Search Results (47)

This article stems from the PRIN GOV_REL (Urban Governance of Interreligious Dialogue) research project carried out in four Italian cities in 2023–2025 and reports on some preliminary results of the empirical enquiry held in the city of Brescia. The Brescia area is characterised by high rates of residents with an immigrant background and a consolidated presence of religious minorities (Muslim, Orthodox, Sikh, Hindu and Protestant groups), many recognised centres (mosques, temples and Christian non-Catholic churches) and a significant commitment of ethnic–religious communities to local public life. This paper examines the creation of grassroots-level interreligious dialogue, seen as a communicative process. The empirical evidence is based on material collected by participant observations and semi-structured interviews regarding four initiatives that occurred in 2024. A sociocultural analysis outlines the communicative frame: text; context; aims; acts; interlocutors and their power/freedom of expression; interactions; results. The article examines the communicative pattern of each initiative, considering an intercultural orientation and a pluralistic model of interfaith dialogue. It seeks to answer the following questions: what was the fundamental message that the promoters wanted to convey? How do the single actors communicate their perspective of religious “others”, and what results did they achieve or not achieve? The analysis leads to identifying the patterns that facilitate and/or hamper dialogue, taking into account misunderstandings and “cul-de-sac” aspects. Final recommendations highlight the recurrent breaking points that should be prevented and some premises to guarantee successful communication between members of different religions in multicultural urban spaces. Full article

The rapid growth in interfaith peacebuilding has elevated the prominence of religion in theoretical and practical discourse, highlighting its importance in conflict dynamics. In dialogue-based encounters between distinct identity groups, religion often emerges as a key factor, regardless of participants’ specific affiliation or religiosity level. However, studies on religion-related tension typically adopt a polarized perspective, framing conflict in intergroup contexts while overlooking intra-group dynamics. This paper addresses this gap through a qualitative cross-case analysis of two studies, conducted in Israel during 2016–2019. Participants included 28 secular Jews and 28 secular Arabs (Christian and Muslim). Our findings reveal that non-religious individuals from both societies experienced similar challenges in navigating intra-group, religion-based encounters. Participants identified religion as defining boundaries of understanding, acceptance, legitimacy, and belonging within their societies. The study also highlights gaps in mutual recognition, whereby the participants expressed willingness to accept religion as integral to their religious counterparts’ identity, yet reported that this openness was not reciprocated. This gap created barriers to dialogue, weakening potential intra-group cohesion. This paper contributes to the literature on conflicts and peacebuilding, underscoring notable intra-group similarities between Jewish and Arab participants, and offers a novel framework for understanding religious dynamics across distinct social contexts. Full article

Congregational leaders in the US must navigate a political landscape marked by increasing political polarization and a notable rise in support for ideas aligned with Christian nationalism. While gender, race, ethnicity, and religious affiliation have long shaped political lines, the US population has steadily become more entrenched in partisan political divides. Recent research shows the relationship between religious identity and willingness to use violence to support political and religious ideologies. These trends profoundly affect faith communities, challenging theological perspectives, social dynamics, and civic engagement. This paper examines how political polarization and Christian nationalist impulses within mainline Christian congregations impact congregational leadership. This study identifies key factors driving these changes through qualitative analysis of case studies and quantitative research. It explores their implications for community cohesion and the broader societal fabric. The findings suggest that while some communities experience heightened internal conflict and fragmentation, others adapt by engaging in dialogue, story-sharing, and education. The paper concludes with recommendations to counter political polarization and ideological extremism through increased understanding, nuanced theological reflection, and political awareness. This research contributes to the ongoing discourse on congregational leadership and political engagement, highlighting the need for nuanced strategies to address the challenges of political polarization and Christian nationalism in the US today. Full article

