Suchergebnisse

Motivated by the need to inform the enduring and unresolved debates about religion and politics in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, this report focuses on the relation between social change and religious diversity and the challenges this poses for the state–religion relationship. It also draws attention to the pluralization of the religious sphere, the individualization of religion and the unlikely return of a state monopoly of Islam. In a context marked by growing instability (coups d'état, popular uprisings, conflicts, political uncertainty), this report examines the future of political Islam, a major ideological trend in the region. It aims to offer a detailed historical and sociological analysis of the different trajectories of moderate political Islam movements, the emerging processes of doctrinal transformation, electoral and governmental participation and the extent to which they have challenged both Islamist organizations (Muslim brotherhood-affiliated organizations, Salafi movements) and jihadi movements (ISIS, al Qaeda). Ultimately, the report analyses the relations between religion and politics within Shiism (one of the two major branches of Islam), within Christian communities and finally within the major non-Muslim majority society in the region, Israel. Strongly objecting to prevailing reductionist and essentialist misrepresentations of the region and their sweeping doom-mongering generalizations, the report sheds light on the distinct dynamics of local histories, inter-organizational competition, the arising ideological tensions and geopolitical rivalries.

"Based on exclusive elite-interviews with 116 religious and political leaders in three countries, "The Godless Crusade" not only makes a considerable theoretical contribution to the academic literature across different disciplines, but also represents a major intellectual intervention in contemporary social and political debates about how multi-cultural societies can confront the challenges of right-wing populism, white identity politics and religious activism"--

When approaching the issue of power, some fundamental questions always arise: Who is in a position to define? When, where, for whom, and why? These are also underlying questions in the particular case that is discussed in this article: Discourses about the role of religion among Bribris in Talamanca, the indigenously dominated area in south-eastern Costa Rica. The author looks at how 'religion' is defined by different actors, and into how the same actors understand religion in relation to what they see as other aspects of society and culture – in particular what the Bribris refer to as siwá, a concept they often translate into Spanish as tradición. In doing so, the it is highlighted how different actors discuss and negotiate the role of 'religion' in a particular cultural and historical context. For analytical purposes, it is proposed that defining should be seen as a practice that delimits something and gives it a certain place or space in relation to something else. To define is then to exercise power. As a consequence, discourses about the definition and role of religion in Talamanca are seen as both practices of, and contests about power.

This research compares two films, the original Pengabdi Setan and its remake, in the context of politics of religion to show how the two films depict the issue of religion at two different eras based on the released years of the two films. The display of religion in the two films is viewed as an allegorical representation as well as critical responses to the socio-political situation of the two eras. Separated by almost four decades, Joko Anwar's nostalgic remake and the original film subtly converse with each other, share distinctive similarities yet also polarized differences that underlie their endeavor to allegorically bring back and relive public memory of certain national trauma; that is repression during the New Order regime and marginalization of the minority in contemporary Indonesia. By focusing on the films' cinematography and mise-en-scene, this research attempts to locate those allegorical moments within the depiction of religious practice that challenge, criticize or accentuate the dominant ideology of their respective eras. Keywords: allegorical moment, religion, national trauma, politicization

Problem Currently in Northern Nigeria, religious interaction among the three major religious traditions, Islam, Christianity, and African Traditional Religion, is marred by violent religious conflicts. Also, competing concepts of religious legitimacy, which appeal to the historical heritage of Nigeria, are often used to validate and justify the violation of religious freedom. Does the current state of religious interaction among the various religious groups reflect the true heritage of religious interaction in Northern Nigeria? Or is it possible that the history of the interaction between African Traditional Religions, Islam, and Christianity in the past might actually be a heritage that points toward a solution regarding religious freedom and tolerance today? Method This is a qualitative historical study based on published primary and secondary sources by historians whose works relate the history of Northern Nigeria as it impacts religious interaction among the various religious traditions (African Traditional Religions, Islam, and Christianity) and its relation to power politics. This study validates historical data by comparing and analyzing a variety of historical sources, particularly on the religious history of Northern Nigeria beginning from pre-Islamic to colonial times. Three Northern Nigeria states, Borno, Kano, and Sotoko, are chosen as representative of the region. Although there is a limitation of primary historical sources in Northern Nigeria before the arrival of Islamic scholars in the eleventh century AD, this limitation has been compensated for by the documentation of oral traditions of Northern Nigeria. -- Findings This study shows that prior to the introduction of Islam in Northern Nigeria in the eleventh century AD, religious interaction among the adherents of African Traditional Religions was relatively peaceful. This state of relatively peaceful coexistence among the various religious traditions continued during early Islam, and the relationship between religion and civil affairs remained casual. However, beginning in the early nineteenth century the region deviated from its religious heritage of relative tolerance, and a casual overlap of religious and civil affairs, to a more intentional fusion of religion and politics, which has led to violent religious conflicts in Northern Nigeria. This change occurred, mainly as a result of the growing desire to consolidate the establishment of Islam within Hausaland and beyond by Islamic reformists. An understanding of the true history of Northern Nigeria's religious heritage does not only correct the wrong impression that the region has always been involved in violent religious conflicts, but also, provides resources for those involved in dialogue towards religious freedom and tolerance in twenty-first century Nigeria.

Den 20. mai 2016 forsvarte stipendiat Moumita Sen med glans sin avhandling Clay-modelling in West-Bengal: Between art, religion and politics for graden Philosophiae doctor ved Universitetet i Oslo, Institutt for kulturstudier og orientalske språk, Det humanistiske fakultet.

This book analyses the power that religion wields upon the minds of individuals and communities and explores the predominance of language in the actual practice of religion. Through an investigation of the diverse forms of religious language available — oral traditions, sacred texts, evangelical prose, and national rhetoric used by 'faith-insiders' such as missionaries, priests, or religious leaders who play the communicator's role between the sacred and the secular — the chapters in the volume reveal the dependence of religion upon language, demonstrating how religion draws strength from a past that is embedded in narratives, infusing the 'sacred' language with political power.A Language 'Clearly Understanded of the People':The Construction of an Anglo-Catholic Linguistic Identity 18502015Biblical Semiotics: The Language of SurvivalCultures of Sound: Lineages and Languages of Sutra Recitation in Goshirakawas JapanKaqchikel Spirituality in the shade of the Catholic DoctrineReclaiming the Sacred: Bengali Muslim Communitys Quest for a Jatiya IdentityReligion for Nation? Language Policy of the Churches in the Context of the Belarusian Nation-BuildingThe Translations of Buddhism, from Asia to the West: Shifting Languages, Adaptive Logics, AcculturationsThe Bdshshiyyas Tower of Babel: Cultural Diversity in a Transnational Sufi OrderThe Paradox of the Term Democracy in Arabic Discourse on the Islamic MovementsThe book combines broad theoretical and normative reflections in contexts of original, detailed and closely examined empirical case studies. Drawing upon resources across disciplines, the book will be of interest to scholars of religion and religious studies, linguistics, politics, cultural studies, history, sociology, and social anthropology.Voices, Texts and Contexts in Filipino Christianity Words Taken for Wonders: Conversion and Religious Authority among the Dalits of Colonial Chhattisgarh.