Religious Community Leaders Research Articles

Intellectual Formation for Professionalism in Catholic Education: The Sister Formation Conference

Abstract: The Sister Formation Conference originated as a movement of Catholic women's religious community leaders to improve a new member's understanding of her spiritual compatibility with her religious community and her training in the professional apostolate(s) engaged in by her community. This study documents the pre-history and first two decades of the Sister Formation Conference as it sought to advance professionalism within the ministries of women religious. During those years, Sister Formation influenced both regionally and nationally the standards for training and certifying religious sisters, especially those engaged in teaching.

Television Mass Media Relations to Culture Shifts in Besilam Malay Community

Media relations with culture can play a role in shifting the views of the Besilam Malay community. This study focuses on the impact of television mass media as a pivotal component of modern society. Technological advancements have placed society at a crossroads, presenting a choice between embracing contemporary progress or adhering to time-honored traditions. The pervasive influence of media serves as a catalyst in shaping awareness and perspectives. The tug-of-war between embracing change and preserving heritage is well exemplified in the traditional berahoi ceremony, which recently has taken up only a small part of the whole tradition. The development of the times that continue to follow renewal can influence people's attitudes and thoughts towards culture supported by technology in the media. This paper used a qualitative research model with a heuristic approach to gather information from cultural and religious community leaders around the Besilam community. This study holds significance in illuminating the ancestral traditions deeply rooted within the Besilam Malay community. It aims to shed light on the evolving nature of these traditions and their transformations over time. Additionally, it serves as a call to action, advocating for the Langkat Regency government to prioritize the preservation of these rich cultural customs. A recommendation is proposed to allocate resources from the APBD Budget Policy through the Tourism Office to sustain and promote these traditions, ensuring their continuity for future generations. Modern Globalization Theory, coined by Wallerstein, asserts that social change occurs as underdeveloped nations emulate the practices and advancements of their more advanced counterparts as a means of progress and growth.

Religious Leaders’ Compliance with State Authority: Experimental Evidence from COVID-19 in Pakistan

Abstract A randomized controlled trial in Pakistan tests whether one-on-one engagement with community religious leaders can encourage them to instruct congregants to follow government regulations. Treated religious leaders are 25 percent more likely to comply with government requirements to tell congregants they should wear a mask to prevent COVID transmission when attending prayers. Treatment effects do not depend on the religious content of the message. Effects are driven by respondents who already understand the mechanics of COVID transmission at baseline, suggesting the treatment does not work by correcting basic knowledge about the disease, but rather through a mechanism of persuasion.

Islam Moderat di Masyarakat Multi Kultural: Internalisasi Nilai-nilai Islam Wasatiyah di Masyarakat Ngepet Srigading Sanden Bantul Yogyakarta

Success in internalizing religious values in society depends on several important things such as the method used, the character and qualifications of the preacher, and a supportive environment. To prove this, this research is presented, where the author will examine the efforts to internalize the values of religious moderation carried out by religious leaders in Ngepet Srigading Sanden Village, Bantul, Yogyakarta. This research is qualitative research with a descriptive-analytic type of field research. Data collection using observation, interview and documentation methods, using Miles and Huberman analysis, namely: data reduction, data presentation, and drawing conclusions or verification. The results of the research show that, in instilling wasatiyah Islamic values through two channels, namely: first, the important role of K.H Daru Kawantoro who has wasatiyah character is able to integrate the study of the taklim assembly with his various experiences when interacting or gathering with figures from across sects/faiths. Second, learning outside the mosque, the methods used are the uswah hasanah method and the direct practice method, the learning process occurs when the community takes lessons or imitates what is exemplified by community religious leaders, the learning is reflected in the activities and interactions demonstrated directly by K.H. Daru Kawantoro in the Ngepet Srigading Sanden Bantul Yogyakarta community.

Maternal perception and fear on the adverse effects of immunization, Surabaya City

The achievement of immunization has become a global focus, not only in Indonesia. Maternal perception is one of the factors in increasing complete basic immunization (IDL) status in an area. The aimed to analyze several perceptions and fear of the adverse effects of mothers with IDL status in non-universal child immunization (UCI) urban village areas in Surabaya City. A cross-sectional study was conducted from September 2019 to May 2020. The sample was the community taken from the baseline data survey on IDL problems in non-UCI villages in Surabaya City in 2017. The five variables are the mother's characteristics, the mother's fear of the adverse effects of immunization, the belief/culture, the mother's busyness, and the family support that can be changed in maternal perception. The Chi-square test and a logistic regression test were both used in the multivariate analysis. And 1,449 mothers were included. The mother's perception that has the most influence is the mother's fear of the adverse effects of immunization with an OR of 10.139 at 95% CI (4.063–25.302). The findings show that they need to get an education or socialization from health professionals, collaborate with religious community leaders, as well as getting health campaigns.

