From the Struggle for Independence to the Religious Conflict

The chapter deals with the chaotic situation of 1990 when the struggle for independence was intermingled with the religious revival in the acute form of radical Islamism and the process was gradually shifting to the revival and activities of political organizations. At the same time, religion was intertwined with politics and criminal activity. In investigating the conflicts in which Islamic radicals were involved, it was very difficult to distinguish the ideology of religious fundamentalism from criminal activities related to drug and arms business, people trafficking, and kidnapping. Crime, in its turn, was directly in the political and power groups that were closely linked to radicals. Thus, the North Caucasus republic, called Chechnya by Russians, appeared directly in the center of Russia's recent history, threatening its state and social security.

Religious Division and Otherness as Portrayed in 'Shame' and 'The Ministry of Utmost Happiness'

After the partition of India in 1947, religion has become a major catalyst for division and othering in most of South Asia. Bangladeshi author and activist Taslima Nasrin was exiled from her country, primarily for revealing the mistreatment of the Hindu minorities in Bangladesh in her novel Shame. Indian author Arundhati Roy has also faced severe backlash due to her portrayal of the mistreatment of the Muslims in India in her novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. Religion has become an extremely fraught issue in South Asia, making almost any criticism of religious fundamentalism a highly perilous endeavor. Yet, both Nasrin and Roy had the courage to do that. This paper explores how the aforementioned novels expose the process of othering of the religious minorities in India and Bangladesh by highlighting the retributive nature of communal violence which feeds on mistrust, hatred, and religious tribalism – a cursed legacy that can be traced back to the violent partition of the Indian subcontinent based on the two-nation theory.

Who would Iranian Muslims help? Religious dimensions and moral foundations as predictors

Religiosity has been linked with prosocial behavior and a preference for religious ingroups over outgroups. Yet, there are important differences in religious people’s beliefs, values, and practices. Fundamental and quest orientation toward religion may differentially predict intergroup bias in prosociality. Also, individualizing and binding moral foundations may have diverse effects on ingroup and outgroup bias in helping, as moral foundations theory (MFT) suggests that individualizing and binding foundations differ in how much they focus on ingroup and outgroup moral considerations. In this study, we examined the relationship between religious dimensions (quest religion, religious fundamentalism, intrinsic religiosity, and religious activity), moral foundations, prosocial behavior, and intergroup bias in helping. We found evidence for the effect of individualizing foundations, religious fundamentalism, and quest religion above and beyond demographics and other religious dimensions on intergroup bias in helping. Furthermore, there were independent positive effects of individualizing foundations, religious activity, and age, and independent negative effects of female gender and religious fundamentalism on prosocial behavior. This study provides a more nuanced understanding of the relations between religion, prosociality, and moral intuitions in a Muslim context.

Critical Theory of Religion by Erich Fromm: from Messianic Judaism to Radical Humanism

This paper studies Erich Fromm’s critical theory of religion and looks into the evolution of the philosopher’s views. We analyze key concepts of Fromm’s humanistic psychology, including biophilia, rejection of idolatry, X-experience, classification of religions as humanistic or authoritarian, plea for sustainable coexistence with the environment, and some others. The author demonstrates close connection of these concepts with Judaic tradition, especially the messianism and negative theology of Maimonides. The paper is divided into chapters tracing the evolution of Fromm’s views on religion — from Hasidic Judaism, through following Freud and Marx, to the concept of humanistic religion. The analysis shows that starting from his early works and up to the radical, socialistic humanism as the pinnacle of his thought, Fromm as a philosopher and a strong Israelite draws inspiration from the religious tradition. Notably, his PhD thesis was devoted to the sociology of Hebrew diaspora, Der Sabbath, The Dogma of Christ. However, Fromm’s theory of religion, accordant with the Frankfurt School, combines aspects of Hegel, Marx and Freud’s teachings. Fromm’s views on religion are an original, self-consistent synthesis of diverse ideas, and result in the concept of radical humanism. The paper specifically considers Fromm’s view on idolatry as a form of alienation. Fromm urges to fight against idolatry in a bro.ader sense, finding it in various social phenomena, ranging from consumerism to religious fundamentalism. The paper also reviews the concept of X-experience that Fromm gives in You Shall Be as Gods. The X-experience is a special transcendental experience, separated from its multiple theistic or non-theistic conceptualizations. X-experience is psychological in its nature and leads to diminishing or eliminating narcissism. It constitutes a certain opposition to the alienation caused by idolatry. The work also considers Fromm’s idea of humanistic religion as related to his other concepts. The author supposes that the distinction between authoritarian and humanistic religions is tied to the earlier separation into authoritarian and humanistic ethics that Fromm presents in Man for himself. The impact of Marx and Freud on Fromm’s philosophy of religion is highlighted. While drawing from both, Fromm considered Marx’s theory to be deeper and more significant.

A just and civilised humanity: An integrative model between reformed theology and the ideology of Pancasila

This study aimed to produce a model of integration between theology (reformed) and ideology (Pancasila) to realise a just and civilised humanity (second sila of Pancasila). This research is based on the paradigm of naturalism with qualitative methods and the approach applied is historical and integrative. The research results produced an integrative model between Reformed Theology and the ideology of Pancasila that rejects the understanding and practice of capitalism, religious fundamentalism, communism, and racism. This study pointed out that these four understandings and practices contradict the basic principles of a just and civilised humanity based on theological and ideological studies.Contribution: This study produced four fundamental clues for all Indonesian citizens, especially Christians, namely the source, basis, pillars, and dual role as citizens and kingdoms of God in the fight for the formation of a just and civilised humanity.