Center on Religion & the Professions

Improving religious literacy among professionals.

Law

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About the discipline

Many of the hottest legal issues today involve religion in the public square. Current First Amendment issues include church-state separation, God in the Pledge of Allegiance, and prayer in schools and public spheres. Ethical issues sometimes related to religious beliefs are also debated, such as potential bans on abortion or types of abortion, the death penalty, and how to rule or legislate in ways that offer freedom to practice religion but not against any particular practices or atheist beliefs.

History: Religion and law have been linked throughout history. The Code of Hammurabi (c. 1892 B.C.-1750 B.C), one of the earliest documented legal codes, was reportedly given to King Hammurabi by the Sumerian gods. The Ten Commandments, a centerpiece of the Jewish and Christian faiths, influenced similar guides for behavior in the Koran. They also have guided thinking on legal matters for centuries both in this country and in the European common law that was adopted by America at the founding of our nation. The notion of “eye for an eye” that guides some in the debate over capital punishment is a reflection of religious roots in the evolution of law (it is found in both Hammurabi’s code and the Old Testament and influenced Islamic Sharia law). The intentions of America’s Founding Fathers regarding how religion, law and public life are to be conducted remains up for debate among many groups.

Philosophical ideas: Some have said that law is the framework upon which religion rests – that law is the bones and religion is its soul. In truth, the two disciplines have much in common. They define right and wrong while also trying to find the interplay and balance between justice and mercy, between the need to provide discipline and order and the need to show love. These traditions can be studied in tandem, and the Center on Religion & the Professions offers a chance to connect legal scholars with those from other disciplines in ways to produce original research in this area.

Law in current affairs: The principles of law are seen in many current religious issues. For example, in the Catholic Church clergy abuse crisis, religious institutions and zoning laws, vouchers for religious schools, expressions of religion on public property, and rulings on peyote, a drug used in American Indian religious practice. Both Supreme Court and local rulings impact how religion and law are practiced in these areas.

Religion also plays a role in prisons and addiction recovery programs. Some studies have shown that inmates who participate in religious practice have a lower recidivism rate.

Law and journalism: The Center on Religion & the Professions is an affiliate of MU’s School of Journalism. Researchers could work jointly in religion, law and journalism to educate attorneys, students and the media about issues related to religion and law, with the goal of giving the public a more nuanced explanation of legal and religious issues. Journalists interested in law could also study how media coverage of these issues impacts public perception and how laws are made and followed.

Current issues: The Center aims to promote understanding of how a diverse public can better function with the many religions that are practiced in the U.S. The legal arena is often the one chosen by those in a minority viewpoint to protect rights or increase awareness. Legal scholars can work with the Center to promote these goals. Those practicing law can also better understand how their own religious or non-religious beliefs drive their interest in or practice of law.

Researchers could explore the ramifications of a legal system that has evolved from religious principles through the eyes of a diverse citizenry. In historical terms, the evolution of law in the U.S. could be traced in concert with the growth of religious diversity in the United States. Research that examines other ethical traditions could be useful in constructing law for a more diverse society.

Articles

Books

  • Constitutional Illusions and Anchoring Truths: The Touchstone of the Natural Law. Hadley Arkes. Cambridge University Press; 1 edition (May 31, 2010).
  • Across the Religious Divide: Women, Property, and Law in the Wider Mediterranean. Jutta Sperling and Shona Kelly Wray. Routledge (October 13, 2009).
  • Encountering Religion in the Workplace: The Legal Rights and Responsibilities of Workers and Employers. Raymond F. Gregory. New York: Cornell University Press, 2011.
  • Islamic Feminism and the Law by Qudsia Mirza. Routledge-Cavendish, 2011.
  • A Correctional Administrator’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices (.pdf)
  • Law and Religion in Europe: A Comparative Introduction by Norma Doe. Oxford University Press USA, 2011.
  • Religion and law: An introduction. Peter W. Edge. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2006.
  • Law and religion: a critical anthology. Stephen M. Feldman. NYU Press, 2000.
  • Religion and the Law in America: An Encyclopedia of Personal Belief and Public Policy. Scott A. Merriman. ABC-CLIO, 2007.
  • Clash Of Orthodoxies: Law Religion & Morality In Crisis. Robert P. George.Intercollegiate Studies Institute, 2001.
  • God vs. the Gavel: Religion and the Rule of Law. Marci A. Hamilton. Cambridge University Press, 2007.
  • Doing Justice to Mercy: Religion, Law, and Criminal Justice. Jonathan Rothchild (ed.) University of Virginia Press, 2007.
  • Religion and International Law. Mark W. Janis and Carolyn Evans (eds.). Hotei Publishing, 2004.
  • Prison Religion: Faith-Based Reform and the Constitution by Winnifred Fallers Sullivan. Princeton University Press, 2011.
  • Peyote vs. the State: Religious Freedom on Trial by Garrett Epps. University of Oklahoma Press, 2009.

Case studies

Codes of ethics

Journals

More links

Professional associations and faith groups

Recent research

Syllabi

 

Journalism and media

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About the discipline

Religion coverage tends to be downplayed in mainstream media, both in terms of front page or top-of-newscast appeal as well the percentage of content.  Still, current events have revealed that religion plays a key role in many stories considered non-religious, such as the war on terror and politics. Journalists are learning that religion can be covered in a more “wholistic” way by identifying religion as a key factor in a news story, and that it does not have to be restricted to the topic of religion.

Religion brings with it a complex set of values and behaviors that affects the way the news can be viewed. It is worthwhile to see how religion can be used on the front page to help add background and depth to stories, or to tell them in new ways. Other research ideas could examine the impact of citizen media tools such as blogging and “citizen journalism” on these areas of media coverage that are sometimes seen as lacking by the readership/viewership public.

Workplace diversity: Studies sampling media workplaces have found that the makeup of American newsrooms differs greatly from that of the public in terms of religious affiliation and practice. Many newsrooms – even in markets that lean heavily toward one or two faiths – are made up of journalists who report adhering to faiths that do not match their community or to a lack of religious faith. Given the push in newsrooms toward more diversity since the late 1980s, it is worth studying the differences in coverage in religion topics when a community’s faith makeup matches that of its local news product in comparison to one that does not match its newsroom’s faith makeup. Critics might argue that the objective standard in journalism would preclude a journalist who is either of another faith or an atheist from covering a religious topic, due to concerns of bias, but the push for more racial and ideological diversity in newsrooms clearly shows that newsrooms already believe that diversifying newsrooms leads to stronger coverage.

Ethics: Many religions value truth-telling in the highest regard, and that is compatible with journalism as a craft. But what of conflicts where religious duty clashes with newsroom values? The newsroom is a team atmosphere and team players are rewarded with promotions and better beats, and so what happens if a journalist has an ethical objection to newsroom standards? In essence, do newsroom standards supersede a person’s personal ethics in an environment where people often agree on the rules that govern journalism and are expected to adhere to them? Research might also look at how to craft a personal ethic and work by that in an era in which competition and conglomerate culture is increasingly homogenizing the way newsrooms clarify their values.

History: Some would argue that religion created the information revolution. Aided by the 16th-century printing press, the desire to have and to understand the record of religious thought and theology helped create what is now a mass market for information. Author Doug Underwood suggests in his book, “From Yahweh to Yahoo!,” that religion has long been a silent partner to journalism, through “religious impulses” at work in a typical newsroom. He makes the case that American journalists are rooted in the nation’s moral and religious heritage, such as believing they are serving a cause higher than commercial goals, protesting moral corruption, advocating social justice and calling for reform.

Since the invention of print, religious leaders and dissidents have long used the method to share their views and challenge others. Among the first to adopt the technology of radio in the 1920s were Christian broadcasters, who sent sermons and hymns to the masses – later following with television and the Internet. There are opportunities to work in journalism today covering religion in both secular and religious contexts. The introduction of convergence journalism aso offers new ways to communicate religious experience.

Current Issues: Religion is playing a key role in many of today’s news-making events. Understanding Islam, for example, is critical for the reporter attempting to do international coverage of the war on terror as well as coverage of home-front issues. Politics is another area where religion often mixes freely with the people involved, and a depth of understanding of the values and beliefs guiding those in power is a critical tool for providing good coverage. Research also might look at readership in terms of self-reported religious faith and examine how patterns of coverage might be altered in a way that serves that audience better.

The Center on Religion & the Professions is working on projects to improve the religious literacy of reporters by strengthening journalistic coverage of religion in the United States, as well as planning significant research about how the public views religion news coverage.

Articles

Books

  • A Guide to Religion Reporting in the Secular Media: Frequently Asked Questionsby Debra L Mason and Cecile S. Holmes (editors) (Westerville, Ohio: Religion Newswriters Foundation, 2002).
  • About Arab Americans: A Journalists Guide by the Detroit Free Press (Detroit, Michigan: Knight Ridder, 2003).
  • Bridging the Gap: Religion and the News Media by John Dart and Jimmy Allen (Nashville, Tennessee, First Amendment Center, 2000).
  • Religion in the Media Age by Stewart M. Hoover (New York: New York: Routledge, 2006).
  • Reporting on Religion: A Primer on Journalism’s Best Beat by Debra L. Mason and Diane Connolly (Westerville, Ohio: Religion Newswriters, 2006).
  • Reporting on Religion 2: A Stylebook on Journalism’s Best Beat by Debra L. Mason, Diane Connolly and Mary Gladstone (editors) (Westerville, Ohio: Religion Newswriters, 2007).
  • Religion in the News: Faith and Journalism in American Public Discourse by Steward M Hoover (Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, 1998).
  • Reporting News about Religion: An Introduction for Journalists by Judith M. Buddenbaum (Ames, Iowa: Iowa State University Press, 1998).
  • Religious Liberty in America: Navigating the First Amendment in the Newsroom and Beyond by Bruce T. Murray (Pasadena, California: Foundation for American Communications, 2005).
  • A Journalist’s Guide to Islam (Canada: Islamic Social Services Association, 2003).
  • A Journalist’s Guide to Judaism by Ron Csillag (Alberta, Canada: Centre for Faith & the Media).
  • A Journalist’s Guide to Christianity (Alberta, Canada: Centre for Faith & the Media).
  • A Journalist’s Guide to Sikhism (Alberta, Canada: Centre for Faith & the Media).
  • A Reporter’s Guide to Buddhism in America by Bill Aiken and Clark Strand (Santa Monica, California: Soka Gakkai International, 2005).
  • A Journalist’s Guide to Hinduism (Alberta, Canada: Centre for Faith & the Media).
  • Dieties and Deadlines: A Primer on News Coverage by John Dart (Nashville, Tennessee: First Amendment Center, 1998).
  • Blind Spot: When Journalists Don’t Get Religion by Paul Marshall, Lela Gilbert, and Roberta Green-Ahmanson (United States: Oxford University Press, 2008).
  • Islam: Reporting in Context and With Complexity. The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. Vol. 61 No. 2. Summer 2007.
  • Encyclopedia of Religion, Communication, and Media. Daniel Stout (ed.). Routledge, 2006.
  • Religion and Media (Cultural Memory in the Present) Hent de Vries and Samuel Weber. Stanford University Press, 2001.
  • Journalism in Good Faith: Issues and Practices in Religion Reporting by Eric G. Loo and Mustafa K. Anuar. Marshall Cavendish Corp., 2009.
  • Media, religion and democratic participation: community communication in Zimbabwe and Norway. Knut Lundby. Sage Publications, Inc. 1997.
  • Religion, Media, and the Public Sphere. Birgit Meyer and Annelies Moors (eds.). Indiana University Press, 2005.
  • Quoting God: How Media Shape Ideas about Religion and Culture. Claire H. Badaracco. Baylor University Press, 2004.
  • Readings on Religion as News. Judith M. Buddenbaum and Debra L. Mason (eds.). Wiley-Blackwell, 2000.
  • Religion, Media, and the Marketplace. Lynn Schofield Clark (ed.). Rutgers University Press, 2007.
  • Jews, God, and Videotape: Religion and Media in America. Jeffrey Shandler. New York University Press, 2009.
  • From Yahweh to Yahoo!: The Religious Roots of the Secular Press. Doug Underwood. University of Illinois Press, 2008.

