Religious Clerics Research Articles

The relationships between law enforcement authorities and underground raves: a case study of OTUM rave festival in the Maldives

ABSTRACT This article analyzes the relationship between underground raves and law enforcement authorities. It is centred on the police raid of the OTUM rave festival held on the uninhabited island of Anbaraa in the Maldives, specifically focusing on the perceptions of ravers present during the raid of the OTUM rave festival. The data on which this paper is based stems from open-ended interviews with ravers who were present during the raid. Ravers felt that police used excessive force at the rave festival. They arrested 79 ravers for possessing recreational substances, including LSD, cannabis, and ecstasy. The police raided the rave festival due to pressure from religious clerics and to appease the more conservative members of the mainstream society. The results from this study suggest that treating ravers as criminals and threatening them with imprisonment creates a disconnection between the underground rave community and the mainstream society, widening rather than healing divides and reinforcing ideas of deviance and resistance.

HOW THE SOMALI MODERN GOVERNANCE WORKS WITH THE TRADITIONAL GOVERNANCE SYSTEM: LITERATURE REVIEW

Somalia, located in the Horn of Africa, has a complex history influenced by tribalism, colonialism, and internal conflict. During the colonial era, European powers collaborated with clan leaders, resulting in Somalia's division along clan and tribal lines. This division led to the creation of artificial borders, which fragmented the land and fostered regional and clan-based identities. After gaining independence in 1960, Somalia initially aimed to establish a strong, centralized state. The Siad Barre regime, which came to power through a military coup in 1969, tried to suppress clan and regional identities in favor of a communist ideology. However, the regime's downfall in 1991 plunged Somalia into a prolonged period of violence and state collapse. Warlords and clan-based factions fought for power, leading to a protracted civil war. This paper analyzes the intricate relationship between Somalia's traditional and modern governance systems. It examines the potential for collaboration, the challenges faced in nation-building efforts, and the lasting impact of clan-based structures. The study begins by exploring traditional governance, highlighting the important role of customary law, elders, and religious clerics in consensus-building mechanisms and maintaining social harmony. It emphasizes the historical significance and contemporary relevance of these institutions. The paper then delves into the challenges involved in establishing a modern state in Somalia. It examines the obstacles that hinder the realization of democratic ideals and the establishment of a centralized administration. A key focus is evaluating the potential synergies and conflicts between traditional and modern systems.

Discursive Representation of Cyber Scam in Selected Nigerian Hip Hop Songs

This study examines the representation of cyber scam in Nigerian hip hop songs. Forty-five singles of twelve Nigerian hip hop artistes constituted the study population. Purposively selected cyber scam-related lyrics of seven artistes constitute the study population. Relevant aspects of Scollon’s »Mediated Discourse Analysis Theory« (MDAT) were used to engage the data. The Nigerian government, scammers, victims and religious clerics were identified as participants in cyber scam discourse. With re-course to context, Nigerian hip hop artistes articulate specific discourse acts such as glamorisation of cyber scam, assertion of identity, appeal to scammers’ cognitive abilities and justification of cyber scam. These acts are discursively projected through metaphorical expressions, repetition, pronominal references, lexical choices and rhetorical questions. This study has contributed to scholarship on cyber fraud by identifying and describing how context functions in articulating the roles, attitudes and orientations of social actors involved in cyber scam.

A Kingdom of Possibility

A Kingdom of Possibility

Digital Misogyny Unveiled: An Examination of Online Hate Speech Targeting Women in Bangladesh

Discriminatory and sexist language expresses bias towards men and projects that women are inferior around the world. It is also evident in the patriarchal society of Bangladesh. While they are often prevalent subtly in communication taking place in person, the anonymous nature of the internet has enabled people to be vile towards women in the virtual world. Online hate speech and misogynistic behavior have become pervasive issues in today's digital landscape. Most people take Islamic verses literally or believe the religious clerics without checking their words' authenticity. The socio-religious idea of women being subservient to men produces numerous hate speeches against women on social media platforms. The presence of numerous online religious lectures spewing offensive words against women made the situation worse in Bangladesh. They conform to the prevalent idea that men should control women's agency, and for that purpose, even violence is acceptable. This article aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the phenomenon, specifically focusing on the context of Bangladesh. Through case studies, it looks into how religious leaders fuel online hatred towards women.It further explores the various forms, impacts, and underlying factors of misogynistic online speech. By delving into the complexities of this issue, it also discusses the challenges faced by women in seeking redress and proposes recommendations to mitigate online violence against women in Bangladesh.

