Religions in Movement: The Local and the Global in Contemporary Faith Traditions (Routledge Studies in Religion)

"There has long been a debate about implications of globalization for the survival of the world of sovereign nation-states, and the role of nationalism as both an agent of and a response to globalization. In contrast, until recently there has been much less debate about the fate of religion. 'Globalization' has been viewed as part of the rationalization process, which has already relegated religion to the dustbin of history, just as it threatens the nation, as the world moves toward a cosmopolitan ethics and politics. The chapters in this book, however, make the case for the salience and resilience of religion, often in conjunction with nationalism, in the contemporary world in several ways. This book highlights the diverse ways in which religions first and foremost make use of the traditional power and communication channels available to them, like strategies of conversion, the preservation of traditional value systems, and the intertwining of religious and political power. Nevertheless, challenged by a more culturally and religiously diversified societies and by the growth of new religious sects, contemporary religions are also forced to let go of these well known strategies of preservation and formulate new ways of establishing their position in local contexts. This collection of essays by established and emerging scholars brings together theory-driven and empirically-based research and case-studies about the global and bottom-up strategies of religions and religious traditions in Europe and beyond to rethink their positions in their local communities and in the world"--Publisher. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title Page 6 Copyright Page 7 Table of Contents 8 List of Figures 10 General Introduction 12 Secularity and Globalisation 12 Religion and Migration 14 About the UCSIA Summer School 15 Part I: Global Perspectives on Religion, Nationalism and Politics 18 1. Introduction: Global Perspectives on Religion, Nationalism and Politics 20 Religions as Global Actors 21 The Re-Infusion of Religion into the Public Sphere 24 Ethnic Minorities, Religious Networks and the Nation-State 26 Religion and the Repertoires of Resistance 28 Concluding Remarks 29 2. Islam, Politics and Globalisation: What Are the Issues and Outcomes? 30 Religion and Globalisation: What are the Interactions and Outcomes? 31 Orientalism 33 Globalisation: Challenges and Opportunities for Religion 36 Ideas 38 Experiences 38 Practices 39 Globalisation, Politics and Islam: Plus Ça Change, Plus C’est La Même Chose? 39 Conclusion 45 Notes 47 3. The Paradox of Globalisation: Quakers, Religious NGOs and the United Nations 48 The Un and the Expansion of Religious NGOs 49 Institutional Knowledge is Power: Quakers in International Relations 51 The Paradox of Globalisation 54 How is the Idea of Globalisation a Paradox? 55 Why are Global Governance Institutions a Key Empirical Register for Assessing the Dynamics of Religion in a Global World? 57 How are Quakers and Religious NGOs Caught in the Paradox of Globalisation? 59 State Power, Religious NGOs and Courtier Politics 62 Conclusion: Religion within the Paradox of Globalisation 64 Notes 65 4. European Secularity and Religious Modernity in Russia and Eastern Europe: Focus on Orthodox Christianity 68 Orthodoxy and Aspects of Modernity in Eastern Europe and Russia 68 Religion in the Public Sphere 71 Religion in Europe: East Vs. West 80 Religion and Modernity: Searching for a Proper Theoretical Framework 84 Secularisation Thesis 84 Privatisation of Religion Thesis 85 Rational Choice Approach 86 Is a Religion-Friendly Model of Modernity Possible in Orthodox Europe? 