scholarly journals Forging alternatively sacred spaces in Singapore’s integrated religious marketplace

2020 ◽  
pp. 147447402095639
Author(s):  
Orlando Woods
Keyword(s):  
Urban Environments ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Spatial Politics ◽  
Sacred Spaces ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Independent Churches ◽  
Affective Value ◽  
Religious Praxis ◽  
Spatial Logics ◽  
Insight Into

This paper expands the notion of sacred space within the geographies of religion by arguing that spaces of religious praxis need to be understood in relation to the broader spatial logics within which they are embedded. Given that the spatial logics of urban environments tend to be secular and neoliberal in nature, it considers how religious groups respond to the realities of the marketplaces in which they operate by forging ‘alternatively sacred’ spaces. These spaces augment the appeal of religious groups in non-religious ways, thus making them more competitive players in a religious marketplace. Specifically, it explores how independent churches in Singapore create alternatively sacred spaces that are used for religious purposes, although their appeal and affective value do not accord with more traditional understandings of how sacred spaces should look, feel, or otherwise be engaged with. These spaces are designed to appeal to younger people, and to draw non-Christians to Christian spaces, and Christians to alternatively religious spaces. The extent to which they appeal to these groups provides insight into reimagination of religion under market conditions, spatial politics of value and ideological fissures between different Christian communities.

scholarly journals Religious urbanism in Singapore: Competition, commercialism and compromise in the search for space

2018 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Orlando Woods
Keyword(s):  
Active Role ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Spatial Context ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Fast Growing ◽  
Religious Praxis

This article explores the recursive relationship between religious praxis and urban environments. It advances the concept of ‘religious urbanism’ to show how urban environments play an active role in shaping the praxis of religion, and how religious groups adopt secular logics in response to the pressures of urban environments. Such logics have given rise to new, more pragmatic forms of spatial reproduction that lead to the desecularisation of space. Desecularisation involves religious groups diminishing the secular properties of space, rather than attempting to achieve any lasting notion of sacredness. Drawing on the restrictive religio-spatial context of Singapore, I demonstrate how fast-growing religious groups are forced to compete, commercialise, and compromise in order to acquire space. Combined, these factors have come to define religious urbanism in Singapore, and highlight the gulf between the planning and praxis of religion in urban environments.

scholarly journals Porous Religious Economies and the Problem of Regulating Religious Marketplaces

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-30
Author(s):  
Orlando Woods
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Data ◽  
The State ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Religious Influence ◽  
Religious Influences ◽  
Religious Networks ◽  
Religious Praxis ◽  
Religious Economies ◽  
Religious Economy

This paper reframes the theory of religious economy by developing an understanding of the effects of transnational religious influence on religious marketplaces. In doing so, it highlights the need to rethink the role of regulation in shaping the ways in which religious marketplaces operate. By reinterpreting regulation as the ability of the state to control the extent to which religious groups are able to access resources, it argues that transnational religious networks can enable access to extraneous resources, which, in turn, can enable religious groups to subvert the regulatory prescriptions of the state. Transnational religious influences therefore highlight the porosity of religious economies and the problem of regulating religious marketplaces. Qualitative data are used to demonstrate how Singapore-based churches create and strengthen transnational religious networks with their counterparts in China. These networks enable religious groups to operate with a degree of independence and to overcome regulatory restrictions on (and other limitations to) religious praxis.

Spatial Politics and American Religious Pluralism

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bret E. Carroll
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Dynamic Process ◽  
Religious Pluralism ◽  
The United States ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Spatial Politics ◽  
Virtual Communication ◽  
American Life ◽  
The 1960S

American religious pluralism is not simply diversity but a dynamic process of interaction and exchange. Its core is a spatial politics in which religious groups create meaningful spaces and interact with other groups similarly engaged, sometimes cooperatively and sometimes apprehensively and even violently. This dynamic is configured by a longstanding pattern of Anglo-Protestant dominance coupled with a widespread though tension-filled acceptance of religious pluralism. This dynamic has been particularly dramatic and intense since the 1960s because of an increase in the numbers of adherents of non-Protestant and non-Western religions in the United States and an increase in the degree to which religious groups have sought a more active and visible involvement in American life. One can observe the American pluralist dynamic functioning spatially at three interlocking levels—regional, local, and national—with spatial politics playing out differently in different locations depending on a variety of factors. As the new century opens, new factors such as globalization, virtual communication, and heterolocalism come increasingly into play.

