Religious Men Research Articles

Israeli men's attitudes toward posthumous reproduction and prior consent amid ongoing armed conflict.

From October 7, 2023, until August 28, 2024, 187 posthumous sperm retrieval (PSR) procedures have been conducted on deceased men, 171 of whom are soldiers. PSR was predominantly initiated by parents to cope with their profound loss. However, the attitudes of Israeli men toward this procedure are unknown. This study aims to investigate the attitudes of Israeli men toward prior consent to PSR and posthumous-assisted reproduction (PAR) initiated by partner or parents. A cross-sectional study of 600 Israeli men aged 18-49 years who were questioned in February-April 2024 amid the ongoing armed conflict. The questionnaire included demographic details, role in the conflict, and attitudes toward PSR/PAR. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to assess agreement for PSR/PAR after adjustment for possible confounders. The average age of participants was 32 years, with 52% married or in a committed relationship and 6.5% self-identified as having same-sex relationships. The majority were secular (63%), 21% were traditional (21%), and 16% were religious. In terms of involvement in the ongoing conflict, 35% served in combat, 21% in non-combat roles, and 44% did not participate. Most men (71%) prefer pre-documenting their PSR preferences, with 70% advocating for consent during recruitment for regular military service and 78% before reserve service. Regarding PAR, 37% opposed it at their partner's request, while 47% opposed it at their parents' request. In a multivariable model, the odds of approval of PAR following parental request were four- and three-fold higher among traditional and secular versus religious men (odds ratio, OR=4.1, 95% CI: 2.0-8.1 and OR=3.3, 95% CI: 1.8-6.2, respectively) and following the request of a partner, twice higher among traditional and secular versus religious (OR=2.0, 95% CI: 1.1-4.2 and OR=2.0, 95% CI: 1.1-3.6, respectively). While it is understandable that grieving parents seek solace through PSR, consent should be obtained from the men themselves, as a considerable proportion do not support the process as it is currently performed.

The importance of Jazeera Rigin in syriac sources

This study is concerned with the position and the importance of Jazeera region in Syriac texts by shedding light on the geographic border in Islamic sources and making a comparison with Syriac sources. The different names by Syriacs historians was according to their mind, the weight of the region has reflection in the Syriac sources and records. Undoubtedly, most of the Syriacs historians had lived in that region, and they were witnesses of the most events, which consists of political and religious events. All the changes which have been brought about in the region have had direct impact on representing the social condition. Most of the population of the region are Syriacs in the Syriac records and writings, that is why the Syriacs are considered as the original people of the region. In addition, the region has been pictured as a main center of Christian religion, Syriac language and culture, as most of the Syriacs historians were religious men, all of their writings were composed with religion. They show more religious conditions of the region in the Islamic authority framework, they refer to many names of the Christian Churches in the region.

“Men who lived like women” in 18th century Alta California:<i> Coyas</i> / <i>Joyas</i>, <i>Cuút </i>or <i>Uluqi</i>, sodomites, hermaphrodites or amaricados?

Objective/context: This article analyzes testimonies of religious and military men, produced between 1770 and 1812, which give an account of Chumash, Juaneño and Yuma indigenous men of Alta California who were in the habit of dressing as women and joining them in the tasks corresponding to the feminine roles in these societies. The documents analyzed include two military diaries on the exploration expeditions and three chronicles of Franciscans who, starting in 1769, were in charge of founding missions in this area. Methodology: Through a gender perspective analysis, we examine the terms and categories used in the sources to describe and give meaning to the sexual roles and practices of the Coyas/Joyas, Cuút or Uluqi. Originality: The few works dedicated to the analysis of California Indians “in the habit of women” have focused on the missionary discourse or on the denunciation of the supposed “extermination” of dissident sexual practices. This paper argues that while the testimonies unanimously condemned these practices, they differed in the categories used to name and classify them and, thus, in the meaning attributed to them, which resulted in different legal and theological implications. Conclusions: The existence of men who dressed as women persisted, according to the sources analyzed, until the beginning of the 19th century in the region from the Gila and Colorado rivers to the Santa Barbara canal in northwestern New Spain. The categories of sodomy, amaricados or hermaphrodites, and male-female were understood under the single-sex model. And, although by the end of the eighteenth century, the principles of modern legal medicine were beginning to change, the meaning given to the Coyas/Joyas was linked to the justification of the advances or difficulties of colonization rather than to the scientific debates of the time.