Case studies

  • Islam: Reporting in Context and With Complexity. The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. Vol. 61 No. 2. Summer 2007
  • “Popular religion in the media age: An Israeli case study” by Michele Rosenthal. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the NCA 93rd Annual Convention, TBA, Chicago, IL, Nov 14, 2007.
  • Belief in media. Peter G. Horsfield, Mary E. Hess and Adán M. Medrano. Chapter, “The U.S. Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Scandal: A Media/Religion Case Study” by Frances Forde Plude. Ashgate Publishing, 2004.
  • MacGregor, Phil. “Blame and the messengers: journalists as a puritan prism for cultural policies in Britian.” International Journal of Cultural Policy. Vol. 17, No. 2 (March 2011): 244-61.

Codes of ethics

Journals

More links

Media websites and blogs

Professional associations and faith groups

Recent research

  • Cane, Robert. “Cartoon Crisis: Islam and Danish Liberalism.” Society. 44, no. 1 (2006): 80-8.
  • Ferre, John P. “‘A Dozen Best’: Top Books on the History of Media and Religion.” American Journalism. 23, no. 4 (2006): 135-43.
  • Post, Robert. “Religion and Freedom of Speech: Portraits of Muhammad.” Constellations: An International Journal of Critical & Democratic Theory. 14, no. 1 (2007): 72-90.
  • Steele, Janet. “Justice and journalism: Islam and journalistic values in Indonesia and Malaysia.” Journalism. Vol. 12, No. 5 (July 2011): 533-49.
  • Vultee, Fred. “Fatwa on the Bunny.” Journal of Communication Inquiry. 30, no. 4 (2006): 319-36.
  • Yao, Qingjiang, Daniel A. Stout and Zhaoxi Liu. “China’s Official Media Portrayal of Religion (1996–2005): Policy Change in a Desecularizing Society.” Journal of Media and Religion. Vol. 10, No. 1 (2011): 39-50.

Surveys and polls

Syllabi

Videos

  • “What is an Evangelical? A Short Course for Media Professionals” (2005)
  • “Religion and the Media” (2005)

 

Human development

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About the discipline

When studying human families, it is important to look at whether and to what degree religion plays a role in human development and family relationships. Religion and religious practice can be factors that bind a family together, or enforce negative practices of child-rearing that result in isolation as children or adults. When learning about human development and families, practitioners can in many cases factor in religion as an influence for relationships, self-definition and behavior.

Over centuries, the structure and expectations of human families has changed – markedly in the modern era, with the growing acceptance of divorce, single-parent families and non-traditional families. Historically, religious beliefs have influenced people’s decisions to marry, stay together and have a family, as well as the size of the family (Catholics and Mormons, for example, frequently have large families for religious reasons), styles of child-rearing and morals taught to children.

Research: There is a growing interest in studying religion’s role in families. According to a 2003 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study, adolescents in families actively involved in religious activities tend to enjoy stronger family relationships than youths whose families have less or no religious involvement. It might be that religion improves family relationships, or that youth and families already committed to high-quality family relationships choose to become more religiously involved as one strategy to pursue them. Other studies have looked at the specific types of religious behavior and frequency of occurrence in analyzing family relationships.

MU’s Center on Religion & the Professions is applying for a National Institutes of Health grant to study spirituality and health risk behaviors in adolescents, through its Spirituality and Health research project.

According to a recent poll on religion and the family conducted for Religion & Ethics Newsweekly, nearly three-quarters Americans agree that “God’s plan for marriage is one man, one woman, for life.” A strong majority (71 percent) idealize the traditional family even as divorce, cohabitation and nontraditional family situations are becoming more accepted across religious groups. Only 22 percent of Americans think divorce is a sin and almost half (49 percent) say that cohabitation is acceptable. According to the survey, the growing acceptance of divorce is also occurring among religious conservatives. Only 34 percent of evangelical Christians and 30 percent of traditional Catholics say that divorce is a sin.

Reaching out: Understanding the religious climate in which families operate can both help practitioners better serve those family and also lend insight to how to improve family lives for others. For example, understanding that early adolescents living in religiously involved families tend to enjoy better family lives may help in determining ways to boost the quality of life of U.S. adolescents. An earlier report from that project showed that religious teens were less likely to smoke, drink and use drugs and more likely to start later and use less if they did. They went to bars less often, received fewer traffic tickets, wore seat belts more, took fewer risks and fought less frequently. Shoplifting, other thefts, trespassing and arson also were rarer. Another part of the study reported that high school seniors who went to religious services at least once a week or who professed deeply held spiritual views enjoyed significantly higher self-esteem and were more positive about life than others.

Practitioners can also understand that fewer families today fit the traditional family pattern, which is a trend religious groups are addressing as well. Many churches, for example, have adapted their programs to reach out to untraditional families and retain members. Some have changed their approach to emphasize individual freedom and personal spirituality, and to actively welcome single adults and those from nontraditional families. Practitioners could also be aware of other religiously influenced trends, including the rise in students home schooled by their parents (often influenced by a desire to spend “quality” time with children, as well as select study materials and teach particular moral beliefs and points of view). Another trend is church day-care centers that are open to children not affiliated with the church. Some have religious curriculums and some do not – but many provide safe and structured child care for single mothers and working parents, providing both a service to the community and an outreach for the church.

Issues today: In addition to paying attention to the role of religion in family life and what can be learned about family relationships as a result, practitioners can understand how modern trends in family life are being addressed from a religious perspective. As the United States becomes more culturally and ethnically diverse, practitioners will also encounter different religious beliefs and family structures. They can learn to address and understand these families on their own terms, understanding the particular roles of parents, men, women, children, seniority and spiritual beliefs. Policies can recognize differences, champion diversity and promote cultural awareness, perhaps having practitioners work with families in their own language or with a practitioner of the same ethnicity. They can also learn from these families their standards of family structure and behavior, to inform their understanding of all families. Families of all types and backgrounds continue to shape today’s culture.

Articles

Books

  • Society Without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment. Phil Zuckerman. New York University Press, 2008.
  • The handbook of spiritual development in childhood and adolescence. Eugene C. Roehlkepartain, Pamela Ebstyne King and Linda Wagener. Sage, 2005.
  • Sacred Matters: Religion and Spirituality by Wesley R. Burr, Loren D. Marks and Randal D. Day. Routledge Academic, 2011.
  • The Spiritual Life of Children. Robert Coles. Mariner Books, 1991.
  • Psychology, Religion, and Spirituality, Chapter “Fundamentals of Human Development, Religion, and Spirituality” by James M. Nelson. Springer New York, 2009.
  • Religion and Human Development: An Asian Perspective. Imtiyaz Yusef (ed.) Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, 2008.
  • Handbook of Child Psychology: Theoretical models of human development.William Damon and Richard M. Lerner. John Wiley and Sons, 2006.
  • Human Development and Faith: Life-Cycle Stages of Body, Mind, and Soul. Felicity B. Kelcourse (ed.). Christian Board of Publication, 2004.
  • The Psychologies in Religion: Working with the Religious Client. E. Thomas Dowd and Stevan Nielsen. Springer Publishing Company, 2006.
  • Race, Religion and Law in Colonial India: Trials of an Interracial Family (Cambridge Studies in Indian History and Society) by Chandra Mallampalli. Cambridge University Press, 2011.
  • The cultural nature of human development. Barbara Rogoff. Oxford University Press, 2003.

Case studies

  • “A multiple case study on parents’ perspective about the influence of the Islamic culture on Muslim children’s daily lives” by Dina Shalabi and Maurice C. Taylor. The Journal of Multiculturalism in Education, 7 (2011): 1-30.
  • An Introduction to the Human Development and Capability Approach: Freedom and Agency. Severine Deneulin and Lila Shahani (eds.). United Nations Development Programme, EarthScan, 2009.
  • Religion in the emergence of civilization: Çatalhöyük as a case study by Ian Hodder. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
  • “Resilience and development: Contributions from the study of children who overcome adversity by Ann S. Mastern, Karin M. Best and Norman Garmezy. Development and Psychopathology. Cambridge University Press (online), 2 : 425-444, Oct. 31, 2008.

