Sloan, George Marsden, and…

The Challenges of Teaching and Learning Sociology of Religion in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The teaching and learning of Sociology of Religion in Nigeria face some grave challenges. As an academic discipline in religious studies, many who teach this specialized discipline are not experts. This makes Sociology of. Religion anybody's game which does not promote sound scholarship, creativity and intellectual ...

The mediatisation of religion

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjarvard, Stig

2011-01-01

Drawing on recent advances in mediatisation theory, the article presents a theoretical framework for understanding the increased interplay between religion and media. The media have become an important, if not primary, source of information about religious issues, and religious information and ex...... encourage secular practices and beliefs and invite religious imaginations typically of a more subjectivised nature....

Religion, Education and the Politics of Recognition: A Critique and a Counter-Proposal

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Kamat, Sangeeta; Mathew, Biju

2010-01-01

How should religion be integrated into school curriculum? The authors compare two recent controversies about religion in school curriculum to provide an overarching perspective that can guide educators in their efforts to use religion for pedagogical purposes. The first controversy concerns curriculum approved by the California State Board of…

‘Things Greater than Thou’: Post-Apocalyptic Religion in Games

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Lars de Wildt

2018-05-01

Full Text Available In the literature on religion in games, two broad types of religion have been depicted: on the one hand, historical religions—Christian, Muslim and Buddhist narratives, tropes and symbols—and, on the other hand, fiction-based religion, referring to fantasy, myth and popular culture. In this article we aim to describe, analyze and explain the emergence of a new, unacknowledged repertoire. Building on two case studies—Fallout 3 and Horizon: Zero Dawn—we argue that modern technology (computers, AI, VR, androids itself is becoming a sacred object of veneration in fiction, specifically in post-apocalyptic games that imagine man-made annihilation. Although the themes and topics differ, this emergent form of techno-religion in game narratives is generally located in a post-apocalyptic setting. Although they are fictitious, we conclude that such narratives reflect developments in real life, in which technology such as artificial intelligence is feared as an increasingly powerful, opaque force.

Religions and extraterrestrial life how will we deal with it?

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Weintraub, David A

2014-01-01

In the twenty-first century, the debate about life on other worlds is quickly changing from the realm of speculation to the domain of hard science. Within a few years, as a consequence of the rapid discovery by astronomers of planets around other stars, astronomers very likely will have discovered clear evidence of life beyond the Earth. Such a discovery of extraterrestrial life will change everything.  Knowing the answer as to whether humanity has company in the universe will trigger one of the greatest intellectual revolutions in history, not the least of which will be a challenge for at least some terrestrial religions. Which religions will handle the discovery of extraterrestrial life with ease and which will struggle to assimilate this new knowledge about our place in the universe? Some religions as currently practiced appear to only be viable on Earth. Other religions could be practiced on distant worlds but nevertheless identify both Earth as a place and humankind as a species of singular spiritual re...

The Holy and Dirty Money of Faith: Shapes of Religion in Contemporary Society

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Adrián Slavkovský

2015-05-01

Full Text Available A phenomenon, which is generally referred to as religion, has been present in various shapes throughout the whole history of humankind. Only the last centuries have brought a mass expansion of atheism. When many assumed that religion would successively expire, something else happened. At the end of the second millennium a new bloom of religion happened in many forms. But this is not a simple comeback of the good old times of religion, especially not of traditional religious communities and institutions.

Multidimensional Assessment of Spirituality/Religion in Patients with HIV: Conceptual Framework and Empirical Refinement

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Kudel, Ian; Cotton, Sian; Leonard, Anthony C.; Tsevat, Joel; Ritchey, P. Neal

2011-01-01

A decade ago, an expert panel developed a framework for measuring spirituality/religion in health research (Brief Multidimensional Measure of Religiousness/Spirituality), but empirical testing of this framework has been limited. The purpose of this study was to determine whether responses to items across multiple measures assessing spirituality/religion by 450 patients with HIV replicate this model. We hypothesized a six-factor model underlying a collective of 56 items, but results of confirmatory factor analyses suggested eight dimensions: Meaning/Peace, Tangible Connection to the Divine, Positive Religious Coping, Love/Appreciation, Negative Religious Coping, Positive Congregational Support, Negative Congregational Support, and Cultural Practices. This study corroborates parts of the factor structure underlying the Brief Multidimensional Measure of Religiousness/Spirituality and some recent refinements of the original framework. PMID:21136166

World Religions for the Classroom.

