Inquisitive, relevant, thought-provoking. A blog for reflection on religion as an element of public life, coordinated by the Centre for Religion, Conflict and Globalisation, Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Groningen.
The day before Christmas we will conclude our series on Joram Tarusarira’s new book 'Reconciliation and Religio-political Non-conformism in Zimbabwe' (read the previous review here) with yet another review written by Vlado Kmec. Vlado currently works at the University of Cambridge and is a fellow of the CRCPD. He offers expertise to the Centre in religion and migration; religion …
Continue reading "Review ‘Reconciliation and Religio-political Non-conformism in Zimbabwe’"
Tomorrow, 1st of December, Professor John Paul Lederach will, in a lecture organised by The Centre of Religion and Conflict in the Public Domain, talk about ‘Mobilizing the moral imagination: Religion in the landscape of fragmentation’. Join us for the lecture and the discussion with great panel of expert respondents: dr. Michelle Parlevliet, specialist in …
Next week, the Centre for Religion, Conflict and the Public Domain, together with Studium Generale Groningen, will host Professor Mike Hulme from King's College London, speaking on Religion's Role in Climate Change. In today's post, Professor Hulme provides a taste of some of the issues and themes he will address in greater detail as part of his talk on Wednesday …
Continue reading "Varieties of Religious Engagement with Climate Change"
The terror attacks in Brussels on Tuesday have once again raised questions about the relationship between religion and violence. In today's post, Erin Wilson reflects on these issues, exploring key arguments made by Prof William Cavanaugh during his recent lecture in Groningen and book The Myth of Religious Violence. On Tuesday this week, ISIS claimed responsibility for two …
Continue reading "The Problem is Religion – but not in the way we think"
In our previous post, Erin Wilson and Brenda Bartelink shared a summary and preliminary insights from a pilot study on spirituality and development transformation. In addition to the project specific findings, their research has also highlighted additional areas of focus for research on religion and development more broadly. In today’s post, they discuss these additional …
Continue reading "Towards a broader research agenda in religion and development"
Religion and conflict seem to be more prevalent than ever in contemporary global politics and society. So often in public debate we hear that religion is either violent or it is peaceful, that it is oppressive or it promotes justice. But are these the only two ways of thinking about religion and conflict? In today’s …
Continue reading "Religion and Conflict: Beyond Clichés and Stereotypes"
The Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris have raised many questions about free speech, liberal democracy, freedom of religion and how to live together in multicultural, multi faith, multi political societies. In today's post, Erin Wilson explores some of these questions and encourages us, rather than seeking for definitive answers, to see the conversation and debate these questions inspire as an …
In humanitarian aid there is often a strong focus on the biomedical angle of disease, as we can see right now in the Ebola crisis in West Africa. However, the role of religion should not be underestimated, as scholarly research and media indicate that religious beliefs and practices can have a positive influence on prevention …
Gender and feminism seem to be gaining attention again in the broader global public sphere. Religion – as a concept and as representative of broad traditions of belief and theology - has frequently had a problematic relationship with both of these concepts and frameworks. But they are not the natural enemies that they are often …
Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, the DRC. In each of these contexts, and numerous others, complex dynamics around politics, resources, religion and power are contributing to the creation of a global crisis of displacement of unprecedented scale, with a record number of 51.2 million people displaced in 2013.[1] Dominant state-centric modes of asylum and protection …
Continue reading "Faith and the Asylum Crisis: The role of religion in responding to displacement"
The Religion Factor 