The Nigerian social, public, political and religious landscapes have changed significantly over time with the emergence and proliferation of Pentecostal megachurches. The majority of these churches are structured and characterized with a peculiar missional focus, ritual, religious and ecclesiastical distinctiveness. Many of these Pentecostal megachurches have been criticized for their economic motivations, exploitation and commercialization of the Christian faith. However, Nigerian megachurches are ‘Progressive Pentecostals’ on the basis of their sustained commitment to diaconal services towards the development of their communities. Divergent views have emerged over time in relation to the nexus between religion and development. This study argues that religion is one of the motors of development in Africa; this challenges the Western secular framework of development. Hence, the study examines development from below, using the diaconal services of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), a Pentecostal megachurch that illustrates the importance of faith-based organizations’ roles in development. A descriptive research method is employed in the study with social capital theory and pneuma-diaconal mission theory to examine the concept of development from below. This study concludes that faith-based organizations such as the RCCG‘s social responsiveness contributes to the overall development of its various communities. Full article

The present study aims to capitalise on Saint Sophrony Sakharov’s theological/mystical view of experiencing the divine Light, which the Essex Abbot construes as an aspiration to be pursued by any Christian, not only by spiritual elites. For this reason, the experience, and exhortations of Saint Silouan’s disciple as to the believer’s partaking in God’s uncreated Light can become for contemporary man a vade mecum adapted to the spiritual requirements and realities of our time. The drafting of these spiritual guidelines will be based on the writings of St. Sophrony (especially We Shall See Him as He Is) and the testimonies of his direct disciples and of those who assumed his way of life in the light of Jesus Christ (Zacharias Zacharou, Hierotheos Vlachos, Neacşu Nathanael, and Maxime Egger). We believe that our effort to capitalise on the mystical experience of St. Sophrony will enable the reader to access the knowledge required to understand how one may come to partake in the divine Light. Full article

Some contemporary social phenomena, despite secularization, are still linked to religion. However, this same secularization seems to have accompanied a progressive process of religious illiteracy. Therefore, the capacity to address religious inspired issues is lower than the magnitude of the problems at work, be violent right-wing movement and Islamist terrorism or ethical debates on the beginning and end of life, to name but a few. Hence, this paper aims to fulfil three goals: to revisit secularism and some liberal assumptions that might prevent a correct understanding of these phenomena, to assess some of the consequences of the critique of ideologies and to propose an alternative approach to address religious inspired social phenomena. Full article

Even though Turkey’s ruling party’s (Justice and Development Party, the AKP) nation-building and desired citizen creation policies have been studied, its use of necropolitical narratives and propaganda in education has not been investigated. This paper addresses this gap by examining how the Turkish state ruled by the AKP has propagated its religious necropolitical narrative through the national curriculum and Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) in school textbooks, and magazines and comic books for children. The paper shows that these texts and comics try to indoctrinate children into a religious cult of martyrdom in different ways by encouraging them to view tragic death and getting killed for the nation as a positive event. This paper argues that these propaganda efforts are part of a religious necropolitical indoctrination campaign that seeks to create a new Islamist and jihadist generation of lifelong supporters of the AKP, which portrays itself in the educational texts as the embodiment of Islam, the Muslim Turkish nation and even the global Muslim community (ummah). This new religious generation is expected to believe that dying for the Islamist populist authoritarian regime is the greatest honour a person can bring upon themselves. This paper contributes to the necropolitics literature by showing that not only adults but also children have been targeted by authoritarian rulers’ necropolitical propaganda attempts to create desired citizens who are ready to die for the regime, believing this is a religious obligation. Further research is needed to assess if and to what extent this propaganda has an impact on children. Full article

