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The persistence of evil in modernity is discussed from the perspective of the ethics of technology & the position of Emmanuel Levinas on Jewish thought & tradition (Difficult Freedom: Essays on Judaism, 1990). Levinas critiques the reductive thought & impersonality of modern secular rationalism & easy objectification of the Other in the dualistic tradition of good/evil & self/other. He claims that this tradition made possible the Holocaust & the carryover of evil into postmodernity. Anti-Semites fighting the Jewish evil were sanctioned in their methods because they were fighting evil. This dualistic tradition of good & evil fosters an ethic of self-rejection of emotions & desires that spring from humankind's (evil) animal nature. This self-rejection was avoided by the projection of evil inclinations onto the Other. The dualistic ethical tradition needs to be rethought in order to move into a humanism concerned with issues of peace & social justice. M. Pflum

When one considers the results of social scientific surveys, secularisation in Germany seems to be a more or less linear process of erosion of what is traditionally named religiosity. The percentage of citizens who affirm that they are "religious", believe in God or otherworldly beings, hope for life after death or participate regularly in the praxis of a religious community has been – by and large – steadily declining for decades. This decline has occurred over the succeeding generations: The younger the generation, the fewer "religious" people in it. But the process of secularisation is apparent not only in this persistent quantitative shrinkage from generation to generation. Above all it also manifests itself – this is the thesis of the article – in the transformation of the habitus formations and contents of faith of the generations.
The essence of ongoing secularisation naturally is reflected most clearly in its contemporary state of development which is represented in the youngest adult generation. Therefore the analysis of this generation is particularly interesting for the sociology of religion. But the article does not confine to analyze this generation. After indicating some basic premises of the sociology of generations and the notion of secularisation presupposed in this paper, the succession of generations in Germany is outlined hypothetically, from the so-called generation of '68 to the youngest adult generation, concluding with some remarks about the progress of secularisation.

"The concept of resentment is inherently linked to the cultural criticism of Europe and the West. By way of this cultural criticism and affirmative reaction to it, the syndromes of resentment are widespread in non-European cultures. Thus resentment is also linked to the often diverse multiple formulations of the cultural programs of modernity. The conventional usage of the term would suggest that resentment means a sort of envy of the socially and culturally deprived or a psychological reactive attitude of the unjustly treated who are - morally or factually - deprived to act for revenge and justice. However, in Nietzsche's genealogy of morals, we are informed that Christian altruism and generalised morals of love produce a sort of self-distancing disinterestedness, a general value orientation which in itself remains non-interested in the fate of values in general and in the fate of the other in specific. For Nietzsche, it were priests and other office holders who with their own distancing attitude were - in the process of civilizational constitution of Europe - strongly involved in featuring the general laws of the 'morality of resentment' (i. e. the religious and intellectual formulations of restraint against immediate revengeful action) and in making it the most ambiguous and powerful cultural tool ('Kulturwerkzeug') in the construction of modernity. Since Max Weber the social philosophy of modernity and modernization was - in an affirmative turn - to a large extent engaged in developing science and rationality, as non-resentful components of modern self-construction, professionalism and individualism. The point is that the constitution and reconstitution of the cultural and institutional programs of modernity are as a whole fossils of the inherent struggle to come to grips with 'resentment' and the challenges of the cultural criticism of modernity. Moreover, and following this statement, the essential point is that modern dialogue - in as far as it is determined by the logic to overcome or even to suppress the 'Kulturkritik' on which it was originally built - remains at large inapt to understand the constitution and reconstitution of the non-modern, the non-European and the non-western in contemporary cross-civilizational exchange. I will develop this line of argument by looking closer to the conditions and potentials of dialogue between Muslims and Europeans in the contemporary scene which is so strongly marked by the 'resurgence' of religion and the new modes in which religious components enter or are re-entering today the cultural and political arenas of modernity." (author's abstract)

