Expression Of Faith Research Articles

The Complexity of Beliefs: An Interdisciplinary Exploration of Religion and Culture

This paper explores the intricate relationship between religion and belief systems, emphasizing the complexity of religious phenomena as cultural constructs rather than mere expressions of faith. Through a comprehensive analysis of various anthropological perspectives, we argue that religion encompasses a diverse array of cognitive processes that shape human understanding and social interaction. By examining case studies from different cultures, we highlight the significance of supernatural beliefs and their implications for societal cohesion. This study aims to elucidate the cognitive underpinnings of religious beliefs and their role in shaping human behavior, ultimately contributing to a deeper understanding of the multifaceted nature of religion.

A plea for vengeance in Psalm 35: 1-3 and its reflections in Africa (Yoruba) indigenous churches

Psalm 35 is one of the most popular, widely read and used Psalm among the African indigenous churches (Yoruba) in Nigeria. This article investigates why and how Psalm 35 vv. 1-3 is used as a plea for vengeance among the Yoruba Christians in African indigenous churches in Nigeria. The article explores how the plea for vengeance is understood and expressed in the African traditional context. African biblical hermeneutics with the view of providing a useful lens to reread biblical text in African context was adopted for the study. It was discovered that as early as the 3rd-century Christian era, the book of Psalms was used in the liturgy of the church. The notion of vengeance as found in Psalm 35 vv. 1-3 is a recurrent theme in African indigenous churches in Nigeria. This Psalm is used among the Yoruba Christians in African indigenous churches as a plea for divine intervention against their enemies. Through a synthesis of biblical and traditional African sources, this article demonstrates how the plea for vengeance is expressed in the cultural practices and beliefs of African indigenous churches. The plea for vengeance in this Psalm is a reflection of African indigenous churches’ understanding of key social issues such as justice, relationships between individuals and groups, and the need to maintain social integrity. Psalm 35 is usually read, sung, memorised, inscribed on parchment, and chanted by African christians and non-christians as expression of faith in God to intervene in the issues confronting them as he did for the Psalmist.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The Yoruba Christian readers of Psalm 35vv. 1-3 appeal to God for intervention against their enemies. The article emphasises that Christians should not take laws into their hands but trust in God for justice.

Faith and Governance: A Study of Mawlid in Contemporary Morocco

ABSTRACT The Mawlid, a sacred holiday commemorating the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, holds immense power in Morocco as a communal prayer event that animates citizens, transcending its religious significance to become a potent sociopolitical tool. This article delves into the multifaceted nature of Mawlid, examining its dynamic role as both a collective expression of faith and a means of governmental control. Through the example of the Qadiri Boutchichiyya Sufi order’s annual Mawlid programming, it explores how the Moroccan government has skillfully harnessed Mawlid’s enlivening energy to further its political agendas, utilizing it as a vector to transmit the kingdom’s particular brand of Islam. However, while the government may seek to manipulate Mawlid for political gains, Moroccans are not mere pawns in this dynamic. On the contrary, the Mawlid’s animating quality extends well beyond the public sphere and resonates deeply within the private lives of individuals. By delving into this intricate web of interactions, we can better grasp the vibrant and multivalent nature of religious expression in Morocco and its implications for the broader dynamics of faith-based governance in the country today.

Unraveling the Local Hymnal: Artistic Creativity and Agency in Four Indonesian Christian Communities

Local hymnals are cultural artifacts that express a community’s values, history, and identity and serve as vehicles for communal agency. This study investigates the role of local hymnals in shaping cultural identity and theological expression within four Indonesian Christian communities. Through interviews with church leaders, songwriters, and musicians, and an analysis of four hymnals from different communities in Indonesia, this study explores how these communities exercise agency in creating, perceiving, experiencing, and utilizing locally created songbooks. The research reveals that local hymnals are not only tools for shaping communal identity and transmitting theological understanding but also instruments through which communities assert their agency, fostering cultural dynamism. The study also considers the impact of colonialism and globalization on the development of local hymnody, highlighting how these communities have actively adapted and reinterpreted external influences to create unique and meaningful expressions of faith. The research concludes that local hymnals are not merely collections of songs but living artifacts embodying the agency of communities: the ongoing dialogue between tradition and innovation, faith and culture, and the individual and the community. By fostering autogenic cultural reflection and asserting communal agency, local hymnals fuel momentum and sustainability within a culture.

