Significance Of Faith Research Articles

Interplay of art and faith in women’s communities: Developing a heightened awareness of research perspectives and evolving methodologies

The Lost and Found: Revising Art Stories in Search of Potential Changes marked the inaugural conference of a collaborative initiative between the University of Wroclaw, Universidade Nova de Lisboa and the Polish Institute for World Art Studies in Warsaw. This unique meeting brought together university researchers and artists, creating a stimulating atmosphere. The collaborative artistic endeavours undertaken aimed to build community and explore alternative knowledge production rooted in affectivity and openness to surprise, rather than an immediate quest for success. The focus was on a shared experience of being together and learning about each other’s roles beyond the conventional boundaries of scholars and artists. At the heart of the conference was the project Residua of Pre-Modern Relations with Art in Selected Contemporary Convents in Lesser Poland and Lower Silesia, supported by the National Science Centre in Warsaw. Although the residues and anachronisms discussed during the meeting did not explicitly refer to religious orders, they provided insights into the significance of faith and the evolving nature of the sacred in contemporary art. The project’s premise challenged the distinction between the religious and the spiritual, emphasizing the roles of community, respect, and care. It was hypothesized that female religious orders maintain these values in relation to the place of art in everyday life. Consequently, if an art historian wishes to study the relationship between women’s art and the sacred in everyday life, they should learn from nuns and female artists, not merely study them.

A Systematic Review of Evidence-Based Interventions for Afghan Refugee Mental Health: A Cultural Adaptation Analysis

Under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR) seven-decade mandate, Afghan refugees have faced some of the largest and most protracted experiences with forced displacement. This intergenerational exposure to forced migration has had innumerable consequences for the mental health of this population across different stages of their displacement. Afghan refugees who have resettled into Western nations face a unique set of challenges as they must navigate resettlement into societies that are linguistically, culturally, and spiritually distinct from their own backgrounds. This systematic review explores the (a) effectiveness and (b) cultural adaptation of interventions that have addressed the mental health of Afghan refugees resettled into Western countries since the year 2000. This systematic review will employ the Cultural Treatment Adaptation Framework (CTAF) to organize the extent of cultural adaptations. Through the systematic search of four databases, 1709 studies emerged from our search terms, seven of which met the criteria for this review, for example, study includes more than 2/3 Afghan participants; study includes outcome variables. Studies included programs in Germany, Serbia, Sweden, and Austria. The most common outcomes that interventions addressed included posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) ( n = 5), depression ( n = 3), and quality of life ( n = 3). Program modalities ranged between Cognitive Behavioral Therapy ( n = 4), emotion regulation ( n = 1), family therapy ( n = 1), and multimodal interventions ( n = 2). Most studies only incorporated peripheral changes to interventions in the service of cultural adaptation, and only one intervention included core changes. This program reported the highest effect sizes in reducing PTSD and depressive symptoms when compared with the rest of the studies. These findings provide a direction for future studies as they consider whether the extent of cultural adaptations can influence the effectiveness of programs for Afghan refugee populations. We provide recommendations for mental health practice with this population, including a special attention to the role of daily stressors, the significance of faith and culture-based meaning making in the service of coping, and the salience of isolation.

WESTERN MUSLIMS: MIGRATION AND IDENTITY IN ABOULELA’S MINARET

This essay examines how Western Muslim immigrants are portrayed in Leila Aboulela's novel Minaret. The study examines how the protagonists in the novel manage their identities as Muslims living in a Western setting using a postcolonial and diasporic framework, taking into account the difficulties presented by Islamophobia in the West and the stereotypical representation of political Islam. The article makes the case that Aboulela delivers a rich and nuanced representation of Muslim immigrants through a close reading of the book, one that challenges basic assumptions and emphasizes the variety of experiences within this community. The novel's characters are depicted as struggling with a variety of identity-related concerns, such as the conflict between tradition and modernity, the significance of faith in defining identity, and the difficulties of assimilating into a foreign society. The essay also examines how Aboulela's portrayal of Islamophobia and prejudice in the West illuminates the realities of Muslim immigrants in Western nations and how her complex depiction of political Islam defies simplistic stereotypes of the faith. Aboulela emphasizes the significance of acknowledging the diversity of Muslim experiences and identities through her depiction of the difficulties of identity building and the realities of diasporic groups. The research concludes by arguing that Minaret provides insightful information on how Muslim immigrants negotiate their role in society, particularly in light of ongoing discussions about Islam and Muslims in the West.