‘LIKE A LILY AMONGST THE THORNS’: PATTERNS OF NOBLE POWER AND VIOLENCE BETWEEN FARNESE AND ORSINI, 1378–1447

2019 ◽  
Vol 87 ◽  
pp. 245-265
Author(s):  
Loek Luiten
Keyword(s):  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
European Politics ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
Medieval Italy ◽  
Italian Peninsula ◽  
Micro Level ◽  
Insight Into

Violence and peace-making in medieval Italy have often been analysed in urban environments. But what happened if two powerful baronial families clashed in the countryside? This paper, by looking at the feud between the Farnese and Orsini di Pitigliano during the Western Schism, illuminates various patterns of conflict and conciliation. Such conflicts witnessed the participation of relatives, allies, and subjects who shared in the sense of community and honour of their lords. The various motivations for actors to become involved on behalf of or in opposition to barons are analysed here in detail. The events of the Farnese–Orsini feud on the micro-level are linked to wider developments on the Italian peninsula and European politics. In the second part of this paper the successful conclusion of the feud is analysed in light of the return of the papacy to Rome. The meticulous detail in which the peace agreement was hammered out then provides further insight into the strategies employed by baronial families to maintain the peace. In all, this paper therefore contributes to the study of violence and peace-making as well as of the Italian nobility during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

scholarly journals Creationist and evolutionist views of South African teachers with different religious affiliations

2016 ◽  
Vol Volume 112 (Number 5/6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michèle Stears ◽  
Pierre Clément ◽  
Angela James ◽  
Edith Dempster ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Teachers ◽  
South African ◽  
School Level ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Acceptance Of Evolution ◽  
African Independent Churches ◽  
Independent Churches ◽  
First Time ◽  
Protestant Denominations ◽  
Generalist Teachers

Abstract Concerns have been raised in the scientific community that many teachers do not accept evolution as a scientific, testable phenomenon, and this is evident in their teaching. The non-acceptance of evolution theory is often heavily influenced by religious groups that endeavour to eliminate evolution from the curriculum. In South Africa, the inclusion of evolution in the curriculum is a recent event. This study focused on teachers’ views of evolution in relation to their religious affiliations. A questionnaire was developed and was validated by the Biohead–Citizen Project, and was then administered to more than 300 South African teachers and student teachers. Equal numbers of pre-service and in-service teachers were sampled. The groups included equal numbers of biology, English, and generalist teachers at primary school level. The results showed differences between teachers from different religions with regard to their views of evolution. Among teachers who identified as agnostic or atheist, 17% held creationist views. Among teachers who identified as Protestant, other Christian, or Muslim, 70% held creationist views. This study also examined, for the first time, the views of teachers belonging to religions not included in previous research. Of these, only 25% of Hindus held creationist views. Fewer adherents of African Independent Churches held creationist views compared with teachers from traditional Protestant denominations; for example, only 30% of Zionist followers and 40% of Shembe followers held creationist views. This study adds important knowledge by including the views of teachers from religions not previously researched.

Implications of Lived and Packaged Religions for Intercultural Dialogue to Reduce Conflict and Terror

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Gary D Bouma AM
Keyword(s):  
Small Groups ◽  
Religious Identity ◽  
Intercultural Dialogue ◽  
Lived Religion ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
Sacred Spaces ◽  
Violent Extremism ◽  
Ritual Practices

AbstractThe use of intercultural dialogue (ICD) to promote intergroup understanding and respect is considered as a key to reduce tensions and the likelihood of conflict. This paper argues that understanding the differences among religions – those between packaged and lived religion – enhances the chances of success and makes the effort more challenging. Religions contained and packaged are found in formally organised expressions of religion – churches, denominations, synagogues, mosques, temples and so on. For packaged religions, religious identity is singular and adherents are expected to identify with only one religion and are assumed to accept the whole package of that religion. ICD in this context involves communicating with religious groups such as organisations and encouraging different leaders to speak with each other resulting in platforms filled with ‘heads of faith’ – bishops muftis, ayatollahs, chief rabbis, swamis and so on. In contrast, lived religions involve ritual practices engaged in by individuals and small groups, creation of shrines and sacred spaces, discussing the nature of life, sharing ethical concerns, going on pilgrimages and taking actions to celebrate and sustain hope.There is some evidence that, although packaged religions are declining, lived religions continue at persistent levels. Violent extremism is more likely to be associated with lived rather than packaged forms of religion, making a more balanced intercultural competences approach to ICD critical to countering conflict.