The safeguarding capability of adults in Catholic Church ministries: A global perspective

BackgroundIn the wake of historical sexual abuse across the Catholic Church globally, the Church continues to develop policies and processes to prevent and respond to child sexual abuse, including supporting the skills, knowledge, and confidence of members of the Church. ObjectiveWe investigated the safeguarding capabilities of a range of people with different roles within Catholic Church ministries in various countries. Participants and settingOur 184 participants included lay people, religious men and women, school staff, safeguarding officers and tertiary students associated with the Catholic Church. Data were collected across seven different countries. MethodsWe measured the awareness, confidence, attitudes, and knowledge of participants and examined differences between participants in different roles within the Church and different countries through General Linear Models. ResultsWe found varying levels of awareness, confidence, attitudes, and knowledge regarding sexual abuse prevention and safeguarding. We pinpointed the significant differences in three of these domains (confidence, attitudes, and knowledge) both between people with different roles in the church worldwide, but also between the countries from which participants came from. ConclusionsWe found that people in various countries and roles within the Church are at different stages of their safeguarding journey. Some are still understanding their roles (attitudes), some are still learning about how it is operationalised (awareness), and others are acquiring skills that will prepare them for enacting safeguarding policies and practices (confidence).

The Domestication of Machismo in Brazil: Motivations, Reflexivity, and Consonance of Religious Male Gender Roles.

The relationship between culture and the individual is a central focus of social scientific research. This paper examines motivations that mediate between shared culture norms and individual actions. Inspired by the works of Leon Festinger and Melford Spiro, we posit that social network conformation (the perceived adherence of one's social network with norms) and internalization of cultural norms (incorporation of cultural models with the self-schema) will differentially shape behavior (cultural consonance) depending on the domain and individual characteristics. For the domain of gender roles among Brazilian men, religious affiliation results in different configurations of the individual and culture. Our findings suggest that, due to changing and competing cultural models, religious men are compelled to reflexively "think" about what masculinity means to them, rather than subconsciously conform to social (hegemonic) expectations. This study demonstrates the importance of considering the impetus of culturally informed behaviors and, in doing so, provides a methodological means for measuring and interpreting such motivations, an important factor in the relationship between culture and the individual.

Inside and Out: What Did Religious Men Wear Under Their Habits?

It is not clear what medieval religious men wore under their habits. The Rule of Saint Benedict does not include undergarments as part of daily clothing. The presence or absence of monastic underwear diverged across the medieval centuries, leading to considerable inconsistency of practice according to geography and climate, local customs, and the rigorousness with which an individual community or order observed the Rule. Scanning an eclectic array of sources ranging from religious rules to autobiographical and anecdotal evidence, this article explores the usage and meaning of underwear for religious men in Western Europe from the fifth through thirteenth centuries. Wearing underpants is an issue that reveals complicated and conflicted notions of piety, modesty, and masculinity among medieval religious men.

The buffering effect of religious belief on the associations between perceived female sexual pain and partner sexual and relationship satisfaction

This study focused on the association between female sexual pain (FSP) and male partners’ sexual and relationship satisfaction and the possible buffering effect of religiousness. A sample of 133 religious Jewish men assessed their partner’s FSP as well as their own level of religious belief and sexual and relationship satisfaction. The female partners also assessed male sexual and relationship satisfaction. FSP was significantly associated with self-assessed and partner-assessed sexual satisfaction and with self-assessed relationship satisfaction. Religious belief demonstrated a significant buffering effect on the associations between FSP and partner assessments of sexual and relationship satisfaction.

'He Should Party a Little Less': Evolving Orthodox Religiosities in Psychotherapeutic Interventions Among Jewish Gay Men.

Drawing on interviews with Jewish Orthodox psychotherapists in Israel and on sources that represent the social, political, and cultural milieu within which these therapists work, we analyze the practices they use when working with religious gay men. Given debates and prohibitions on homosexuality in Jewish law, the therapists deploy three practices: reproducing religious norms, allowing homosexuality to be privately acknowledged while advocating its concealment from the public eye, or adopting religious distinctions that enable two men to live together while abstaining from sexual intercourse. These interventions express therapists' pragmatic cultural work, sorting out opposing therapeutic discourses, like the liberal-professional and the religious, and engaging with contestations beyond the clinic's boundaries. Some interventions may suggest an acknowledgment that religious standards are often met only on the surface and require continual subterfuge. They may imply, however, a recognition of cracks in the religious ideal and fine-tuning of religious and professional commitments.