Exploring Islamic Social Work: Between Community and the Common Good, Hansjörg Schmid and Amir Sheikhzadegan

Religion, spirituality and faith have a significant impact on social work, as they offer individuals, families and communities a sense of meaning, hope and purpose, which can be instrumental in facilitating positive change. Further, religion and religious values are rooted deep into the social work profession, its history and contribution to societal changes. According to Pargament and Mahoney (2002), religion and spirituality have been shown to promote resilience, coping and well-being in individuals facing various challenges. Social workers, regardless of their personal religious affiliation and degrees of devoutness, often work with people and communities who hold deep-seated religious beliefs and values. Thus, it is important for them to have an understanding of how religion and faith intersect with their practice. This book is not only building on the ‘Muslims in Global Societies Series’, starting from the significance of faith in people’s lives, but also considering the input of faith-based organisations in the provision of social support. The editors and authors in this book recognise that religious or faith-based organisations can serve as sources of emotional and practical support for individuals facing various challenges, such as illness or poverty. Dinham (2020) opined that religious communities can provide a sense of belonging and social capital, which can be crucial in alleviating social isolation and promoting social integration. That said, this book does not address religion and faith on the whole but focuses on the intersections between Islamic studies and social work; facilitating a dialogue about the bridging of secular social work discourses and Islamic thought on social issues. In addition, one of its main objectives is to offer knowledge where Muslim people are concerned when receiving services, whilst recognising that Islam-based organisations also contribute to the well-being of the wider community.

African migrants and stress coping strategies in Australia: Implications for social work

This research investigates resettlement stress among African migrants in Australia and how migrants manage stress. The research used 30 semi-structured interviews with African migrants in Western Australia. Participants used various strategies, including reliance on family as a community and on God – usually constructed by alliance rather than kinship – to manage stress. The article’s key contribution highlights the multilayered approach for social work to integration strategies for migrants. The study identifies three significant issues emerging: the importance of ‘families’ as community networks, the experience of discrimination and the significance of faith in God as crucial migrant support factors.

The therapeutic and integrative significance of faith in the African quest for healing and wholeness

The therapeutic and integrative significance of faith in the African quest for healing and wholeness has attracted a considerable level of interest amongst scholars in recent times. Despite the increasing interest in places of healing, faith communities have not paid much attention to studying the intersection of these practices for appropriate community hermeneutics. By means of qualitative methods, this research explored the therapeutic implication of the role of faith in the quest and appropriation of health and wholeness in modern Africa. Exploring perspectives from Ghana and Nigeria, the study engaged, through focus groups and individual interviews, the proper place of therapeutic significance of faith in the quest for healing and wholeness. Findings revealed that the African quest for health and wellness is anchored in the belief of a deity whose presence, love and benevolence transcend the ecclesiastical boundaries of one’s faith tradition. The study further describes the therapeutic and integrative significance of these prevailing faiths in God within the appropriation of health and wholeness in modern Africa, with the possibility of fostering a partnership amongst the three key players in the triangulation process.Contribution: The study falls within the field of practical theology and its major contribution falls within the quest of wellness and healing in Africa.

The experience of divine struggle following child loss: The Case of Israeli bereaved Modern-Orthodox parents

Child loss may undermine one’s faith. Whereas much is known about religion’s role following loss, less is known about the experience of divine struggle—namely, struggling with complex God-related emotions/beliefs—particularly among diverse sociocultural samples. Employing a narrative approach, we interviewed 20 bereaved Modern-Orthodox parents. Analysis revealed three types of divine struggle (explicit, implicit/silenced, none) differentiated by four categories: core emotional experience, response type, significance of faith in the coping process, and the impact of grief-induced divine struggle on parent-God relationship. Findings emphasize the need for culturally-sensitive inquiry of divine struggle, that divine struggle may be silenced, and therapists’ awareness is critical.