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) is an Eastern Catholic Church that lives according to the Ukrainian–Byzantine Christian theological, liturgical, canonical and spiritual tradition and is in full and visible communion with the successor of Peter. Unity with the Roman Apostolic See has become one of the most important foundations of the UGCC’s identity, enriching its church life and strengthening its ecumenical ministry. As a sui iuris Church in the “family” of Catholic communion, the UGCC actively develops its ecumenical commitments with the Orthodox Churches and Protestant ecclesial communities. In this article, we will briefly examine how the UGCC developed its communion with the Bishop of Rome and how communion with the Apostolic See was a blessing for this Church, but at the same time sometimes became a threat to its existence in times of persecution by totalitarian regimes. We will also present the current religious context in which the UGCC operates, analyze some of its most important ecumenical initiatives and examine its participation in the development of interfaith dialogue in Ukraine. We will consider the challenges that the Russian invasion has brought to the UGCC and other religions in Ukraine, and how the UGCC, by developing communion with Rome, manages to witness the Gospel of life in the difficult circumstances of war and death. Full article

Over the past decades, interfaith dialogue has emerged as a key strategy for peacebuilding in conflict-affected areas, particularly in Mindanao, Philippines. This study examines the role of a faith-based movement in fostering interfaith dialogue and promoting peace in the region. Drawing from contemporary theological models of religion, this study explores how different approaches to dialogue shape interfaith engagement. Using a single case study methodology, the research highlights the contributions, challenges, and best practices of an interfaith movement actively working towards peacebuilding. The findings suggest that faith-based movements serve as crucial mediators in interfaith relations by fostering mutual understanding, facilitating community-led peace initiatives, and addressing sociopolitical challenges. This study concludes by offering insights into the future of interfaith dialogue in the Philippines, emphasizing the need for sustained collaboration among religious communities, policymakers, and civil society actors. Full article

Self-transcendence has been extensively studied and discussed among scholars, both theoretically and empirically. However, further academic inquiry into self-transcendent experiences (STEs), particularly their nature, religious implications, and spiritual benefits, is still needed. This paper undertakes a qualitative exploration of the topic, phenomenologically analyzing the author’s first-person STEs within Buddhist and Christian contexts. In addition to personal journals and reflections, the dataset includes email exchanges with and reports to supervisors, as well as comparative insights drawn from testimonies shared by individuals of various religious backgrounds. The findings suggest that while religion may sometimes inhibit its adherents from experiencing STEs, it can also serve as a catalyst for such experiences among nonreligious individuals. Furthermore, the universal nature of STEs, which transcends cultural and religious boundaries, has the potential to promote interfaith dialogue and provide a theoretical framework for fostering religious harmony. Data on STEs could also act as a bridge connecting science with other forms of human knowledge, enabling shared discourse and offering a complementary perspective for understanding the world. Finally, a proposed mechanism of STEs highlights their role in achieving lifelong peace by balancing physical and mental needs, while also offering insights to help individuals maximize their potential and lead fulfilling lives. Full article

This paper shows the outputs of a study on interfaith dialogue based on community action in Catalonia (Spain). Our hypothesis was to check to what extent interfaith dialogue is a facilitator of community action. The study was carried out between 2023 and 2024 in three phases: the first one devoted to mapping the existing practices within the research context; a second one focused on building an indicators system as well as an instrument for monitoring and assessing interfaith dialogue practices based on community action (the questionnaire QCID_CA); and a third one oriented to identify some conditions for success. We implemented qualitative methods: document analysis, individual interviews, focus groups, active participant observation from an ethnographic position, and comparative analysis. We identified the existing interfaith dialogue practices in Catalonia that are developed under community action; we raised some indicators to assess these practices to promote community action within local contexts; we validated the QCID_CA tool by contrasting it with current interfaith dialogue practices; and we confirmed the dialectical relationship between interfaith dialogue and community action. Interfaith dialogue practices based on community action print a real influence on social interactions in the contexts where they take place. This is the reason to implement a public policy based on some principles like knowledge, acknowledgement, action, and transformation. Interfaith dialogue aims to confront individualism and social fragmentation, which may be the prelude to increasing inequalities and exclusion. It also fights against a passive understanding of citizenship by inviting participants to feel like active agents in raising their standards of living. And more: interfaith dialogue based on community action creates alliances between participants to face the lack of spirituality nowadays. Some limitations were raised from the analysis, mostly related to the number of analyzed cases and the instrument’s implementation. Further research should be required to explore that. Full article