Explores the notion of Just Peace, demonstrating the validity of three propositions. First, the implications of religion for the topic are significant & intricate: significant due to religion's vital role in today's international system & vital because religions at times differ in their doctrinal understandings of justice & peace. Second, the concept of Just Peace should be regarded as a rubric, an "umbrella term" that encompasses a host of sub-problems. Third, despite the complexity of the issues at hand, the enduring significance of internationally acknowledged human rights constitute one major unifying theme for the diverse considerations of peace & justice. K. Coddon

The Rev. John Witherspoon had a unique status among the founders as a political clergyman. The article briefly discusses his careers in politics & religion, then reconstructs his views on the public role of religion, in other words his political ideology. The discussion of political theology centers around two political sermons: "The Domination of Providence over the Passions of Men" & the "Sermon delivered at a Public Thanksgiving after Peace," as well as three religious proclamations drafted for the Continental Congress. D. Miller

John Adams' views on religion & politics are explained through the history & provisions of the 1780 Massachusetts Constitution, which Adams in large measure drafted. In a broad sense, Adams upheld as his first principle of political philosophy a balance of the freedom of many private religions with the establishment of one public Christian religion. For him, too little religious freedom is a recipe for hypocrisy & impiety, while too much religious freedom is an invitation to depravity & license. He advocated for a "mild & equitable establishment" of Protestantism. D. Miller

Examines the nature & consequences of the multiple interconnections between religions & wars both historically & in the contemporary world, highlighting their geographic dimensions. The function of religions as "cultural systems" & the mutable nature of such systems are described in terms of how they provide the impetus, motivation, or rationale for war. The relationship between geographic context & the religious discourses that fuel war is explored, along with religion's role in the "territorial concerns & spatial strategies of combatants." Also discussed are differences between religiously motivated wars & other types of conflict; linkages between religion, nationalism, ethnicity, & war; wars resulting from secular opposition to religious activities; & the function of religion in the political pursuit of peace. References. K. Hyatt Stewart

"This essay describes the situation of religion in Hong Kong. Particular attention is paid on its social role in the community. Starting in the 19th Century, Hong Kong transformed from a rural region dominated by traditional Chinese culture to a modernized, globalized and value pluralistic society. It also underwent a process of colonization and de-colonization. It is an interesting issue how various types of religion adapt to this rapidly changing social and political environment. The following section introduces the historical background of Hong Kong. Section III provides a brief sketch of the ethical situation of this society. It is intended to set the stage for the analysis of the situation of religion and its social role in the society in sections IV and V. The historic process of de-colonization in the 1980's and the 1990's has big impact on religion. Section VI discusses how various types of religion are affected by this political change and how they respond to it." (author's abstract)

Analyzes the relationship betwen religion & identity in Northern Ireland, drawing on census & polling data & 1992/93 personal experience on the Opsahl Commission, an independent inquiry into ways forward in Northern Ireland. It is shown that the violence since the 1970s has polarized people to a greater extent than ever before. Much of this division is structured in terms of the Protestant & Catholic religions, which provide identity anchors for this conflict. However, it is also found that, in the recent period, polarized identities produced on the basis of religion may be eroding, particularly in the Protestant community. It is suggested that at the bottom of these developments lays the realization that the problems in Northern Ireland can only be resolved from the bottom up by individuals who learn to live & work together. 1 Table, 1 Appendix. D. M. Smith

"What is known in scholarly and political circles as 'globalization' is widely recognized as the wave carrying the world into the next epoch. The sociological weight of academic and political opinion lies with the conviction that globalization is either the solution to endemic problems of economic, political and cultural underdevelopment or at least inevitable. Those holding the latter opinion, the less optimistic, are less sanguine about the prospects for globalization as a panacea for a multitude of social ills, but nonetheless see no realistic alternative in the face of economic, political and cultural processes of such overwhelming force. The latter perception only heightens the tendency to accept globalization as a given and proceed to examine how a given nation can best take advantage of the opportunities it provides. The proponents of globalization have the upper hand in political, economic and cultural spheres, despite the fact that globalization clearly threatens national sovereignty, undermines traditional methods of economic regulation on behalf of the common good, and renders political authority weaker in the face of unprecedented accumulations of private power." (author's abstract)