Challenges of Administering COVID-19 Vaccine in Some Selected States of Northeast Nigeria

The COVID-19 pandemic has successfully registered itself among the league of global epidemics that the world is currently battling. The virus, which emerged in December 2019 in China, quickly spread worldwide, paralysing socioeconomic, political, and cultural activities around the globe. Nigeria is one of the African countries that is most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially socioeconomically and politically. Although the pattern of spread in the country indicates a higher incidence in the South than in Northern Nigeria, some factors made the case in Northern Nigeria an interesting study. The study is an examination of the challenges that influenced the process of administering the COVID-19 vaccine in Northeast Nigeria. The study used a quantitative phenomenological study as a methodology. Data were collected from selected informants with relevant and valuable information on the subject matter in the area of study. The data obtained were analysed and interpreted using content analysis. Culture, religion, and perception, in addition to the attitude of the political class, all contributed to the negative perception of COVID-19 as a pandemic and its vaccine as a preventive measure. Most of the inhabitants of Northeast Nigeria are found to have harboured negative thoughts against the Virus and its vaccination because of some reported cases of side effects and the way the politicians turned the pandemic into a racket of money-making. The study recommends, among others, that royal fathers, religious clerics, and opinion moulders should be rigorously engaged in a massive campaign to disabuse all negative perceptions and to convince the populace on safety and prevention.

Trend of ritual killings and the involvement of politicians and religious clerics as perpetrators in Ilorin city

Trend of ritual killings and the involvement of politicians and religious clerics as perpetrators in Ilorin city

Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding the Prevention of Thalassemia in Parents of Thalassemic Children in Swat

Introduction: Thalassemia is a set of inherited disorder caused by a partial or complete mutation in one or more chain of the globin genes. Beta Thalassemia is the most common genetic disorder throughout the world including in Pakistan. Objectives: To assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of parents of the children suffering from Thalassemia with regards to disease prevention. It also determined the degree of social and religious opposition faced by these parents during implementation of preventive practices Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted in district Swat, KP, via three regional thalassemia centers. Total of 200 parents of Thalassemia were interviewed using a pre-designed pre-tested structured questionnaire. All statistical analyses were conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM SPSS 23.0) Results: Out of the total participants, male parents were (67.7%), while females were (32.3%). A total of responses were gathered, and analyzed. Most respondents had adequate knowledge positive attitude towards thalassemia. Age, education, gender, and family income were key factors that correlated with or predicted the youth’s KAP towards thalassemia. Older respondents and women were more likely to have good KAP. 77.5% of parents opted for prenatal diagnosis, and 77% opted for termination of the affected fetus. Among these individuals, 7.5% faced opposition from their family members when they went for diagnostic testing, and this opposition rose to 18.5% when they had to opt for termination. The local religious clerics opposed prenatal diagnosis in 3.5% of the cases and termination in 4% of the cases. Conclusions: When compared to previous studies, the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of our study population were better. Thus, population screening programs have a positive impact on the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of careers of thalassemia patients. However, social and religious opposition needs to be countered for further implementation of effective preventive practices.

Parenting education programs in the Arab region

This paper provides an analysis of three focus group discussions (FGDs) held in Morocco, Jordan, and Oman, with a specific focus on the importance of fathers' involvement in the programs. Data is based on the 2021 Doha International Family Institute study entitled “Parenting Programs in the Arab Region” conducted by the Ibn Khaldun Center for Research and Studies, Jordan. It begins with the information currently accessible based on assessing pertinent literature on parenting education programs. Members participated in the FGDs to explore their experiences with parenting programs and how those programs affected their parenting knowledge and skills. All three focus group sessions were only attended by women, reinforcing the perception of traditional gender roles and obligations. The paper concludes with recommendations toward the promotion of fathers’ involvement in programs, such as enacting paternity and parental laws, involving religious clerics that can advocate for the importance of father involvement during Friday prayers.