Science.gov (United States)

Dixon, Dorothy Arnett

This teaching and resource guide contains ideas appropriate for teaching junior and senior high school students about the following religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Shintoism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Individual sections discuss general approaches to teaching the religious philosophies and rituals, and exemplary…

Is Buddhism the low fertility religion of Asia?

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Vegard Skirbekk

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: The influence of religion on demographic behaviors has been extensively studied mainly for Abrahamic religions. Although Buddhism is the world's fourth largest religion and is dominant in several Asian nations experiencing very low fertility, the impact of Buddhism on childbearing has received comparatively little research attention. Objective: This paper draws upon a variety of data sources in different countries in Asia in order to test our hypothesis that Buddhism is related to low fertility. Methods: Religious differentials in terms of period fertility in three nations (India, Cambodia and Nepal and cohort fertility in three case studies (Mongolia, Thailand and Japan are analyzed. The analyses are divided into two parts: descriptive and multivariate analyses. Results: Our results suggest that Buddhist affiliation tends to be negatively or not associated with childbearing outcomes, controlling for education, region of residence, age and marital status. Although the results vary between the highly diverse contextual and institutional settings investigated, we find evidence that Buddhist affiliation or devotion is not related to elevated fertility across these very different cultural settings. Conclusions: Across the highly diverse cultural and developmental contexts under which the different strains of Buddhism dominate, the effect of Buddhism is consistently negatively or insignificantly related to fertility. These findings stand in contrast to studies of Abrahamic religions that tend to identify a positive link between religiosity and fertility.

Prejudices in Cultural Contexts: Shared Stereotypes (Gender, Age) Versus Variable Stereotypes (Race, Ethnicity, Religion).

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Fiske, Susan T

2017-09-01

Some prejudices share cross-cultural patterns, but others are more variable and culture specific. Those sharing cross-cultural patterns (sexism, ageism) each combine societal status differences and intimate interdependence. For example, in stereotypes of sex and age, lower status groups-women and elders-gain stereotypic warmth (from their cooperative interdependence) but lose stereotypic competence (from their lower status); men and middle-aged adults show the opposite trade-off, stereotypically more competent than warm. Meta-analyses support these widespread ambivalent (mixed) stereotypes for gender and age across cultures. Social class stereotypes often share some similarities (cold but competent rich vs. warm but incompetent poor). These compensatory warmth versus competence stereotypes may function to manage common human dilemmas of interacting across societal and personal positions. However, other stereotypes are more variable and culture specific (ethnicity, race, religion). Case studies of specific race/ethnicities and religions reveal much more cultural variation in their stereotype content, supporting their being responses to particular cultural contexts, apparent accidents of history. To change stereotypes requires understanding their commonalities and differences, their origins and patterns across cultures.

"Religion" in Educational Spaces: Knowing, Knowing Well, and Knowing Differently

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I'Anson, John; Jasper, Alison

2011-01-01

The focus of this article is how "religion", as a materially heterogeneous concept, becomes mobilized in different educational spaces, and the "kinds of knowing" to which this gives rise. Three "case studyish" illustrations are deployed in order to consider how religion and education produce kinds of knowing which…

Pornography, religion, and the happiness gap: does pornography impact the actively religious differently?

Science.gov (United States)

Patterson, Richard; Price, Joseph

2012-01-01

Club good models developed by economists suggest that the club provides a benefit to members by fostering the provision of semi-public goods. In the case of religion, churches create enforcement mechanisms to reduce free riding. Consequently, the psychic costs of deviant activity should be higher for individuals who belong to religious groups with strong social norms. Data from the General Social Survey are used to examine whether the cost of using pornography is greater for the more religiously involved. We measure the cost of using pornography as the happiness gap or the gap between the average happiness reported by individuals who do and individuals who do not report using pornography. The happiness gap is larger for individuals who regularly attend church and who belong to religious groups with strong attitudes against pornography.