Living Interfaith Dialogue during the Lockdown: The Role of Women in the Italian Case

The aim of this article is to present some results of a study conducted in Italy exploring interfaith dialogue during and after the 2020 lockdown. To continue ritual practices during the COVID-19 emergency, several religious communities rethought all their forms of communication. They have shifted their activities mainly to the internet. Often, these transformations changed the forms of religious practices, but did not alter pre-existing cosmologies and theologies. How has physical distance affected interfaith dialogue, and what role did women play? To answer these questions, the research used semi-structured interviews with key informants, including opinion leaders of religious communities and experts. The analysis of the interviews paid special attention to the active role played by women in building bridges between different religions.

The Program of Deradicalization of Islamists “Operation Safe Corridor” in Nigeria: Evaluation by Contemporary African Scholars

The problem of deradicalization programs for Islamists in Nigeria has taken an important place in the studies of the modern African scholars. The article is devoted to the study of the works of contemporary African authors related to the Operation Safe Corridor program. The authors of the works selected for analysis note that the state’s forceful responses and military operations should coexist with the concept and practices of “soft power”. Scholars argue that the Operation Safe Corridor program has structural flaws. These, according to the authors, include the predominant role of the military in program management; non-transparency of program management for society; amnesty for former terrorists without justice. One of the key problems of the program is the reintegration of the former fighters into local communities. The lack of mechanisms to ensure the involvement of public and religious community leaders in the development of a deradicalization program often undermines the goals of the program. The economic dimension of the program, according to scientists, is very important. There are risks for former terrorists returning to the terrorist group due to economic problems, poverty and unemployment.

Masks vs. God and Country: The Conflict between Public Health and Christian Nationalism

From its inception, the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) has been expressly areligious, aiming to promote the health of the American people during specific crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as responding to endemic issues such as heart disease, opioid addiction and obesity. However, some Christian nationalists perceive this areligious advocacy of science as a challenge to the moral authority of Christianity and the Bible. Protests against public health guidelines have utilized religious language to defend what participants see as their civil and God-given rights, deepening the divide between science and religion. Yet historically, public health advocates have built relationships with religious community leaders and employed educational campaigns to bridge this gap. Drawing on an analysis of USPHS history, Christian nationalist ideology and recent COVID-19 protests, this article argues that public health has historically used specific strategies to ensure a more favourable response and compliance, and makes the case that it should do so again.

II. Abdülhamid Döneminde Aşı Karşıtlarına Zorunlu Aşı Yönetmeliğini Uygulamadaki Zorluklar

With the vaccination regulations published successively in 1885, 1894 and 1904 the legal framework of the compulsory smallpox vaccination was drawn. The aim of this study is to determine from the archive documents of the period the difficulty faced by the government in the application of compulsory vaccination and the official approach to the solution of vaccine opposition. Official writings between 1885-1905 in the context of resolving the opposition to vaccination were searched for in the Prime Ministry Ottoman archives. Auxiliary sources were consulted for the interpretation of the expressions. With the aim of resolving opposition to mandatory vaccination, support was requested from religious community leaders; the benefits of the vaccine was publicized through newspapers; residents of every district were encouraged to report those who are not vaccinated to the official authorities. One of the biggest problems faced was that children were not vaccinated. Some of those who did not want to be vaccinated even changed their address. The applicability of the penalties foreseen in the regulations for those who do not get vaccinated was the main subject of discussion. By 1905, opposition to vaccination seems to have continued in certain regions of Istanbul. From an ethical point of view, compulsory vaccination aimed to protect public health conflicted with the will of those who were against the vaccine. However, it was noticed during the implementation process that the penalties stipulated in the regulation for those who do not want to be vaccinated do not guarantee vaccination.