The Islamic State, Shia religious clerics and the mobilisation of Shia militias in Iraq and Syria

ABSTRACT This article focuses on the Islamic State’s (IS) attacks on Shia communities and their holy sites across Iraq and Syria and explores the responses of key Shia religious and political leaders. It demonstrates how these Shia elites utilised sophisticated mobilisation frames to admonish their followers to take up arms against the IS. To do so, these Shia elites drew on Shia religious symbols and historical events that emphasise Shia suffering at the hands of Sunni forces and highlighted the urgent need to protect Shia communities and their holy sites. The article also demonstrates how these mobilisation frames were malleable in the hands of different Shia elites and were instrumentalized to advance both national (defend the country) and transnational goals (defend Shia Islam). The article concludes by noting that this study of the complex motives underpinning Shia mobilisation has implications beyond the case of contemporary Iraq and Syria.

POST COVID-19 RULINGS OF ISLAMIC LAW ON PANDEMICS: AN ANALYTICAL STUDY WITH REFERENCE TO NECESSITY AND JURISTIC CREATIVITY IN MANAGEMENT OF CONSEQUENTIAL ISSUES RELATED TO nCOV-19 VIRUS.

Certainly, pandemics have been one of the most appalling threats to human life throughout the human history. It is an historical fact that billions of people have died because of contagious ailments. Presently, we are in the 21st century which is known for scientific and biomedical advancements. But unfortunately, we also became victims of a precarious pandemic named Covid-19. The most interesting thing is that the contemporary experts have not been able to discover any remedy for this treacherous disease yet. In this situation, the views of Islamic scholars have diversified whether religion has a cure for the pandemics? Being Muslims, we believe that Islam guides us via application of preventive and therapeutic measures for the preservation and protection of life as a primary objective of Islamic law. While responding to Covid-19 Pakistani Muslim population at large were more adherent to the legal edits and verdicts (fatwās) issued by religious clerics than the state authorities. Hence, they have acknowledged those rules and regulations which were mediated by religious scholars. In this back drop the present study is designed to investigate the post Covid-19 rulings of Islamic law on pandemics to assess whether the NIH and WHO SOPs/guidelines are compatible with Islamic injunctions? Consequently, this research found many examples in Prophetic Seerha (life) to get protection from pandemics and lethal diseases. Correspondingly, in this article, efforts are made to determine the moral, ethical and practical teachings of Islam to cure the pandemics and deadly diseases with special reference to Covid-19. Thus, an analytical approach is adopted with a qualitative research methodology. Resultantly, the researcher observed that Islam has a complete set of ethical code to prevent and protect from pandemics and fatal diseases. Therefore, it is argued that people should adopt the ethical teachings of Islam for infectious diseases keeping in view the contemporary biomedical norms. To combat pandemics in Pakistan, the state departments are required to heed towards religious guidelines while not forgetting the application of medication as suggested by physicians and experts of the field.

The Quran and the Sword

Abstract This paper elucidates the willingness of an autocrat to push through institutional reforms in a context where traditional authorities represented by religious clerics are averse to them and where the military control the means of repression and can potentially stage a coup. We show that although the autocrat always wants to co-opt the military, this is not necessarily true of the clerics. Exclusive co-option of the military obtains where the loyalty of the autocrat’s army is strong while the organizational strength of religious movements is rather low. Radical institutional reforms can then be implemented. Empirically, the dominant regime in contemporary Muslim countries is the regime of double co-option where the autocrat resorts to a double-edged tactic: pleasing the official clerics by slowing the pace of reforms and ensuring the loyalty of the military so as to put down clerics-led rebellions.