Keep or Break: The Biblical Basis for Tithing in Medieval Europe

The biblical teaching is that, on a practical level, tithing embodies an ideal division of labor with distinct responsibilities. By tithing to the Church, Christians provide the clergy with the necessities of life, enabling them to concentrate on the sacraments without having to worry about worldly matters, and at the same time, offer material support for the holy ministries of the Church, helping to improve the financial situation of the Church. On the level of faith, tithing is an expression of faith in God. The voluntary and full payment of the tithe is a great manifestation of one's faith in God. It maintains the harmonious relationship between God and man, which brings God's abundant blessings to man. The Church in Medieval Europe collected tithes based on the clear and strong scriptural basis of the Bible. However, in practice, the Church abused the tithe to enrich itself and ignored the poor lives of the people, which was destructive to God's good intention in the establishment of the tithe and was not in accordance with the teachings of the Bible.

‘I praie ye send for the courall’: children’s coral as the physical embodiment of parental hopes and fears in early modern England

ABSTRACT Mediterranean red coral has long been believed to be imbued with sacred, spiritual and healing power and was given to children across Europe in the form of an amulet, teether or medicine. In early modern England, portraits of children from affluent families and medical receipts provide snapshots of coral usage, a moment in time, which do not adequately reveal the spiritual, therapeutic and affective significance of this material within the context of unique family circumstances and a multitude of perceived threats to children’s health. Focusing on five case studies, this article delves into the lived experience of families who deemed coral objects an essential childhood accessory in the period from 1590 to 1775. Julian Herrick, a goldsmith’s widow, Sir John Oglander, a knight caught up in the civil war, Dr Garencières, a doctor confronting dangerous infection, Lady Blackett, a devoted grandmama, and Ann Lord, a woman facing destitution, all placed value on coral for their young children. This study draws on a diverse range of material and documentary evidence from the seventeenth and eighteenth century to unpack the significance of red coral for parents within a changing religious, political and medical landscape. Building on scholarship within material culture studies and the history of emotions, this study also situates children’s coral objects within emotional relationships and seeks to uncover the implicit meanings such objects held which could not be written or articulated due to illiteracy, controversy or persecution. By combining a micro-historical approach with a broader thematic analysis, the case studies presented indicate that coral occupies an important place in the history of the early modern family as the embodiment of the anxieties of parents and grandparents, a means to soothe and protect young children and a material expression of hope, love and faith, particularly during periods of crisis and separation.

Useful or not? The discussion of traditional Chinese medicine to treat COVID-19 on a Chinese social networking site

The use of traditional medicine is a global phenomenon, and the WHO advocated its appropriate integration into modern healthcare systems. However, there is a hot debate about the legitimacy of...

Maternal Practice and the Chuetas of Mallorca: The Inquisitorial Trials of Pedro Onofre Cortés

Maternal Practice and the Chuetas of Mallorca: The Inquisitorial Trials of Pedro Onofre Cortés

When Faith and Health Collide: Expressions of Faith Over the Dangers of COVID-19 by Selected Flagellants in the Philippines.

For almost three years, the COVID-19 pandemic seriously affected society. Mass gatherings were restricted during the surge, including religious activities and other public practices. However, some Filipinos opted to continue their panata (sacred vow) of self-flagellation during this health crisis, thus putting themselves at risk of being inflicted with the virus or being a spreader. This article explores the experience of selected flagellants who continued to fulfill their religious practice amid the pandemic. It draws inspiration from their narratives about their personal experiences of how they faced, struggled, and hoped to battle the "unseen" virus and the criticisms of others for what they did. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), their interview transcripts elicit three recurrent themes: Suffering leads to finding God for support, sacred vow as unity to Christ's suffering, and spiritual reward over physical pain. These themes cancontribute to future research on how opposing parties should negotiate when faith and health conflict.

