Religious Persecution Research Articles

The House of Baha’u’llah and the Struggle for Religious Visibility in Mandatory Iraq

Abstract This article analyses the struggle for possession of the House of Baha’u’llah in Baghdad during the 1920s and 1930s. One of the Bahai religion’s most sacred sites, the House of Baha’u’llah was the subject of protracted legal and political-diplomatic disputes following efforts by anti-Bahai activists to appropriate it from its Bahai custodians in 1921. The ensuing case touched almost every facet of the Iraqi judicial system, galvanised the international Bahai community and captured the attention of the British colonial state, the Iraqi government and the League of Nations. This article explores the causes and implications of the dispute, which can be considered one of the first incidents of religious persecution in modern Iraq. Rather than explaining the incident with reference to the intolerant attitudes of the Shi`i majority, the article argues for the role of the institutions of colonial modernity – the Mandates system, the new minorities regime, the praxis and discourse of colonial expansion, and the internationalism of the interwar period – for the unravelling of the case itself and for affecting modern, secular articulations of anti-Bahai prejudice.

Human Rights in Occupied Tibet: A Succinct Study of Consistent Atrocities and Genocide

The discussion surrounding Tibet and China has been a prominent topic of global conversation for a considerable period of time. Tibetans have advocated for self-determination and engaged in nonviolent efforts to establish an independent state. Tibetans in exile have undertaken many initiatives to garner international assistance and backing, including the establishment of student organisations worldwide to advocate the restoration of their autonomous statehood, organising peaceful demonstrations against the Chinese government’s acts of violence, and engaging in writing endeavours to reinforce their objections. China flagrantly violates the Human Rights of Tibetans, posing a grave threat to the preservation of Tibetan culture. Nevertheless, the international community appears to be taking no action. Accusations of human rights breaches and deliberate cultural destruction are grave charges levelled against China. This could be termed cultural annihilation or cultural genocide in general terms, involving deliberate acts that go beyond the physical and biological dimensions of a population in the pursuit of destroying its broader institutions. The research will extensively examine cultural genocide, a heinous crime that warrants significant attention. However, this research encompasses more than just this aspect and also addresses other international legal norms. This research paper will examine critical human rights issues, including the deaths of political prisoners resulting from torture and lack of proper medical care, the People’s Republic of China’s failure to provide sufficient education, high child mortality rates, forced sterilizations, and maternal health concerns, especially in Tibetan areas. The paper will also explore religious persecution and the struggle for self-determination among Tibetans. This paper attempts to grossly analyse the violation by China on Human Rights of Tibetan people. This study will use a multi-dimensional methodological approach involving doctrinal and analytical strategies as well as qualitative fieldwork. Secondary materials engaged include books, research papers, and international reports. Historical analysis contextualized Tibet’s socio-political status before and after its annexation, while thematic categorization of issues such as religious freedom, resource exploitation, and cultural genocide provided a structured framework for analysis.

A Familiar Sight: ‘Dutch Type’ and the First Printer of Norwich

AbstractAnthony Solempne, the first printer of Norwich, was among the many Dutch Protestants to flee religious persecution in the Southern Netherlands in the late 1560s and seek refuge in the Northern Provinces, France, and England. Dutch immigrants arrived in such numbers they soon formed around half the population of Norwich, the local inhabitants distinguishing themselves from the ‘otherness’ of these new arrivals by dubbing them ‘Strangers’. Solempne marketed many of his works to this growing community of displaced Dutch refugees through his use of vernacular and possibly his choice of type. This article considers how typography can embody aspects of ‘foreignness’ and familiarity on the printed page. A typographical analysis of Solempne's works forms the foundations for discussions on attributable works and the broader network of Dutch printers in England and the Continent who used a distinctive ‘Dutch type’ that would have been readily familiar to the ‘Strangers’ of Norwich. In doing so, it recognises the potential contribution of typographical studies to our understandings of ‘nationhood’ in northern Europe during the early modern period.