Dayah Ulama and Modern Negotiations in Aceh

This article analyzes the interpretation of Islamic religious clerics on the narrative of religious moderation within the framework of Islamic law in Aceh. This study focuses on several issues, including; The first is the acceptance and rejection of the ulama towards the rhetoric of tolerance. Second, the interpretation of the scholars of religious differences. Third, the binding element for managing tolerance and religious differences. The purpose of writing this article is to produce a study of strengthening democracy and national identity based on Islamic sharia values ​​which are the standard of behavior in public life in Aceh. The study was conducted using a qualitative research approach through in-dept interviews. Sources of data were also obtained through focus group-based surveys. As for the results of the study it is known that; first, there is no rejectionism of the dayah scholars towards the narrative of religious moderation. On the other hand, the emphasis on acceptance must be in harmony with the principles of Islamic law within the framework of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. This is because what has been awakened in the imagination of the Ulama towards Aceh is a sense of place that Aceh is the verandah of Mecca (Islam). Second, the form of the acceptance of the dayah ulama towards the narrative of tolerance and diversity in Aceh is moderate. Third, the binding element for the management of institutionalized tolerance and diversity in Islamic law and Acehnese customs. For dayah scholars, tolerance is only in muammalah affairs, not in private matters (aqidah and worship). This means that tolerance may not sacrifice the principles of belief (aqidah), just as religious beliefs may not be sacrificed for the sake of tolerance.

Identifying Tourism Potentials of Ethno-Cultural Attractions in Lombok

This article is aimed at identifying the potential of various ethno-cultural practices in the Sasak community with a view of developing them as ethno-cultural attractions to sustain tourists to stay longer in Lombok. Various ethno-cultural practices in relation to folklore, festivals, sports, music, food, beverage, and cultural events were identified, and the tourism potentials were also measured. Data were collected by directly observing and video-recoding the ethno-cultural events, interviewing cultural leaders, religious clerics, community leaders, tourism practitioners, tourism experts, tourism workers’ organizations, entrepreneurs, and governments. With content analysis, the study has identified ethno-cultural practices with the potential to be an alternative to Lombok’s tourist attractions. These practices are not only essential for Indonesian multiculturalism but are also a resource for improving the economic quality of Sasak families and communities. The article also recommends strategies for this development.

The Influence of Islamic Clerics on the Acceptance and Response of COVID-19 Prevention Protocols in Northeast Nigeria

COVID-19 is the recent global pandemic that affected all facets of human endeavour worldwide. Pandemics are usually heralded with allegations and perception of conspiracies which is associated with culture and environment. In Nigeria, especially, the Northeast, the pandemic was reluctantly welcomed owing to perception and culture, which created the fear of rapid spread because protocols were breached. In this regard, religious clerics played an instrumental role in influencing people to accept and respond to the prevention protocols. This study investigated the role played by Islamic clerics in making people believe in the pandemic and accept and respond positively to preventing it through adopting the set protocols. The study utilised both primary and secondary sources. The primary sources included a survey in the area of study, in-depth personal expert interviews, and participant observation, while the secondary sources consisted of documented materials. The assembled data were discussed and interpreted using manual SPSS for the survey, where tables were designed for simple percentage analysis, content analysis for the in-depth interview, and participant observation. The study reports that Islamic clerics played a significant role in persuading people to accept COVID-19 as a pandemic and to adopt prevention protocols initially after hesitation. The clerics succeeded in convincing the public to accept the prevention protocols using religious injunctions. The study, therefore, recommends, among several others, that Islamic clerics and other religious leaders need to be integrated into critical issues of public interest and public-agenda setting to avoid mutual suspicion, hostilities, and practices that will negatively affect the wellbeing of the populace.

Does religious attitude affect organ donation and transplantation?