This article will explore the rhetorical and theological significance of the metaphor of divine adoption in the Hebrew Bible. In Ps 22:10–11 and Ps 71:6–9 God is not only said to pull the psalmist out of his/her mother’s womb, but in a context in which many mothers all too often died in childbirth, the newborn is cast upon God who steps in as the adoptive mother. This idea of divine adoption is further found in Psalm 68:5 when God is described as the “Father of orphans… [who] gives the desolate a home to live in”. And in Psalm 27:9–10, God is praised by the psalmist as “God of my salvation!” saying that “if my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up”. In a context in which fathers and mothers either have died or have forsaken their children, God is thus portrayed as the adoptive parent who, as evident in the creative reinterpretation of Ps 68:5 in the African American spiritual referenced in the title of the essay serves as “Mother to the motherless, and father to the fatherless”. I argue that when it is important to keep in mind the complexities associated with this metaphor, which includes not only the multiple layers of trauma associated with the origin and reception of this metaphor but also the trauma associated with the adoptive process and the ongoing relationship between parent and adopted child that may be fraught with ambiguity. Read in the context of individual and collective trauma, this article makes a case for the interpretative potential of this metaphor in times when people literally and figuratively have felt, and still may be feeling, like motherless (and fatherless) children. Full article

Surprisingly, there are at least three major theological subjects where Hermann Cohen seems to agree with Mendelssohn—against standard Jewish Reform theology. Even more interesting: All three points stand in connection with the religious thought of Moses Maimonides (1137–1204), the medieval halakhist and philosopher, whose radical theological ideas Mendelssohn mostly rejected and Cohen generally adopted. Should this observation be true, however, we might assume that Cohen took at least a few hints for his own reading of Maimonides from Mendelssohn. This conclusion would then in itself be surprising, because Cohen, contrary to the Jewish Reform theologians of the 19th century, and in fact contrary to everyone else, read Maimonides in what was generally called an “idiosyncratic” way: For Cohen, Maimonides was a proto-idealist, who often followed Plato much more than Aristotle, and who sometimes even anticipated Immanuel Kant. Even more exceptionally, for Cohen Maimonides’ philosophy in the Guide of the Perplexed was focused on a theology of ethics rather than on a metaphysics of knowledge of the divine. I will attempt to provide proof-texts showing that on these three points Mendelssohn and Cohen are essentially in harmony. Still, my proofs for a probable Mendelssohnian influence on Cohen depend on a very close reading of both Mendelssohn’s relevant passages, as well as of the corresponding texts in Maimonides. Full article

Giving humility a key role in scientific practice and communication would improve its objective social function—that is, the production of knowledge about our world and its application to the improvement of the human condition—and its public acceptance. This article reviews the limits of science arising from systemic, epistemic, methodological, and individual limitations and links them to the phenomena in scientific practice that they originate from. The reflection invites us to consider science from the point of view of its limits in situations where there is difficulty in reaching a consensus but also when a consensus has indeed been achieved. Science and technology reflect who we are as individuals and as a society and inherit both our virtues and weaknesses. Humility is the key to getting technoscience that brings us closer to the truth and helps us advance toward improving the human condition. Humbler science becomes a better science. Full article

This paper develops a framework for analyzing two personal stances on religion—Adherence to Religion and Autonomy from Religion. We propose that the two stances are independent constructs rather than opposite poles of the same continuum. Each stance is conceptualized as a higher-order construct, with different first-order measures of motivations, beliefs and perceptions. With these conceptualizations, we explore the relevance of Organizational Behavior research for informing Religious Studies. We test a nomological network of personal stances on religion with structural equations modelling and a sample of 3072 Catholic participants. The results provide support for the use of higher-order constructs. The first-order measures that possess the highest influence are Relatedness Motivation for Adherence, and Perception of Church Politics for Autonomy. The model explains 23% of Religious Commitment, and thus identifies relevant predictors for participation in rituals, a crucial issue for the maintenance and development of the relationship with the Catholic Church. Full article