A Model of Religious Moral Approach for Peatland Ecosystem Restoration in Indonesia

Efforts to conserve peatlands and prevent forest fires are inseparable from human awareness and behavior. This study aims to find a model for a religious, moral approach by the clerics in supporting the implementation of peatland restoration. The study was carried out in designated Muslim locations with trained clerics. The farmers surveyed also have experienced by the Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG) programs: i.e., physical support, such as a canal dam program and demonstration plot of agriculture without burning (PLTB). The methods used combine quantitative surveys with a Likert scale to explore attitudes, subjective norms, perception, intention, and their impact on behavior. The results obtained show that the community religious leaders can be an important trigger in encouraging the movement. In the model, visible subjective norm (SN) variables contribute directly to intention by 23%. Perceived behavior control (PBC) directly has a positive and significant effect on intention 53% (p-value). This means the individual, in making a decision and intention to participate, is a factor that has a broad impact on the community and gives a positive value of 53% (good enough) on the intention. The individuals' decisions to participate in peatland conservation are prompted by perception of having a wide impact on the community.

Persuasion and Public Health: Evidence from An Experiment with Religious Leaders during COVID-19 in Pakistan

We use a Randomized Controlled Trial in Pakistan to test whether one-on-one engagement with community religious leaders can encourage them to advise congregants to comply with public health guidelines from state authorities. We test whether religious content in this engagement increases its effectiveness. We find that simple one-on-one engagement significantly improves the advice given by religious leaders to congregants on preventing COVID transmission in the mosque. Engagement was equally effective with or without explicitly religious content. Treatment effects are driven by the subsample who are already convinced of basic information about COVID at baseline, suggesting the treatment does not work by correcting basic knowledge about the disease. Rather, it may work through the effectiveness of one-on-one engagement that reinforces existing knowledge and connects it to actions that respondents can take in their role as community leaders.

Achieving equity in diabetes care in BAME communities in Hampshire, UK: the DEBI‐H project

Achieving equity in diabetes care in <scp>BAME</scp> communities in Hampshire, <scp>UK</scp>: the <scp>DEBI‐H</scp> project

Why Have Immunization Efforts in Pakistan Failed to Achieve Global Standards of Vaccination Uptake and Infectious Disease Control?

Immunization is one of the most successful public health initiatives in recent times. It is, therefore, worrying to learn the level of under-vaccination in Pakistan. Diseases that have been successfully eliminated through the aid of vaccination in other countries have not been eliminated in Pakistan. The reasons for this vary and show the uniqueness of the economic, healthcare and environmental landscape of Pakistan, through which public health programmes need to be implemented. The “Expanded Programme of Immunization” (EPI) is the main programme through which routine immunization is provided to the public. Within Pakistan, it has encountered many problems since its inception. This includes logistical obstacles, inefficient health worker attitudes, parental and female awareness, and education, the influence of religious community leaders and the complications that accompany conflict. When compared to globally standardised targets for immunization, Pakistan is trailing behind. Not achieving these targets is worrying from both a global perspective and within the national healthcare landscape of Pakistan. Research is necessary to bring together findings on the failings of routine immunization and polio campaigns; there are many intersecting factors that global health bodies and the Department of Health in Pakistan must address in order to relieve the burden of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs).

Russia: “No entry”!

Russia is in the habit of issuing travel bans. It is not publicly known how often such bans are imposed every year. They affect academics, journalists, human rights campaigners and leaders of religious communities. The FSB, the state secret service, plays a key role in the imposition of the travel bans. The official reason given is that the people affected pose a threat to Russia’s national security. In some cases, this risk must be of monstrous proportions. For example, the German ethnologist Johannes Rohr, who has been conducting research on indigenous peoples, has been prohibited from entering Russia until 2069.

Buying behaviour and symbolic consumption of food and alcoholic beverages among people with religious affiliations in Bogota, Colombia

AbstractThis paper aims to describe the buying behaviour of people with religious affiliations from the perspective of the symbolic consumption of food products and alcoholic beverages in Bogota. A qualitative methodology, with a non‐experimental and cross‐sectional design was applied. The technique used is an in‐depth interview with a “snowball” sampling technique. Participants, ranging from 20 to 30 years of age, were identified by the criteria from youth groups with a defined and internalized religious affiliation in their everyday lives. The findings include the description of a buying behaviour with significant restrictions, conditioned by the individuals’ religious affiliation or beliefs. Some habits, such as fasting and the importance of health and image regarding both food and alcoholic beverages, are listed as well as the type of symbolic consumption with religious community leaders teaching and recommending customs that are consistent with their doctrine.

An Investigation of an Expanded Police Chaplaincy Model: Police Chaplains’ Communications with Local Citizens in Crisis

Many people look to public servants such as the police to provide emotional and social support in addition to their traditional responsibilities of protecting citizens from harm and danger. Consequently, various police departments around the country are partnering with qualified community religious leaders to comfort and counsel local citizens in times of crisis. This qualitative study examines how police chaplains interact with local citizens in crisis, focusing on communication as it relates to the chaplains’ ministry of presence and listening behaviors. The analysis of content generated from focus groups and in-depth interviews with police chaplains reveals that the mere presence of chaplains diffuses difficult situations as citizens seem to find solace being in the company of these non-threatening, non-judgmental crisis clergy. Further analysis shows that chaplains engage in verbal-person centeredness and nonverbal immediacy, two specific behaviors that have been found to constitute supportive listening.

