Buddhist Devotion to the Russian Tsar : The Bicultural Environment of the Don Kalmyk Sangha and Russian Orthodox Church in the 1830s

Inoue Takehiko’s paper analyses how the close and long-lasting relationship between Kalmyk Buddhists and Don Cossacks (in the Don Cossack province) developed during the nineteenth century. This relationship was mediated both by Kalmyk Buddhist monks and the requirements of military and religious services to the Tsar, leading to transformations in the identity of this Kalmyk group. He uses the example of the ceremony surrounding the opening of a Kalmyk Parish school in 1839 to demonstrate how both parties sought to combine their socio-religious cultures in furtherance of the alliance of their interests.

The Liturgical Usage of Translated Gregorian Chant in the Korean Catholic Church

For centuries, Gregorian chant has served as a monophonic song written for the religious services of the Roman Catholic Church, but Korean Catholics first encountered this chant in the early nineteenth century. Korean Catholics ultimately became more attracted to the Korean translations of these chants, as opposed to the original Latin versions. This article introduces some issues related to the language translation of Gregorian chant, especially for chants performed in Holy Week. The issues include discrepancies in the number of syllables, shifts in melismatic emphasis, difficult diction in vocalization, briefer singing parts because of space limitations, challenging melodic lines, and translation losses from neumes to modern notes.

Worship and the virus in Hindu India

The religious responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in Hindu India were manifold and, at times, publicly contested, which raises the question of which societal differences became visible and were augmented as the pandemic unfolded. Based on observations mainly from the first coronavirus wave in 2020, this article argues that the limited religious innovation that ensued gave rise to a lively public debate that revealed marked differences within the Hindu community, that the pandemic offered new possibilities for affirming Hindu identities while othering Muslims, and that it accelerated the transition to online religious services in prominent temples while pausing the activities in others, thus augmenting a marked digital divide that may well outlast the pandemic. Pandemic religious changes notwithstanding, the article concludes that most of the changes were ephemeral and produced minor jolts rather than major transformations.

The Passion Cycle in the Sanctuaries of the Saxon Fortified Churches in Southern Transylvania

"This paper aims to reconstitute the pictorial program of some medieval Saxon churches’ sanctuaries, which are Mălâncrav, Curciu, Râşnov and Sibiu, with particular interest on the images regarding the Passion Cycle. The article will try to bring a stylistic and iconographic analysis of the Passion Cycle in the sanctuary, episodes that usually appear on the northern choir wall. Therefore, we aim to highlight the reasons why this Passion narrative was chosen to decorate this part of the sanctuary and what was its role both regarding the place that it occupies, that is near the most sacred place of the church, and also the role it had in the religious services. Given the complexity of the narrative programs and the strong link with the biblical texts, the paintings have a double role, both educational and devotional. Keywords: Passion Cycles, mural painting, fortified churches, iconography "

Religiosity and stigmatization related to mental illness among African-Americans and Black immigrants: cross-sectional observational study and moderation analysis

Objectives Stigma about mental illness is a known barrier to engagement in mental health services. This study aimed to estimate the associations between religiosity and mental illness stigma among Black adults. Design We conducted an online cross-sectional study of Black adults in the United States (n=269, ages 18-65) from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Results Most (n=248 [92%]) participants attended religious services; while 21 (8%) never attended. Social distance was assessed as an index of past or current stigmatizing behavior. After adjusting for demographic factors, respondents with higher attendance at religious services or greater engagement in religious activities (e.g., prayer, meditation or Bible study) reported greater proximity to people living with mental health problems (RR=1.72; 95% CI: 1.14, 2.59 and RR=1.82; CI: 1.18, 2.79 respectively). Despite reporting greater past or current social proximity, respondents with higher religiosity indices also reported greater future intended stigmatizing behavior (or lower future intended social proximity) (RRs=0.92-0.98). Ethnicity moderated the association between religiosity and future intended stigmatizing behavior. Black immigrants with higher religiosity reported lower future intended stigmatizing behavior (RR=1.16 CI: 1.02-1.32) whereas African-Americans with higher religiosity reported greater future intended stigmatizing behavior (RR=0.83 CI: 0.76, 0.91). Conclusions Higher indices of religiosity were associated with lower past or current stigmatizing behavior towards individuals living with mental health problems but not lower future intended stigmatizing behavior. Focusing specifically on future intended stigmatizing behavior and the respondents level of religiosity, age, and ethnicity may be critical for designing effective stigma-reducing interventions for Black adults.