Search for the Soul of Black Preaching

This article examines Black preaching as a vital force in African American communities, offering a powerful testament to resilience, spiritual enlightenment, and social transformation. Black preaching emerges as a beacon of hope and resistance amidst oppressive conditions, weaving together theological insight, cultural richness, and communal resilience. Through a rich historical lens, the article explores the performative and substantive dimensions of Black preaching, highlighting its capacity to navigate complex theological and social realities. While acknowledging moments of complicity and challenge within Black preaching, this article emphasizes its enduring legacy as a catalyst for liberation and justice. Ultimately, Black preaching emerges as a dynamic expression of faith, embodying the enduring struggle for dignity, justice, and freedom within the African American experience.

Achieving Unity amidst Diversity in Christian Doctrines Beliefs and Practices: An In-Depth Analysis

Pursuing unity within the diverse landscape of Christian doctrines, beliefs, and practices is a perpetual challenge that has marked the history of Christianity. This paper delves into the intricate dynamics of fostering unity amidst theological diversity, doctrinal traditions, and varied expressions of faith within the Christian community. By analyzing the theological underpinnings of unity in Christianity, including core doctrines like the divinity of Christ and the authority of Scripture, the paper underscores the foundational principles that bind believers together. Despite these shared tenets, divergent interpretations, emphases, and nuances have given rise to doctrinal variations across Christian denominations. Moreover, the paper delves into the historical evolution of doctrinal discrepancies in Christianity, examining the origins of significant schisms, theological disputes, and doctrinal contentions that have influenced the multifaceted tapestry of Christian beliefs and practices. These historical fractures continue to shape interdenominational relations and interactions among Christians. Practical strategies for promoting unity amid doctrinal diversity are also explored, emphasizing the significance of ecumenical dialogues, interfaith collaborations, and initiatives to foster reconciliation and mutual comprehension. Recognizing and honouring the diverse spectrum of beliefs and practices while seeking common ground is pivotal in nurturing unity within the Christian community. In conclusion, the paper underscores the importance of balancing unity and diversity in Christian traditions, celebrating the richness and complexity that diversity engenders while upholding the shared faith that unites believers across doctrinal boundaries. Through respectful dialogue, humility, and an embrace of the diverse facets of the body of Christ, Christians can endeavour towards a more profound unity that transcends doctrinal discrepancies, fostering a spirit of love and fellowship within the Church. Keywords: Divergent, Christian Doctrines, Beliefs, Practices, Unity, Coherence, Christian, Christian Faith, Implications

Laudato Si, Environmental Theology and the Leadership of Pope Francis

This article explores the interaction between environmental theology and leadership in the context of Pope Francis' "Laudato Si'", with a particular focus on the role of Christian leaders in addressing environmental issues. Using descriptive qualitative methods, the study analyses the encyclical "Laudato Si'" and related Catholic Church documents. The article finds that theological concepts such as "Salvation and Liberation,""Obedience to God the Creator," and "Social and Ecological Justice" play an important role in shaping Christian leaders' attitudes and actions towards the environment. This article provides insights into how Christian leadership can inspire and mobilise environmentally responsible action, showing that this responsibility is not only a moral imperative, but also an expression of deep Christian faith.