Devolving the Power to Divide: Sectarian Relations in Egypt (2011-12)

This article is about decentralisation and social cohesion in religiously heterogeneous communities in times of political transition. Post-Mubarak Egypt is taken as a case study involving the informal devolution of power in managing sectarian relations between the majority Muslim and minority Christian populations between February 2011 and June 2012. On the surface, the process had features of a political decentralisation of power which holds promise of downward accountability. The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) delegated the governance of local sectarian conflict to religious community leaders enjoying high popularity, a policy that was subsequently followed by the Muslim Brotherhood-led government. However, the process of local leaders assuming the power to govern was also an unintended consequence of the collapse of rule of law in a context of extreme political volatility associated with a country in revolt.

Journalism and the Politics of Hate: Charting Ethical Responses to Religious Intolerance

A series of international controversies involving religious offense have manifested the clash of values between freedom of expression and respect for religious identity. Such conflicts pose an ethical dilemma for media. Journalists need to assert freedom of expression, but they should also understand how hate speech can be used to repress targeted groups, and not turn into unwitting facilitators of such campaigns. They should also appreciate that the taking of offense, and not just the giving of it, can be engineered by leaders of religious communities to secure a political advantage. Journalists appear underprepared for handling such events. While not attempting a revision of current codes of ethics, this paper draws on legal discourse to suggest a framework and a language through which journalists can deliberate their ethics to respond to an urgent global challenge.

LESS EXPANSIVE HEALTH CARE REFORMS

Health care leaders are always trying to find out how the most famous and best - resourced hospitals in the world do the things. Large scale reforms in US, such as the medical homes, are building integrated care sys-tems to improve quality of health. Evidence from the literature suggests that this may not be how it works in the developing world. But the present literature shows time and again that great ideas often come from un-likely places in the developing countries. As health systems around the world struggle to do more with less, solutions are coming from developing countries, which have been finding innovative and in-expensive ways to care for their populations. There's a lot of literature that suggests General Practitioners (GPs) should be at the center of the integ-rated approach, and policy makers may build models around them. This makes sense if we think practical. Few Teaching Institutions in less developed / less rich countries are now reaching to their patients out-side their teaching hospitals by launching the Commu-nity - Based Chronic Disease Management (CCDM) program with General Practitioners in the core , Com-munity Nurses, Paramedics and Religious Community Leaders. They perform medical assessments, adjust medications, and provide prescriptions and arrange screenings, give preventive education, and coordinate specialist health care services. CCDM engages Gen-eral Practitioners who are the most independent group of health care professionals As result of CCDM practice, on average, 61% of patients with hypertension achieved a reduction in both systolic and diastolic BP of at least 5 mmHg, dia-betic patients saw an average 15% reduction in A1c levels. Given that each 5 mmHg reduction in diastolic BP has been shown to reduce the risk of stroke by 34% and ischemic heart disease by 21%, we can imagine the impact of CCDM on care costs and patients' qua-lity of life. I hope the readers will find this information stimu-lating for reforming health care.

Religious Leaders’ Opinions and Guidance Towards Oral Health Maintenance and Promotion: A Qualitative Study

Religions emphasize the supreme value of life. However, potential or concrete conflicts of perception between dictates of faith and science often present an inescapable dilemma. The aim of this qualitative research was to examine the views of spiritual and religious leaders towards general and oral health issues. A total of 11 eminent Jewish spiritual and religious community leaders were purposively chosen. They were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. The verbatim transcriptions of the interviews were analysed in the spirit of grounded theory, using qualitative data analysis software. Open, axial, and thematic coding served to build categories and themes. Analysis of participants' perspectives reflected that they, based upon Jewish theology, attributed high importance to primary prevention at both personal and community levels. Religious and orthodox people were depicted as being motivated towards maintaining oral health behaviours due to a sense of obligation to follow religious edicts, strong social support, and elevated perceived spiritual levels. We offer a theoretical model that can explain the potential high motivation among these communities towards implementing positive general and oral health behaviours. Religiosity may be regarded as an example of a psycho-social health determinant, encompassing spiritual belief ("psycho") and social support ("social") components.