A Threatened Identity: The Mental Health Status of Syrian Refugees in Egypt and Its Etiology

This study utilized the development-based trauma framework on identity traumas to study the cumulative effects of trauma on the identities of Syrian refugees. Participants included 196 Syrian refugees residing in Cairo, Egypt (Mean age = 35.99, SD = 11.05). The rate of post-traumatic stress disorder was 33.5%, and the rate of depression was around 30%; the level of comorbidity was high with a high rate of suicidal plans or attempts (13.7%). Analyses indicated that existential annihilation anxieties, moderated by identity salience, mediated the effects of cumulative trauma on mental health. The results confirmed the utility and validity of the identity trauma model and provided evidence of the dire mental health needs of Syrian refugees.     

古埃及疾病医治理念透析

疾病医治理念是古埃及文明的重要组成部分。古埃及人针对不同类别疾病有着相应的医治理念：药物、魔法与意志是内科疾病的医治理念;河渠原理是医治外科疾病的理念;对于治疗心理疾病主要是寻求神灵的拯救;预防疾病的理念是保持圣洁。挖掘、梳理这些医治理念,可以加强医学史的学科建设,对某些疾病的治疗有参考价值。     

Earth, Dream, and Healing: The Integration of Materia and Psyche in the Ancient World

Influenced by the methods and practices of Hippocrates, the Asclepius cult used herbal formulae and medicinal applications intricately connected with Asclepius cult rituals and worship. An understanding of the types of herb and medical applications surrounding their use by the cult aids understanding of the inner world and symbolism of ancient dreams.Jeffrey B. Pettis teaches in the field of New Testament Studies at Fordham University, New York City. His focus is the interpretation and use of ancient dreams in early Christianity and the Greco-Roman world. He has lived and traveled in Greece, Egypt and Turkey, studying the design and culture of ancient temples and the sanctuaries of Asclepius, the deity of the ancient dream cult. He received his Ph.D. from Union Seminary in 2004.     

The Egyptian movement for change: Intellectual antecedents and generational conflicts

The aim of this article is to account for the origins, to analyze the character and, to some extent, assess the significance of the recently increasing coordination among these various oppositional elements in Egypt that had in many respects backed themselves into an ideological corner by the shrill character, as well as sheer volume, of discourse aimed at criticizing, discrediting, even demonizing their political opponents. While much of the focus here is on the groups that that are often grouped with the now well known Egyptian Movement for Change, or Kifaya, is not only the existence of this ideologically diverse grouping, but the links it has created with the country’s largest opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, that reveals the most about the changing landscape of Egyptian politics.

Cultural and Religious Values: A Cross-Cultural Study In Austria,South Africa and Egypt

This article compares religious values found on the basis of the lexical approach in three cultures. Lists of human values in Austria (German), South Africa (Northern Sotho) and Egypt (Arabic) were compiled. These terms were rated by 456, 400 and 773 participants respectively as personal guiding motives in life. Factor analyses yielded orthogonal dimensions reflecting the specific values of each culture. In all three cases, a dimension pertaining to religious issues emerged. For Austria, a distinct dimension was found, which only comprised religious terms. In South Africa religious values were interrelated with mutual support, while in Egypt, religiosity was highly correlated with political concerns and Arabic nationalism. While only about 25% of the Austrian sample gave positive evaluations to religious values, most of the South African and Egyptian participants rated religiosity positively. Results suggest that religious values are ubiquitous and religious convictions are influenced by the ethical concepts in each culture.     

Ecumenical Engagement with Eastern Minority Churches in Muslim States: Pro Oriente’s Encounters and Legacies in Syria and Egypt

The former Viennese Cardinal Franz König and his foundation Pro Oriente have been prominent actors in the establishment of ecumenical relations between the Catholic Church and Oriental Orthodox Churches since the Second Vatican Council. This article discusses the Christian-Muslim relations dimension of this ecumenical engagement with Middle Eastern churches in the practical field of ecumenical travel to Syria and Egypt. This intertwining of ecumenical and inter-religious engagement is studied on the basis of archival collections and journalistic accounts that make it possible to grasp the administrative process of ‘travelling diplomacy’. The analysis links the practical work of ecumenical relations to the historical legacies of the Western encounter with Islam in the post-Ottoman area. I shall argue that Pro Oriente’s approach was based on a new post-Vatican II theological vision of Islam. Although this did include reorientation with regard to traditional orientalist perceptions, ecumenism also became caught up in political dilemmas that were connected to either an orientalist perception of ecumenical relations (Egypt) or religious legitimization of an authoritarian regime (Syria).     

