Religion and Civic Engagement in Muslim Countries

Previous studies of religion on civic and political participation focus primarily on Western Christian societies. Studies of Muslim societies concentrate on Islamic religiosity's effect on attitudes toward democracy, not on how Muslim religious participation carries over into social and political arenas. This article examines the relationship between religion and civic engagement in nine Muslim‐majority countries using data from the World Values Surveys. I find that active participation in Muslim organizations is associated with greater civic engagement, while religious service attendance is not. In a subset of countries, daily prayer is associated with less civic engagement. The main area in which Muslim societies differ from Western ones is in the lack of association between civic engagement, trust, and tolerance. Religious participation is a more significant predictor of secular engagement than commonly used “social capital” measures, suggesting a need to adapt measures of religiosity to account for differences in religious expression across non‐Christian faiths.     

Religion and Suicide

Religion impacts suicidality. One’s degree of religiosity can potentially serve as a protective factor against suicidal behavior. To accurately assess risk of suicide, it is imperative to understand the role of religion in suicidality. PsycINFO and MEDLINE databases were searched for published articles on religion and suicide between 1980 and 2008. Epidemiological data on suicidality across four religions, and the influence of religion on suicidality are presented. Practice guidelines are presented for incorporating religiosity into suicide risk assessment. Suicide rates and risk and protective factors for suicide vary across religions. It is essential to assess for degree of religious commitment and involvement to accurately identify suicide risk.     

The Nation and the Nun: Mother Teresa,Albania's Muslim Majority and the Secular State

In Albania, a religiously pluralist country with a secular constitution, an atheist past and a Muslim majority, the authorities have since the end of Communism promoted Mother Teresa as the “Mother of Albanians” and an emblem of the state. The name, statues and portraits of this ethnic Albanian Catholic nun have become a prominent feature in the public sphere. Based on fieldwork material, Albanian texts and unique statistical data, this article discusses the “motherteresification” of Albania in the period after her beatification in 2003, particularly during the Democratic government (2005–13). It also explores alternative Christian and Muslim interpretations of the symbol in Albania. Both the top-down construction of “Mother Teresa” as a national symbol and the arguments against it demonstrate that secularism remains a core value. By fronting a Christian Nobel Laureate, this EU-aspiring country signals that it is peaceful and belongs to Europe and the West, a recurrent national concern for over a century and acute after 9/11. Making an ethnic Albanian nun a symbol of a Muslim majority nation thus makes sense.     

Religion in Domestic Violence Prevention PSAs: The Role of Religiosity in Motivating Christian Bystanders to Intervene

Domestic violence is an ongoing health issue around the world, propelling individuals and organizations to seek out new and innovative ways to mitigate its widespread reach. Focusing on the potential of religion to positively impact messaging, the current study examines how Christian symbolism might be used to encourage intervention behavior using public service announcements (PSAs). Using a between‐subjects design of Christian Americans as the respondent pool, a religious symbol versus a control ad was utilized. Levels of religiosity were also measured and factors impacting the construct assessed. Findings revealed religiosity, the importance of religion in one's life, was the underlying motivator for highly religious people to act rather than a religious cue. Within religiosity, the perceived strength of faith to one's identity held greater value than church attendance and frequency of prayer. Theoretical implications are discussed as well as insights for people working in public service messaging.     

Ecumenism in the 21st Century

This article explores the challenges facing the ecumenical movement at the beginning of the 21st century: global demographic trends and a shift in the centre of gravity of Christianity toward the global South; the need for ecumenical structures and institutions to change in response to new realities; the need to widen the ecumenical fellowship so that Roman Catholics, Pentecostals, and evangelicals who have not played a part in the WCC may participate more fully; the urgency of inter‐religious dialogue; and the need to discover a “spirituality of engagement” in interaction with the world and its people.     

Discrimination and religiosity among Muslim women in the UK before and after the Charlie Hebdo attacks

In January 2015, media outlets reported a series of attacks by Islamic terror groups in France, instigated at the offices of the Charlie Hebdo publication. Previous research has indicated that the consequence of exposure to terrorist attacks can extend beyond the immediate victims, with a potentially international reach. This secondary data analysis compares the perceptions of discrimination, religiosity, and religious engagement of 240 Muslim women in the UK, recruited before and after the Charlie Hebdo attacks. The results indicate greater religious engagement and perceptions of discrimination among those women recruited after the attacks. This suggests that the impact of such events may reach beyond the immediate victims, and societies need to develop and provide support in response to such attacks, regardless of the geographical location of the event.     

21世纪的中西医结合

自本世纪６０年代以来,中西医结合取得了重要进展,中西医结合的经验与成果已经引起国内外重视。２１世纪,在“中西医并重”的方针指引下,将会迎来更好的发展机遇。兼客、互补与结合创新是主要的三种结合形式,其中结合创新占有更重要的地位。我们应增强创新意识,选好创新目标,改善临床与研究工作条件,为取得更快的发展而努力。     

走向21世纪的中国美学--反思历史,指向未来

在20世纪,古代中国关于艺术及寄托在艺术中的文人情怀的谈论获得了"美学"的名称,这个学科的问题和提问方式、取向和方法都发生了根本的变化.西方美学理论的影响和中国传统美学的更新集中表现为功利主义和非功利主义美学理论的构建与论争,两者互补又竞争.新的世纪里,中国美学有待创新.这种创新将更多地与西方美学及文化展开对话;也将在创新中重建有中国特色的马克思主义美学.     

Ethics and Ageing in the 21st Century

Summary

Dean Waits challenged the AGHE preconference session to integrate the theology of creation, covenant and care with the scientific findings in gerontology as important parts of the theological curriculum.     

MUSLIM IMAGINARIES AND IMAGINARY MUSLIMS: Placing Islam in Conversation with A Secular Age

This essay begins by exploring the extent to which the narrative of secularization presented in Charles Taylor's A Secular Age might be complicated or otherwise challenged by taking account of parallel processes within Islamic thought and practice. It then considers whether Taylor's argument might nevertheless be applicable to, or illuminative of, contemporary struggles with modernity in the Muslim world.     

21世纪的中西医结合

世界各国对两种医学有“否定、容忍、平行”几种,都认为传统医学不科学,歧视之。中国采取“结合”原则,使中医学获大发。在相互理解基础上达到中西医团结,又在此基础取长补短,达到中西医结合关键是医疗效,使其建立在现代科学基础上,可信可重复,组织西学中是重要关键措施。     

江苏新世纪人才高地及其实现途径

构筑新世纪人才高地,是江苏实现由人才大省向人才强省跨越的根本举措.为构筑江苏新世纪人才高地,就必须从江苏的实际情况出发,搞清江苏新世纪人才高地的内涵、结构及其动力和实现途径,本文的研究目的就在于此.     

D. Z. Phillips and Timothy Tessin (eds.), Philosophy of Religion in the 21st Century

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

21世纪医生培养目标研究的主要内容及实现措施

为了重新设计21世纪的医生,世界各国都把研究和制订21世纪医生的培养目标作为医学教育改革的重大研究课题。培养目标研究的主要内容包括明确培养目标的总体要求、强调医生能力的培养以及体现医生的综合角色等。为了保障21世纪医生培养目标的顺利实现,采取了立法、试点及课程的全面改革措施。作者还针对我国情况提出了修订我国培养目标的几点建议。