There is a knowledge gap in the contribution of socio-cultural work in Islamic organisations to the participants’ learning and development. This article focuses on the role of the socio-cultural work of Islamic organizations as a form of non-formal education. Education is the internal process of a person which leads to a better understanding of themself and their situation, a critical appreciation of their situation and a conscious and targeted use of the possibilities in their social situation. Therefore, what volunteers learn when they participate in socio-cultural work in mosque organizations will be investigated. The research is based on the case study of a Turkish faith-based organization Milli Görüş Amsterdam-West (MGAW) and its volunteers. The method of the research is ethnographic field research. The research focuses on a specific group of participants, namely, the volunteers who are active at the MGAW. One of the results of the research is that the participants who follow the social-cultural activities of MGAW for a certain period develop a cohesive worldview whereby volunteering becomes a virtue. Full article

College sports is a multi-billion-dollar business, and universities are looking for ways to remain competitive, including recruiting and retaining athletes from historically underrepresented groups to predominantly white institutions (PWI), many of which have a documented history of excluding non-white students, including blacks, indigenous peoples, and other people of color (often referred to as BIPOC). This article will examine the legacy of the racist teachings, past controversies, and compromises of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS, Mormons) along with persistent struggles to shake off its 130-year-old racist past in efforts for its flagship school, Brigham Young University, to stay competitive in the lucrative Big 12 Athletic Conference. Deeply ingrained in the LDS culture is a politic of religious conservatism. Politics has often been intertwined with organized religion with much influence, and the LDS faith is no different. The cumulation of these interlocking systems generates thoughts, attitudes, and feelings that foster a racial climate at Brigham Young University where black students have reported feeling unsafe and unsupported. While this is a well-documented problem at predominately white institutions (PWIs) across the country, BYU is in many ways unique, given the discriminatory overt policies and practices employed for generations. We contend that the LDS Church’s history of racial marginalization and exclusion of black people made its way into the sports consciousness of the church’s flagship school and is not likely to change anytime soon. Understanding religion in the tradition of Charles Long as an orientation and utilizing Derrick Bell’s notion of racial realism are critical to our analyses. The confluence of politics, religion, race, and sport cannot be easily untangled. Full article

This article provides the first academic analysis of the popular Pakistani Islamic scholar and Urdu-speaking preacher Maulana Tariq Jamil. Drawing on years of ethnographic study of the Tablighi Jama’at, the revivalist movement to which Jamil belongs, as well as content analysis of dozens of his recorded lectures, the article presents a detailed biography of the Maulana in five stages. These comprise: (a) his upbringing and early life (1953–1972); (b) his conversion to the Tablighi Jama’at and studies at the Raiwind international headquarters (1972–1980); (c) his meteoric rise to fame and ascendancy up the movement’s leadership ranks (1980–1997); (d) his development into a national celebrity (1997–2016); and (e) major causes of controversy and criticism (2014–present). Tracing his narrative register within the historical archetypes of the quṣṣāṣ (storytellers) and wuʿʿāẓ (popular preachers), the paper identifies core tenets of the Maulana’s revivalist discourse, key milestones in his life—such as the high-profile conversion to the Tablighi Jama’at of Pakistani popstar Junaid Jamshed—and subtle changes in his approach over the years. The article deploys the classical sociological framework of structure-agency to explore how Maulana Tariq Jamil’s increasing exercise of agency in preaching Islam has unsettled structural expectations within traditionalist ʿulamāʾ (religious scholar) circles as well as the Tablighi leadership. It situates his emergence within a broader trend of Islamic media-based personalities who embrace contemporary technological tools to reach new audiences and respond to the challenges of postcolonial modernity. Full article