Swedish Women’s Health Promotion: A Social Anthropologist’s Perspective

The article presents an analysis of Swedish reproductive policy within the context of socio-economic factors, women’s health concerns, and approaches to maternal and child healthcare in Sweden. The author examines the evolution of social consciousness and practices related to motherhood and childcare, tracing the transition from traditional worldly and social norms and rules, which involved strict observance of religious dogmas, to new forms of family structure and conscious planning of reproductive behavior within families. The author considers the need to address the demographic challenges facing the country as an important motivation for the Swedish social policy since the 1930s. It is evident that economic growth and positive changes in the socio-economic environment have played a key role in the success of the ‘family’ policy. The social rights and opportunities of Swedish citizens, including the implementation of programs aimed at women’s health, have been guaranteed by the state. The implementation of state family policy has facilitated enhanced opportunities and accessibility for Swedish women, enabling them to develop their own life strategies, not only in the labor market but also in the context of their own health. Significant components of this social policy encompass implementation of suitable reproductive policies and material assistance to diverse categories of families, whether engaged in labor market activities or childcare responsibilities.

Understand Title IX implications of latest ruling on religious exemptions

Title IX maintains that federal funding will be denied to an educational institution if it excludes, denies benefits to, or subjects to discrimination any person “on the basis of sex” (20 U.S.C. § 1681(a)), including athletics. Federal courts have interpreted this law to also prohibit discrimination against gay or transgender students (Grabowski v. Ariz. Bd. of Regents, 69 F.4th 1110, 1116, 9th Cir. 2023.). Title IX does however carve out an exception that allows for a federally funded college or university to engage in discrimination if that college or university “is controlled by a religious organization if the application of Title IX would not be consistent with the religious tenets of such organization.” (20 U.S.C. § 1681(a).)

Catalytic role of Islam’s social well-being and economic justice as determinants of peaceful coexistence: a systematic literature review using PRISMA

Purpose The contributions of Islam to human civilization, spanning theology, philosophy, politics, economy, sociology and science, find ample documentation in several historical records. This paper aims to critically examine the catalytic role played by Islam’s social well-being and economic justice in advancing peaceful coexistence. Design/methodology/approach This exploration is carried out through a systematic literature review using the PRISMA framework. The paper addresses three core thematic research questions, with the intent of offering a comprehensive contribution to both the theory and application of Islamic Studies. To acquire essential data, a qualitative research approach focused on documentation, particularly the collection of non-numerical data from secondary sources, including the Qur’an, Hadith and scholarly articles, was used. Findings The systematic literature review led to three notable insights. Firstly, the promotion of social well-being by Islam contributes positively to peaceful coexistence across various global regions. Secondly, Islam’s emphasis on economic justice also plays a constructive role in nurturing peaceful coexistence in diverse geographical areas. Thirdly, the alignment between Islam’s promotion of social well-being and economic justice, following the principles of Maqasid al-Shari’ah and the five international principles of peaceful coexistence, lays the groundwork for prospective theoretical inquiries. Originality/value This study provides a pioneering perspective by systematically integrating Islamic principles with international frameworks for peaceful coexistence through the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analysis (PRISMA) methodology. It offers a unique contribution by presenting how Islam’s intrinsic values of social well-being and economic justice using Maqasidul Shari’ah indicators serve as catalysts for promoting global harmony and social stability. By bridging religious tenets with universal coexistence principles, the study sets a foundational framework for interdisciplinary and policy-driven discourse on achieving sustainable peace through faith-based social and economic structures.

Media coverage of internally displaced persons in two selected newspapers in Nigeria.

The study focused on the coverage of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in two selected newspapers. It aims to understand the extent and nature of the coverage of IDPs in these newspapers, taking into consideration the various reasons for displacement, such as conflicts and disasters, religious or political persecution, and economic necessity. Through an analysis of the selected newspapers, the study aims to shed light on the portrayal of IDPs, providing a comprehensive understanding of the issue and potential areas for improvement in media coverage. The variables of frequency, prominence, and direction were used to assess the coverage and reporting of IDPs by two Nigerian newspapers, Daily Trust and The Guardian from July, 2023 to December 2023. The study employed the method of content analysis, with coding sheet as an instrument of data collection. Additionally, agenda-setting was adopted in the study. The study period spanned over the population of Nigerian newspapers, while the sample size was made up of Daily Trust and The Guardian newspapers from which 126 editions was analyzed. Based on the data obtained, it is evident that the two newspapers reported the incident of internally displaced person in form of news stories. Similarly, despite the high rate of IDPs, the frequency of media coverage is still low. The selected newspapers cover internally displaced persons more in the inside page than the front and back pages. The study concluded that as the watchdog of the society, the media should put in more effort in reporting cases of internally displaced persons to the appropriate authorities so that proper actions will be taken in addressing the issue of IDPs.