Uloga i značenje vjere u kontekstu viteza vjere kao paragona Kierkegaardove filozofije religije

U XIX. stoljeću, Kierkegaardov pojam vjere određuje početak egzistencijalističke misli jer uvodi velik broj tema s kojima će se egzistencijalizam XX. stoljeća baviti te dalje razvijati, pritom polazeći od individue, i to ne samo u intelektualnom nego i u emocionalnom smislu kao cjelovitoga bića, odnosno subjekta koji nastoji živjeti autentično i slobodno. Naime, riječ je temama poput samoostvarenja pojedinca, anksioznosti, očaja, apsurdnosti življenja i sl. Za Kierkegaarda vjera je polazišna točka k samoostvarenju u puninu ljudskoga bića, a moguća je samo kao vjera u Boga, tj. kao privatni i jedinstveni odnos pojedinca i Boga. Kierkegaard primjer takve vjere utjelovljuje u liku Abrahama, za kojega tvrdi da je vitez vjere, odnosno paragon kojemu svi trebamo stremiti. U radu će se istražiti uloga i značenje vjere u kontekstu viteza vjere kao paragona Kierkegaardove filozofije religije.

NEW UNDERSTANDING OF THE ESSENCE AND MODELS OF MODERNLAW: FEATURES AND TRENDS OF DEVELOPMENT

The article is devoted to the study of the phenomenon of law and its models at the present stage of development of legal science. It also discusses the features and trends of the development of modern law. According to the author, only information that is not only theoretically, but also practically important for a person whom he trusts not only with his mind, but also with his feelings, turns into law. The legal model proposed by the author allows us to consider the eff ectiveness of various intellectual and socio-psychological strategies for the formation of law in modern conditions. This model of law takes into account such components as information that is directly contained in the law, the value and signifi cance of faith, the relationship between these components that form the structure of law.The author analyzes the signs of law from the point of view of the features of its modern understanding, the factors of the development of law in a transformational society, identifi es the main trends in law and explores legal integration as a union of national legal systems by bringing their basic elements in line with certain legal standards.The author introduces the concept of the category of law as an instrument of scientifi c knowledge. The option of recognizing the fate of law by interpreting will and thinking is proposed. The necessity of a new paradigm of law is substantiated. The author has successfully shown that today the theory and philosophy of law require research, methodological anthropocentrism.Law is being considered as an objective reality that is embodied in a certain form.Law is the basis of volitional aspirations, the foundation of human activity and initiative. It synthesizes in itself the results of the functioning of the entire system of purposeful education of an individual and collective subject. The concept of «law» is organically inherent in a certain internal orientation, self-refl ectiveness. The subject seems to «peer» into his spiritual world, comparing the degree to which his knowledge, views, ideas and attitudes correspond to actual life needs and interests, as well as the real conditions for their satisfaction.Law as a property of a subject is characterized by the following parameters: orientation (humanistic, anti-humanistic, optimistic, pessimistic, etc.); intensity, depth (superfi cial, that is, at the level of weak cognitiveness, medium depth), covering the sphere of consciousness and subconsciousness, without being aware of its fundamental ways of representing, and deep – full, covering the sphere of consciousness and unconsciousness in breadth.The driving force of law is manifested in its infl uence on all components of the worldview. It correlates with the worldview as part and whole. The processes of formation of worldview and law coincide, although they have their own characteristics. The worldview functions through law in the correctness of its original concepts and foundations. Law expands, deepens the worldview, realizing its functions. The quality of law, of course, depends on whether on the basis of what level of social consciousness it has formed – everyday or theoretical.