Codes of ethics

Journals

More links

Professional associations and faith groups

Recent research

  • Adamczyk, Amy and Jacob Felson. “Friends’ Religiosity and First Sex.” Social Science Research. 35, no. 4 (2006): 924-47.
  • Beck, Jan and Wolfgang Forstmeier. “Superstition and Belief as Inevitable By-products of an Adaptive Learning Strategy.” Human Nature. 18, no. 1 (2007): 35-46.
  • Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin. “Parenting, Not Religion, Makes Us Into Moral Agents.” Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 29, no. 5 (2006): 464-5.
  • Bishop, Alex. “Age and Gender Differences in Adaptation and Subjective Well-Being of Older Adults Residing in Monastic Religious Communities.” Pastoral Psychology. 55, no. 2 (2006): 131-43.
  • Bloom, Paul. “Religion is Natural.” Developmental Science. 10, no. 1 (2007): 147-51.
  • Bulanda, Jennifer Roebuck. “Doing Family, Doing Gender, Doing Religion: Structured Ambivalence and the Religion-Family Connection.” Journal of Family Theory & Review. Vol. 3, No. 3 (Sept. 2011): 179-97.
  • Edgell, Penny and Danielle Docka. “Beyond the Nuclear Family? Familism and Gender Ideology in Diverse Religious Communities.” Sociological Forum. 22, no. 1 (2007): 26-51.
  • Erricker, Clive. “Children’s Spirituality and Postmodern Faith.” International Journal of Children’s Spirituality. 12, no. 1 (2007): 51-60.
  • Lambert, Nathaniel M. “How Religiosity Helps Couples Prevent, Resolve, and Overcome Marital Conflict.” Family Relations. 55, no. 4 (2006): 439-49.
  • Legaree, Terri-Ann, Jean Turner and Susan Lollis. “Forgiveness and Therapy: A Critical Review of Conceptualizations, Practices, and Values Found in the Literature.” Journal of Marital & Family Therapy. 33, no. 2 (2007): 192-213.
  • Mahoney, Annette. “Religion in Families 1999-2009: A Relational Spirituality Framework.” Journal of Marriage and Family. Vol. 72, No. 4 (Aug. 2010): 805-27.
  • Pickering, Lloyd E and Alexander T. Vazsonyi. “Does Family Process Mediate the Effect of Religiosity on Adolescent Deviance? Revisiting the Notion of Spuriousness.” Criminal Justice and Behavior. Vol. 37, No. 1 (Jan. 2010): 97-118.
  • Sadler, Euan and Simon Biggs. “Exploring the Links Between Spirituality and ‘Successful Ageing.’” Journal of Social Work Practice. 20, no. 3 (2006): 267-80.
  • Schouten, Barbara C., et. al. “Parent–adolescent communication about sexuality: The role of adolescents’ beliefs, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control.” Patient Education & Counseling. 66, no. 1 (2007): 75-83.
  • Sinha, Jill W., Ram A. Cnaan and Richard J. Gelles. “Adolescent Risk Behaviors and Religion: Findings From a National Study.” Journal of Adolescence. 30, no. 2 (2007): 231-249.

Syllabi

History and social sciences

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About the discipline

Religion has shaped much in the way of world history on every continent, from the beginning of recorded time.  It has led and suppressed the search for information; been the impetus for and result of conquest; provided guidance for civic laws and engagement; and defined national identities. Perhaps the greatest benefit the Center on Religion & the Professions can provide is lending historical background to current problems concerning religion and public life.

Education about history and religion is important in helping people to become more aware of religious faiths in their workplace and in the public arena. Understanding why we sometimes have biases toward or against certain faiths or cultures is often steeped in historical patterns, and identifying those for the purpose of education is useful.

Religion and study of history: A hot topic in religious scholarship is the influence of non-religious researchers. Much has been made of the Jesus Seminar, for example, which brought together scholars for the purpose of determining what actually happened in the life of Jesus. Religious scholars, who operate upon religious presuppositions, tend to object to purely naturalistic inquiry of a topic that deals with the supernatural. Bridging the gap in scholarship, as well as in public life, is one possible avenue of research.

Social studies: Those aiming to teach social studies in primary and secondary education can help inform new generations of youth about an increasingly complex world – made more complex by growing diversity in religion, culture, ethnicity and national identity brought close to home by global communication and national events. Incorporating pertinent religious background and impact on history, geography, economics, civics, psychology, anthropology and world religions (see related links) provides students with a better understanding of past and current events and the complex world in which we live.

Interdisciplinary work: The Center offers chances to link social science inquiry with those in other departments. Historical research or social science research can be combined with other disciplines to produce innovative research into how religion interacts with public life. Much of religious tradition has historical background that it brings to any public interaction, and identifying those traits is important.

The Center’s affiliation with the School of Journalism gives the social science researcher unique opportunities for study. Much of the work being done in journalism research is in the area of social science, utilizing MU’s PRIME lab to conduct research into how people cognitively and emotionally process media. The Center can help partner researchers to do unique studies to answer social science questions. The Center’s partnership with the School of Journalism can also help link historical researchers to ways in which journalists can be better trained in history and religion, better perform their jobs, and increase public understanding of complex issues.

Current issues: Much of what occurs in the world today needs historical background for better understanding. Religious and cultural conflicts in the Middle East and other parts of the world are based on historical factors, which often have religious ties. Researchers can study the impact of historical knowledge on people’s perceptions of current events, or more deeply research past events to provide broader insight in the present day. Researchers could track the influence of religion on historical development over time and map an arc for present religious influence on the future. They may be interested in interdisciplinary study in specific fields that are informed by history and religion.

Articles

Books

  • Women, Gender, and Radical Religion in Early Modern Europe. Sylvia Monica Brown (ed.). BRILL, 2007.
  • Reason and Religion in the English Revolution: The Challenge of Socinianism. Sarah Mortimer. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
  • Jesuits and the Politics of Religious Pluralism in Eighteenth-Century Transylvania. Paul Shore. Ashgate Publishing, 2007.
  • Society Without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment. Phil Zuckerman. New York University Press, 2008.
  • The Natural History of Religion. David Hume. NuVision Publications, LLC, 2007.
  • Jewish History, Jewish Religion: The Weight of Three Thousand Years. Israel Shahak. Pluto Press, 1997.
  • Islam: Religion, History, and Civilization. Seyyed Hossein Nasr. HarperOne, 2002.
  • History of the World’s Religions. David S. Noss. Prentice Hall, 2007.
  • Religion in American History. Amanda Porterfield and John Corrigan (eds.). Wiley-Blackwell, 2009.
  • Religion in American Life: A Short History. Jon Butler. Oxford University Press, U.S.A, 2007.
  • American Religions: A Documentary History. R. Marie Griffith. Oxford University Press, U.S.A., 2007.
  • The Reformation: Towards a New History by Lee Palmer Wandel. Cambridge University Press, 2011.
  • A People’s History of Christianity: The Other Side of the Story. Diana Butler Bass, HarperOne , 2009.
  • Night of the Confessor: Christian Faith in an Age of Uncertainty by Tomas Halik. Image, 2012.
  • Religion in American Politics: A Short History. Frank Lambert. Princeton University Press, 2008.
  • Homies and Hermanos: God and Gangs in Central America by Robert Brenneman. Oxford University Press, USA, 2011.
  • Religion and the Human Prospect. Alexander Saxton. Monthly Review Press, 2006.
  • The Christian World: A Global History. Martin Marty. Modern Library, 2008.
  • Religion in History: Conflict, Conversion and Co-existence. John Wolffe (ed.). Manchester University Press, 2004.
  • Red State Religion: Faith and Politics in America’s Heartland by Robert Wuthnow. Princeton University Press, 2011.

Case studies

  • Aown, Najwa M. “A place for informal learning in teaching about religion: The story of an experienced non-Muslim teacher and her learning about Islam.”Teaching and Teacher Education. Vol. 27, No. 8 (Nov. 2011): 1255-64.
  • Regulating religion: Case Studies from Around the Globe. James T. Richardson. Springer, 2004.
  • “Religion as Hatred: Antisemitism as a Case Study” by John T. Pawlikowski. Paper presented at the Conference to Establish the Field of Hate Studies, Spokane, WA, March 19, 2004.
  • “Religious fundamentalist movements: social movements in the World System? Case study of the Maitatsine Movement in Nigeria, 1980-85” by Katarzyna Skuratowicz. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Marriott Hotel, Loews Philadelphia Hotel, Philadelphia, PA, Aug 12, 2005.

Codes of ethics

Journals

More links

Professional associations and faith groups

Recent research

  • Babik, Milan. “Nazism as a Secular Religion.” History and Theory. 45, no. 3 (2006): 375-396.
  • Copland, Ian. “Christianity as an Arm of Empire: The Ambiguous Case of India Under the Company, c. 1813-1858.” Historical Journal. 49, no. 4 (2006): 1025-54.
  • Dhavan, Purnima, Kym S. Rice and Benjamin Filene. “Sikh Community: Over 100 Years in the Pacific Northwest.” Journal of American History. 93, no. 3 (2006): 819-21.
  • Hames, Harvey J. “The Limits of Conversion: Ritual Murder and the Virgin Mary in the Account of Adam of Bristol.” Journal of Medieval History. 33 no. 1 (2007): 43-59.
  • Jordon, Ryan. “The Dilemma of Quaker Pacifism in a Slaveholding Republic, 1833-1865.” Civil War History. 53, no. 1 (2007): 5-28.
  • Kamat, Sangeeta and Biju Mathew. “Religion, education and the politics of recognition: a critique and a counter‐proposal.” Comparative Education. Vol. 46, No. 3 (2010): 359-76.
  • Mack, Michael. “The Savage Science: Sigmund Freud, Psychoanalysis, and the History of Religion.” Journal of Religious History. 30, no. 3 (2006): 331-53.
  • Sparks, Randy J. “The Southern Way of Death: The Meaning of Death in Antebellum White Evangelical Culture.” Southern Quarterly. 44, no. 1 (2006): 32-50.
  • Stenhouse, John. “Nature and the Godly Empire: Science and Evangelical Mission in the Pacific, 1795-1850.” International History Review. 29 no. 1 (2007): 143-5.

Syllabi

Health care and medicine

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About the discipline

While the intention of religion and health is to nurture the individual, religion and health can sometimes become a confrontation of values.  The medical profession’s set of values and operational procedures can conflict with corresponding values found in people of faith. This disconnect can go both ways and apply to both the patient and practitioner, which can impact quality of care.

Differing beliefs: Patients may come from worldviews that hold different beliefs about what causes illness and acceptable ways to treat it. If there is a difference in values or ethics concerning the correct way to treat a specific illness, should the values of the patient or the doctor prevail? Some religions, such as Islam, have rules of conduct about nudity/modesty, touching of a person’s body, and being alone with a member of the opposite sex, even if it is a medical practitioner.

Various religions have views about the sacredness of the body and the will of God that may prevent believers from consenting to medical intervention. Christian Science, for example, holds that the ills of the flesh can be healed through prayer and faith in God. Traditionally, believers do not rely on conventional medicine, though there is no formal compulsion to eschew medical means. Some animists believe that illness is caused by evil spirits or brought on by offending deceased ancestors, rather than physical conditions. Medical practitioners can be sensitive to these beliefs when performing examinations or recommending a course of care.

Ethical choices: Practitioners also face ethical choices that might conflict with professional values. They face questions of whether they should be required to provide a type of care they find morally inconsistent with their values – such as a pharmacist whose religious values might stand in the way of filling a prescription for an emergency contraceptive or for birth-control for an unmarried woman, or a Catholic surgeon who may not believe in performing surgeries to prevent pregnancy. There is ongoing debate over “conscience clause” legislation that seeks to protect pharmacists from filling prescriptions for drugs they find morally objectionable while still protecting a patient’s right to have prescriptions filled. Some pharmacists who have lost their jobs or been disciplined are filing lawsuits.

The debate in stem-cell research extends to both the ethics of government funding and concerns over value of life. Some say that the possible ability to cure many serious diseases is worth compromising the potential life of an embryo; others say potential life is sacred and should not be compromised for any reason. Religious believers come on both sides of the debate (see Biology and Stem Cell Research). With advances in this technology there will also be debates as to whether patients will choose or have the right to choose to be treated with these cures.