The ‘Age of Austerity’ has ruptured the social fabric of contemporary Britain. Arising from our three-year Life on the Breadline project, this article represents the first fieldwork-led analysis of the multidimensional nature of austerity-age poverty by academic theologians in the UK. The article analyses the impact that austerity has had on Christian responses to poverty and inequality in the UK. We draw on our six ethnographic case studies and interview responses from over 120 national and regional Church leaders to exemplify the four approaches to the Christian engagement with poverty that we identified during our research: ‘caring’, ‘campaigning and advocacy’, ‘enterprise’ and ‘community building’. We argue that the Church needs to grasp the systemic, multidimensional and violent nature of poverty in order to realise the potential embedded in its extensive social capital and fulfil its goal of ‘transforming structural injustice’. The paper shows that the Church remains nervous of moving beyond welfare-based responses to poverty and suggests that none of the existing approaches can force poverty into retreat until the Church re-imagines itself as a liberative movement that embodies God’s preferential option for the poor in every aspect of its life and practice. Full article

This paper explores the religious function and meaning of long banner paintings from Cave 17 of the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, in conjunction with material culture in Northwestern China in the ninth and tenth centuries CE. The so-called forty-nine-chi banners have peculiar traits such as extremely long lengths, an optional triangular headpiece, and a paired or single strip of textile on which a series of standing bodhisattvas are painted. The author focuses on the large number of textiles used for such banners and questions how the extraordinary length and material used contributed to fulfilling the donor’s wishes. By examining both the banners’ physical characteristics, such as the type of textiles, pigments, and configurations, and the theological background based on the Buddhist and Daoist scriptures about longevity, repentance, and healing, the author suggests that the long banners are a materialized form of longevity and prosperity by physically lengthening the banner with multiple bolts of silk. This paper further argues that depicting multiple bodhisattvas in a pictorial form on a long strip of textile was regarded equally as a powerful means for obtaining good health, prolonging life, eliminating sins, and thus being reborn in the Pure Land. Full article

Relation-theories—theories on the metaphysical status of relations—have for some time stood at the center of disputes between realism and idealism. To such disputes, this paper contributes insights from an understudied premodern source, the Sambandhasiddhi (Proof of Relation). Its author Utpaladeva (c. 925–975 C.E.) is the Śaiva philosopher of India best known as an innovator in the Pratyabhijñā (Doctrine of Recognition) school of Kashmiri Śaivism. This lesser-known late text shows Utpaladeva deploying an even more explicitly Bhartṛharian grammatical view of reality than he had previously. He argues against his chief rival and predecessor, the Buddhist epistemologist, Dharmakīrti (c. 6th or 7th C.E.), while modifying the latter’s epistemic idealism to an objective idealism. This text differs from Utpaladeva’s prior works in its sustained attack on Dharmakīrti’s nominalism and citation of the Buddhist’s own writings. The Sambandhasiddhi accordingly offers an interesting glimpse at a sustained treatment on relations, a topic that is important to Utpaladeva’s prior arguments, but that he considered perhaps not sufficiently developed, so as to warrant a separate treatment. A few brief comments are also offered on how Utpaladeva’s relation-theory might fit alongside Russell’s disputes with Bradley over relations, and Utpaladeva’s affinity with Peircean semiosis. Full article

When a person identifies with a particular religion, they identify not only with the ingroup’s religious values but also with the ingroup’s evaluations towards the relevant religious outgroup. Using a theoretical notion of ethnocentrism, this study offers religiocentrism to explain how one favourably perceives their religious affiliation and unfavourably evaluates the religious outgroup. Specifically, this study is focused on the recent interreligious conflicts between Muslims and Christians in Indonesia. In carrying out the study, we employ relevant constructs to test our hypothesis that religiocentrism is indirectly related to support for interreligious violence via perceived injustice and that this relation is stronger for individuals with high collective efficacy. We perform a confirmatory factor analysis to test all the measures’ validity. In testing the hypothesis, we conduct a moderated mediation analysis to test the indirect relations between religiocentrism and support for interreligious violence via perceived injustice and to test the conditional effect of collective efficacy on the relationship. The results show that collective efficacy significantly moderates the relation between religiocentrism and support for interreligious violence. The finding contributes to the discussion of the various roles of collective efficacy in interreligious conflicts, dependent on the nature of the conflicts. Full article