Religious Sources Research Articles

Between Lynn White and Big Gods – religious sources of pro-environmental attitudes – cross-cultural test of Lynn White's Hypothesis

This study examines the connection between religious beliefs and pro-environmental attitudes using data from three waves of the World Values Survey (WVS) conducted in 1989, 1999, and 2009. The findings reveal a paradoxical relationship between religion and environmental attitudes. While respondents who identified with a specific religious denomination tended to have lower pro-environmental attitudes than those without a religious affiliation, individuals who placed high personal importance on their religiosity and participated in religious practices were more likely to have pro-environmental attitudes. This relationship was moderated by the religious denomination. However, the effects were minimal, explaining only 0.4% of the variance, and were only detected due to the analysis's high statistical power.

Kult Awashimy i jego zawiązki z kobiecą cielesnością

The purpose of this article is to discuss certain ritual activities and beliefs related to Awashima (Awashima shinkō) with special reference to those involving the female body. It provides the historical background of Awashima based on historical and religious sources, supplemented by some literary examples. This article shows, that the origin legend of Awashima was transmitted by twofold mediums: the official one, promoted by the Awashima Shirine (Awashima Jinja) by means of booklets (such as Kada Awashima Jinja engi, Kada Awashima Jinja ryakuryaku engi), and the folk one (such as Chirizuka monogatari, Kokkei zōdan, Zoku Asuka-gawa), promoted orally by Awashima gannin (questors of Awashima). Both strains of the tradition emphasize women’s matters, such as their reproductive health, maternity, and marriage as areas in which the Awashima deities specialize. Following the analysis, the annual ritual of floating dolls (hina nagashi) on 3 March is presented as a contemporary manifestation of Awashima-related beliefs that only formally bear some similarities to purification rituals. The overall discussion is intended to shed light on a little known aspect of hina matsuri, the meaning of which exceeds that of a Girls’ Festival.

Digital-Based Literacy Analysis of Religious Moderation: Study on Public Higher Education Students

The purpose of this study was to find out the sources of religious Literacy for Private College students in Bekasi City based on increasing their religious insight, as well as to find out which sources were related to religious moderation. The digital-based religious literacy sources referred to in this study are religious sources and networks of religious resources commonly accessed by students to increase religious insight and knowledge. This study uses a descriptive quantitative approach with survey—research data collection by questionnaire, using google form. Document data or questionnaires are analyzed for their content to conclude reflectively. The results showed 1) the enthusiasm of students in finding sources of digital-based religious literacy was tremendous, students tended to seek religious information of their choice through the Internet and social media they had, including surfing on Google, Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, WhatsApp, Tiktok, and religious websites. 2) religious literacy is chosen by students seeking religious insight through the preacher who is active in cyberspace because they consider listening to lectures via the Internet to be practical, easy to obtain, and easy to understand the contents of the lectures. 3) the platforms or websites they visit tend to be mainstream lecturers. Therefore, it is necessary to pay special attention to the rectorate and the Ministry of Religion to explore the contents accessed by students to create religious moderation among students.

Sex Education in Islamic Primary Schools in The Netherlands

The Netherlands is known for its progressive attitude towards dealing with sexuality. Sex education has a permanent place in the educational system. Dutch legislation provides schools with the opportunity to teach the subject in their own way, in line with the school’s ethos/identity. In this article I answer the question: What are the views and attitudes of RE teachers regarding sexuality in the teaching practice of Islamic primary schools? Qualitative research among six teachers of religious education (RE), a school principal, and a counsellor of religion at the Islamic school foundation SIMON, shows that respondents experience a gap between Islamic principles regarding sexuality and views common in Dutch society. Topics that lead to discussion include talking openly about sex, sexual diversity and the use of photos and images. The question emerges what role shame plays in Islamic sex education. One experiences a paradox as to the call to shame that emanates from religious sources, which seems to contradict the openness found in the same sources. Islamic sex education at SIMON schools seems to prefer open, informative, and modest communication about (almost) all subjects related to sexuality. Islamic views and an attitude of respect are encouraged with positive and loving terminology.