These are questions that practitioners and patients wrestle with in hospitals and clinics nationwide. The Center on Religion & the Professions is devoted to helping bridge those gaps through creating curriculum and education. For example, the Center is developing a series of short courses for medical, nursing and health professionals to help them understand how clients’ religious beliefs and practices may come in conflict with traditional medical practices and ways to approach these situations.

National issues: Some medical institutions, such as Catholic hospitals, operate under the purview of privately funded religious organizations. There is some debate as to whether these institutions have the right to refuse to treat illnesses in certain ways or refuse to write or fill prescriptions for religiously objectionable drugs. The debate centers on whether the religious freedom to which such institutions are entitled trumps a patient’s right to complete care, also extending to related liability issues.

Debates over stem-cell research, therapeutic cloning, abortion, contraceptives and other medical treatments make up a large and influential part of political and public discussion. Other issues involve differences in how medical professionals and religious communities choose to confront the crisis of AIDS. For example, some people’s religious beliefs might dictate not providing some types of care to AIDS sufferers due to beliefs about how patients’ lifestyles may have affected how they were infected with the disease. Others, guided by religious beliefs, believe extending help to those with AIDS is an obligation.

Working professionals in the medical care industry confront differing sets of values and must learn to navigate these in their professional life. In addition, changes to national policy will also have an effect on the professional’s work. Understanding that culture is constantly evolving will allow the professional to adapt to a field often defined by ethical issues.

Workplace issues: Chaplains in hospital and professional settings are a growing phenomenon. They must be versed in a variety of religions because they often are speaking with people of different faith backgrounds. It is helpful for chaplains to have knowledge of the languages and cultures most likely to be encountered in their communities. Understanding the various traditions’ beliefs about the body, health and the afterlife also assists in care.

Recent studies show that doctors in the United States are more likely to be Muslim, Buddhist or Jewish than the rest of the population. Nursing shortages in the U.S. have also led to employing more nurses from overseas, while many medical students come to American medical schools from abroad and obtain positions in the U.S. This diversity offers both potential for greater understanding and improved care and possible misunderstandings or cultural clashes in a medical setting.

Health campaigns: Some ethnic groups are more susceptible to certain medical conditions. For example, Latinos are vulnerable to Type 2 diabetes, African-Americans to sickle-cell anemia, and eastern European (Ashkenazi) Jews to Tay-Sachs disease. Although these are ethnic factors, religion is often a bonding force in these communities. Health education campaigns targeting religious groups can be a way to effectively distribute messages about these issues.

The Center is affiliated with the MU School of Journalism, which is researching ways to target ethnic groups with media messages about health campaigns. One project focuses on how to use media to better inform African-American women about breast cancer examinations. Religious institutions can act as clearinghouses for information and be distributors of health campaign material. The Center’s focus on education in religious communities makes it a good conduit for such a partnership.

Faith and healing: Research has sought to find relationships between religion and healing. Research shows prayer’s value in helping people recover from illness is ambiguous, with some studies showing better recovery in those who prayed or were prayed for, whether or not they were aware of it; and others showing no relation between prayer and healing.

The practice of “faith healing,” a spiritual means of treating illness, prompts healing through the power of the Holy Spirit through laying on of hands, or relies on intercessory prayer of a saint or person with the gift of healing. Though scientific studies have not indicated success resulting from faith healing, many people do resort to faith healing, particularly in cases of incurable disease. Some people believe it should be the primary or sole remedy, which poses particular ethical concerns for medical professionals when parents decline or refuse medical care for their children, based on their religious rights to choose to rely on alternative healing.

Practitioners could also be aware of practices such as Ayruvedic medicine, a Hindu approach to healthy living that considers physical, mental, social and spiritual harmony. While considered an “alternative” form of treatment in the U.S., it is embraced in several other countries, and is growing in popularity and acceptance in the U.S.

The Center’s research: According to the Center’s research, people of faith don’t always have a better medical outcome, but seem to feel better about the outcome and have better sense of well-being than non-spiritual patients, even if ill or terminal. The Center’s Spirituality and Health project’s team of diverse faculty and professionals has expertise in religious studies, cultural anthropology, social work, medical sociology, neuropsychology, health psychology, rehabilitation medicine and oncology. Its current research project is investigating the relationships that exist among spirituality, religion, physical health and mental health in individuals with chronic illnesses and disabilities such as traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, stroke, cancer, ventilator-dependent pulmonary disorders and other physical conditions.

Follow-up studies will look at the efficacy of mindfulness-based stress reduction on persons with chronic disabilities; transcendence and right hemisphere functioning; and spirituality as a personality construct. The Center is pursuing funding to study spirituality and health-risk behaviors in adolescents and the relationship between neuroscience and religion.

Issues today: Having staff that are religiously and culturally literate helps bridge gaps in patient care. Medical staff that speak languages of patients so information can be communicated without the need of a translator – often a young relative, in recent immigrant families – is also helpful. Medical practices can be conscious of having staff that reflect the cultural makeup of the community they serve and engage in teaching about religious practices and beliefs.

Researchers can study conscience challenges in the workplace, such as how often conscience plays a role in providing or choosing not to provide a particular medication, surgery or treatment. Do people of the same faith practice these principles differently in a medical context? What roles do laws play in affecting or changing attitudes about religious and medical practice? Researchers could study whether chaplains aid in healing or are helpful in a hospice setting. They could also study the impacts of diversity among medical practitioners and patients, or work with the Center on further research into religion/spirituality, health, healing and well-being.

Articles

Books

  • Handbook of Religion and Health: Second Edition. Harold G. Koenig, Michael E. McCullough and David B. Larson. Oxford University Press, USA, 2012.
  • Spiritual Healing: Scientific and Religious Perspectives edited by Fraser Watts (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2011).
  • Faith and Health: Religion, Science and Public Policy by Paul D. Simmons. Mercer University Press, 2009.
  • Transcultural Concepts in Nursing Care by Margaret M. Andrews and Joyceen S. Boyle (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Lippincott Williams & Wilkin, 2003).
  • The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman (New York, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1997).
  • Making Healthcare Whole: Integrating Spirituality into Patient Care by Christina Puchalski and Betty Ferrell. Templeton Press, 2010.
  • Worlds Apart: A Facilitator’s Guide, A Four-Part Series on Cross-Cultural Healthcare (accompanies film “Worlds Apart”) by Alexander Green, MD, Joseph Betancourt, MD, MPH, and J. Emilio Carrillo, MD, MPH (California: Stanford University Center for Biomedical Ethics, 2005).
  • Achieving Cultural Competency: A Case-based Approach to Training Health Professionals. Wiley-Blackwell. 2009.
  • Handbook of Religion and Health. Harold G. Koenig, Michael E. McCullough and David B. Larson. Oxford University Press, USA, 2001.
  • Medicine, Religion, and Health: Where Science and Spirituality Meet. Harold G. Koenig Templeton Press, 2008.
  • Prayers and Rituals at a Time of Illness and Dying: The Practices of Five World Religions. Patricia Fosarelli. Templeton Press, 2008.
  • Spirituality in Patient Care: Why, How, When, and What. Harold G Koenig. Templeton Press, 2007.
  • What Do I Say?: Talking with Patients about Spirituality (Book & DVD). Elizabeth Johnston-Taylor. Templeton Press, 2007.
  • Spiritual Assessment: Handbook for Helping Professionals. North American Association of Christians in Social Work, 2005.
  • Caring Well: Religion, Narrative, and Health Care Ethics. David H. Smith. Westminster John Knox Press, 2000.
  • Health Care Ethics: A Catholic Theological Analysis. Benedict M. Ashley, Jean De Blois and Kevin D. O’Rourke. Georgetown University Press, 2007.
  • After We Die: The Life and Times of the Human Cadaver. Norman L. Cantor. Georgetown University Press, 2010.
  • Practical Decision Making in Health Care (Third Edition). Raymond J. Devettere. Georgetown University Press, 2010.
  • Methods in Medical Ethics (Second Edition). Jeremy Sugarcane, MD, and Daniel P. Sulmasy, OFM, MD, Editors.  Georgetown University Press, 2010.
  • Medical Governance: Values, Expertise, and Interests in Organ Transplantation. David L. Weimer. Georgetown University Press, 2010.

Case studies

Codes of ethics

Journals

More links

Professional associations and faith groups

Recent research

  • Scheitle, Christopher P. and Amy Adamczyk. “High-cost Religion, Religious Switching, and Health.” Journal of Health and Social Behavior. 51, no. 3 (2010): 325-342.
  • Inhorn, M.C. and G.I. Serour. “Islam, medicine, and Arab-Muslim refugee health in America after 9/11.” Lancet. Vol. 378, No. 9794 (Sept. 3 2011): 935-43.
  • F.D. Yates, Jr. “Ethics for the pediatrician: religion and spirituality in pediatrics.”Pediatrics in Review. Vol. 32, No. 9 (Sept 2011): 91-4.

Syllabi

Videos

  • “World’s Apart: A Series on Cross-Cultural Healthcare,” 2005
  • “Hold Your Breath,” Mohammad Kochi, a devout Muslim immigrant, faces possible death from stomach cancer; his story a powerful argument for the necessity of cultural competence and diversity training, 2005
  • “The Culture of Emotions,” designed to introduce cultural competence and diversity skills to mental/behavioral health professionals and students who deal with multi-cultural client populations, 2002
  • “Stanley,” this case study raises complex issues about medical prognosis and religious belief in end-of-life decision-making, 2002
  • “That Spirit, That Thing Inside,” Hispanic/Latino and American Indian nurses describe how they came to their careers, and have used their nursing expertise to serve their families, their tribes, and their communities, 2002
  • “Community Voices,” a multi-cultural array of patients, clinicians and other healthcare workers explore the many ways that differences in culture, race and ethnicity affect health and the delivery of healthcare services, 2001
  • “Bodies and Souls,” Sister Manette, a nurse practitioner, and a white Catholic nun, runs the only health clinic in Jonestown, a largely African-American town in the heart of the Mississippi delta, where many people haven’t seen a doctor more than once or twice in their lives, 2005

German and Russian languages

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About the disciplines

The histories of Germany and Russia have long been intertwined with religion. Both have borne witness to religious schisms, such as the Protestant Reformation, started in Germany in 1517, by Martin Luther and his “Ninety Five Theses” criticizing Catholic practice; and the “Great Schism,” or Catholic-Eastern Orthodox split, of 1054, over disputes of papal authority.

The Schism divided the Christian Church into the Roman Catholic Church in the West, headed by the Pope of Rome, and the Eastern Orthodox Church, led by four eastern patriarchs.