IntroductionWhile the reasons for opposition to organ donation and transplantation include several factors such as socioeconomc status, education and culture, religious belief has been reported to be the most important factor. AimThe aim of this study was to determine the effect of the religious attitude on organ donation and transplantation. Material and methodThe study universe of this descriptive and relational study comprised adults living in the city centre of Kahramanmaraş. To give 99% power and a significance level of α = 0.05, the sample was formed of 406 individuals who agreed to participate in the study between February and March 2021. The study data were collected using a Personal Information Form, the Religious Attitudes Scale, and the Organ Donation Attitude Scale. In the data analysis, descriptive statistics were stated as mean and standard deviation values, number, and percentage. Correlation and regression analyses were performed to determine the relationship between religious belief and attitude to organ donation and transplantation. ResultsThe study participants comprised 84% females, 76.82% were aged 18–28 years, 92.1% were university graduates and 71.7% were not working. Of the total participants, 86.0% stated that nobody close to them had undergone organ transplantation, 92.6% that nobody close to them was waiting for organ transplantation, 50.7% that they had received positive information from a religious perspective about organ donation, 82.0% that they had not sought information themselves about organ donation, 67.2% that they had received no education about organ transplantation, 46% that they found the education given sufficient, 66.7% that they knew about the organ and tissue donation system, and 49.0% that they thought official approval was not required for organ donation. As a result of the correlation and regression analyses, a statistically significant relationship was determined between religious attitude and the subdimension of fear of medical neglect in the the Organ Donation Attitude Scale (p < 0.05). ConclusionThe results of this study demonstrated a relationship between religious attitudes and the attitude to organ transplantation. In the light of this result it can be recommended that a multidisciplinary team is established, including nurses and religious clerics, for the public to have correct information for the evaluation of organ transplantation from a religious perspective and to eliminate the concerns of society on this subject.

Impact Of Population Screening Programs On The Knowledge, Attitudes And Practices Regarding Prevention Of Thalassema

Beta Thalassemia is the most common genetic disorder in Pakistan. This study was conducted to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of parents of children suffering from Thalassemia with regards to disease prevention. It also determined the degree of social and religious opposition faced by these parents during implementation of preventive practices Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted in the 36 districts of Punjab via nine regional centers of Punjab Thalassemia Prevention Project. 248 parents of Beta Thalassemia Major and Intermedia were interviewed using a pre-designed pre-tested structured questionnaire. All statistical analyses were conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM SPSS 23.0) Results: 83.5% of the respondents had adequate knowledge and 98.4% had positive attitudes. Knowledge and attitude were positively correlated (p=0.00). 93% opted for prenatal diagnosis and 91% opted for termination of affected fetus. Among these individuals 12% faced opposition from their family members when they went for diagnostic testing and this opposition rose to 20% when they had to opt for termination. The local religious clerics opposed prenatal diagnosis in 3% of the cases and termination in 7% of the cases Conclusion: When compared to previous studies the knowledge, attitudes and practices of our study population was better. Thus, population screening programs have a positive impact on knowledge, attitudes and practices of caregivers of Thalassemia patients. However, social and religious opposition needs to be countered for further implementation of effective preventive practices.

Profaning the Sacred: The Unorthodox Financial Activities of Catholic Clerics During the Napoleonic Period, 1796–1814

This article reveals for the first time how Catholic clerics survived financially during the Napoleonic period in Italy (1796–1814). Despite the very rich, 200-year historiography on one of the Church's most critical periods, there is almost nothing on how religious clerics coped at this time. Their institutions had been despoiled by the French, often in collaboration with locals, negating traditional forms of clerical income, such as alms or rental income from non-ecclesiastical properties. This caused clerics to search out unorthodox – at times, non-canonical – ways of eking out a living, either for themselves, their religious communities or both, as such distinctions were often blurred. Masses were monetized and traded; ecclesiastical paraphernalia composed of precious metals were smelted and commodified, and relics were sold for profit. The uncovering of these controversial acts by men who in normal times were upstanding reveals the desperation of the times and provides insight into the rich discussion on determining the degrees of separation (and overlap) between the sacred and profane.