Semidirected living donors in Israel: Sociodemographic profile, religiosity, and social tolerance

Living kidney donations in Israel come from 2 sources: family members and individuals who volunteer to donate their kidney to patients with whom they do not have personal acquaintance. We refer to the first group as directed living donors (DLDs) and the second as semidirected living donors (SDLDs). The incidence of SDLD in Israel is ∼60%, the highest in the world. We introduce results of a survey among 749 living donors (349 SDLDs and 400 DLDs). Our data illustrate the sociodemographic profile of the 2 groups and their answers to a series of questions regarding spirituality and social tolerance. We find SDLDs to be sectorial: they are mainly married middle-class religious men who reside in small communities. However, we found no significant difference between SDLDs and DLDs in their social tolerance. Both groups ranked high and expressed tolerance toward different social groups. Semidirected living donation enables donors to express general preferences as to the sociodemographic features of their respected recipients. This stirs a heated debate on the ethics of semidirected living donation. Our study discloses a comprehensive picture of the profile and attitudes of SDLDs in Israel, which adds valuable data to the ongoing debate on the legitimacy of semidirected living donation.

ELIOT’S PARSONS AND THEIR ROOTS IN SCOTT’S ABBOT OF UNREASON

Critical studies have analyzed George Eliot’s unconventional religious stance, Feuerbach’s influence and her atheism/religion of humanity. An early biography reveals, however, an interesting fact: “On the same grounds it is likely that the presentation of social virtues, apart from evangelical motives, would impress her; and I have authority for stating that to the inquiry of a friend in after-years, as to what influence she attributed the first unsettlement of her orthodox views, she quickly made answer: ‘Oh, Walter Scott’s…’” (Cross 1878: 395). Taking into account the quote above regarding probably the first source of her “unorthodox views”, the question naturally arises: are her fictional pastors and religious men fashioned according to her religious views and under the influence of Feuerbach’s doctrine? Can we assume a subtler influence at work coming from Walter Scott? It is my claim that we can identify important elements in Eliot’s fictional parsons which point in the direction of Scott’s model of a hero: the ability to promote an ironic discourse; the ability to promote the flow of sympathetic exchange in dialogue with other people. Eliot’s parsons may have been outlined according to a literary, rather than religious pattern. How to account for Farebrother’s unconventional way of earning money or parson Jack’s turning the other cheek by throwing nuts at the audience that had bombarded him with rotten eggs? Unawares, Eliot’s clever moral system may have been influenced by her early readings. Small scale carnivalesque skills, unconventional behaviour and the ability to preserve dialogue with marginal characters point rather in the direction of Scott’s fictional hero. While the research so far has focused on the model of historical novels in George Eliot’s work, little attention has been given to Scott’s influence on Eliot’s moral and psychological insights and the way in which she constructed important characters such as Rev. Farebrother, Rev. Rufus Lyon, parson Jack and other clergymen and religious non-conformists in her novels.

Sexual grooming processes carried out by offending rabbis toward religious men and their families

BackgroundResearch regarding sexual grooming in cases of sexual abuse by religious authorities (SARA) is limited, despite the assumption that many SARA cases go unreported. To the best of our knowledge there is no research regarding sexual grooming committed by rabbis who sexually abused Israeli Jewish religious men. ObjectiveThe present study examined how Israeli religious SARA victims and their family members experienced sexual grooming carried out by offending rabbis. MethodsBased on a constructivist-phenomenological paradigm, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 16 formerly and/or currently still religious men who had been sexually abused by rabbis in their adolescence, and 14 of their family members. ResultsIn comparison to the Sexual Grooming Model (SGM), findings showcased that unlike other kinds of sex offenders, offending rabbis incorporated religious elements throughout the grooming process. Additionally, offending rabbis used different grooming tactics than did Catholic priests (e.g., offering joint religious studies with victims' family members; using religion to justify sexual discourse and contact). ConclusionsThe findings expand the SGM, enable a more complex understanding of the grooming processes in SARA, and emphasize the importance of further research focused on increasing the ability to use the SGM for detecting and preventing grooming behaviors.