The Russian Orthodox Church, which traces its apostolic succession through the Patriarch of Constantinople, became independent from Constantinople in 1448. In contemporary times, the fall of the Berlin Wall dividing East and West Germany, Germany’s reunification, and the collapse of the Soviet Union have impacted religion in these countries, as well as altered their roles in world affairs. Now that travel is more open in these countries, there are increased opportunities for business, tourism and social service that can utilize German and Russian languages.

German and Lutherans: The German language as we know it today exists because of the Protestant Reformation led by Martin Luther. Luther, a German monk, began the Reformation when he published his criticisms of the Catholic Church. One of his beliefs was that Christians should be able to have direct access to the Bible, without relying on the intercession or interpretation of a priest. In the 1520s, condemned by the Holy Roman emperor and in hiding, Luther began translating the scriptures into German. In 11 weeks, he produced the first draft of the German New Testament. He intended the Bible to be read by the common man, but the language that existed at the time in the German states – known as Middle German – was made up of a variety of languages, such as High German in the south and Low German in the north, each with an array of dialects based on location and class. Most books were written in Latin; the German that was written was a form very unlike what was spoken.

Luther chose to translate everyday German into a written form that would be understandable to German speakers from any dialect. He incorporated court language used in Saxony with idioms of everyday speech. The Testament, published in 1522, sold very well, even at a time when most people could not read. The translation created a new written German, now known as modern German, which is the standard written and spoken form of German today. It also contributed to increasing levels of literacy in the German states.

Original languages: Fluency in German and Russian allows people to read the works of major philosophers, authors and poets in their original languages. Many of these thinkers have had evocative positions on religions and their beliefs. Examples include:

Karl Marx: German social philosopher Karl Marx (1818-83) was the son of a Jewish lawyer who converted to Protestantism. He and Friedrich Engels wrote “The Communist Manifesto (1848), which appealed to science and reason as the basis for reform, rather than the rights of man. His best-known work, “Das Kapital,” offered a critical analysis of capitalism. Marx’s ideas had a major influence on workers’ movements, with further impetus added by the victory of the Marxist Bolsheviks in the Russian October Revolution. Marxian ideas have impacted many parts of the world. Marx famously wrote in 1843: “Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sign of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.”

Friedrich Nietzsche: German-born philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) produced critiques of religion, morality, philosophy and contemporary society based on the life-affirming and life-denying qualities of various attitudes and beliefs. The son of a Lutheran pastor, Nietzsche studied theology but lost his faith in the mid-1860s. His best-known book, “Thus Spoke Zarathustra, A Book for All and None” (1883 – 1885), a philosophical work of fiction, imitated the style of the New Testament and the Platonic dialogues. Nietzsche offered interpretation of Western literary and philosophical traditions through the character of Zarathustra (a reference to the historic figure behind Zoroastrianism, an ancient religion born in what is now Iran).

One of Nietzsche’s most contentious works, “The Antichrist, Curse on Christianity” (1888), attacked the morals of Christianity and expressed disgust over how Christianity’s “slave-morality” corrupted values in ancient Rome. Though he gave some respect to Jesus and some Christian elements, Nietzsche proposed an “Anti-Christian” morality that included reframing the perspective of all values. In “The Gay Science,” he ranked one’s life as the sole consideration when evaluating how one should act (contrasting with the Christian view of an afterlife which emphasizes later reward). The book is best known for Nietzsche’s statement: “God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him.”

Wolfgang von Goethe: Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), a German poet, novelist, dramatist, humanist, scientist, theorist and painter, disliked the Christian Church, categorizing it as being full of “mistakes and violence.” He described himself as a “decided non-Christian,” studied the Koran and did not deny being a Muslim. His best-known work, “Faust,” tells the story of Faust, a scholar who yearns to comprehend not just all knowledge, but all experience. He makes a pact with a spirit named Mephistopheles that provides for the loss of Faust’s soul if Mephistopheles provides him with an experience he enjoys. Temptations include a young girl, Margaret, whom Faust seduces and abandons, indirectly causing her death and that of their child. Faust also has a love affair with Helen of Troy and fathers a son with her. Later, he reclaims lands from the sea that he intends to turn into a paradise on earth, his legacy to humankind. Happy with this vision, Faust is caught in a moment of satisfaction that Mephistopheles claims as his victory. At the last moment, however, God’s angels save Faust and take his soul to heaven where he is reunited with Margaret and appointed as teacher of the blessed.

“Faust” became the “Ur-myth” (a myth so ancient and all-encompassing that it becomes an irreducible part of human experience) of many figures in the 19th century. The facet of its plot of selling one’s soul to the devil for power over the physical world took on increased literary importance; and became a view of the victory of technology and industrialism at human expense.

Immanuel Kant: German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) grew up in a Pietist household, a Lutheran reform movement that stressed intense religious devotion, a literal reading of the Bible and personal humility. Kant asserted that reason and philosophy are “in reality directed to those three problems only (God, Soul, Freedom),” meaning that no one can really know if there is a God and an afterlife. But no one can really know that there is not a God and an afterlife either. Kant believed that for the sake of society and morality, people can be justified in believing in them, even though they can never know for sure whether they are real.

He believed that happiness is tied to morality, and for this reason, people should choose to believe in God, because the idea of God can’t be separated from happiness-morality as the “ideal of the supreme good.” Kant’s efforts to root religion in morality had a significant impact on Protestant theology in Europe, especially what is called “liberal theology” or “liberal Protestantism,” which stressed the moral content of Christianity, particularly for social reform. Some Catholic thinkers were interested in his philosophy, but an Italian translation of his “Critique of Pure Reason,” was placed on the Roman Catholic Church’s Index of Prohibited Books in 1827.

Alexis Khomiakov: Russian religious poet and theologian Alexis Khomiakov (1804-1860) wrote that “All Protestants are crypto-papists,” meaning that all Western Christians and Western culture itself are intrinsically Catholic, based on the many centuries that Catholicism has been ingrained in Western culture. Khomiakov, who was Russian Orthodox, claimed the West failed to solve human spiritual problems because it stressed competition at the expense of cooperation: “Rome kept unity at the expense of freedom, while Protestants had freedom but lost unity.” He considered both capitalism and socialism to be offspring of Western decadence, and believed that secular and selfish man, denying a divine creator, could not establish a satisfactory social and political order. Khomiakov’s works profoundly influenced the Russian Orthodox Church and Russian lay philosophers, such as Fyodor Dostoyevsky.

Fyodor Dostoevsky: Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky’s (1821-1881) novels explored religious and philosophical themes such as the nature of God and purpose of evil. They also explored human psychology and the political, social and spiritual states of the Russia of his time. Best known for his novels, “The Brothers Karamazov” and “Crime and Punishment,” Dostoevsky’s fiction included themes of existentialism, spiritual torment and religious awakening. Many of his characters arrive at Christianity through a conversion experience, thought to be similar to that Dostoevsky experienced while in prison, which deepened his Russian Orthodox faith.

Leo Tolstoy: Russian novelist and philosopher Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), best known for his novels, “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina,” examined war, religion, feminism, and other topics through the characters of his novels. At midlife, Tolstoy determined that he could not go on living without knowing the meaning of life. After exploring a variety of areas, he found his answer in the teachings of Jesus, which in his interpretation have strong Buddhist overtones. He related his conclusions in “My Religion, The Kingdom of God is Within You” and “The Gospels in Brief.”

His teaching stripped Christianity of its tradition and mysticism, rejected personal immortality, rejected the authority of the Church and condemned the State, which he felt sanctioned violence and corruption. Some classified its rejection of compulsion as Christian anarchism. The Russian Orthodox Church excommunicated Tolstoy in 1901. Tolstoy’s teaching concentrated only on the moral teaching of the Gospels; his ideas on nonviolent resistance influenced 20th-century figures such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.

By the numbers: Both Germany and Russia are coping with relatively recent changes in access to religion and religious expression, as well as diversity in religion. The Russian Orthodox Church was long backed by the state in Tsarist Russia; under the Bolsheviks there was separation of church and state, which led to a decline in the church; the secular Communist government persecuted religion; and declaration of glasnost (“openness”) and the dissolution of the U.S.S.R. in 1991 meant religious freedom, revealing the continued adherence of a large section of the population to a variety of faiths. The Russian Orthodox Church is again becoming a major element of Russian culture.

Though figures are inconsistent, some statistics say 75 percent of Russians profess adherence to Russian Orthodox Christianity, and about 19 percent professing adherence to Islam, with smaller percentages of non-Orthodox Christians and Jews. Most Muslims in Russia are the indigenous people of lands seized over centuries by the expanding Russian empire. Germany is 34 percent Protestant, 34 percent Roman Catholic, 3.7 percent Muslim and 28.3 percent unaffiliated or other. East Germany experienced suppression of religion under Communism from 1949 to 1990. Work migration in the 1960s and waves of political refugees since the 1970s have brought many Muslims to Germany, making Islam the third most-practiced religion.

Issues today: Both countries have long histories of established Christianity in various forms as the dominant religion. A rise in profile of Muslims is causing them to address existing belief systems about the role of religion in public life. Recent events have led to concerns over radical Islam and affiliation with terrorism, as well as how to best integrate Muslims who seek freedom to practice their faith and live as responsible citizens. Researchers today could study how freedom or lack of freedom to worship impacts how people practice and which faith they practice. They can also study how the socio-economics or political climate of a country impact development of religions and how those religions are practiced. They can examine whether oppression of religion changes its practice or trajectory when freedom to worship is gained.

Researchers can also look at the changing religious demographics of Europe – now considered one of the least-religious continents and most secular societies as a whole – and how the influx of “new” religions affects the status quo. When studying freedom of religion, researchers can look at how freedom to worship is defined, and whether it is possible to have “too much” freedom of religion as well as too little. Knowledge of German and Russian means being able to consume media and other forms of discourse in the native languages of the nations studied to gain deeper understanding and nuance of political, cultural or religious climate and issues.

Articles

Books

  • Religion and the Rise of Nationalism: A Profile of an East-Central European City. Robert E. Alvis. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2005.
  • The Cultural Study of Yiddish in Early Modern Europe. Jerold C. Frakes. Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
  • Russian Refuge: Religion, Migration, and Settlement on the North American Pacific Rim. Susan Wiley Hardwick. University Of Chicago Press, 1993.
  • Russia and Islam: State, Society and Radicalism. Roland Dannreuther and Luke March (eds.). Routledge, 2010.
  • Religious Conflict and the Evolution of Language Policy in German and French Cameroon, 1885-1939. Kenneth J. Orosz. Peter Lang Publishing, 2008.
  • Believing in Russia – Religious Policy After Communism by Geraldine Fagan. Routledge, 2011.
  • Eastern Christianity and the Cold War 1945-1991. Lucian Leustean (ed.). Routledge, 2011.
  • The Transmission of a Liturgical Chant Tradition: Russian Orthodox Old Believers in Twentieth-Century Oregon. Karin Elise Thompson, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maryland, College Park, 2001.