Communion as Shared Experience in Early Modern Finland

This article investigates how Communion was shared as an experience of “lived religion” in early modern Finland. The article draws on church teaching and legal materials concerning Communion to investigate what scripts were available that shaped experience, and it draws on court record narratives on Communion-related superstition or crime to uncover variations of that script for specific local situations involving various individuals and groups of laypeople. The article suggests that while Communion was meant to create an experience of intimate knowledge between the divine and the Christian, as well as between all Christians, at times its shared nature was limited and produced experiences of exclusion and self-exclusion. Furthermore, the article considers experience in terms of a relational process, suggesting that “experience of religion” as a concept can help with investigating religious conflict and persecution when the concept of “lived religion” offers insufficient nuance.

A language of Their Own: Deconstructing Patriarchal Language and Religious Oppression in Miriam Toews’ Women Talking

This essay explores the depiction of linguistic and religious oppression of women in Miriam Toews' Women Talking, while focusing on their efforts to deconstruct patriarchal structures and reclaim agency. Set within a patriarchal Mennonite community, the novel illustrates the lives of women and their endeavors to find a solution to the systemic sexual violence perpetrated by men within the community. This essay argues that the women’s journey toward self-discovery and liberation hinges on their ability to deconstruct patriarchal language and reconstruct a new, emancipatory form of expression. Since language is central to the novel, the analysis of the women’s dialogues and interpretive acts brings their journey of challenging oppressive structures into sharper focus. In this context, Kristeva’s theory of symbolic and semiotic modalities, which transcend phallogocentrism, and Derrida’s theory of deconstruction, which challenges fixed meanings and centralized authority in language offer significant insight into how these women navigate the journey of deconstructing oppressive language and religion while attempting to reconstruct new ones. Building on these theoretical perspectives, the essay situates the novel within discussions of feminism, religious hegemony, and gender-based violence, exploring how language and religion, as tools of patriarchal oppression, intersect to shape the women's experiences. Finally, it demonstrates how Women Talking challenges and redefines narratives of power and agency in contemporary literature.

Perspective on the deconstruction of science and how to rebuild our cathedrals of knowledge

Abstract Of the critical institutions that deconstructionists wish to dismantle is science. In this perspective, we document recent assaults on this venerable institution. From Galileo’s Renaissance through the twentieth century and the Scopes trial, superstition and religious dogma won over reason in battles between religion and science. Even though Galileo’s inquisition occurred 400 years ago, science is still under attack today in the twenty-first century. While one may dismiss or excuse the older examples of science’s devaluation on the basis that science was not an accepted source of knowledge at the time, present-day challenges are more problematic and disturbing.

Abortion- Its Religious Dogmatism and Conflicts with Special Reference to Golakganj and Mayarchar Areas of Dhubri District

Abortion being one of the most controversial issue carries with it a religious dogmatism, religious conflicts along with social, economic and political aspects. Religious dogmatism contributes to the abortion stigma that women may face when seeking or obtaining an abortion. These norms can manifest in a variety of ways that may limit access to safe abortion. This paper tries to explore those ways and manners which generally prevents the issue of abortion from nearing to logical thoughts and justifications. The paper also tries to analyse the relations and the ways by which these social stigmas and religious dogmatism gets attached to abortion which mostly yields unethical and negative consequences along with hampering the mental development of both the genders. Lastly the paper tries to highlight the religious conflicts prevailing in the Golokganj and Mayarchar areas of Dhubri District and tries to analyse the practical and ethical views of the whole matter and also attempts to bring an amicable solution so that our societies try to free themselves from the dogmatic religious norms of abortion and takes up the issue in a more rational and pragmatic manner for the much needed upgradation of the society.