Uka Omenana (Godian Religion): Bridging Faith and Tradition in Neo-Traditional Igbo Religion

The Uka Omenana movement, also known as the Godian Religion, represents a significant resurgence of neo-traditionalism in Igboland, Nigeria, where indigenous Igbo customs intersect with Christian principles. This research examines how the movement marries traditional elements with contemporary expressions of faith, analyzing the dynamics of cultural continuity and change in the face of globalization, cultural erosion, and the encroachment of foreign ideologies. Through qualitative methodologies, including participant observation, interviews, and document analysis, the study sheds light on the Uka Omenana movement's objectives, practices, and impacts within the Igbo community. The findings contribute to scholarship in anthropology, cultural studies, and religious studies by exploring the interplay between tradition and modernity in contemporary African societies and the role of religious revitalization movements in preserving cultural identity. The research reveals how Uka Omenana seeks to infuse age-old Igbo traditions with contemporary relevance and Christian spirituality, bridging ancestral customs with modern religious beliefs to foster cultural continuity. By examining the movement's core beliefs, including its conceptions of the Supreme God, deities, ancestors, the Bible, and the Eucharist, the study illuminates the complex dynamics of syncretism and the movement's efforts to reclaim and revitalize elements of Igbo culture within a religious framework.

To Whom is the Chaplain Beholden? Guest Editor Introduction to Special Issue

Abstract In this issue of Christian Bioethics, we invite chaplains and theologians to examine the role of the hospital chaplain in the contemporary institutional setting of the hospital. The simplicity of the chaplain’s role is often taken for granted; yet, this role is actually multivalent, with duties and loyalties pulling from many different sides. Chaplains are people of faith, ordained and/or endorsed ministers, and pastoral care professionals; they are at once beholden to God, to their own faith expression, and to their sense of vocation, to the hospital, and to the patient. With various loyalties and responsibilities in mind, we must ask the question, “To whom is the chaplain beholden?” The responses in this issue critically and constructively examine this question, providing theological resources that call chaplaincy away from the dominant modes of medicine. Whether through a primary loyalty to their calling, to God, to Divine presence, or to the spiritual formation of the patient, the authors in this special issue aim to help chaplains find theological resources to faithfully withstand the tensions they face in modern medical institutions.

MISA TRADISIONAL MENURUT MOTU PROPRIO TRADITIONES CUSTODES

Liturgy is an expression of faith in God which is expressed in a great way through the Eucharistic Celebration. Before the Second Vatican Council, the Church celebrated the Liturgy by using the 1962 Roman Missal, or celebrating the Traditional Mass (Tridentine). After the implementation of the Second Vatican Council, it was mutually agreed that the expression of Faith through the liturgy, using the 1970 Roman Missal, which was issued by Pope Paul Vi. Since then, the practice of using traditional mass is rarely used anymore. During the Pontifical period of Pope Benedict XVI, he issued the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum, which permitted the Return to the Practice of this Traditional Mass. Three years later, Pope Francis asked the bishops through the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to review the implementation of the Summorum Pontificum. The Pope discovered that there was a movement towards division, so Pope Francis issued the Motu Proprio Traditionis Custodes to cancel the existing norms and laws in the Summorum Pontificum, to maintain the unity of the Church.

Discrimination and differentiation in the development of worship in the Presbyterian Church of South(ern) Africa

Worship as the work of the people of God does not arise in a vacuum. It is contextual and cultural. In the areas of the world, long designated as the mission field, many developments were transported to countries in the global south and imposed on local peoples. This was true of the arrival of Presbyterians who came to settle in southern Africa. Presbyterians imported two differing traditions of worship, the evangelical and the liturgical, and introduced them to the indigenous peoples they encountered. They were adopted without adaptation and have largely followed their European ancestors and contemporaries. Africans have largely followed their missionary mentors but have found ways of subverting these traditions by forming a new tradition by blending aspects of each and adding their own African brand of Spirit inspired and led. worship while their mentors pay only lip service to their African colleagues.Contribution: This article highlights the historical continuities in the worship of a mainline Church of European Origin (CEO) with their ecclesiastical and ecumenical source(s). This is in discontinuity with the worship traditions of African Christian communities, which are less formal and tend to incline towards the charismatic and Pentecostal traditions with their freedom of expression of faith rather than the more cerebral forms of expression.

