A Positive Relationship Between Religious Faith and Forgiveness: Faith in the Absence of Data?

Religious faith and beliefs appear to play an important role in the lives of many individuals and are the topic of much research. The present study investigated the relationship between religious faith and forgiveness in a sample (n = 196) of college students. Students were asked to complete the Heartland Forgiveness Scale and the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire. Analyses of scores on both measures revealed a positive, significant correlation between these constructs, suggesting that there is a meaningful relationship between religious faith and the tendency to forgive. Implications and directions for further research are discussed.     

Refocusing on the Learning in “Integration of Faith and Learning"

The purpose of this study was to assess student perceptions of the faith-learning integration process in instructional methods courses taught by a single professor. Thirty-one students were asked by the professor to complete an open-ended questionnaire at the end of their course experience. Results indicated that students in this study described or defined the integration of faith and learning in ways reflective of the content of the courses, which was teaching methods. While not all students said integration of faith and learning occurred in the classes, all students did provide examples of integrative moments. Most students described faith-learning integration in terms of teacher actions rather than student actions. Thus, it appears that these students were describing integration of faith and teaching more so than integration of faith and learning.     

Defending the Faith(s)? Democracy and Hereditary Right in England

The persistence of traditional monarchies in modern societies, which are otherwise characterized by democratic and egalitarian values, remains a paradox in the social sciences. In part this is attributable to the lack of psychological investigation into the relationship between subject and sovereign, and in particular the ways in which the political and social values of the citizenry shape understandings of a hereditary monarch's right to represent a national community. Adopting the qualitative analysis methods of discursive psychology and grounded theory, the current study examines vernacular accounts of nationhood and monarchy in England in both formalized conversational interviews (n = 60) and impromptu street interviews (n = 56). Focusing on accounts of Prince Charles's recent proposal to change the role of the monarch, from “Defender of the (Christian) Faith” to “Defender of Faiths,” those in favor treated it as a positive step towards reflecting a diverse (religious) community, bringing the monarchy into line with current concerns of pluralism and upholding values of personal choice and individual rights. Participants who rejected the proposed change in title construed it as antithetical to these values in terms of reflecting personal stake and interest, an abuse of power, or an imposition on other faiths. In all accounts, the prime concern was in safeguarding the political and social values of the citizenry. In conclusion it is argued that the study of subjects' relationship to the monarch, its function and legitimacy, can provide an opportunity to examine how values can characterize a national community and facilitate national diversity.     

By Faith Alone? Church Attendance and Christian Faith in three European Countries1

Many social scientists seem to believe that Catholics attend church more often than Protestants because of differences in theology and not necessarily because Protestants are more secularised. In an attempt to settle this issue, this article uses data from the 1999 European Values Study to determine what factors influence church attendance in a Catholic, Protestant, and mixed European country (Italy, Denmark, and Germany). Using an ordinary least squares multiple regression the article shows that for both Catholics and Protestants it is predominantly the level of Christian faith that determines the rate of church attendance. Hence the differences in church attendance among Catholics and Protestants reflect differences in overall levels of religiosity and are not just artefacts of different views of the importance of going to church. Even Protestants do not live by faith alone.     

“A Mosaic Community Together in the Journey of Faith”

This article demonstrates how missional churches have emphasized accompaniment as missiological foundation in the COVID-19 pandemic season. Employing ethnographical method, interviews, and virtual church visits as the primary approach, the paper explores how NextGen Church as the embodiment of Christ’s love has moved communities to solidarity and unity in the middle of global suffering. It concludes that God is on the mission of love and that the pandemic has provided an opportunity for the church to enhance its participation in missio Dei by epitomizing Christ’s love.     

Faith in community and communities of faith? government rhetoric and religious identity in Urban Britain

This paper examines the concept of community and the discourse around it in the context of the religious diversity in urban areas in England. Sociology has a long history of working with, deconstructing, and at times rejecting the usefulness of the term ‘community’ and many scholars have in the context of postmodernity preferred to talk about processes of identity formation and networking. Constructions of identity in which faith affiliation plays a salient role are probably becoming more common and more politically significant. However, an integrated theory of the relationship between religion, community, ethnicity, and identity remains to be developed and this paper attempts some tentative first steps.