«Incense Seals» in Chinese Culture: Origins, Ritual and Practical Functions

The article focuses on the origin of traditional Chinese culture seal-censers (香印 xiangyin, 香篆 xiangzhuan), including an analysis of key functions during their evolutionary course over several centuries. The specificity of early incense seals is revealed through the study of religious, documentary and artistic sources of the Tang (618–907) and Song (960–1279) epochs, Chinese catalogs and reference books dating back to the last years of the Qing dynasty (last quarter of the 19th century) and 7th – 8th centuries Buddhist texts. Key features of the symbolism and functions of aromatic seals in rituals, engineering and scientific fields, as well as in artistic and household fields are also analyzed. Currently, the practice of burning incense seals in China and Taiwan is generally limited to artistic and commercial fields. At the same time, the lengthy religious, artistic and everyday tradition of the East contains great opportunities for using incense seals. Such as, naturally combining them with other types of leisure, including being considered an effective way to maintain physical and mental health.

Mutahhari, Natural Rights, and Women's Exclusion from Public Life

AbstractGender‐based violence is a phenomenon that takes place in almost all societies around the world. It is violence directed against men or women due to their gender in various physical, sexual, psychological, and socio‐political forms. However, the majority of victims are women. Undoubtedly, gender inequality is one of the root causes of many forms of violence against women, including their exclusion from social activities. Nonetheless, misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the primary religious sources play a significant role in gender inequality in both domestic and public realms and create wounded memories for women within different communities in the name of religion. This research does not aim to investigate different forms of violence against women; rather, it intends to probe the theoretical basis of the exclusion of women from social realms. The main focus is the thought of Ayatollah Murtada Mutahhari, a 20th‐century philosopher, theologian, and traditional reformer in Iran. This study demonstrates how Mutahhari, with reference to the philosophy of natural rights, deals with unfair attitudes toward women's social activities and paves the way for their active participation in society. This study is based on library research and textual analysis.

Religion in the Lyrics of the Czech Underground

The study analyses various types of religion manifested in the lyrics of Czech underground musicians in the 1970s and 1980s. The author primarily examines the religious, implicitly religious, and social sources of musicians and the recipient communities in religion. In the second part of the study, he focuses on the types and ways of presenting religious content. Although much of it was derived from ecclesiastical Christianity (which does not mean that it corresponded to specific confessions or religious traditions), he also notes non-Christian and alternative spiritualities parallel to any organised religion. Although the article does not pay much attention to the reception of the underground religion and its communities, the author concludes that this phenomenon was among the key manifestations of modern self-oriented spirituality in Czech society.

Considerations in education for forgiveness and reconciliation: lessons from Arab and Muslim majority contexts

ABSTRACT This article presents lessons learned on the education for forgiveness and reconciliation in Muslim and Arab majority contexts, especially as part of civic engagement or across content areas. It first presents a brief review of the literature on forgiveness and reconciliation and ways they are interrelated in the larger Arab and Muslim contexts. Secondly, it points out religious and cultural sources that ground the practice of forgiveness and reconciliation. Thirdly, it presents the analysis of forgiveness stories collected from various Arab communities and discusses the main obstacles that hinder adopting a forgiveness and reconciliation agenda. Finally, it proposes forgiveness education and pedagogy based on stories to provide the framework and mechanisms to advance forgiveness and reconciliation education in schools and education spaces. We recommend utilizing local stories and storytelling as a method to delve into interpersonal and social conflicts.

Critical Investigation on the Pandemic from the Islamic Perspective

Since the emergence of the global challenges of COVID-19 pandemic, its impact could be widely viewed in various human society aspects, such as education, business trading and also social interaction limit. Apart from many discussions on the pandemic from a wide range of such perspectives, scholarly attention is still rarely mainly in trying to elaborate the critical overview from an Islamic perspective following theological, historical, and sociological points of view. In this paper, the critical elaboration of the pandemic has been widely discussed by analysing the contents of sacred scriptures and responses from an Islamic point of view. The literature was critically conducted from religious sources such as the Qur’an and Hadith, and also related contemporary works. The finding reveals that the pandemic has been given full attention as stated in the Qur’an and narrated in Hadith by taking a lesson from pandemics and strategically battling the pandemic. The following attentions were addressed in order to strengthen the Muslim community and society in order to support the health protocols arranged by the local and international health organizations. The value is that religion’s clear comprehension could give continued support to encourage the Muslim community especially and general society at large in the attempts to battle the spreading pandemic.