“Godsplaining”: Toward a Theory of Religious Capital in Political Rhetoric

This paper is an effort at theorizing the neologism godsplaining. The term interrogates the attempt by religious clerics to earn cultural capital by explaining God’s actions and preferences. The paper does so by deconstructing the political rhetoric of two popular Ghanaian prophets, following the outcome of the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections. Using deconstruction as an analytical tool, the study analyses a 2-hour interview the clerics granted an Accra-based local radio station on its morning show. The analysis showed that the religious leaders engaged in “godsplaining” by employing five basic rhetorical strategies— appeal to prophetic authority, kategoria versus apologia, erotema, biblical allusion, and anecdote in order to defend why their perceived political party either won or lost the 2020 general elections. The analysis revealed that the deliberative rhetoric of the prophets suggested a biased hermeneutic of God’s will in favor of their preferred political affinity. The study has implications for further research in media studies, religious communication, and the question of divinity in partisan politics.

Why Couldn’t Muslim Astronomers Discover the Heliocentric System?

It comes to question the reasons why Muslim astronomers could not recognize the centrality of the Sun in the planetary system. While Europeans have spent centuries in their dark ages, Muslims spent the same centuries trying to verify the Ptolemaic planetary theory which has adopted the assumption of geocentricism, both theoretically and observationally. Many generations of Muslim astronomers from the 8th century to the 15th century lived circling in boring games of epicycles and deferments. Undoubtedly, Muslim astronomers devoted great efforts for developing the astronomical observations. For this purpose, they invented and developed many precise astronomical instruments and on the side of scientific literature, they wrote thousands of manuscripts in astronomy and observational techniques. This article questions the reasons why Muslim astronomers could not recognize the heliocentric system, despite their serious critique of the Ptolemaic geocentric model. For this purpose, we try to interrogate the astronomical manuscripts written by Muslim astronomers during the centuries before the Copernican breakthrough, since it is now believed that the efforts of Muslim astronomers have contributed great deal to the Copernican discovery of the heliocentric system. Some new studies in this area have already pointed to the fact that prominent Muslim astronomers have criticized the Ptolemaic geocentric system starting with the article of Ibn al-Haytham entitled “The Doubts about Ptolemy”, then al-Beruni’s assertion of the possibility of the spinning Erath while rotating around the Sun which comes in his assessment of the Indian astronomers' claim of the heliocentric model. The work of the astronomers of Muragha school and the Muragha observatory which was erected in 1259 and their models proposing to explain the observed planetary motions using the intelligent model of the “Tusi Couple”, in addition to the comments and suggestions of Ibn al-Shatir of Damascus about the lunar motion have contributed a great deal to the advancement of astronomy. These and many other flash points in the history of Islamic astronomy marked a strong zeal for a change that never took place. The question is: why could not Muslims adopt a new paradigm? This article emphasizes the fact that a transformation from the assumption of a geocentric system to a heliocentric system required a fundamental paradigm shift from the Aristotelian belief in the geocentric planetary system and the more developed Ptolemaic models. Such a paradigm was prevailing in the thoughts of Muslim philosophers as well as the religious clerics. We point to the fact that in addition to the observed reality of the celestial objects rotating around the Earth with different periods, the Aristotelian picture of the universe was in agreement with the interpretations of some verses of the Qur'an related to the celestial motion. We point here to the description of the heavenly spheres given by Ikhwan as-Safa who were a group of religious philosophers with some influence in the scientific circle. While being in doubt about the Ptolemaic models, Muslim astronomers were unable to continue their revolution to adopt a profoundly different model. The traditional understanding of some religious texts may have influenced the realization of some scientific facts. This may explain why Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, who belongs to the same sect of Ikwan as-Safa, resorted to device his couple to explain the apparently non-circular orbits of the planets by circular motion of his couple. However, we allude to the possibility that Muslim Mutakallimun could have achieved such a paradigm should they have the chance to continue their project on the Islamic worldview of nature. The endeavour of Mutakallimun to establish a rational and liberal attitude towards science and religion was negatively affected by their muddling with the theological question more than the questions related to natural philosophy. Internal fight between different factions of the Mutakallimun dispersed their efforts. Furthermore, the prohibition of kalam and the debates related to kalam aborted any progress in the rational approach to establish a scientific trend in religious studies. Keywords: Geocentric model, Heliocentric model, Ptolemy, Tusi couple, Islamic astronomy.