In their search for ‘feel good’ terminology, politicians in democracies such as the UK have often turned to the language of community and continue to do so. Faced with the task of managing local conflicts and delivering services which are responsive to the demands of users, contemporary governments have increasingly adopted communitarian positions and the language of social capital. In recent years in the UK, religion has moved up the political agenda and an official discourse and policy initiatives structured around the notion of ‘faith communities’ have emerged.

The New Labour government has indeed put its faith in community and sought to co‐opt communities of faith into its ‘project’. However, it is far from clear that there is a coherent understanding of the notion of faith community or of the two words that make up the phrase. One may question whether the government discourse resonates with the understandings of community and identity in the major faith traditions found in the contemporary city. An examination of some of the official discourse set alongside the changing and conflicting identities of some ‘faith communities’ in London and other British cities suggests that the British State's current simplistic approach to engaging with religious diversity is an inadequate basis for policy development.     

Faith Moves Mountains—Mountains Move Faith: Two Opposite Epidemiological Forces in Research on Religion and Health

Research suggests opposite epidemiological forces in religion and health: (1). Faith seems to move mountains in the sense that religion is associated with positive health outcomes. (2). Mountains of bad health seem to move faith. We reflected on these forces in a population of 3000 young Danish twins in which all religiosity measures were associated with severe disease. We believe the reason for this novel finding is that the sample presents as a particularly secular population-based study and that the second epidemiological force has gained the upper hand in this sample. We suggest that all cross-sectional research on religion and health should be interpreted in light of such opposite epidemiological forces potentially diluting each other.

     

Encountering the ‘unexpected’ in phenomenological research. Faith and belief as expressions of spirituality in a qualitative study

A study of 12 secondary schools students in Victoria, Australia explored the spirituality of young people in the context of their everyday lives through a hermeneutic phenomenological investigation. In developing an understanding of what spirituality meant to the participants in this study, it was apparent that spirituality was deeply abiding and embedded within the participants’ religious traditions. This was influenced by the exposure participants had to religious and spiritual teachings. Despite the fact that the participants expressed a range of religious beliefs about God, the afterlife and transcendence towards others as significant ways in which they understood spirituality, the findings were not generalisable across the Australian population. These themes will be explored throughout the paper proving implications for educators working with specific groups of students from faith backgrounds and the possibility of investigating what young people from non-religious backgrounds believe.     

An ‘Extra Legible Illustration' of the Christian Faith: Medicine,medical ethics and missionaries in the Arabian Gulf1

This article presents a view of missionary medicine in the Gulf and the ethical issues missionary medical practices evoked. It shows that, as both physicians and missionaries, and seeing themselves as an 'extra legible illustration' of the Christian faith (Paul Harrison, Doctor in Arabia, New York, John Day Co., 1940, 23-4), the missionary physicians gave selflessly to provide the best medical care possible according to their individual abilities and given the environment in which they worked. At the same time, they experimented, took risks that were sometimes unnecessary and were forced to make ethical choices that challenged their Christian moral compass. Furthermore, given the remoteness of their stations, they were absolved from professional oversight and second-guessing by patients who had nowhere else to turn. Drawing on this paradox of self-sacrifice and self-service, of Christian benevolence and imperial posturing, the article considers to what extent the mission was an exercise in altruism or imperialism.     

“Leaving the Faith of Our Fathers”: Intergenerational Persistence and Class Cleavage of Evangelicals in Chile

Several studies have consistently linked the Evangelical breakdown in Latin America as a mass movement mainly adopted by impoverished working class individuals. However, little is known about how religious inheritance and recruitment of Evangelical movements is affected when status conditions improve along individuals trajectories. Using Bicentenario Survey from 2006 to 2010 we analyze how intergenerational patterns of religious persistence in Chile relate to individuals’ educational attainment and intergenerational mobility. Two mechanisms are evaluated: first, the intergenerational persistence of Evangelicals compared to Catholics and “None’s”; and second, the probability of conversion or reaffiliation to Evangelical Protestantism. Multinomial regression analysis shows that the greater an individual’s educational credentials and upward mobility, the lesser their identification with Evangelical movements, regardless of their religious affiliation or educational attainment of origin. This evidence suggests there are obstacles for Evangelical movements’ vertical mobility, which could be related to Chile’s strong social cleavage in terms of religion.     