Richard Popkin – A Personal Memoir

This article is an introduction to an ancient Egyptian text called The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant and an argument that it ought to be seen as a classic of political philosophy. After contextualizing the tale as part of a tradition of moral and political philosophy in ancient Egypt, I explore the methods by which the text defines the proper roles of political authority and contrast its approach to justifying political authority with the argument from the state of nature so common in modern Western political philosophy. I claim that the tale's argument from dysfunction anticipates the move in contemporary Western political philosophy towards privileging non-ideal over ideal theory. I discuss challenges in translating the key term in the tale – ma'at – in light of the fact that it can be taken to mean ‘justice’ and/or ‘truth’. Finally, I discuss how the irony at the heart of its narrative can lead us to interpret the tale as having either conservative or revolutionary implications for the political system it depicts.     

From outsiders to kingmakers: a comparative study of political Salafism in Egypt and political Haredism in Israel

ABSTRACT

How and why have fundamentalists, who aim to defend religion and tradition from modernity by advocating a new return to the fundamentals of religious belief and behaviour, become politically successful when one would expect them to remain marginal in their mass appeal given their belief in one true faith, exclusive organisations, limited ideological appeal and strict codes of conduct for their followers? To study this puzzle, this article utilises a cross-religious comparative study looking at how political Salafism in Egypt and political Haredism in Israel both moved from the margins of the political spectrum to its centre despite very different socio-political contexts. Building on literature addressing religious revival in Christian churches in the US, this article hypothesises that fundamentalists gained ground because the state’s ambiguous secularism allowed for the emergence of a ‘religious market,’ in which fundamentalists’ niche appeal allowed them to position themselves as kingmakers.     

A study of the performance of Egyptian college students on the Advanced Progressive Matrices

Results are reported for intelligence assessed with the Advanced Progressive Matrices of a sample of students at Ain-Shams University in Cairo (N = 2147). The Egyptian raw scores were transformed to British IQ equivalents using the published 1992 British norms for the APM, on which the sample obtained a British IQ of 89.5. Science students obtained a significantly higher average mean score than arts students by 7.5 IQ points. Male students obtained a non-significantly higher average IQ than female students 1.2 IQ points. Male students had greater variability than the female students.     

‘Should I Circumcise My Daughter?’ Exploring Diversity and Ambivalence in Egyptian Parents' Social Representations of Female Circumcision

Female circumcision is still practiced in different parts of Egypt, impacting women's health and well‐being. Existing studies often portray parents' representations of the practice as positive and homogeneous, with little attention paid to the true diversity of views within a community. This study draws on social representations theory to highlight such nuances, while identifying the psychosocial factors that shape parents' decisions to circumcise or not circumcise their daughters. In‐depth interviews with 11 mothers and five fathers were conducted in rural communities in the Al Qalyoubeya and Benisweif governorates. Thematic analysis revealed the co‐existence of positive, negative and ambivalent representations of female circumcision amongst parents and within the individuals themselves. Although some parents positively represent female circumcision as ensuring the daughter's chastity, safeguarding her femininity and preserving community identity, they feel distress about its potential harms, such as pain, bleeding and terrifying experience on the daughter. Fathers further acknowledge its negative impact on marital sexual relationships. In some cases, parents challenge the ritual and refuse to circumcise their daughters. In light of a theory of change that emphasises the role of community dialogue in renegotiating health‐damaging social practices, along with evidence of diverse views amongst parents, this study argues that sensitively facilitated ‘community conversations’ might provide parents with opportunities to debate their opposing views and allow for the construction of health‐enabling social representations. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.