Critical Investigation on the Pandemic from the Islamic Perspective

Since the emergence of the global challenges of COVID-19 pandemic, its impact could be widely viewed in various human society aspects, such as education, business trading and also social interaction limit. Apart from many discussions on the pandemic from a wide range of such perspectives, scholarly attention is still rarely mainly in trying to elaborate the critical overview from an Islamic perspective following theological, historical, and sociological points of view. In this paper, the critical elaboration of the pandemic has been widely discussed by analysing the contents of sacred scriptures and responses from an Islamic point of view. The literature was critically conducted from religious sources such as the Qur’an and Hadith, and also related contemporary works. The finding reveals that the pandemic has been given full attention as stated in the Qur’an and narrated in Hadith by taking a lesson from pandemics and strategically battling the pandemic. The following attentions were addressed in order to strengthen the Muslim community and society in order to support the health protocols arranged by the local and international health organizations. The value is that religion’s clear comprehension could give continued support to encourage the Muslim community especially and general society at large in the attempts to battle the spreading pandemic.

Sources of Turkish Mathanawi̇ Commentari̇es

Mathnawi, one of the most important works of Mevlana, has attracted great attention from both the Mevlevi circles, other sects shaped by mysticism, and social layers with different intellectual structures in the society, since the date it was written. The tradition of advice has an important place in Mathnawi, where Mevlana tries to guide the individual and society to the right path based on religious arguments. Mathnawi has been translated and annotated many times since most of its couplets are covered with symbols, have a closed expression, and are written in Persian. Muinîddîn b. Mustafa tradition of annotating Mathnawi in Turkish, which started with the Mesnevî-iMurâdiyye written by himself in the 15th century, continued until the 21st century. The fact that Mathnawi has a deep layer of meaning, especially originating from Sufism, prevented it from being easily understood by the public. For this reason, some well-educated intellectuals of the period, assuming the identity of commentary, wrote Mathnawi commentaries to make Mathnawi more understandable in society. Of course, commentators have benefited from many sources for these activities due to the difficulty of the existing text. The first reference sources of commentators who grew up in a cultural world shaped by Islamic values and the perception of the mystical world were, of course, religious sources. Dictionary and grammar books, Mathnawi commentaries made by other authors, non-religious poems, history, biography, etc. different sources written in many fields enriched the commentator's world of interpretation and thus offered him a broader perspective.

A Corpus-Based Comparative Analysis of Dedikodu and Gıybet in Turkish

This study compares the frequency, connotations and collocations of the words dedikodu and gıybet in Turkish. Turkish National Corpus and Spoken Turkish Corpus were utilized as the data source. Frequency analysis reveals that dedikodu is more frequently used compared to gıybet and several formulaic expressions were observed for dedikodu. With regards to the domains, gıybet is only used in written discourse and mostly in religious sources whereas dedikodu was observed in a variety of domains including prose, biography, scientific and non-scientific sources. Based on the discourse analysis that was carried out by a meticulous analysis and coding of the contexts of each occurrence, remarkable connotational differences were found out between dedikodu and gıybet. These words were also analysed with reference to their semantic prosody by an examination of their collocations. Collocational analysis unveils that gıybet always co-occurs with negative words. Although mostly negative, dedikodu is collocated with both positive and negative words.

Identification of Food Avoidance Myths in Pregnant Women, Kedungwringin Village, Jatilawang District, Banyumas Regency