Faith and unfaith in pre‐occultation Shīism: a study in theology and social history

The study uses books of Shīite adīth (including the Kāfī of Kulaynī) collected before the Occultation of the Twelfth Imam in 941 to demonstrate a significant change in social attitudes in the Shīite community. The change, which appears to have taken place some time in the ninth century, involved a shift from electionism and isolationism to a more open stance toward the non‐Shīte majority. The revised view is expressed in adīths that offer a view of faith (īmān) and unfaith (kufr) that grants non‐Shīites some measure of faith and salvation and promotes social integration by allowing marriage with and inheritance from other Muslims. Other adīth narratives, however, suggest that some Shīites strongly resisted this view. The account of Shīte views on faith offered by the contemporaneous (d. 935) heresiographer al‐Asharī confirms the picture of a community divided between attitudes of segregation and rapprochement—between rejection of and participation in the great religious consensus taking place under Abbāsid rule.     

Faith Communities’ Improvements in Readiness to Engage in Addictions Resilience and Recovery Support Programming

Journal of Religion and Health - Spirituality and religion are well-documented components of prevention, treatment and recovery of substance use disorders. Faith communities are in a distinct...     

Psychological Trauma,Christ’s Passion,and the African American Faith Tradition

This article argues that Christ’s passion/crucifixion functioned within the African American psyche as a religious narrative and symbol that uniquely addressed the severe trauma they underwent during the Middle Passage and slavery by enabling them to experience the presence of God in the depths of extreme suffering. Christ’s passion/crucifixion mirrored their experience of racial oppression and, thereby, provided a critique of the system and actors that perpetuated it. The Spiritual “Were You There?” is interpreted in this light. This correspondence between the African American’s historical experience and the narrative symbol of Christ’s passion/crucifixion helps explain their conversion to Christianity.     

A Muslim President? Misperceptions of Barack Obama's Faith in the 2008 Presidential Campaign

Rumors that President Barack Obama is a Muslim were rampant during the 2008 presidential campaign and continued well into his presidency. These rumors were widely believed, were electorally consequential, and are part of a growing trend of politically motivated misconceptions. Thus, relying principally on the theory of motivated reasoning, we examine the factors that shaped citizens’ beliefs about and responses to messages about Obama's faith. Using an original survey experiment and data from the 2008–2009 American National Election Study panel, we show that citizens’ responses to rumors about Obama's religion were shaped by political predispositions, political awareness, and their interactions. Identification of Obama with Islam was most widespread, and the cues encouraging such identification were most successful, among individuals with low levels of political awareness, conservative and Republican identifications, and negative views of cultural out‐groups. Viewing Obama as Muslim was significantly less prevalent among people with high levels of awareness and with the opposite set of predispositions.     

Faith and Psychology: Integration or Separation?

This article describes the integration of spiritual and psychological issues as it pertains to a woman's coping with her husband's death. This case highlights the need to incorporate theological elements in any caregiving relationship, whether it be professional or otherwise. Finally, it challenges educational institutions to collaborate in working on the interface of faith and psychology.     

Faith, Premarital Sex and Relationships: Are Church Messages in Accordance with the Perceived Realities of the Youth? A Qualitative Study in KwaZulu–Natal, South Africa

Since religious messages on life style have a strong impact in South Africa, it is important to assess how they relate to the situation for young people at risk of HIV infection. Nine focus group discussions were conducted with youth (n = 62), aged 13–20 years, from the Roman Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, and the Assemblies of God. Young people were ambivalent toward sexual contacts since these generally were expected to be part of a relationship even though the church condemns premarital sex. Girls perceived the moral norms to concern them more than the boys for whom sexual needs were more accepted. These moral barriers lead to lack of information about protection and may increase the risk of HIV. The realities young people facing should be a major concern for the faith communities.