87 Notes 88 5. The Orthodox Tradition in a Globalising World: The Case of the Romanian Orthodox Church 90 Introduction 90 The Global Religious System 91 Orthodox Christianity and Globalisation 93 Ethics and Values in a Globalised World 96 Social Justice and Assistance 98 Religious Pluralism 100 Diaspora 102 Conclusion 103 Notes 104 6. Good Muslims, Good Chinese: State Modernisation Policies, Globalisation of Religious Networks and the Changing Hui Ethno-Religious Identifications 109 Politics of Religion in Modern and Contemporary China 110 Islamic Revival in the Post-Mao Period 113 The Labyrinth of Hui Ethno-Religious Identity 115 China’s Islamic Connection 117 Global Muslims? Chinese Muslims? 120 Conclusion 122 Notes 123 7. Where National Histories and Colonial Myths Meet: ‘Histoire Croisée’ and Memory of the Moroccan-Berber Cultural Movement in the Netherlands 125 Histore Croisée of the Mouvement Culturel Amazign: Morocco and the Netherlands 127 ‘The Good Berber’: A Travelling Colonial Myth in La Longue Durée 129 1956–1994: A Short History of Forgetting 132 Rifian Migration and the Myth of Selective Recruitment 133 Decolonising National History 135 Multiple Berberités 140 Notes 142 8. Self-Sacrifice and Martyrdom in Terrorism: Political and Religious Motives 143 Passive Martyrdom 145 Offensive Martyrdom 148 Functions of Self-Sacrifice and Martyrdom in Terrorism 151 Political and Religious Motives 152 Notes 157 Part II: Varieties of Religious Globalisation 158 9. Varieties of Religious Globalisation 160 10. Religion in the Contemporary Globalised World: Construction, Migration, Challenge, Diversity 170 Religion Resurgent and Problematic in the Early 21st Century 170 Religion, State, Westphalia, and Globalisation 173 A Post-Westphalian Condition and a Post-Westphalian Structuring of Religion 181 Lived Post-Westphalian Religion: An Illustration from Muslim Youth in Canada 188 Conclusion 189 Note 190 11. Voluntarism: Niche Markets Created by a Fissile Transnational Faith 191 Contested Sites: Origins and Cultural Provenance 191 Contested Sites: Origins and Expansion 193 Changing Attitudes Among Anthropologists and the Christian Mainstream 194 Pentecostalism and the Global Market 195 Transnational Voluntarism and Organic Territorialism 196 Voluntarism and Territorialism in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa 197 Voluntarism and Cultural Nationalism in Asia and the Pacific Rim 198 Point of Insertion: Marginal Ethnicities 200 Points of Insertion: Challenging Established Groups, Mobilising New Middle Classes 203 Points of Insertion: The Trek to the Megacity 204 The Trails of Global Migration 204 Conclusion 205 12 . Women Perform )Ijtihād: Hybridity as Creative Space for Interpretations of Islam 207 The Development of a Female Influence 207 The Collected Discourses of Muslim Women 209 From a Global Mélange to a Hybrid Religiosity 211 A Creative Peripheral Position of Hybrid Muslim Women in Authenticating Socioreligious Changes 213 Hybridisation in Authority Due to Female Interpretations 216 Final Remarks 218 Notes 219 13. Processes of Localised and Globalised Islam among Young Muslims in Berlin 222 A New Generation of Muslims 223 (Re)Localising Religious Practice 226 Modifications in Power Structures 230 Transnational Islamic Knowledge and Consumption 232 Religious Youth Culture 235 Conclusion 237 Notes 238 14. Towards Cultural Translation: Rethinking the Dynamics of Religious Pluralism and Globalisation through the Sathya Sai Movement 241 Religion and Globalisation: Inherited Legacies and Immediate Futures 241 The Sathya Sai Baba Movement, New Knowledge and Transnational Global Religious Influence 246 The Dynamics of Cultural Translation 249 Strategic Ambiguity, Matrices of Multiple Meanings and Plastic Ontologies 254 Notes 256 15. Ghanaian Films and Chiefs as Indicators of Religious Change among the Akan in Kumasi and Its Migrants in Southeast Amsterdam 257 The Religious Identity of the Akan in Kumasi and in the Bijlmer District: A Comparison 259 Akan Chieftaincy in Ghana and the Akan Diaspora in Southeast Amsterdam as Indicators of Religious Change 263 Ghanaian Video Films as Indicators of Religious Change 267 Notions of Home: An Explanation for Transformations in the Religious Identity of the Akan Migrants 275 Conclusion 276 Notes 277 Contributors 278 Bibliography 280 Index 320