An Analytical Study of Religious Corruption in The Canterbury Tales

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is written within a narrative framework. It is told by twenty-nine pilgrims who are on their way to visit the shrine of Saint Tomas Becket. The host of the inn decides to go with them, and they tell tales along the way to entertain each other. Although the story is supposed to have twenty-four tales from thirty characters, religion and faith are the most dominant themes in the poem. Corruption of religious men is one of the most important themes in The Canterbury Tales. The characters are corrupted. They are very preoccupied with secular things. They have no time to spend on religious things. This paper aims at investigating the corruption and hypocrisy of characters in The Canterbury Tales. It argues that although some characters in The Canterbury Tales are religious men and women, in fact they are highly corrupted. To test the validity of this proposal, five tales are analyzed.

Cognitive function among religious and non-religious Europeans: a cross-national cohort study

Objectives To examine the associations between several measures and categories of religiosity and cognitive function across sex and European regions. Methods We conducted a longitudinal study including 17,756 Europeans aged 50 and older who participated in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe wave 1. Participants were followed for up to 15 years. Associations were analyzed using linear mixed effects models adjusted for several potential confounders. Results Religious service attendance was consistently associated with better cognitive function (coefficient: 1.04, 95% CI 0.71; 1.37) across sex and European regions. Praying was also associated with better cognitive function but only among men (coefficient: 0.55, 95% CI 0.15; 0.96). However, individuals who received religious education from their parents had poorer cognitive function (coefficient: −0.59, 95% CI −0.93; −0.25). The association persisted in women and among both sexes in Western Europe. Comparing different religious categories to the non-religious, participants who were religious in childhood showed an inverse association with cognitive function, while persistently religious men exhibited better cognitive function. Conclusions Our findings indicate that religious service attendance and, to a certain extent, prayer is associated with better cognitive function. However, receiving religious education in childhood may be linked to lower cognitive function.

The moderating function of religious belief on the association between sexual dysfunctions and sexual satisfaction among religious Jewish women and men

ABSTRACT The moderating effect of religiousness on the associations between health-associated stressors and well-being is well established in the research literature but has not been examined on the association between sexual dysfunctions and sexual well-being. A sample of adult Jewish women (N = 207) and men (N = 196) responded to an online questionnaire including measures of religious belief and sexual satisfaction. Respondents’ partners assessed sexual desire dysfunction and psychological sexual arousal dysfunction of the respondent. For men and women, desire dysfunction was associated with lower levels of sexual satisfaction. Arousal dysfunction was also associated with sexual satisfaction for women but not for men. In addition, for women, a significant buffering effect of religiousness was found for the associations of both types of sexual dysfunction and sexual satisfaction. In contrast, for men, no buffering effect was found.

Building consent for counterterrorism: Lonely Planet and Rough Guide tips for women tourists to revolutionary Egypt

This article examines how the Lonely Planet and Rough Guide to Egypt (2005-2015) depicted the sexual harassment of women tourists in a way that built consent for global counterterrorism practices. It examines guidebook tips for women travellers in the period surrounding the 2011 Egyptian revolution. These guidebooks represented poorer, more religious Muslim men as threatening to both Egyptian and Western women. Guidebooks suggested that, in response to harassment, women should alter their conduct to enhance their respectability and masculinised protections. This advice naturalised violent counterterrorism practices that protected ‘respectable’ women from poorer ‘bad’ Muslim men, positioning (white) masculinised subjects as saviours and reproducing the ‘savages-victims-saviours triad’. Guidebooks thereby functioned to obscure and legitimise Egypt's repressive crackdown on anti-government dissent and women's public activism.