David de Boer, The Early Modern Dutch Press in an Age of Religious Persecution. The Making of Humanitarianism

David de Boer, The Early Modern Dutch Press in an Age of Religious Persecution. The Making of Humanitarianism

William James' Theory of Truth and Its Relevance for Religious Education

Religious absolutism is one of the epistemological roots behind various acts of religious intolerance that threaten the order of life in a plural, dynamic, tolerant and inclusive democratic society. This research is a study of philosophical literature that explores the ideas of William James's pragmatic theory of truth and finds its relevance to religious education in order to anticipate symptoms of religious absolutism. James challenged the absolutism of truth that had been maintained for centuries in the Western philosophical tradition. Truth does not lie in ideas or notions, but rather in the process or event of verification and validation of those ideas or notions in experience. He offers a pragmatic concept of truth that takes into account the practical consequences of ideas in experience. For him, truth should be dynamic, open, continuously growing and plural. Inspired by James' ideas, the author conveys the importance of religious truth and religious education interpreted in a more pragmatic framework. Religious truth is not only built from religious dogma or doctrine but is a reflective and dialogical process through the experience of faith, which is formed in relation to other truths. In a contemporary pluralistic society, religious education cannot be reduced to simply teaching religious doctrine or dogma. Religious education needs to be carried out within a pragmatic framework as a form of religious moderation education that pays attention to efforts to develop critical-reflective abilities to grow faith in a sustainable manner, creatively interpreting human experience, as well as forming human ethical character to maintain a harmonious life together.

From Pulpit to Everyday Speech: The Social and Linguistic Impact of Pentecostalism in Nigerian

Nigerian Pentecostalism has emerged as a significant social and cultural force, wielding substantial influence over many aspects of daily life, including language use. The movement has contributed not only to the rise of new lexical expressions that reinforce religious dogmatism in a restrictive sense, but also has fecundated their pervasive deployments in social discourse, in a non-restrictive sense. Through innovative media, Pentecostal ideology—particularly in warfare prayer forms and vernacular—has permeated society, allowing everyday people to adopt these expressions in popular culture to convey various ideologies and identities. This study examines how ordinary Nigerians use these expressions as tools of offense and defense against perceived threats to their progress as well as a means of engagement and socialization. Analytical in nature, the study employs Norman Fairclough’s (1995) Critical Discourse Analysis and draws on data from participant observations and unstructured interviews. The findings show that the adoption of Pentecostal language and expressions reflects the changing sociocultural landscape and the influence of religious movements on societal norms and values. Both language and religion are shown to be fundamental instruments in the development of human society.

"Alatyr" Antithesis to "Latinism": on the Alien Religious Expansion of Schismatics

The article contains a number of little-studied facts about the disgusting variety of Russian skopchestvo, which came to Russia from Greece and Bulgaria. It shows the spread of this religious culture in the 17th-18th centuries across the territory of Simbirsk and other provinces, deprived of the restraining framework of Christian commandments, trampling on the institutions of marriage, family values, morality, etc. The genesis, circumstances of the emergence and reasons for the spread of sectarianism and the Khlyst-skopchestvo process as a whole are shown, fragments of a meeting of the Ethnography Department of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society (1865) are presented, held on the example of the “Alatyr ship” or “Miliutina” faith as an antithesis to “Latinism”. The need to understand universal human values taking into account the skopchestvo ritual sphere of the Middle Volga region in the 17th century is substantiated. and religious dogmas of the past to solve modern problems of spiritual and moral education of the younger generation, the formation of strong social immunity, the formatting of the internal spiritual forces of society that have remained outside the field of vision of society and the scientific community of Russia for the settlement of future regional conflicts.

Rabelais in the Whig World: Religious Persecution, Forced Migration and the Politics of Literary Translation in Post-Revolutionary England

Abstract: The commentary that Pierre Antoine Le Motteux (1663-1718) added to the English translations of Rabelais that he issued in 1694, in which he interpreted the comic episodes of Gargantua and Pantagruel as "satirical allegories" on historical events and personalities in sixteenth-century France, has been mocked by commentators from Alexander Pope to Mikhail Bakhtin as a narrow, philistine way to read literature. This article recovers the personal context of religious persecution and forced migration that shaped the approach to reading Rabelais of Motteux, a Huguenot refugee in post-Revolutionary London. It also recovers the public context in which Motteux's translation and commentary were composed and published, relating them to the principles espoused by leading Whig writers, publishers, and politicians. Finally, it is suggested that Motteux's approach to Rabelais as an allegory that can be deciphered with the correct historical "key" influenced notable instances in the eighteenth-century development of English comic fiction, including Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels (1726) and Laurence Sterne's A Political Romance (1759).

