Suchergebnisse

11905 Oden Court, Rockville, MD, 20852 ; Copy of a report presented by Bordelon at the New England Association of Political Scientists' meeting in Providence, RI, April 3, 1992.

In this article, I examine religion-state relations and religious pluralism in Turkey in terms of recent changes in the religious landscape. I propose that there is a growing trend in the religious sphere that has resulted in a proliferation of religions, sects and spiritual approaches in Turkey. I argue that although the religious market model might not be applicable to the Turkish religious sphere during the republican era until the 2000s due to the restrictions applied by the state&rsquo ; s authoritarian secularist policies, it is compatible with today&rsquo ; s changing society. Different religious groups as well as spiritual movements have used the democratization process of the 2000s in Turkey as an opportunity to proselytize various faiths and understandings of Islam, with both traditional and modernist forms. In this period, new religious movements have also appeared. Thus, the Turkish religious landscape has recently become much more complicated than it was two decades earlier. I plan for this descriptive work firstly to provide an insight into the history of religious pluralism and state policies in Turkey. Secondly, I will discuss the religious policies of the republican period and, thirdly, I will evaluate recent developments such as the increasing number of approaches in the religious sphere within the scope of the religious market model.

Religion is one of the most important social regulators influencing the relations in the society and the choice (action) of an individual in the concrete situation, sacralize definite behaviour and standards, or quite vice versa – disavow them (sin), regulate the relations among people and the relations between human and the highest power (God), in separate cases allowing to overcome legal and ethical dilemmas, to act or refrain from action. Each religion exists in a definite community (society), therefore, the religious norms affect the life of community members and thus also the state, culture, and rights. Nowadays the impact of rights on religion, religious organizations as communities of believing persons, their organization, administration and activity is impossible to deny. This study is an attempt to offer a review on the regulation of the relations betweens state and religious organizations in international and European legal acts. Analysis of the legal aspects of the relations between state and religious organizations allow the conclusion that the freedom of religion has a fundamental basis which today determines the relations/attitude of the state with/to religion and religious organizations. The principle of freedom of religion as an integral part of human rights is respected and implemented in states where the church is fully or partly separated (segregated) from the state as well as in states where there is state church. This principle has been acknowledged also by the European Union and the European Council leaving the implementation details to the Member States themselves. The principle of freedom of religion comprises two principal aspects: person's individual choice to not/belong to some religion and to not/participate in religious activities, and state's responsibility is to respect, within the framework of the law, the freedom of activities of religious organizations. Implementation of the principle of freedom of religion is burdened by manifold interpretation of the notions "religion" and "belief"; by the necessity to consider this principle commensurate with other human rights and freedoms; by the vagueness of the limits of this principle. In this context, the practice of the European Court of Human Rights is essential, in interpreting correspondingly the principle of freedom of religion provided for in Article 9 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, particularizing the understanding of this principle in the relations between the state and religious organizations. Present-day practice, at least in the public sphere, facilitate a tolerant attitude and observance of the specific character of religious belonging in various social relations (work, contacts with state administration, military service) etc. Nevertheless, disregarding several implementation problems of the principle of freedom of religion, equality should be observed in the relations between the state and religious organizations, establishing precise limits of cooperation and supervision, which is a precondition for the existence of a legal secular state.

The Nationalist movement was the crucible in which relations between Hindus and Muslims in British India took shape. It defined the period in which the concept of a monolithic "Muslim community" solidified and in which "Hindu" and "Muslim" interests were supposedly set in contrary positions. Any attempt to comment on the relationship between Hindus and Muslims in modern India has to take into account the history of communal relations in this period as the nationalist agitation against the British gathered force. Recently Ashutosh Varshney published a work on Hindus and Muslims in India, Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life, that offered new insights into the nature of communal relations in modern India (Varshney 2002). Varshney analysed Hindu-Muslim riots since 1947 and proposed a series of arguments to explain the reasons behind communal conflict in modern India. I do not intend to review his work, rather I want to test his hypothesis that strong civic linkages between Hindus and Muslims are the main barriers to communal conflict and provide the best processes for the mediation of such conflict when it occurs. Varshney examined a number of Indian cities for the period 1947-1990 and combined research on communal conflict during that period with forays into the histories of the various communities concerned to substantiate his claims. Varshney's conclusions are compelling, but he does concentrate on the present and recent past, at the expense of a more in-depth analysis of the history of the communities - especially the Muslim communities - he dealt with. By discounting history to the extent that he does he has missed arguments that would help substantiate his account of the present and explain more fully the root causes of communal discord rather than simply correlating current trends. For example, Varshney argues that "vigorous associational life" is a much more effective constraint on "the polarising strategies of political elites" and discounts the impact of "everyday forms of engagement" on lessening communal ...