Case studies

  • The Ill Girl – Case study from Jill Raitt’s Religion and the Professions course
  • Religion and the Rise of Nationalism: A Profile of an East-Central European City. Robert E. Alvis. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2005.
  • Regulating religion: Case Studies from Around the Globe. James T. Richardson. Springer, 2004.
  • The Transmission of a Liturgical Chant Tradition: Russian Orthodox Old Believers in Twentieth-Century Oregon. Karin Elise Thompson, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Maryland, College Park, 2001.

Codes of ethics

Journals

More links

Professional associations and faith groups

Recent research

  • Gilman, Sander L. “There Ain’t No There There: Reimagining Eastern European Jewish Culture in the 21st Century.” Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies. 25, no. 1 (2006): 1-4.
  • Mitrokhin, L.N. “Philosophy of Religion.” Russian Studies in Philosophy. 45, no. 3 (2006): 6-34.
  • Mitrokhin, L.N. “Philosophy of Religion: New Perspectives.” Russian Social Science Review. 48, no. 2 (2007): 51-78.
  • Ream, Todd C. “Pragmatism and the Unlikely Influence of German Idealism on the Academy in the United States.” Educational Philosophy & Theory. 39 no. 2 (2007): 150-67.
  • Tzoref-Ashkenazi, Chen. “The status of Hebrew in Friedrich Schlegel’s Über die Sprache und Weisheit der Indier.” German Life & Letters. 60 no. 2 (2007): 165-79.

Syllabi

 

Geography and geology

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About the discipline

Geography and geology are interesting when looked at through the lens of religion because of the ways these two fields have been used over time both to disprove religion and to make religion manifest.  They highlight the role of physical and environmental circumstances in developing religious beliefs and views of the order of the world.

Geology and theology: Today, geologists are accustomed to the idea of changes in the Earth over time, but the idea of the Earth with a long history of development and activity is relatively new. For centuries, those who observed geological formations often assumed such changes – in movement, shape or form – were part of a natural order ruled by a supreme being. Many believed the Earth was relatively young in age and considered the creation account in Genesis (in which God created the world in six days) to be a factual historic record. In the 1600s, scientists and Christian thinkers began actively trying to understand Earth’s narrative and to develop theories about it and how it meshed with biblical records of creation. Many tried to find ways that the two accounts would align by showing that God set natural forces in motion, that God intervened in otherwise “inexplicable” events, or that geological events supported the Genesis account. In the process they developed new theological and scientific ideas.

Multiple theories: Geologists argued over whether there were permanent and reliable laws of nature, whether God intervened with inexplicable events, whether science supported an active God, whether God was inactive but set principles in motion, whether there was divine purpose, and whether there could be both God and inexplicable events. Some set days of creation of the Earth at the Bible’s six days, other posed the idea the Earth could be at least 75,000 years old. Along the way, they developed geological theories of the earth’s history of formation and epochs; mechanically caused events accounting for present geological manifestations; and fieldwork and fossil analysis. Some came to new understanding of a physical world that continued to change based on geological principles. The new theories rocked a culture based on the inerrant record of a faith based on God’s active role in history. The creationist perspective on geological phenomenon ascribes development of geological features such as fossils, fossil fuels, sedimentary layers and undersea canyons to the great flood described in the Bible and its aftermath. Mounting evidence for different ages of sedimentary rocks and fossils eventually convinced most geologists that a single large-scale flood would not explain the evidence. The evolution of these theories showed how humans sought to understand their place in relation to the physical and spiritual worlds.

Common themes: Flood stories from around the world are also symbolic of the ways humans over time have blended their religious beliefs and experience of the physical world. Probably the most familiar is the biblical story in Genesis of God’s decision to bring a flood to wipe out mankind’s corruption and violence. God told Noah, deemed the only man on Earth worthy of saving, to build an ark and load his wife, sons, their wives, animals, food and seedlings so mankind and earth could begin again. According to the account, next came 40 days of rain from “the floodgates of the heavens,” and waters from the “springs of the great deep.” Floodwaters covered the earth for 40 to 150 days. The ark came to rest upon the mountains of Ararat, eventually the land dried, and Noah and his family set forth to start anew. Very similar flood myths are found in Sumerian, Babylonian, Akkadian, Greek, Germanic, Irish, Inca, Maya, American Indian, Chinese, Indian, Indonesian and Polynesian cultures. Many involve landing a vessel on a mountain. Greek versions have the survivors landing on Parnassus, Mouth Othrys, the peak of Phouka (Nemea) or Mount Gerania. The Indian version, told in early Hindu texts, tells of Manu, who was warned by a fish (believed to be the first incarnation of the god Vishnu) that a deluge would occur and destroy all life. Manu built a boat that, pulled by the fish, landed on a mountaintop, allowing him to re-establish life on earth.

Stories such as the flood myths show religious faith based on belief that a God or gods control physical activity on earth. Symbolism is also attached to the geographical object of a mountain.

Symbolism and meaning: In China, Buddhists and Confucians regard mountains as holy places, and they are a favored place for temples, shrines and monasteries. In Shinto, a prehistoric Japanese religious tradition still practiced today, the holiest structures are traditionally near natural features such as waterfalls, forests, mountains or caves. According to tradition, Muhammad, the founder of Islam, received his first revelation in a cave in the mountain of Hira. In another tradition, he was asked to give proof of his teaching and ordered Mount Safa to come to him. When the mountain did not come, Muhammad praised God’s mercy, for had he obeyed, the mountain would have fallen on Muhammad and his followers. Muhammad then announced he would go to the mountain to thank God for his mercy. In Christian scripture, mountains represent coming close to God. After becoming lost in the desert, the Israelites camped around Mount Sinai. Moses went up the mountain to meet with God and receive the commandments. The Gospel of Matthew describes Jesus coming out of the desert to go up a mountain and deliver the Sermon on the Mount. One of the holiest sites of the Greek Orthodox Church is Mount Athos, which is covered in monasteries. The idea of sacred space is important to many religions, including pilgrimages to holy sites and imbuing physical locations or features with spiritual meaning. These are a few examples of how shared landscapes and stores create symbolic language that connects people both to history and the world around them. Religious beliefs are used to both explain physical phenomenon and to derive meaning from physical phenomenon.

Geography and religion: Geography studies the Earth’s features and the distribution of life on the earth, including human life and the effects of human activity. Studying religion as a human activity adds a deeper understanding of the relationship among people and with the Earth. Researchers can look at how religion develops, its importance in shaping beliefs, behavior, culture and politics, and how and where it spreads – shaping the world in which we live. Many religious movements are influenced by the geography in which they developed, and they in turn influence geography by their movement. Religion can spread through forced or chosen migration, colonization, evangelism, missionaries, conversion, trade, and persecution. Whether a faith is evangelistic or not affects how far it spreads. Religious differences can also effect changes in political balance of power, national boundaries and national identity.

Geography and population: Mapping religious populations can give a visual idea of concentrations of faiths around the world and in the United States. Statistics about where faiths are concentrated and percentages living in a certain area can help researchers, social services, schools and the government, and religious organizations. A snapshot of world religious affiliations shows that about a third of people on the planet categorize themselves as Christian, concentrated in the Americas; Pacific-island region of Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, the Malay Archipelago; and Europe, with smaller concentrations in Africa and Asia. A majority of Muslims are found in Asia, with most of the rest in Africa. Buddhism and Hinduism are mainly concentrated in Asia, while Judaism is dispersed around the world. By continent, the Americas are vastly Christian; Africa is about evenly split between Christian and Muslim as dominant religions; and Asia is home to large groups of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Christians. In the United States, 40 percent of Jews and 30 percent of Muslims are concentrated in the mid-Atlantic states. The highest percentage of Jewish, Muslim, Eastern religions and new religious movements is found in New York. Forty percent of adults in New England self-identify as Catholic. Nearly two-thirds of Baptists are found in the south. The Midwest has above-average numbers of mainline Christians, compared to the rest of the country. These figures are important when weighing the needs and desires of specific populations.

Challenges today: Collecting reliable statistics about religion can be difficult. Some agencies are not allowed to ask for religious information and sources of information can be inconsistent due to varying survey questions, participation and data collection (see “Statistics” section). However, as religious conflict, human rights issues, poverty, religious pluralism, and international travel and commerce become increasingly global issues, the importance of understanding religious demographics becomes ever more critical. Researchers may look at where religions are strongest and why, how religious groups and new religions spread geographically, and what factors influence the movement. They can also study how religion defines a region, culturally and politically, and what effect religion has on the physical landscape.

Articles

Books

  • Mapping Worlds: International Perspectives on Social and Cultural Geographies. Edited by Rob Kitchin. Routledge; 1 edition, 2007.
  • Moral Geography: Maps, Missionaries, and the American Frontier. Amy DeRogatis. Columbia University Press, 2003.
  • Where the Buddha Walked. A Companion to the Buddhist Places of India. Rana P.B. Singh, 2003. Indica Books, Varanasi. 2nd ed. 2009.
  • Geography of Religion: Where God Lives, Where Pilgrims Walk. John Esposito, Susan Tyler Hitchcock, Desmond Tutu and Mpho Tutu. National Geographic, 2004.
  • Earth’s Catastrophic Past: Geology, Creation & the Flood by Andrew A. Snelling. Institute for Creation Research, 2009.
  • Mapping the Sacred. Jamie S. Scott and Paul Simpson-Housley. Rodopi, 2001.
  • The Bible, Genesis & Geology: Rightly-Dividing Geology and the Book of Genesisby Gaines R. Johnson, Marti Rieske and Fred DeRuvo. CreateSpace, 2010.
  • The Religion of Geology and Its Connected Sciences. Edward Hitchcock. Boston: Philips, Sampson, and Co., 1852.
  • Rival Jerusalems: The Geography of Victorian Religion. K. D. M. Snell and Paul S. Ell. Cambridge University Press, 2000.
  • Geology and Religion: A History of Harmony and Hostility. M. Kolbl-Ebert (ed.). Geological Society Of London, 2009.
  • The religion of geology and its connected sciences. Michigan Historical Reprint Series Scholarly Publishing Office, University of Michigan Library, 2006.
  • Geology and Revelation: or, the Ancient History of the Earth, Considered in the Light of Geological Facts and Revealed Religion. Gerald Molloy. London: Burns, Oates, and Co., 1873.
  • Religion and Place: Landscape, Politics and Piety. Eds. Peter Hopkins, Lily Kong and Elizabeth Olson. Springer, 2012.