Symbol and Faith in Mircea Eliade

This article analyzes Mircea Eliade’s conception of the role of the symbol in the expression of faith. It points out that Eliade considers belief a constitutive structure of the human being, and that homo religious is par excellence a homo symbolicus. Approaching the nature of the symbol as a form of autonomous knowledge, and its structure, it highlights the specificity of symbolic thinking, which generates it. Focusing on the man of archaic societies, exemplary for the religious mentality, it develops the problem of the functions of symbols within traditional communities. It shows that on the basis of archetypal symbolic images, primitive man creates symbolic complexes through which he explains the world and pursues his integration into it—presenting some of the great religious symbolisms. Finally, it highlights Eliade’s position that symbols will never disappear because they are constitutive of the human being, like religious belief, to which they are inextricably linked.

Can For-Profit Organizations Practice Religion? Theorizing Faith Integration in Business

This research explores how for-profit organizations integrate faith, a previously understudied area. Traditionally, businesses were seen as exclusively profit-driven and incapable of faith expression. A recent US Supreme Court case, however, sheds new light on how businesses run by religiously motivated leadership can creatively integrate and express faith. Based on five in-depth case studies of faith-based businesses across five states, this study examines how faith is understood and experienced by the organizations’ internal stakeholders. The findings from the thematic analysis of the data reveal three distinct dimensions of faith recognized by company stakeholders: embodied, operationalized, and internalized.

ISLAMIC APPROACHES TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL PRESERVATION: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW

This study aims to investigate and review the Islamic perspective on the environment, identify Islamic approaches to preserve the environment and examine the effect of the Islamic approach in the empirical reality of the Muslim population. Based on a Systematic Literature Review of journal articles from the Scopus, the review results of 23 articles generated the Islamic perspective on the environment, namely the harmonious relationship of humans and the environment, the caliph’s role, the expression of faith and sharia obligations, and Islamic ethics. In preserving the environment, Islam proposes a theological approach, ethics and Sufism, Islamic law, comparative religion, educational, communication, philosophical, and social movement approaches. The review also found that while most studies demonstrate the positive effect of increasing Islamic environmental awareness, attitude, and actions, the two reveal an ineffective role of the Islamic environmental project and Islamic countries because environmental problems are subject to economic and political considerations. Future research should focus on explaining the diverse Islamic environmental perspectives and practices across different regions and cultures, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration among scholars to provide a comprehensive understanding of the topic.

SPIRITUAL NEEDS OF ELDERLY IN CHINESE FAITH-BASED NURSING HOME: ADMINISTRATOR VIEWS

Abstract Objectives Recognizing and addressing the spiritual needs of elderly individuals constitutes a crucial facet of comprehensive caregiving. Despite China’s immense aging population, research on the spiritual needs of Chinese seniors remains limited. This study aimed to: 1) delineate prevalent spiritual needs among Chinese nursing home residents, including those with dementia; 2) elucidate the method employed by staff to identify these needs in non-verbal residents; and 3) expound on the strategies utilized by staff to fulfill these identified needs. Methods In this qualitative exploration, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 administrators from faith-based nursing homes, chosen for their potential concentration of residents with dementia. Encompassing establishments across 14 Chinese provinces, interviews were conducted in the participants’ native language, subsequently translated into English. Utilizing a constant comparative approach, the collected data underwent analysis to uncover recurring themes. Results The analysis yielded five interconnected themes concerning the spiritual needs of older adults: expression of faith, reception of love and care, familial interaction, social engagement, and participation in activities. For individuals with dementia unable to articulate their needs, staff employed careful observation and communication with family members as means of identification. In response to identified needs, staff harnessed local resources and personalized services whenever feasible. Discussion The findings offer practical insights for holistic caregivers catering to the spiritual needs of Chinese elderly. This study fills an existing gap, aiding in the provision of culturally sensitive care that addresses the spiritual aspects of aging Chinese individuals.