Cultural and religious diversity in Spain, driven by recent decades of migratory flows, has not been exempt from generating social tensions and, unfortunately, an increasing stigmatization of migrant children. This article examines how power dynamics and exclusion impact the identity construction of these young people, particularly within the child protection system. Through interviews and focus groups with young people and professionals in Barcelona and Melilla, this study highlights the resistance strategies these young individuals employ to counteract stigmatizing narratives. The findings indicate that, despite inclusion policies, imposed labels reinforce their vulnerability and limit their social and community participation. Although interfaith dialogue is proposed as a tool to mitigate these tensions, professionals working with these children emphasize the lack of institutional support and insufficient training in socio-cultural diversity, which hinders their efforts. The study underscores the importance of developing interfaith competencies that foster mutual respect and recognition, concluding with a critique of the current protection system. It advocates for a comprehensive approach to addressing these young people’s emotional, social, and spiritual needs beyond solely legal and educational aspects. Full article

Sōka-gakkai (also known as Soka Gakkai International or SGI) is a new religious movement that originated in Japan in 1930. For more than a half century, the religion was led by its president Daisaku Ikeda, who played a significant role in its growth from 1960 until his death in 2023. Although SGI is one of the largest new religions in the world—it claims to have over 12 million members in 192 countries—there has to date been very limited scholarly attention paid to the religion and Ikeda’s religious thoughts. The latter is particularly important given the fact that Ikeda has written extensively on the applicability and implications of the doctrines of the SGI in many global issues of the day, including peace, education, environment, and interreligious dialogue. Among a wide variety of issues which can be examined, the paper focuses on the following question: What are Ikeda’s religious thoughts, particularly his stance on religious pluralism and interreligious dialogue? In view of this question, this paper examines how his religious ideas are not immersed in any specific religion, but emphasizes the importance of pursuing interreligious dialogue while acknowledging other religions and cultural traditions. This paper also critically assesses whether Ikeda’s call for interfaith dialogue and collaborations with various religious groups is indeed taking place in the SGI’s commitment to fostering a culture of peace and understanding. It is hoped that the examination of Ikeda’s stance on religious pluralism and interreligious dialogue indirectly allows for the exploration of a religion that is largely unknown and misunderstood. Full article

As conflict dynamics become complex and escalate globally, especially identity-based conflicts, we are witnessing an unprecedented shift in the Conflict Analysis and Resolution and Peacebuilding field toward contextually innovative and effective community-led approaches. The inadequacies of liberal and neoliberal paradigms and the increase in identity-based conflicts, religious pluralism, and differences in communities have motivated evidence-based inter-religious community-level engagements over the past two decades. These interventions rely on the theoretical frameworks of emancipatory peacebuilding and compassionate reasoning, and reflect an in-depth sense of spirituality, longing, and the essence of human relationship building and practice. This study gathers data from primary sources (which include findings from hybrid interviews) through a semi-participatory and empirical qualitative explorative research process in order to critique the underlying philosophies of traditional paradigms and explore emerging alternatives. It also posits that inter-religious community-led interventions are founded on the emancipatory elicitive religious peacebuilding (EERPb) framework. They are adaptive to non-linear (and sometimes non-scientific) approaches and are less focused on international standards. The framework fundamentally embraces phenomenological, metaphysical, and ethical realities in peacebuilding, operationalizes the concept of just peace, and acknowledges a global approach to peace that offers the opportunity to resolve the difficulties encountered by the various CAR and peacebuilding theoretical schools. Full article