Ribât in Early Islamic Ifrîqiya: Another Islam from the Edge

After a difficult conquest under the Umayyads, the eastern Maghreb or Ifrîqiya region was turned into the western borderland of the Abbasid Empire in the second half of the 8th century, and its governance was soon delegated to the Aghlabid Emirate (800–909). In this context, the Sahel (or Ifriqîyan coastline) quickly became a major centre of asceticism and pious collective retreat in places dedicated to ribât activities. This practice provided a framework for the life of devout people who kept a watchful eye on the Byzantine enemy while zealously performing their devotions. A genuine frontier society of religious men and devotees, ascetics and traditionalists arose in this burgeoning coastal fringe. Over the last two decades, this topic has given rise to a very rich historiography, notably produced by Tunisian researchers who have profoundly renewed our understanding. Based on these considerable achievements, the present contribution proposes to broaden the analysis in order to show how the rise of this movement of warrior piety, advocating an ideal of jihâd, must be related to a more global phenomenon, considered at the scale of the Abbasid Empire. Remaining in a comparative dimension, this article also proposes several approaches to the specific architecture of ribât sites, especially the place devoted to the community mosque.

The protective role of identity integration against internalized sexual prejudice for religious gay men.

The protective role of identity integration against internalized sexual prejudice for religious gay men.

The role of Shiite clerics during the Safavid state (1501-1722).

This study deals with the political situation in Iran during the Safavid authority and the declaration of Shiism doctrine as the official state religion by Shah Ismael I (1501-1524). It presents how the Shiism was formed and strengthened, and also deals with the appearance of Shia religious men in the political and social fields from the declaration of the Safavid state until the end of their authority. Additionally, the religious changes and the relations of the Safavid rulers with religious men are investigated.The religious policy of Shah Tahmasp I (1524-1577) manifested in bringing a great number of scientists and Shia religious men from the Arab homeland to Iran. The Shah used those religious men in writing and publishing Shia jurisprudence books and expanding the Shiism. The fundamentals of Shiism was written during the reign of this Shah, and the authority of religious men reached the top. Besides, a great number of posts and religious titles were created at the reign of Shah Tahmasp. Another part of this study tackled the arrival of Ismael II (1576-1577) and his policy to weaken the authority of Shia religious men, and pay attention to the Sunni doctrine.Moreover, the study presented the religious policy of Shah Abbas the Great (1587-1622), who was the strongest Safavid Shah, and his attempt to remove the Qizal- Bash Sufis. He also reduced the political role of religious men and tried to establish a strong authority away from religious men. The authority of the religious men increased after Shah Abbas the Great, especially at the final reign of the Safavid authority at the reign of Hussein Al-Safawi (1694-1722). During that period, the Safavid state was completely controlled by religious men. At the reign of Shah Hussien, the Safavid authority became under the control of Mala (Mahmoud Baqir Majlisi) , who practiced a great deal of violence against other religions, especially the Sunni and Zaradashti religions.The degree and posts of religious men, their social position, class and their influence on the Iranian society will be investigated. The study also will discuss the role of religious men in the field of education, and how Sharia courts were managed by religious men, because these two important and influential points were the reason behind strengthening the authority of religious men as it was completely supervised by them.

FEATURES IMPACT IN RELIGION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

The science has given a new dimension to man’s life. Following this path man is also trying to give a rational interpretation of religion and sort out of religious beliefs from superstitious beliefs. This rational interpretation of religion gives rise to two important results in the life of man. Firstly, man’s thinking and feelings have become more and more secularized. This means that modern man has opted for a secular world and he is in no need of any religion. Secondly, indifferentism within the religion has entered into the life of almost all the religious men. The result is that man is in his everyday life trying to keep himself aloof from religious truths. My purpose here is to highlight the development of human beings in the light of the above observations. In dealing with Religion and Human Development I have taken into account some recent developments, scientific, rational, secular and religious indifferentism, which have come, into existence due to the dominance of the religious way of thinking. There was a time when only the religious way of thinking was prevalent. But as a reaction against this religious way of thinking, the above said viewpoints have emerged in the context of human development.

Religious masculinities in William of Newburgh’s Historia rerum Anglicarum

Abstract William’s revenant stories, far from being oddities, fit well within the Historia rerum Anglicarum and can be read as reformist models of masculine behaviour. They present the reader with negative examples, such as clerics who acted in inappropriate ways and got their rightful punishment, as well as positive examples of men who not only stayed faithful to the precepts of the church but bolstered their masculinity by doing so. Reading the revenant stories within this framework allows us to see how religious men adopted and adapted secular masculine ideals, shows us the value of focusing on the intersection of gender and religious status, reveals the different means through which gendered messages spread, and acts as a reminder that although one group may have been the target of regulations, all men were affected by them.