Case studies

  • “A Case Study in the Geography of Religion and Political Voting in Postwar Detroit” by Judith Stepan-Norris and Caleb Southworth. Social Science History, 31(3):343-380, Duke University Press, 2007.
  • Sacred worlds: An introduction to geography and religion. Chris C. Park. Routledge, 1994.
  • “Global shifts, theoretical shifts: Changing geographies of religion” by Lily Kong.Progress in Human Geography. Vol. 34, No. 6 (Dec. 2010): 755-76.
  • Geology and Religion: A History of Harmony and Hostility. M. Kolbl-Ebert (ed.). Geological Society Of London, 2009.
  • Geology and religion: a historical perspective on current problems. M. Kölbl-Ebert. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, v. 310; p. 1-6, 2009.

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Film and theater

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About the discipline

Some could argue that the power of drama is similar to that of a religious experience. Good drama transfixes, transports and indelibly changes the individual. Certainly, religious experience itself is rich in drama.

Film

Religion and film: Since movies’ earliest days, films have reflected how society grapples with questions about the existence of God and the meaning of life. Faith’s trials and triumphs make good stories, and Hollywood has long recognized a good story and told it creatively, from “The Ten Commandments” to “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Film is now an essential arena for theological discussion in today’s culture. Economics also contribute to the appearance of religious subjects in movies. The success of “The Passion of the Christ” showed the spending power of the evangelical Christian market and its impact at the box office. Hollywood companies now are raising the stakes and multiplying the titles with movies such as “The Nativity Story,” a mainstream film about the birth of Jesus produced by a secular studio.

Rewarding market: Economic rewards, cultural interest in faith issues and creative challenges have combined to make a great market for making films about spiritual subjects. Those who consume religious themes usually have passionate feelings about the subject, which means a filmmaker presenting these themes should be prepared for adulation from some fronts and condemnation on others. From a creative standpoint, films about religion allow artists to express religious devotion, explore conflicted feelings or examine issues from a new angle, creating contemporary film that can be critical, thought-provoking, surprising, disturbing, paradoxical, comforting and inspiring. A new trend in marketing of religious-themed films is “cross-marketing” to secular and religious audiences. This may mean promotions within congregations, offering advance screenings, and building interest among targeted faith communities before a movie comes out; while also doing traditional media promotion. Some conservative Christians have historically been reluctant to engage in popular culture and have been suspicious of entertainment, but that stance is changing for many.

Issues today: Knowledge of the narratives and symbolism of various faith traditions lends insight to understanding the deeper meanings of films that contain references to them or resemble their thematic structures. As the film-going world goes international, filmmakers can be aware that their films are seen in countries around the world, and they are in turn exposed to international films that contain various languages, terminology, symbolism and religious references. Having a religious literacy broadens literacy in film and other disciplines. Those interested in film will find the markets for religious and secular content have grown closer together. There are opportunities in religious-themed films for secular companies, as well as in the religious market. The expectations of religious groups, many raised on low-budget “church basement” films, are changing to expect higher-production quality products that communicate religious messages but are produced and acted more like mainstream cinema. Opportunities exist in both the making and marketing of both categories of films.

Theater

Religion and theater: Asian theater blossomed between A.D. 350 and 1330 at a time when the cultures of Asia also reached a high point in philosophy and religion, which left a permanent impression on Asian theater. Folk theater and drama in ancient India can be traced to the religious ritualism of the early Vedic civilization, believed to have composed the four Vedas, the foundation of Hinduism and oldest surviving scriptures in the world. The oldest surviving plays from western theater come from ancient Greece, where theater likely evolved from staged religious choral performances. Performed at religious festivals, Greek theater was often concerned with questions about morality and the relationship between mortals, the gods and fate. In the Middle Ages, secular forms of theater existed, but most remembered are liturgical dramas written in Latin and dealing with Bible stories; or vernacular dramas based on the Bible, about the lives of the saints, or that taught moral lessons through allegorical characters representing virtues or faults. Because these plays were designed to teach Catholic doctrine, the Protestant Reformation targeted theater in an effort to stamp out allegiance to Rome. Other critics of theater included the Puritans, who argued that the stage was pagan and representing a religious figure was idolatrous. Theater revolved less around religion in the Renaissance and neoclassical era, but it remained a common thread as it does today.

Modern theater often produces contemporary interpretations of earlier religious texts in order to “speak to our era” the truths and observations of an earlier time. These re-interpretations bring fresh vision and understanding to modern audiences. Examples in theater include Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musicals “Jesus Christ Superstar” and “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” which re-envision biblical stories; Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak’s “Godspell,” a musical based on the Gospel of Matthew in a contemporary urban setting; and Arthur Miller’s play, “The Creation of the World and Other Business,” a dramatic comedy based on a nontraditional interpretation of the Book of Genesis.

Artists seek to illuminate that which lies within, shapes and drives human action, and often seek a place where humanity and transcendence come together. They may struggle with their beliefs and explore their fears, the dogma or perceived contradictions through theater. They ask questions and provoke thought. They may incite more conservative representatives of a religious tradition to protest, particularly when traditional religious values are challenged or confronted in an unorthodox way. Examples include: Terrence McNally’s “Corpus Christi,” which contains a gay, Christ-like character and came under critical protest by Christian groups; Gurpreet Kaur Bhatt’s “Behtzi” (Dishonor), a play involving sex and murder in a Sikh temple, which incited vandalism and protest from Sikhs where it was produced; and an interpretation of the Mozart opera, “Idomeneo,” which contained beheading of Poseidon, Buddha, Jesus and Mohammed and was closed after the Berlin criminal agency warned that the production could create “a dangerous scenario with major potential consequences for public security and order.”

Issues today: Those interested in theater could study the role of religion in development of the dramatic arts; the philosophical and aesthetic characteristics of religious plays; the social, cultural and political role of religious plays; and the relationship between these “passion plays” and contemporary theater. Funding for productions can be both supported or withdrawn based on response from religious communities to creative content. The artistic community also faces questions of where to stand on freedom of speech issues, what constitutes freedom of speech, when it is worth defending and at what cost. Artists are constantly striving to find new ways to express the human experience, which has been directly and indirectly influenced by religion. Today’s audience has an appetite for religious themes, both ones that reinforce spiritual commitment and ones that provoke thought.

Articles

Books

  • Hollywood Under Siege: Martin Scorsese, the Religious Right, and the Culture Wars. Thomas R. Lindlof. University Press of Kentucky, 2008.
  • Cinema and Sentiment: Film’s Challenge to Theology. Clive Marsh. Paternoster, 2004.
  • Cinéma Divinité: Religion, Theology And The Bible In Film. Eric S. Christianson, Peter Francis and William R. Telford (eds.). SCM Press, 2005.
  • Religion, Ritual, Theatre (revised lectures and reworked papers from conference April 27-29, 2006 at the University of Copenhagen). Bent Holm (ed.). Frankfurt am Main; Berlin; Bern; Wien [u.a.]: Lang, 2009. – 266 S.: Ill., graph. Darst.
  • Reel Spirituality: Theology and Film in Dialogue. Robert K. Johnston. Baker Academic, 2007.
  • Catching Light: Looking for God in the Movies. Roy M. Anker. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005.
  • Drama and Religion in English Provincial Society: 1485-1660 by Paul Whitfield White. Cambridge University Press, 2008.
  • Exploring Religion and the Sacred in a Media Age. Christopher Deacy and Elisabeth Arweck (ed.). Ashgate, 2009.
  • Theatre and Religion on Krishna’s Stage: Performing in Vrindavan. David W. Mason. Palgrave Macmillan, 2009.
  • Film as Religion: Myths, Morals, and Rituals. John C. Lyden. NYU Press, 2003.
  • Religion and film: An Introduction. Melanie Jane Wright. L.B. Tauris, 2007.
  • A Jesuit Off-Broadway by James Martin SJ. Loyola Press, 2007.
  • Chinese Shadow Theatre: History, Popular Religion and Women Warriors. Fan Pen Li Chen. McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2007.

Case studies

  • Cinema and Sentiment: Film’s Challenge to Theology. Clive Marsh. Paternoster, 2004.
  • Cinéma Divinité: Religion, Theology And The Bible In Film. Eric S. Christianson, Peter Francis and William R. Telford (eds.). SCM Press, 2005.
  • Religion, Ritual, Theatre (revised lectures and reworked papers from conference April 27-29, 2006 at the University of Copenhagen). Bent Holm (ed.). Frankfurt am Main; Berlin; Bern; Wien [u.a.]: Lang, 2009. – 266 S.: Ill., graph. Darst.
  • Religion and ritual in rural India: a case study in Kumaon. Tribhuwan Kapur. Abhinav Publications, 1988.
  • Ng, Teng-Kuan. “‘Now My Eyes Have Seen You’: A Comparative Study of Secret Sunshine and the Book of Job.” Journal of Religion and Popular Culture. Vol. 23, No. 2 (July 2011): 166-81.

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Recent research

  • Chansky, Dorothy. “North American Passion Plays.” The Drama Review. 50, no. 4 (2006): 120-45.
  • Cobb, Michael. “God Hates Cowboys (Kind Of).” GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. 13, no. 1 (2007): 102-5.
  • Edgar, David. “Shouting Fire: Art, Religion and the Right to Be Offended.” Race and Class. 48, no. 2 (2006): 61-76.
  • Henley, Paul. “Spirit Possession, Power, and the Absent Presence of Islam: Re-Viewing Les Maîtres Fous.” Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute. 12, no. 4 (2006): 731-61.
  • Lawrence, Amy. “Constructing a Priest, Silencing a Saint: The PCA and I Confess (1953).” Film History. 19, no. 1 (2007): 52-72.
  • Middlemas, Jill. “Ecclesiastes Gone ‘Sideways.’” Expository Times. 118, no. 5 (2007): 216-21.
  • Spector, Judith A and Katherine V. Tsiopos Willis. “The Aesthetics of Materialism in Alan Ball’s American Beauty.” Midwest Quarterly. 48, no. 2 (2007): 279-96.
  • van Zoonen, Liesbet, Farida Vis and Sabina Mihelj. “YouTube interactions between agonism, antagonism and dialogue: Video responses to the anti-Islam film ‘Fitna’.”New Media & Society. Vol. 13, No. 4 (June 2011).
  • Wax, Jeff. “Acting Jewish: Negotiating Ethnicity on the American Stage and Screen.” Theatre Journal. 58, no. 4 (2006): 716-7.
  • Yelle, Robert A. “To Perform, or Not to Perform? A Theory of Ritual Performance Versus Cognitive Theories of Religious Transmission.” Method and Theory in the Study of Religion. 18, no. 4 (2006): 372-91.

Syllabi

English and literature

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About the discipline

The experience of religion requires a certain level of creativity, to travel to places that are not seen.  It is natural that people over time have used literature to express their profound religious experiences, to communicate with others and fully integrate them in their own minds.

Writers have also used prose, poetry, plays and other forms of literature to pose questions and critiques about religious beliefs and practices, and their impact on the individual and society. Literature, in turn, has been influenced by the themes of major spiritual scriptures.