"U.S. Government Printing Office: 1992-622-195/60059"--p. 39. ; "May 1992." ; Includes bibliographical references. ; Mode of access: Internet.

The study of religious harmony is essential as religious sentiments often lead to conflict of tension. Not only in Indonesia, but also in other parts of the world, although social, political, economic factors are quite coloring, but religion cannot be denied its role in social conflict. This is meanly related to the lack of tolerance towards other faiths. Among the way to create religious harmony is to examine the framework of Islamic epistemology analysis on the basis of religious harmony. Islamic epistemology believes in the source of the truth of revelation, reason, empirical, and intuition. The methods and tools used in the search of truth are the guidance of revelation, reason, empirical, and intuition. The Theological basis examined in this study is derived from The Hadiths of The Prophet Muhammad that are relevant with religious harmony. This study is included in the literature study category with primary data taken from the books of hadiths and supported by secondary data from various books that examine the religious harmony. Islamic epistemology is used as an analytical blade of foundation for exploring sources of truth which are related to the foundations of religious harmony in the hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad which later expected to grow awareness to respect each other. This step is expected to be one of intersection that bridges the realization of religious harmony, especially in Indonesia.

Christian churches control substantial areas of land in Africa. While intensifying struggles over their holdings are partly due to the increased pressure on land in general, they also reflect transformations in the relations through which churches' claims to land are legitimized, the increased association of churches with business, and churches' unique positioning as both institutions and communities. This article presents the trajectory of relations between church, state and community in Uganda from the missionary acquisition of land in the colonial era to the unravelling of church landholding under Museveni. Drawing on long‐term ethnographic fieldwork, the authors argue that claims to church land in contemporary Uganda draw on: 1) notions of belonging to the land; 2) views about the nature of churches as communities; 3) discontent regarding whether customary land owners gave churches user rights or ownership; and 4) assessment of the churches' success in ensuring that the land works for the common good. The article develops a novel approach to analysing the changing meaning of the landholdings of religious institutions, thus extending ongoing discussions about land, politics, development and religion in Africa. ; peerReviewed

The Nationalist movement was the crucible in which relations between Hindus and Muslims in British India took shape. It defined the period in which the concept of a monolithic "Muslim community" solidified and in which "Hindu" and "Muslim" interests were supposedly set in contrary positions. Any attempt to comment on the relationship between Hindus and Muslims in modern India has to take into account the history of communal relations in this period as the nationalist agitation against the British gathered force. Recently Ashutosh Varshney published a work on Hindus and Muslims in India, Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life, that offered new insights into the nature of communal relations in modern India (Varshney 2002). Varshney analysed Hindu-Muslim riots since 1947 and proposed a series of arguments to explain the reasons behind communal conflict in modern India. I do not intend to review his work, rather I want to test his hypothesis that strong civic linkages between Hindus and Muslims are the main barriers to communal conflict and provide the best processes for the mediation of such conflict when it occurs. Varshney examined a number of Indian cities for the period 1947-1990 and combined research on communal conflict during that period with forays into the histories of the various communities concerned to substantiate his claims. Varshney's conclusions are compelling, but he does concentrate on the present and recent past, at the expense of a more in-depth analysis of the history of the communities - especially the Muslim communities - he dealt with. By discounting history to the extent that he does he has missed arguments that would help substantiate his account of the present and explain more fully the root causes of communal discord rather than simply correlating current trends. For example, Varshney argues that "vigorous associational life" is a much more effective constraint on "the polarising strategies of political elites" and discounts the impact of "everyday forms of engagement" on lessening communal conflict (Varshney 2002: 4). There are two obvious problems with these assertions. One is that it is debateable if elites always have a free hand in shaping communal relations, viz. the ability of Jinnah to undermine regional governments in the Punjab and Bengal where there had been impressive attempts to construct inter-communal accords and political parties. Another problem with this assertion is that "everyday forms of engagement" in an historical context occur in different social and cultural environments and consequently vary enormously in strength and ability to bolster communal accord. In this paper I will take some of the themes raised by Varshney and apply them to the two Muslim communities with which I am familiar, and with whom Varshney does not deal. In the process I hope that I can use the discipline of history as a more efficient tool than Varshney does to explain the nature of communal relations and to emphasise that historical variations in Hindu-Muslim relations (particularly in the area of everyday engagement and civic interaction) provide clues to present variations in relations between the two communities.