Existential Perspective of Biography-related Reflection in the Intergenerational Narrative Messages

This article presents the results of a qualitative research study on intergenerational messages of Polish female seniors. Letters from seniors to the younger generation were investigated. In their narratives, the seniors focused a lot on self-reflection about death and dying—this is due to the theme which was to inspire the letters: My life—my death. The messages exposed an affirmative attitude toward the old age, the significance of faith and religion along with the simultaneous awareness of the fragility of life, and the necessity to face one’s own finiteness. The seniors also pointed out to family and relationships with their loved ones as the key value.

Religion, Migration and Identity

This article aims to give a representative overview and appraisal of insights and theories developed thus far in the field of religion, migration and identity. It investigates whether the present conceptual toolbox is adequate to describe and analyze the impact of migration phenomena on individual and communal expressions of faith. The article first explores the concepts “migrant” and “migration”. It then discusses theories focusing on the significance of faith and religious communities for migrants, followed by theories pertaining to the changes effectuated by migration in the religious landscapes of the country of origin as well as destination. The article argues that there is a need for further clarification and stipulation of key terms in the discourses on religion and migration, as well as a necessity to do more comparative research, since most of the prevailing theories so far have emerged from research on Christian migrant communities in theusa. Finally, it identifies areas for further research.

Reconciling Local with Global: New Zealand Muslim Women Articulating Faith in their Lives

This article explores the dynamics of personalised faith in the lives of minority and migrant Muslim women. Research that localises women's understandings of faith contrasts with the considerable literature that focuses on the transnational, politicised character of religion, as well as the discourses that examine religion as a form of gendered patriarchy. This article is a contribution to research that approaches gender and religion from a localised perspective. Drawing on the notion of ‘third space’, this discussion provides ethnographic narratives of Muslim women in New Zealand, focusing on four specific women. Each woman's story illustrates the significance of faith in her life, and demonstrates the unique, and interactive, ways that faith creates new meanings and interpretive possibilities in local contexts, as well as providing emotional solace and a source of coping with wider life stresses.

Trade and Christianity in the Indian Ocean during Late Antiquity

The significance of faith as a cohesive element in the development of commercial networks in the Indian Ocean is well documented in the case of Islamic and Jewish diasporas of the medieval period, but what was the situation in Late Antiquity, when Christianity was the expanding religion in the areas east and south of the Mediterranean? Drawing on late Roman literary sources and the concept of the “trading diaspora,” this study emphasizes the interaction among trade, religion, and politics in the area of the Indian Ocean, arguing that Christianity had the potential to play a role resembling that of Judaism and Islam in later periods: Christians also were active as traders and travelers in the monsoon commerce. Fellow Christians came together for worship, company, and security, and Christian rulers involved themselves politically and militarily in order to secure the safety and interest of their coreligionists.

Should Clinical Pastoral Education and Professional Chaplaincy Become More Scientific? It's a Matter of Salt

SUMMARY I address the relationship of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) and professional chaplaincy to science by looking at the past in order to find meaning for the present. Specially, I explore the stories of El-wood Worcester, Anton Boisen and the beginnings of CPE. I conclude that these and other founding fathers believed that they were called to continue Christ's healing ministry and turned to science as a means to do so although their relationship to science was often strained. Three issues emerge from the past that offer meaning for the present: the significance of a spiritual calling to do healing, the significance of science's “salt effect” as the means that makes a healing ministry possible, and the significance of faith as the identity around which a relationship with science is developed.

Black Folk Medicine: The Therapeutic Significance of Faith and Trust

Folk medicine is an important informal and traditional system of social health care support that is still wisely used in many nations including rural regions of the southern United States. This volume provides new insight into the various conditions and structures that help to account for the development and persistence of folk medicine in societies. The authors focus on older, primarily female, black users of folk medicine; the problem of trust in folk and modern doctor-patient relationships; the need for communication and information exchange between folk and modern medical doctors; and a variety of social, cultural, and psychological factors related to drug misuse among the poor, the elderly, rural and uneducated consumers of health services.

Black Folk Medicine: The therapeutic Significance of Faith and Trust

Black Folk Medicine: The therapeutic Significance of Faith and Trust

Black Folk Medicine: The Therapeutic Significance of Faith and Trust.

Black Folk Medicine: The Therapeutic Significance of Faith and Trust.