Some contemporary examples include J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” and C.S. Lewis’ “Chronicles of Narnia” series, which have been popular with readers for decades and draw on Christian themes. Classic literature such as John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” epically retells of the fall of Adam and Eve, focusing on the motivations of the fallen angels. 19th-century Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novels explore religious and philosophical themes such as the nature of God and purpose of evil. Dante Alighieri’s “The Divine Comedy” vividly describes his vision of traveling through hell, purgatory and heaven. One of the earliest recorded epics, the Sumerian tale of Gilgamesh, tells of a king who is two-thirds god and one-third man, on a quest for immortality. The Bhagavad-Gita, an ancient Hindu text, tackles in poetic form the discord between the senses and intuition of cosmic order. It reportedly influenced the works of Omar Khayyam, Walt Whitman, Aldous Huxley, Hermann Hesse and T S Eliot. Hesse’s “Siddhartha” allegorically deals with the spiritual journey of an Indian man called Siddhartha during the time of the Buddha.

These works were not all originally written in English, but translations of many have become part of the canon of English literature courses. They are only a few examples of the relationship between religion and literature, since the beginning of the written word. Their enduring popularity speaks to the power of narrative, myth and story embedded in works of religious scripture and literature. These stories are valued, examined, told and retold because readers and writers find they express deep truths about human nature and the world.

Religion and language: Religion has also influenced the English language spoken and written today, as the blending of religious traditions and cultures over the centuries has added words to each language. One example is the Bible, whose language, symbolism, “characters,” and themes influence the style, symbolism and narrative of much literature today, directly or indirectly. The Bible was first translated into English in the 1520s and 1530s by William Tyndale, leader of the Reformation in England. Phrases we think of as biblical, such as “let there be light” and “ye of little faith” come from his translation of the Bible, as well as “eat, drink and be merry,” “the powers that be,” “the salt of the earth” ” a man after his own heart” and “the signs of the times.”

These found their way into the 1611 King James Bible, which also is the source for English-language expressions such as “can the leopard change his spots?”, “eye to eye,” “gird one’s loins,” “in the twinkling of an eye,” “fell flat on his face,” “a fly in the ointment,” “labor of love,” “put words in his mouth,” “land of the living,” and “the root of the matter,” among others. Some say the King James version is the greatest work of English prose ever written. Its poetic style is reflected in the works of William Shakespeare, Milton, Eliot, Coleridge, Martin Luther King Jr.’s speeches and Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address.” It is because modern English was so influenced by the King James translation that its text remains readable – and in use – four centuries later.

Issues today: Understanding the religious roots of literature and language lends deeper insights into the works of many writers, both contemporary and of the past. As the global marketplace expands exposure to international literature, knowledge of the texts and traditions of religions around the world will lead to a more contextualized reading of these works, their cultures and current events.

Articles

Books

  • Religious Experience and the Modernist Novel. Pericles Lewis. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
  • Holy Bible, King James version
  • A History of the English Bible as Literature by David Norton. Cambridge University Press, 2000.
  • Victorian Parables: New Directions in Religion & Literature by Susan E. Colon. Continuum, 2012.
  • Rethinking the Turn to Religion in Early Modern English Literature: The Poetics of All Believers. Gregory Kneidel. Palgrave MacMillan, 2008.
  • Nineteenth-Century Religion and Literature, An Introduction. Mark Knight and Emma Mason. Oxford University Press, 2007.
  • The Oxford Handbook of English Literature and Theology. Andrew Hass. Oxford University Press, USA, 2009.
  • The Cambridge History of Early Modern English Literature (Chapter, “Literature and religion”). David Loewenstein and John Morrill. Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  • Writing Muslim Identity by Geoffrey Nash. Continuum, 2012.
  • Religion, Children’s Literature, and Modernity in Western Europe 1750-2000. Jan De Maeyer, Hans-Heino Ewers, Rita Ghesquière, Michel Manson, Patricia Quaghebeur and Pat Pinsent (eds.). Leuven University Press, 2005.
  • Introduction to Religion and Literature. Mark Knight. Continuum, 2009.
  • Theology and Literature. Gaye Williams Ortiz and Clara A.B. Joseph (eds.). Macmillan, 2006.
  • Islamic Literature in Contemporary Turkey: From Epic to Novel. Kenan Çayir. Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
  • Literature, Theology and Feminism. Heather Walton. Manchester University Press, 2008.
  • How to Read the Bible as Literature. Leland Ryken. Zondervan, 1985.
  • The Great Code: The Bible and Literature. Northrop Frye. Ark Paperbacks, 1983.
  • One Hundred Great Jewish Books: Three Millennia of Jewish Conversation by Rabbi Lawrence A. Hoffman. Bluebridge, 2011.

Case studies

  • “Complaint spurs school board to review novel by Atwood; Committee to consider objection to book; concern may centre on sexuality, religion” by Kristin Rushowy.Toronto Star, Jan. 14, 2009.
  • “The Relationship Between Bible Literacy and Academic Achievement and School Behavior” by William H. Jeynes. Education and Urban Society, Vol. 41, No. 4, 419-436 (2009).

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Education

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About the discipline

Religion has played a key role in the formation of educational institutions in the United States. Our oldest and most prestigious universities were initially schools for religious study, and they have evolved along the path of the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening. Early elementary schools taught reading by way of religious text, and often the first words read by a school-age child in the 18th and 19th centuries were from the Bible. Understanding these foundational roles helps one understand some of the current debates in society related to issues such as the teaching of evolution, the use of intelligent design in the classroom, prayer in schools and other issues of debate. There is a religious undertone to these discussions that goes beyond mere belief; some of it is based on tradition and how religion and education were once combined more tightly in the United States.

In addition, the spread of religion throughout the world is highly linked to education. Seminaries have handed down the Christian faith for centuries, as those studying other faiths such as Islam, Buddhism and Judaism have received instruction firsthand from the top minds within those belief systems. But it was not only religion that was taught. Monasteries were centers for study on topics such as astronomy, science and geography. The spread of Christianity can often be tracked as a side-by-side surge along with non-religious ideas based on study done in religious institutions. These models and teaching structures help us understand education as we know it today, and it also offers glimpses in to how we can better teach and train students to have open and thoughtful minds.

Higher education: The rise of religious universities in terms of attendance and prestige has been an oft-covered topic in the news media in recent years. The schools offer a liberal arts education with a religious emphasis, and it is useful to study the trends to examine why students are sometimes choosing these schools over elite schools such as Harvard. Also, the issue of education vs. indoctrination is worth examining at these schools, both in terms of understanding as well as whether these are religious reactions to what is seen as a similar secular model in public institutions. Another issue facing higher education is how to encourage religious diversity at schools without promoting it or discriminating against particular religions. Research that attempts to identify the core issues in this debate would fit well with the Center’s mission to help religious understanding become more integrated within a diverse public.

Public schools: No issue related to religion and education has received more media coverage in the past 20 years than the debate over prayer in public schools. But public schools have also seen clashes over topics such as abstinence education, intelligent design, evolution, religious clubs and the Pledge of Allegiance. The Center’s mission can help those going into public school education in two ways. First, teachers will be interacting with students of religious background every day, and learning more about these debates will also help the instructor understand the diversity of the students they teach. Secondly, the Center’s focus on the specific interaction of religion and public life is useful to the educator attempting to navigate the intersection of those two worlds.

Government and parochial schools: The issue of funding private and parochial schools is one that has been debated for years. The educator faces two questions in this public debate. The first is over how to respond to possible changes that could occur in their own classroom in terms of diversity if school voucher initiatives are allowed. Secondly, it is an issue of public funding and equal opportunity for those students who choose to remain in public schools. It is important for educators and education researchers to be familiar with such issues, which could change the landscape of the field very quickly.

Articles

Books

  • A Guidebook of Promising Practices: Facilitating College Students’ Spiritual Development by Jennifer A. Lindholm, Melissa L. Millora, Leslie M. Schwartz and Hanna Song Spinosa. Published online by the Higher Education Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, 2011.
  • Teaching Adolescents Religious Literacy in a Post-9/11 World by Robert J. Nash and Penny A. Bishop. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, 2010.
  • Teaching Religion and Science: Effective Pedagogy and Practical Approaches for RE Teachers by Tonie Stolberg and Geoff Teece. Taylor & Francis, 2010.
  • An Educator’s Classroom Guide to America’s Religious Beliefs and Practices by Benjamin J. Hubbard, John T. Hatfield and James A. Santucci. Westport, Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited, 2007.
  • The First Amendment in Schools by Charles C. Haynes, Sam Chaltain, John E. Ferguson Jr., David L. Hudson Jr., and Oliver Thomas, United States, 2003.
  • Learning About World Religions in Public Schools by Emile Lester and Patrick S. Roberts. First Amendment Center, 2006.
  • Finding Common Ground: A Guide to Religious Liberty in Public Schools by Charles C. Haynes and Oliver Thomas. First Amendment Center, 2002.
  • Bible Electives in Public Schools: A Guide(.pdf) published by the Society for Biblical Literature.
  • The Silencing of Student Voices: Preserving Free Speech in America’s Schools. David L. Hudson Jr. First Amendment Center, 2003.
  • Taking Religion Seriously Across the Curriculum. Warren A. Nord and Charles C. Haynes. First Amendment Center, 1998.
  • Religion in multicultural education. Farideh Salili, Rumjahn Hoosain. IAP, 2006.
  • Religion and American Education: Rethinking a National Dilemma. Warren A. Nord. University of North Carolina Press, 1995.
  • Reflecting on Faith Schools: A Contemporary Project and Practice in a Multi-Cultural Society. Helen Johnson (ed.), Routledge, 2007.
  • Education, Religion and Society. Dennis Bates, Gloria Durka and Friedrich Schweitzer (eds.). Routledge, 2005.
  • International Perspectives on Citizenship, Education and Religious Diversity. Robert Jackson (ed.). Routledge, 2002.
  • Education, Religion, and the Common Good: Advancing a Distinctly American Conversation about Religion’s Role in Our Shared Life. Martin E. Marty. Jossey-Bass, 2000.

Case studies

  • Lawsuit filed against Eastern Michigan University for dismissing a school counseling student for refusing to affirm homosexual relationships due to religious beliefs: News story | Dismissal letter(.pdf) | Transcript of hearing(.pdf)
  • “Cultural Competence in the College Biology Classroom(.pdf)” by Kimberly Tanner and Deborah Allen, Department of Biology, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, and Department of Biological Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark. Christian Life Sciences Education. Vol. 6 (Winter 2007): 251-8.
  • Breen, Damian. “Religious diversity, inter-ethnic relations and the Catholic school: introducing the responsive approach to single faith schooling.” British Journal of Religious Education. Vol. 31, No. 2 (March 2009): 103-15.
  • “Culturally competent counseling for religious and spiritual African American adolescents” by Cheryl Moore-Thomas and Norma L. Day-Vines. Professional School Counseling. February 2008.

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