Ideological Control against Heteronormativity in Forster's 'Maurice'

Set in Victorian to Edwardian England, the novel features a character with a homosexual identity, prompting this research on the character's non-conformity to heteronormative standards. This article aims to analyze the form of ideological control that emerges as the heteronormative norm in the novel Maurice through the perspective of class-consciousness Marxist, using Eagleton’s Ideology theory. Ideological theory through Marxist concepts, reveals context-based analysis of how economic structures shape ideology and social change. This article uses a descriptive-qualitative method with a mimetic approach, which describes the data collected through narration and dialogue from the novel. The findings categorize heteronormative norms as ideological control into three types: those stemming from religious dogma, the hegemony of masculinity in public schools, and the discourse on sexuality. Maurice explained the causal relationship between class position in the social strata and dominant norms, impacting the characters' lives.

Resistance to economic exploitation or religious oppression? A sociomaterial analysis of the agency of Muslim food-delivery workers facing algorithmic management

This qualitative case study examines food-delivery platforms in France in order to reveal how gig workers, lacking traditional employment protections and collective bargaining, rely on informal community mechanisms to develop collective agency that is closely linked to the materiality of platforms. Drawing upon sociomaterial theory and the concept of affordance, our results show that religious affiliation plays a crucial role in the actualization of algorithmic management artifacts by Muslim migrant workers and leads to a sense of emancipation and reconciliation between their religious and work identities. Religious communities, often overlooked or avoided by traditional organizations, act as mediators in the gig economy. Because it uses “ post-diversity” organizational practices that are indifferent to marginal socio-demographic categories, the gig economy provides workers with material, emotional, and informational resources that facilitate identity agency and prioritize it over algorithmic management. The present study contributes to the literature on platform work by illuminating the intricate duality of agency experienced by Muslim migrant workers in the food-delivery sector and developed through community-built resources. It highlights the prioritization of freedom from religious oppression in the labor market over economic considerations, which leads to the acceptance of exploitative working conditions and peer control.

Authority of Conscience: Legitimizing a Theology of the Political in Democratic Society

The article dicusses the theologico-political relationship in modern liberal democracies. The author contrasts two approaches to understanding the relationship between religion and politics: political religion, which strives for complete coincidence of religious and political spheres, and the theology of the political, based on the principle of their de-coincidence. Exploring the historical evolution of these relations from Antiquity through medieval Christianity to modernity, the author demonstrates how Christianity first introduced the principle of de-coincidence between theological and political dimensions, which was subsequently lost in the modern era. Special attention is paid to analyzing the works of modern philosophers (Hobbes, Spinoza, Locke, Rousseau) who laid the foundations for the contemporary understanding of relations between religion and politics. The central thesis of the article is that modern liberal democracies suffer from the absence of a legitimate form of relationship between religious and political dimensions. The author proposes the concept of “theology of the political,” based on the principle of de-coincidence, as a way to overcome this crisis. This approach allows avoiding both complete separation of religious and political spheres and their merger in the form of civil religion. The article argues that the legitimacy of theological discourse in the public sphere should be based not on the external authority of religious dogma, but on theology’s ability to create space for critical reflection on political order and social norms. This is particularly important in the context of contemporary challenges such as the migration crisis, bioethical debates, multiculturalism, and religious pluralism. The author concludes that overcoming the current crisis of liberal democracies requires revisiting both the principles of modernity and the role of religion in the public sphere. The author concludes that genuine autonomy of the political subject paradoxically requires recognition of its fundamental non-autonomy, which constitutes the essence of the democratic paradox most fully expressed in the Christian tradition.

“China” and the Emergence of Religious Toleration in Enlightenment Philosophers, Part I: The Early Jesuit Mission and Bayle's Conception of “Reciprocal Toleration”

ABSTRACTThis article reconstructs the influence of Jesuit missionary writings focusing on China on the emergence of a distinctive conception of toleration. The article highlights the often neglected contributions of Pierre Bayle. After a brief reconstruction of key elements of the Sino‐European encounter, such as the Kangxi Emperor's edict of toleration, the paper describes how Bayle's interpretation of the China Mission contributed to a critique of religious persecution in France and enabled him to develop a defense of a rationalist approach to toleration. The article demonstrates that Bayle's knowledge of China and his methodology of intercultural changes in perspective contributed to the development of an original conception of reciprocal toleration.