“Person” in the Law of Religious [Institutes]

The emphasis on the human person and his dignity was significantly applied in the new regulation of the law of consecrated life, which is dealt with in the new Code of Canon Law of 1983 in integrum compared to the previous Code of Canon Law of 1917. This paper describes only some of the changes in the law of religious institutes in the Latin Church.The first section regards mainly the person who has taken religious vows and focuses on the question of religious vows as the basis of religious life. It also discusses confessors viewed as a necessary tool for the renewal of religious life as well as modifications in the concept of poverty as a very important element of religious life. The second section focuses on the government of religious institutes, discussing the strengthened position of internal superiors over external superiors in religious congregations, the strengthened position of the superior of monasteries of nuns, and the extended powers of superiors on release from a religious institute due to illegitimate absence from a religious house.As this is in some cases a very recent legal regulation, the author does not hesitate to express his critical observations.

Da’wah as an Alternative Approach in Covid-19 Health Protocol Campaign

<p class="abstrak">This research aims to elaborate the communication strategy of Islamic Religious Counselors because communication strategies are an important aspect in the process of effectively transferring messages to the audiences. Islamic Religious Counselors are civil servant preachers who carry the mandate from the government to campaign for the Covid-19 health protocols through the da’wah (Islamic communication/propagation) approach. Da’wah and health materials are two different materials that pose challenges for Islamic Religious Counselors, especially in the communication patterns used. The research method used qualitative approach and multi-track communication theory by Thomas Tufte and Paolo Mefalopulos. Data were collected through structured interviews with six informants of Islamic Religious Counselor in Kalasan District and non-participant observations on each of their da’wah activities. The results showed that the preaching activities include recitation, socialization, social service and building relationships carried out with a multi-track communication strategy through a combination of a dialogic and one-step flow communication. Da’wah through a multi-track communication strategy has an impact on the affective side of religious congregations including attitudes, knowledge and awareness. Actualization of Islamic Religious Counselor is a viable alternative approach of the government and community in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.</p><p class="abstrak" align="left"><em>Penyuluh Agama Islam adalah pendakwah aparatur sipil negara yang mengemban amanah dari pemerintah untuk dapat mengampanyekan protokol kesehatan Covid-19 melalui pendekatan dakwah. Materi dakwah dan kesehatan merupakan dua materi berbeda yang menimbulkan tantangan bagi Penyuluh Agama Islam khususnya dalam pola komunikasi yang digunakan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengelaborasi strategi komunikasi Penyuluh Agama Islam karena strategi komunikasi merupakan aspek penting dalam proses transfer pesan kepada khalayak secara efektif. Metode penelitian menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dan menggunakan teori komunikasi multi-track dari Thomas Tufte dan Paolo Mefalopulos. Data dikumpulkan melalui wawancara terstruktur dengan informan berjumlah 6 orang Penyuluh Agama Islam di Kecamatan Kalasan dan observasi non-partisipan pada setiap kegiatan dakwah. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa aktivitas dakwah Penyuluh Agama Islam meliputi pengajian, sosialisasi, bakti sosial dan membangun relasi dilakukan dengan strategi komunikasi multi-track melalui kombinasi pendekatan komunikasi dialogis dan pendekatan satu arah. Dakwah melalui strategi komunikasi multi-track berdampak pada sisi afektif jama’ah meliputi sikap, pengetahuan dan kesadaran. Aktualisasi Penyuluh Agama Islam memberikan sebuah kontribusi sebagai alternatif pendekatan pemerintah maupun komunitas dalam menangani bencana Covid-19.</em></p>

Corona Virus – Some Important Religious Aspects of its Prevention

The issue of religious rituals like congregational prayers (Salah with Jamaat) in Masajid is being extensively discussed during the pandemic of COVID-19. The suspension of religious congregations in the current scenario so as to ensure social (physical) distancing and the permission of praying (Salah) at home is discussed in the light of Islamic teachings. The discussion is mostly based on the Shariah view on human values whereby opting out safety especially in the wake of infectious diseases / pandemics. The references are primarily taken from Qura’n and Sunnah and Islamic Jurisprudence (Fiqh).

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT BASED ON BUCKLEY'S FUZZY AHP AND SWOT: EXAMPLE OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE MISSIONARIES OF THE SACRED HEART

Strategic priorities are commonly implemented by both profit and non-profit institutions, but rarely employed by religious congregations. The congregation of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (MSC), an institution in the Catholic Church, has undertaken an empirical study, using a combination of SWOT and fuzzy-Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methodologies. Four strategies were employed. First, the strategy S-O (30.1%), aimed at intensifying and improving our human resources in order to enrich the lives of all our members. Second, we adopted the strategy S-T (25.8%) that focused on our Sacred Heart Spirituality to empower the fraternal community. Third, we adopted the strategy W-T (24.1%) that aimed at strengthening the Sacred Heart Spirituality throughout the entire MSC family. Finally, we used the strategy W-O (20.1%) in order to strengthen networking in the congregation while also revitalizing family ministry. A sensitivity analysis confirmed the SO alternative as the main strategy. Internally, the congregation is quite strong but more needs to be done to deepen the Sacred Heart Spirituality among all our members. The researchers recommend conducting further study of the congregation about how they perceive the MSC pastoral ministry and understand the vision.

Homophily and Social Capital in a Network of Religious Congregations

This article investigates the relationship between homophily, the tendency for relationships to be more common among similar actors, and social capital in a social network of religious congregations from eight counties encompassing and surrounding a major metropolitan area in the southeastern United States. This network is inter-congregational, consisting of congregations and the relationships between them. Two types of social capital are investigated: the first involves the extent to which congregations bridge across structural holes, or bridge together otherwise disconnected congregations within the network; secondly, network closure involves the extent to which congregations are embedded in tight-knit clusters. Analyses use two types of homophily (religious and racial) to predict both outcomes, and they test linear and curvilinear relationships between both forms of homophily and the outcomes. Results indicate that congregations with moderate levels of religious homophily are more likely to bridge between otherwise disconnected congregations; however, congregations with low or high religious homophily as well as congregations with high racial homophily are more likely to be embedded in tight-knit relational clusters. This article contributes additional social network research on congregations and evidence of curvilinear relationships between homophily and social capital to the fields of social network analysis and sociology of religion.

The Congregational Character Questionnaire: An Initial Empirical Examination of the Significance of Collective Church Character Traits

Researchers in several academic disciplines have begun to take an interest in group character traits, including the character traits of religious congregations. This article reports the first empirical studies of congregational virtues. The Congregational Character Questionnaire was developed for measuring 12 different virtues of Christian churches: clinging to apostolic teaching, honoring teachers, prayerfulness, hopefulness, discipleship, emotional supportiveness, material supportiveness, spiritual equality, unity, submission, peace with the world, and spreading the faith. The instrument was then used with an online sample ( N = 530) to study how congregants’ perceptions of their congregation’s virtuousness related to congregants’ evaluations of their congregation, participation in their congregation, as well as congregants’ satisfaction with life, presence of meaning in life, and religious well-being. Results indicated that congregants’ overall perceptions of congregational virtuousness were significantly positively related to all of these dependent variables. These results help to reveal the important role that congregational character may play in the experience of congregants. Directions for future research in this area are outlined.