The Characteristucs of Buddhism in the Chita Region in the Early 1980s

В статье анализируется практически не изученная страница истории Читинской области (Восточное Забайкалье) — история буддизма в начале девятого десятилетия XX века. Цель исследования заключается в выявлении характерных черт и особенностей существования буддизма в Читинской области в рассматриваемое время. Автор отмечает, что на сегодняшний день отсутствуют какие-либо публикации по проблематике, что предопределило использование архивных источников — документов Государственного архива Российской Федерации. Это, главным образом, делопроизводственные документы, отчеты уполномоченных Совета по делам религий при Совете Министров СССР по Читинской области, информационные сообщения, переписки. На основе анализа различных источников делается вывод, что буддизм в Читинской области в начале 1980-х годов развивался, а в сравнении с иными религиозными учениями, развивался достаточно успешно. Основная масса верующих была сосредоточена на территории Агинского Бурятского автономного округа Читинской области. Действовал буддистский монастырь — Агинский дацан, который являлся единственной действующей культовой постройкой буддистов в Восточном Забайкалье. Активно велись постоянные службы, на праздничных службах (хуралах) присутствовали сотни верующих. Значительными были доходы Агинского дацана. Основные поступления шли от исполнения обрядов, однако немалыми были пожертвования верующих. Уполномоченный Совета по делам религий при Совете Министров СССР по Читинской области А. И. Бородин в документах пытался показать, что верующие — это в основном люди пожилого возраста, что автору статьи представляется не совсем верным. В среде священнослужителей Агинского дацана существовали противоречия, предопределенные субъективной составляющей. Очевидным видится необходимость продолжения работы по изучению истории буддизма в Восточном Забайкалье в советское время. The article analyzes a previously uninvestigated page of Chita history, namely the history of the spread of Buddhism in the Chita Region (East Zabaykalye) in the early 1980s. The aim of the research is to investigate the characteristics of Buddhism in the Chita Region, its spread and adaptation during the aforementioned period. The author underlines an appalling scarcity of published materials on the issue, which necessitated the use of documents of the State Archive of the Russian Federation. The corpus of analyzed archival documents is mainly constituted of official documents, reports issued by the representatives of the Council for Religious Affairs of the USSR in the Chita Region, information reports, and letters. The analysis of various sources enables the author to conclude that in the early 1980s Buddhism, unlike other religions, experienced little oppression. The majority of believers lived in the Agin-Buryat Autonomous District of the Chita Region. There was a Buddhist monastery, Aginsky Datsan, which was the only functioning Buddhist monastery in the East Zabaykalye. There were regular religious services (khurals) that were attended by hundreds of believers who donated quite large sums of money. Vast amounts of money were received as a compensation for ritual services. A. I. Borodin, a representative of the Council for Religious Affairs of the USSR in the Chita Region, attempted to show in his reports that believers were primarily elderly people, a statement the author of the article is rather skeptical of. Buddhist priests expressed some contradictory views on certain issues. The author of the article believes that it is necessary to continue investigating the history of Buddhism in East Zabaykalye during the Soviet era.