Community Ergonomics: A Theoretical Model for Rebuilding the Inner City

1994 ◽  
Vol 38 (12) ◽  
pp. 724-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Smith ◽  
Pascale Carayon ◽  
John Smith ◽  
William Cohen ◽  
Jerry Upton
Keyword(s):  
Inner City ◽  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Business Community ◽  
Educational Systems ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Legal Requirements ◽  
Human Factors And Ergonomics ◽  
And Control ◽  
Insight Into

There is a critical need for various forces that are working to improve the inner city to coordinate their efforts and to develop cooperative approaches. This includes governments at all levels, social agencies, educational systems, the business community, financial institutions, religious groups, ethnic groups, police, universities and inner-city residents. The diversity in values, approaches, goals, desires and legal requirements makes such a systematic integration very complex and difficult. Several human factors and ergonomics theories for the management and control of complex systems can provide insight into effective means to address these issues. General principles can be established to promote “community ergonomics.”

Psychotherapy and Christianity

2021 ◽  
pp. 1286-1296
Author(s):  
Jeremy Lim ◽  
Ke Hui Chuah
Keyword(s):  
International Literature ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Christian Church ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Population ◽  
The Church ◽  
Sabah And Sarawak ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Christian Beliefs

Christianity is counted as one of the biggest religious groups in the world, numbering at over 2 billion individuals who identify themselves with this religion. As of the 2010 census, the Department of Statistics Malaysia Official Portal reported that an estimated 9.2% of the population in Malaysia identified themselves as Christians. In numerical terms, this equates to approximately 3 million individuals spread out all over the Malaysian peninsular as well as Sabah and Sarawak who consider themselves part of the Christian church. This chapter intends to do four things: 1) provide a brief history of the church and Christianity, 2) acquaint the reader with basic Christian beliefs, 3) provide insight into the methods and challenges of working with the population in Malaysia drawing from both local as well as international literature, and 4) provide the implications of the methods and challenges of working with the Christian population.

Creating a Cursed and Sanctified Temple, 1965–1984

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Howlett
Keyword(s):  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Sacred Space ◽  
Latter Day Saints ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Sacred Spaces ◽  
The Creation ◽  
A Site ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Ambiguous Site

This chapter examines the transformation of the Kirtland Temple as a site of interest into a site of contagion, only then to be blessed along with the surrounding land as a place of promise. While the Kirtland Temple still remained an ambiguous site for many Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pilgrims, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints agents on the ground in Cleveland worked out a story that could explain Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' possession of the temple while still embracing it as a holy site. This resanctification of sacred space offers several insights into the study of sacred space that may be “useful to think with.” First, this case study illustrates the power of middling agents in creating and sustaining sacred spaces. Second, it illustrates that the creation and maintenance of sacred space may be one strategy that religious groups use to answer theodical questions, or questions about the presence of evil.

A chaplain's perspective on body donation and thanksgiving

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 200-202
Author(s):  
Peter Wells
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
Medical Science ◽  
Whole Body ◽  
Individual Choice ◽  
Religious Leaders ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Abrahamic Religions ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Body Donation ◽  
Insight Into

All major religions accept that organ donation is an individual choice and the same is true when it comes to donating one's whole body to medical science. While religious groups have ‘official’ views, it is common, given the various denominations and subgroups within a religion, to have deviation from the official message. This paper provides some insight into the views of religious leaders from one local community in the UK on the act of body donation. The paper also demonstrates the importance that the Abrahamic religions place on providing opportunities for remembrance and thanksgiving for those who have died and how this is extended through the services of thanksgiving that are held by medical schools for those who have donated their bodies to medical science.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document