Between the sea and the shore: mediating the Nine Emperor Gods Festival in Singapore

The Chinese diaspora brought tablets and effigies of their Taoist gods with them when they migrated to Southeast Asia. Temples in the region hold annual festivals to evoke this passage from the sea to the shore, assisted by makeshift sets, props, and generators with floodlights. In this article, I examine the durational performances of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival in Singapore, which consist of people and deities moving in processions. What does it mean to perform spirituality between the sea and the shore? What happens when this coastline is constantly redrawn with land reclamation? There is a mobile imagery described here: technological media transport yet circumscribe the spiritual to the material stage onshore as devotees invite the deities to land. The spiritual is eventually pulled back, leaving behind its residue (ashes, footprints on the sand, talismans) as the deities depart. Spirituality performed along the coast through technological mediation reveals the contemporary nature of these religious practices.     

Religious education and spiritual development as a cultural component of the lifelong learning policy in Romania. The example of orthodox Christianity

In a context of growing globalisation and European integration, Christian religious education seems to be more and more neglected within the social debate. Given the differences between European countries, the question may arise: What is the relevant situation in Romania? The article analyses the religious education and spiritual development as a cultural component of lifelong learning policy in Romania, based on more than 20 semi-structured interviews conducted with Romanian professionals, research workers, teachers and experts in education. In order to describe the role played by religious education in Romania three main aspects may be quoted: (1) Spiritual development completes the economic and social development of people; (2) The national culture and values contribute to the promotion of life models in accordance with Christian orthodox religion; and (3) The integral development of the person is part of the lifelong learning policy in Romania and includes orthodox spirituality. These aspects are analysed on the basis of the answers given by national experts in lifelong learning and religious education.     

Religious education,a matter of understanding? reflections on the final report of the Commission on Religious Education

In this article we offer reflections on the final report of the Commission on Religious Education (CoRE) that was published in England in 2018. We expose and problematise the prominent place of understanding in the report, not only as an educational method, but also the underlying world view of the report itself, a world view which we characterise as ‘hermeneuticism’. We raise educational, theological and political concerns about the particular approach taken in the report. We propose instead that religious education (RE) should be considered first of all in terms of what it means to live with a religious or non-religious orientation, conceived in existential terms rather than in terms of beliefs or practices or objectified world views. Educationally we show that what we term a non-hermeneutic way of viewing our humanity would open different possibilities for RE and its future.     

Relationship stigma and Black-White interracial marital satisfaction: the mediating role of religious/spiritual well-being

Although the percentage of Black-White interracial marriage continues to increase in the United States, research is limited related to the impact of stigma on these couples and the processes that influence their responses to negative racial experiences. In the current study, the Vulnerability-Stress-Adaptation model was used as a theoretical foundation to investigate the relationship between stigma and couple satisfaction among Black-White interracially married couples, along with the potential mediating role of religious/spiritual well-being. A community sample of 180 interracially married individuals responded to surveys assessing their experiences of stigma due to being a member of an interracial couple, religious/spiritual well-being, and couple satisfaction. The analysis revealed that relationship stigma was negatively associated with couple satisfaction, and religious/spiritual well-being mediated the relationship between these two variables. To conclude, recommendations for intervention and prevention in the lives of Black-White interracial couples are offered.     

Relationship of religiosity to mental health literacy,stigma, social distance,and occupational restrictiveness in Ningxia Province,China

Little research has assessed the relationship between religiosity and mental health awareness in low- and middle-income countries. This study identified a representative sample of 2,425 community-dwelling adults in Ningxia, China and administered the Duke University Religion Index, the Mental Health Knowledge Questionnaire, the Mental Health Attitude Questionnaire, the Social Distance – Personal Questionnaire and the Social Restrictiveness – Occupational Questionnaire. Religious affiliation per se was not associated with mental health literacy or attitudes, but higher levels of religiosity were associated with better awareness of mental health issues and less social distance and occupational restrictiveness of those with mental health conditions. However, these relationships were substantially different in Hui ethnicity respondents (85% of whom were practicing Islam) and Han ethnicity respondents (15% of whom practiced Buddhism, Taoism or Confucianism).     

Teaching in contexts: Designing a competency‐based religious studies program

Over the last decade, the discipline of religious studies has promoted religious literacy as both an invaluable contribution to curriculum and an indispensable social good. While much has been written on the importance of the study of religion for the development of religious literacy, little attention has been given to the identification of the disciplinary skills and content knowledge (or what we refer to as religious studies competencies) a student develops through extended study of religion. In this essay, we present an example of how to integrate a religious studies competency‐based model into program design and implementation. We argue that the transition to a competency‐based religious studies program has two potential benefits. First, competency program design provides an opportunity to redesign and update religious studies programs in a more responsible manner that aligns with our students, institution, discipline, and profession. Second, competency program design facilitates the conditions where we can better avoid duplicating the much criticized world religions paradigm.     

World religion and fake news: A pedagogical response in an age of post‐truth

This article describes a pedagogical response to teaching world religions courses in a post‐truth age. The course assignment and its application, utilized in both online and in‐person formats, bridge student academic pursuits with religious traditions, require students to engage with source‐based journalism, and extend beyond the classroom into many of the contemporary politics encroaching upon the humanities fields. Related to the first, the objective of the assignment is for students to discover that religiosity permeates multiple sectors, both private and public, corresponding with student career paths. As a result, students discover that religion is relevant to their academic pursuits and that they must consider the possibilities of how religion might integrate with their career choices. Regarding the second objective, the assignment develops student digital media literacy skills as a form of civic education that challenges the current political attacks on journalism and factuality. Last, this exercise acknowledges the realities facing many humanities programs across the country and offers this assignment as a way of engaging with those issues within the classroom. See as well, published in this issue of the journal, three short companion essays by Sarah L. Schwarz, Jonathan R. Herman, and Harshita Mruthinti Kamath, each of which analyzes this pedagogical strategy for their particular teaching contexts.     

Summary report of the British Academy project on ‘Forced Migration,Religious Diplomacy and Human Security in the Eastern Orthodox World’

This review article provides an overview of the British Academy Project on ‘Forced Migration, Religious Diplomacy and Human Security in the Eastern Orthodox World’ (January–December 2018), research questions, methodology, main findings and policy recommendations. The project compared the ways in which religious communities engaged with forced displaced populations in Eastern Europe and former Soviet states, with a particular focus on Serbia and Ukraine, collected a dataset on ‘Eastern Orthodoxy and Human Security’ and organised two workshops in Belgrade and Kyiv.