The Impact of Civic and Religious Social Capital on the Antisocial Attitudes of the Youth: A Multi-Level Cross-National Study

The main goal of this paper is to investigate whether some dimensions of civic and religious social capital are connected to antisocial attitudes of the youth. Based on the social capital theory and previous research, the author assumed that membership of voluntary associations as a dimension of civic social capital and attendance at religious services as a dimension of religious social capital, will be negatively correlated with antisocial attitudes of the youth. The integrated dataset of the last European Values Study and the World Values Survey waves were used as the sources of the research data. The dataset was comprised of 11,411 respondents who were younger than 25 years old from 79 countries. As hypothesized, at the individual level, attendance at religious services was negatively correlated with antisocial attitudes, whereas membership of voluntary associations was positively correlated with antisocial attitudes. At the country level, none of the hypothesized correlations were confirmed. A cross-level interaction between GDP and associational membership was found. The author explains the findings by evoking the special characteristics of religious social capital and its strength in building moral obligations and by suggesting possible differences in incentives for joining voluntary associations in the countries with different levels of economic wealth.

Islam, the Homeland, and the Family: Diyanet’s Narrative and Practices Aimed at Shaping a Loyal Muslim Turkish Diaspora

With the inclusion of women among the religious officers of the Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) who are serving abroad, the “ideal Turkish family” has become the main program underlying projects and activities oriented towards women, families, and young people. This international mission has led to an expansion of religious services and moral support in order to reinforce a religion–nation–family nexus within the diaspora. This article examines how the Diyanet officers reproduce the Islam–nation–family intersection as a discourse to be propagated to the diaspora, and whether this narrative reinforces Turkey’s attempts to create loyalty to Turkey within the diaspora. Based on ethnographic observations, an analysis of Diyanet official publications, and interviews with Diyanet officers at mosques in Vienna and Stockholm, this article shows the extent to which the Diyanet’s international mission is a catalyst for the dissemination of nationalist, moral, and religious values within the diaspora, how Diyanet officers are actively involved in fostering a religious-national discourse within diaspora communities and how they specifically reinforce the connection between Islam, the Turkish nation, and the traditional Turkish family.

Epilogues

The annual International Jewish-Christian Bible Week runs from a Sunday to a Sunday, allowing for the celebration of the Jewish Shabbat and the Christian Sunday by attending one another’s religious services. During the five years covered in this issue, it has been the author’s privilege to offer the sermon on the Saturday morning during the Jewish service. This enables him to explore new perceptions of the texts we have been studying that have arisen during the Week, but also to reflect on broader issues that might have arisen in the multiple interactions – interfaith, intercultural and interpersonal – that have taken place during the Week. Given the occasional negative associations that accompany the word ‘sermon’, I have preferred to use the term ‘epilogues’ to characterise these responses to the texts and experiences of the Week. The term also covers a more imaginative reflection on the Book of Proverbs (Hebrew: mishlei) that we have been studying – a visit to the City of Mishlei.

Analysis of the Operation of an Unheated Wooden Church to the Shaping of Thermal and Humidity Conditions Using the Numerical Method

The article deals with the problem of the effects of using a wooden church on thermal and humidity conditions forming inside. Religious services in the studied site were provided several times a year. The building was not used in the remaining time. The analysis of the effects of the frequency of religious services and the number of people at the services on the formation of temperature and humidity conditions in the wooden church is provided in this paper. The effect of the presence of people in the church on CO2 concentration fluctuations was also studied. Analysis of the results showed that external conditions have the greatest effect on internal microclimate substitutions. The presence of people affects temporary fluctuations in internal parameters. Both the number of people attending the service and the time of year are important. An indoor air temperature amplitude of 9.4 °C was recorded during the winter period. The CO2 level in the church during the service exceeded the limit value of 1000 ppm, reaching 1800 ppm in the extreme case, which could result in decreased comfort for people. The high CO2 concentration may have been caused by a lack of effective ventilation in the building. The obtained simulation results showed a high agreement of the theoretical data with the measurement results (correlation 0.91). The analysis of three simulation variants showed that the people attending the services have a significant share in the gains of thermal energy inside the church. In order to meet the assumptions for variant 1, there are no requirements to start the heating system, assuming a similar schedule of services.