The article, which is written by an interreligious team, provides comprehensive insights into the conception, implementation and accompanying research of a project on Christian–Islamic religious education in team teaching. The aim of the project is to expand the denominational religious education lessons anchored in Austrian schools through religious-cooperative units taught jointly by a Christian and an Islamic teacher. The analysis of the teaching units is carried out in the format of design-based research and thus encompasses numerous aspects of interreligious educational processes, which are examined in this article. Firstly, the design of the project is described and the legal framework associated with it is explained in the context of the Austrian school system. Subsequently, learning requirements on the part of Christian and Muslim pupils are presented, with a particular focus on their preconceptions and attitudes towards religion in general as well as other religions. Special attention is paid to the specific framework conditions of Islamic religious education teachers, which differ in many aspects from those of Catholic religious education teachers. Furthermore, interreligious competences they consider necessary are described. Specific insights into the teaching units and the complementary research provide information about the opportunities and challenges of interreligious education in team teaching by two teachers. After this focus on the teachers, an outline of the students’ perspectives on the teaching units completes the presentation of the research results. In the concluding summary, the local theories developed from the overall project are presented and discussed. Full article

This paper explores the life and works of Su Shi, a prominent intellectual and statesman during China’s Song Dynasty, as a champion of interreligious harmony. We examine how Su Shi’s vast philosophical and literary output demonstrates his deep engagement with Confucian ethics, Buddhist compassion, and Daoist tranquility. By analyzing his poems, essays, and other writings, we explore how Su Shi navigated these diverse traditions, finding common ground and promoting mutual understanding. This analysis highlights Su Shi’s ability to bridge religious and philosophical divides, offering a valuable perspective for contemporary discussions on interfaith dialogue and peaceful coexistence. Full article

The neo-conservative Catholic movement, led by prominent figures like Richard John Neuhaus and Michael Novak, played a significant role in shaping Jewish–Christian relations in the United States following the Second Vatican Council. This article analyzes their theological understanding of Jews and Judaism, which combined an adoption of the Council’s conciliatory rhetoric with a relatively narrow interpretation of its teachings. By examining their views on key concepts such as “fulfillment”, salvation, and mission, the article highlights the complexities and tensions within the neo-conservative Catholic approach to interfaith dialogue and its relation to their broader goal of promoting religion in the American public sphere. Full article

Thomas Merton’s interfaith dialogue with the Jewish rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel sets a resonating example of how these two religious figures from the twentieth century can learn from each other and respect their theological differences while still finding common ground in their social critiques, as fully revealed in their more mature prophetic writings from the 1960s. The purpose of this article is to show how both Merton and Heschel found, in their sacred humanism, a final integration between their mystical quest for God and their passion as modern prophets to denounce the social injustices of their time. Merton and Heschel have become exemplar cases of creative interfaith dialogue and witnesses for justice. In so doing, I hope to demonstrate how their interfaith friendship brought them closer together when facing the Second Vatican Council’s efforts to write a major document like Nostra Aetate, or “in Our Time”. Full article

Prophet Muhammad is a central figure in Islam. Systematic exploration of his life and biography as a central discourse for sīrah studies remains timeless and relevant. This has made his life a focal point for study among Muslim and Western scholars for centuries, resulting in the emergence of fresh approaches in modern times. This paper delves into the concept of “sīrah philosophy,” which is vigorously advocated by Fethullah Gülen, a prominent Muslim scholar, as a novel and essential perspective for sīrah studies in modern times. Gülen’s amalgamation of the Prophet’s life and contemporary challenges underscores the enduring significance of sīrah in guiding modern discourse. Sīrah philosophy, at its core, provides a framework rooted in the Prophet’s life to draw inspiration for addressing contemporary issues. The article unpacks the practical application of sīrah philosophy through the Hudaybiya incident, a pivotal moment in the Prophet’s life during his time in Medina. From conflict resolution and peacebuilding to interfaith dialogue, Gülen’s approach leverages sīrah to propose solutions for complex contemporary problems, offering a dynamic way to engage with present-day predicaments. In essence, this article emphasises how sīrah, as envisioned by Muslim scholars like Gülen, transcends historical and contextual boundaries, enriching present-day discourse. As sīrah studies evolve, this pioneering exploration of a modern trajectory fosters a deeper appreciation of the Prophet’s legacy, facilitating comprehensive understanding for diverse audiences. This article argues that this approach is groundbreaking and innovative, paving the way for new perspectives to read and interpret sīrah in a contemporary world for a modern audience. Full article