The myth of dietary taboos in Indonesia is still a problem because there are still many foods that should be consumed but are prohibited. The basis of food habits is characterized in a person's value system in choosing foods that can be consumed and should not be consumed. The value system is based on religious sources and belief in God, customs that come from ancestors. This study aims to identify the myths of dietary taboos for pregnant women in Kedungwringin Village, Jatilawang District, Banyumas Regency. This study uses a descriptive culture studies method using an anthropological approach that does not require scientific proof. Data collection techniques used in this study using interview, observation, recording and documentation techniques. The data analysis technique uses descriptive - analytical, which describes the existing data so that it becomes clear. This research was conducted in Kedungwringin Village, Jatilawang District, Banyumas Regency. The subjects in this study were residents of Kedungwringin Village, Jatilawang District, Banyumas Regency. The object of study in this study is the myth of food taboos for pregnant women. The myth of food taboos for pregnant women circulating in the village of Kedungwringin, Jatilawang District, Banyumas Regency is that pregnant women should not eat shrimp, catfish, soy leaf vegetables, attached bananas, cold water / ice because they are believed to have a bad impact on the baby they are carrying. This research on the myth of dietary taboos for pregnant women in the village of Kedungwringin, Jatilawang District, Banyumas Regency was studied using Roland Barthers' semiotic theory which was seen from the denotative and connotative meanings.

Faktor yang Memengaruhi Perilaku Seks Pranikah pada Remaja

This study aims to determine the factors that influence premarital sexual behavior in adolescents and the influence of these factors on adolescent behavior in Alok District and Bola District. The method used is quantitative with a cross-sectional approach to 104 adolescents determined proportionally by random sampling. Data analysis used a simple logistic regression test. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between knowledge (p = 0.021; OR = 3,286), religious level understanding (p = 0.020; OR = 6.718), family roles (p = 0.000; OR = 7,192), peers (p = 0.031; OR = 9.444) and sources of information (p = 0.030; OR = 9.874) on premarital sex behavior in adolescents, while cultural factors had no relationship (p = 0.069; OR = 0.468). In conclusion, there is an influence between knowledge, understanding of the level of religion, the role of family, peers and sources of information on premarital sex behavior in adolescents.
 Keywords: Determinants, Adolescents, Premarital Sex

Farmers’ Perception of Indigenous Forecast and Climate Information in West Africa: an Evidence-based Review

Using seasonal climate forecasts based on indigenous knowledge is common among West African farmers’ strategies to make farming decisions and reduce climate risk on rainfed season productions. Farmers use endogenous climate forecasts to guide their decision-making in choosing farm plots, crop varieties, and sowing dates. The main categories of indicators of endogenous seasonal climate forecasts are environmental, biological, magic, and religious sources which are transmitted from one generation to another by oral tradition. This mode of transmission leads to biases in the endogenous climate forecasts. On the other hand, scientific climate information is also one way to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change on agricultural productivity. It focuses on starting and ending dates of the rainy season, length of the rainy season, number of rainy days, annual cumulative rainfall, and average and maximum duration of dry spells. However, scientific predictions often diverge from the observations during the rainy season due to biases and uncertainties in the simulations from these models. We conclude that farmers have few effective seasonal forecasting tools.

Interfaith Marriage in Islam: Classical Islamic Resources and Contemporary Debates on Muslim Women’s Interfaith Marriages

In Islamic tradition, both Muslim men and women are prohibited from marrying mushriks and are required to marry only other believers. However, Muslim scholars’ definitions of ‘believers’ and ‘mushriks’ differ for men and women. Whereas kitabī (Jewish and Christian) women are accepted as believers, not mushriks; kitabī men, who believe in the same religion as kitabī women, are not accepted as believers. Thus, there is a prohibition of Muslim women marrying men of different faiths in Islam. This prohibition is mainly based on the consensus of scholars, which is mostly derived from the cultural and social understanding of marriage and gender roles in the family rather than strictly from religious sources of reference. The aim of this article is to discuss how classical and contemporary Muslim scholars have approached the question of Muslim women’s interfaith marriages in Islam. Classical Muslim scholars did not consider the changing circumstances in their society and reconsider the religious rule regarding Muslim women’s interfaith marriages, as they did for Muslim men’s interfaith marriages. On the other hand, some contemporary Muslim scholars argue that the absence of any explicit prohibition in the Qurʾān indicates that Islam leaves the decision regarding whom to marry up to the Muslim woman and that she should consider her conditions and her prospective husband’s attitude toward her religious faith before making the decision for herself.