Abstrak: Reformasi politik yang dimulai sejak tahun 1998 di Indonesia telah menciptakan Undang-Undang No. 22/1999, kemudian direvisi oleh Undang-Undang No. 32/2004 sebagai kerangka kerja dalam menata hubungan antara Negara dan rakyat pada tingkat desa. Kedua UU tersebut sebagai pengganti Undang-Undang No. 5/1979 sebagai produk rezim Orde Baru. Undang-Undang No. 5/1979 telah menyeragamkan bentuk sistem pemerintahan desa sehingga sama sekali tidak memberikan peluang bagi berjalannya suatu sistem pemerintahan adat (perpaduan) pada desa masyarakat adat tertentu, sehingga hubungan antara negara dan rakyat diikat dengan kerangka sentralistik. Namun sejauh keberadaan Badan Permusyawaratn Desa (BPD) dibahas, kerangka kerja yang dibangun oleh Undang-Undang No. 32/2004 tersebut belum menciptakan hubungan yang baik antara negera dan rakyat pada desa masyarakjat adat, terutama pada desa masyarakat adat saibatin karena belum mampu mengakomodasi kepentingan masyarakat adat yang bersangkutan. Keywords: Adat Community, Village Government, State and Society Relations.

Based on category, this program leads to three social issues. First, public awareness about the significance of the view of life that is more tolerant, open and more pluralis amid development of industrialization. Industrialization that developed in centers of growth (growth poles), which prominently still holdsrural-agrarian values, has given rise to what is called the proletarian farmers. "Proletarisation" was preceded by transition process of the function of farmland into industrial land, thus causing economic activity became more intense and integrated into industrial capitalism. This leads to the occurrence of an identity crisis that led to theopposition attitude in most communities, especially those who associated with the existence of other religions. Second, these changes have an impact on the emergence of community with radical attitude by carrying the religious themes. The construction of houses of worship, which is actually the "House of God" for any religions, considering the dangers may threaten the existence of the community and other faiths. The value system was formed, as a society oppressed became one of the motivators and catalysts for the inception of religious radicalism at the low level community. Third, the Government's policy regarding the construction of a harmony is among believers. This last part is related to the concept of good governance. As an institutional approach, the concept of good governance (good governance) is defined as the interaction between the organizers of the State (Government) and groups in the community. According to the World Bank, there are at least four important dimensions of good governance, i.e. example, effective legal framework, information that is in line with the transparency (accountability or Government) and the availability of well-educated workforce. In this context, the position of District Government of Bekasi becomes one of the institutions, which is responsible for the running of the relationship between the Government, employers or investors, religious figures, and the public as the three interest groups that cannot be separated in developing awareness of pluralism in religious life in the community.

International audience ; After a brief history of French civil society and its relationship with the State and the Church, highlighting the main similarities and differences with other European countries, the landscape of French civil society and religious communities nowadays is sketched out, while their relationships with the State are presented according to their components. Finally, the chapter focuses on the most conflictual part of French civil society, namely education, which has been the sources of a recurrent "school war" between the Church and the State. The conclusion notes that France is now a welfare partnership country as its Continental neighbours, even if relationships with religious communities are less developed.

International audience ; After a brief history of French civil society and its relationship with the State and the Church, highlighting the main similarities and differences with other European countries, the landscape of French civil society and religious communities nowadays is sketched out, while their relationships with the State are presented according to their components. Finally, the chapter focuses on the most conflictual part of French civil society, namely education, which has been the sources of a recurrent "school war" between the Church and the State. The conclusion notes that France is now a welfare partnership country as its Continental neighbours, even if relationships with religious communities are less developed.

On the economic side it has been possible generally to maintain American-European cooperation, on which world stability and progress depend, but political cooperation has been less rapid. Therefore the time seems ripe for a re-examination of the principles of the Atlantic Community.

This paper examines the roles that museums play as 'unofficially sacred' places, underscoring or challenging the religious life of a people and 'nation'. It focuses on three key questions: (1) Do sub-national and transnational religious formations pose a challenge to or present opportunities for nation-building strategies, and what part do museums play in this struggle? (2) In what ways do re-presentations of religion in museums contest or reinforce religious community and identity? and (3) What challenges do museum displays pose to the understanding of religious meanings? This paper explores these three key questions about the intersection of religion with politics and ideologies, social relations, and cultural interpretations and transformations using an in-depth case study of an exhibition on the Jewish community in Singapore.

Inter-religious relations in the period of Prophet Muhammad were running in harmony. Although there were theological differences between some religious faiths, these differences do not detract good relations. One of the written evidence of the condition of inter-religious harmony in this period was the agreement to live in peace as outlined in a treaty to respect and protect. The Madina Charter is proof that Prophet Muhammad was a religious leader as well as a political leader. The Madina Charter was born ahead of its time and can be used as a source of inspiration for building a plural society. Through the Medina Charter, the Prophet successfully organized all ethnic and religious groups in Medina, uniting them as brothers, despite different religious and ethnic backgrounds, all having the same duty to defend the State of Medina should there be an attack from outside. As a work which is based on literature research project, this article shows that the discussion of inter-religious relations in the period of Prophet Muhammad were not only supported by the works of schoolars in the fields of history and other related fields but also by the religiously based texts.