日本宗教的文化定位

日本宗教常游离于本体之外，从而表现出极强的融合性。这不仅使其本体模糊，也为诸种宗教的彼此渗透和社会文化的侵淫提供了可能。因此，今天的日本宗教在很大程度上是一种大众文化，有时甚至是文化实用主义者随意使用的一种工具或名目。     

Religions in Europe

The breakdown of European society is changing rapidly, particularly in the field of religion. Culture is of vital importance to the presence of religion in all nations. Religions also have exerted a certain degree of political power, thus influencing the economy and other related spheres of life.The different religions in Europe exhibit a variety of attitudes towards religious pluralism. The religious differences between Western and Eastern Europe depend mainly on issues of national identity related to religious adherence.This essay provides an overview of religion and politics, or Church and state, in Europe. It will conclude with some reflections about possible future developments within religious traditions in Europe. New religious communities and religious organisations are reaching different parts of Europe, sometimes very far from their place of origin. Christianity (Catholicism, Orthodoxy, and Protestantism) is the most widespread religion in contemporary Europe. Catholic religion is well diffused in Europe, but there are substantial differences in belief, behaviour and practice within different Catholic communities. There are various branches of Orthodoxy in Europe, such as the distinct autocephalous churches. In general Orthodox religion is closely aligned with national culture. Islam is also present in Western countries, and its impact is evident.     

Grading Religions

This essay develops standards for grading religions including various forms of spiritualism. First, I examine the standards proposed by William James, John Hick, Paul Knitter, Dan Cohn-Sherbok, and Harold Netland. Most of them are useful in grading religions with or without conditions. However, those standards are not enough for refined and piercing evaluation. Thus, I introduce standards used in spiritualism. Although those standards are for grading spirits and their teachings, they are useful in refined and piercing evaluation of religious phenomena. The spiritual standards complement James’s, Hick’s, Knitter’s, and Netland’s standards. Although most of the spiritual standards are rationally unjustifiable, they have practical value.     

Ideal Body Image Assessment Among Japanese Women

Using the Contour Drawing Rating Scale, we examined the ideal body sizes of young Japanese women who resided in Tokyo. The results indicated that the relationship among the respondents' current, ideal, perceived male-peer, and perceived female-peer ideal body sizes were not necessarily the same across different body mass index levels. For example, the results revealed thatonly the heavier respondents seemed to consider their male-peer ideal body sizes as their own ideal body sizes. The findings also showed that although most participants wished to be slimmer, they believed that their same-sex peers wanted to be even thinner than themselves.     

The Vulnerability of Young Japanese Women and Suicide

ABSTRACT: Young Japanese females had the highest suicide rate in the world until the end of the 1960s, and it is still extremely high. This paper attempts to explain this phenomenon primarily in terms of vulnerability—in their personalities, social conditions, and role conflicts. Concomitant psychological traits and social conditions are discussed. The cultural conflict of young Japanese women is explicated in terms of psychological and historical information. In addition, the reasons for the differences between the suicide rates among females in the Tokyo area and the Kyoto-Osaka area are explored largely in terms of concepts relating to authoritarianism and its correlates.     

Religions in a Secular World

The task of astrotheology is to speculate on the theological, cultural, and ethical implications of space exploration, especially the exploration of astrobiologists into the (1) origin of life; (2) a second genesis of life; and (3) expansion of life beyond earth. When assumptions within the field of astrobiology are examined, we find that the Darwinian model of evolutionary development is imaginatively projected onto extrasolar planets; and this model includes a built-in doctrine of progress. The assumption of progress within evolution permits astrobiologists to look forward to contact with an extraterrestrial civilization that is more intelligent and more advanced than that on earth. Such an extraterrestrial civilization will allegedly have an advanced science that can save earth from its primitive and under-evolved propensity for violence. However, no empirical evidence for a more highly evolved or advanced civilization currently exists, despite these beliefs. The theologian labels the constellation of scientific assumptions here the “ETI myth.” Astrotheology celebrates hard-nosed empirical science and even encourages space exploration; but the mythical assumptions regarding the doctrine of progress within evolution are here given critical analysis.     

五花八门的俄罗斯新兴宗教

俄罗斯是一个多民族和多宗教的国家.这里生活着130多个大小民族,信奉着不同派别的宗教.在俄罗斯,东正教、伊斯兰教、佛教和犹太教通常被称作传统宗教,天主教和基督新教被称作非传统宗教.此外,俄罗斯还存在着数量繁多的新兴宗教.据俄罗斯官方统计,目前在俄罗斯司法部门注册的新兴宗教已经超过了100种.     

韩国宗教现状简述

本文主要根据调查统计资料,简述韩国宗教现状,企望学者能对当代韩国宗教作更多的了解和更深入的研究.     

Religions and Conflicts

Many believe that a peaceful, tolerant and respectful coexistence among religions is not compatible with the conviction that only one of them is true. I argue that this ‘incompatibility problem’ (IP) is grounded in a ‘naturalistic assumption’ (NA), that is, the assumption that every subject, including religion, should be treated without taking into account that a super-natural being may exist and reveal to us an unexpected way to deal with our experience. I then argue that in matters of religion, NA is untenable and that its very opposite, which I call ‘super-naturalistic assumption’ (SA), should be adopted. My thesis is that, once SA is adopted, IP can be dismissed and that it is plausible to maintain that a peaceful, tolerant and respectful coexistence among religions is compatible with the conviction that only one of them is true.     

西部地区宗教的结构及发挥积极作用的领域

##正##在我国西部地区,宗教种类众多,宗教与民族关系紧密,和谐的宗教关系和宗教结构对西部地区乃至整个国家的经济社会发展具有重要意义。开展对西部地区宗教与社会关系的研究,对解析西部地区宗教与社会诸多问题,正确认识和处理宗教关系、民族关系,最大限度地     

辞世教育与宗教

辞世教育在于提升临终者生命的意义与品质.通过辞世教育使人们坦然面对死亡这个不可避免的人生课题,而死亡又是各类宗教最关注的内容,各宗教都有对死亡奥秘的深入诠释,对死后世界的详尽描述.宗教在辞世教育方面具有其独特性,辞世教育可以借鉴宗教智慧.     

杜尔干的宗教思维

杜尔干是法国社会学派的重要代表人物,其深邃思想,虽然时隔一个多世纪,今天却依然能为我们的研究提供宝贵的养份.本文主要以其晚年的重要著作《宗教生活的基本形式》一书为基础,重点讨论其对宗教的研究,并指出其理论对我国回族宗教信仰研究的启示.     

全球化与当代宗教

本文从“全球化”的时代氛围中分析了世界宗教的现状及其特征,指出了在全球化进程中我国宗教的发展和未来走向,由此提示“全球化”所具有的广泛的而深远的社会、文化意义,强调我国的宗教工作和宗教研究在这一形势下必须要有“全球”眼光,从国际化社会、世界化信息这一实际来有效展开。