Coping, Meaning Making and Resilience Within the Dutch Reformed Pietist Community During the COVID-19 Outbreak: An Exploratory Qualitative Study

In this qualitative study, we examined how community members of the Dutch reformed pietist community coped with the COVID-19 pandemic, and which religious sources of meaning making and resilience they used during this time of crisis. Based on seven in-depth interviews, we found that the representation of God being ‘above all things’ was prominent in times of close encounter with the coronavirus. In actively interpreting the pandemic, community members tended to stay away from concrete eschatological or ecological interpretations. Rather, the general theme of ‘malleability’ was used and linked to notions of calling and punishment. Furthermore, we identified the importance of community and scepticism towards the government as sources of resilience, whereas thinking about the future of the church was a source of fear and concern.

Amotekun: Assessing the Religious Paradox of a Community Policing Typology in South-Western States of Nigeria

The study assesses the religious paradox of Amotekun as a typology of community policing outfit in the South-Western States of Nigeria. Amotekun was created by the state governments out of a perceived failure of the Nigerian government to provide security and protection through the regular police force in the south-western states which are prone to serious insecurity challenges due to their populations’ outburst, economic realities and peculiar social environments. Second, the study addresses the dispute about the name and biblical (or religious) source for Amotekun which suggests a heightened religious sensitivity and debates leading to motivation for a viable area of intellectual research. The study is based on a critical historical review of extant literature, participant observation and personal interviews. The paper argues that it would not be easy to deny the irreligious and religiousness and Africanness of Amotekun as a typology of a community policing outfit.

Space and Place of Jerusalem; Sociology of Religion and Inter-Cultural Sociopolitical Peace and Conflict

The study presents cultural, religious and peace and conflict discourse on Jerusalem (Israel-Palestine conflict), attempting to remain outside the realpolitik and examine sociopolitical-religious synergy and critical peace and partially integral human securitisation. Interculturalism, multiculturalism, and such notions emerged in the 1970s, emphasising different cultures' equivalence and dialogue. Besides cultural and territorial determinants of the Arab-Israeli conflict, the status quo is conditioned by a religious rather than a secular approach to political organisation. Both civilisations view their inhabit area through religious rights, turning history into theology and different theology into sociopolitics. It presents a human conflict. While religion and nationalism based on power have often contributed to antagonism, and violence, the objectives of the three monotheist religions addressing peace suggest a shift towards mutual compromise from hegemonic visions to practical expectancies. Jerusalem is the holy place where all confessions have the right of residence. Infiltration of faith into this political dispute, Islamism, and Judaism is a religious aspect disputed between Jews and Arabs. Conflicts are mainly due to territory, and religion gives it a higher purpose within narratives regarding supernatural rights. Despite the inter-religious tensions and passions involved in the contradictory faith elevation at this religious source, the internal and external peace is influenced by politics. The holy city of Jerusalem is a perpetual “poor” case-study paradigm. The future sociopolitical life must work around healthy inter-cultural, inter-religious, socioeconomic development, and critical human security. The revenge practice could negatively influence (any) peace process–causes related to social, psychological, historical, cultural, and societal stagnation. Balkans–Bosnia and Herzegovina is a comparable paradigm to the Israel–Palestinian question. Similar policies maintain, clerical, national, and ethnopolitical patterns materialise, i.e., critical peace stalemate persists.

Integrasi Ilmu Keislaman dan Sosial Humaniora dalam Studi Islam: Kritik Epistemologi Muhammad Arkoun terhadap Metodologi Studi Islam

Arkoun sees a stagnation in religious studies experienced by many researchers, either by Muslims (insiders) or by non Muslims such as orientalists or occidentalists (outsiders). This is due to Arkoun's study of Islam which is logocentric, which is only centered on one opinion. This phenomenon continues to the point that people see Islam as Islamism, not Islamology. This paper wants to reveal how the responses and solutions offered by Arkoun in addressing this phenomenon. This research uses qualitative methodology and literature study. Arkoun offers the concept of deconstruction, which eliminates the construction of old knowledge buildings and offers new ones. To achieve this, Arkoun proposed the methodology of appliance islamology as a new way of reading Islam. One of them is with intertextuality, a reading Islamic religious sources with various scientific approaches, including social sciences and humanities. Although he received some criticism from various parties, however with his new reading, Arkoun found a new concept in Islamic studies that was more in line with the times..