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This paper contributes to the research on the symbiotic relationship between religion and the market by examining the nature and implications of the marketization of religion in a contemporary Christendom in which religion and the market are hegemonic. Based on our analysis of 3741 church advertisements in Ghana over a 6-year period, we conceptualize three symbiotic relationships that coexist between the market and religion—commensalism, mutualism, and competition. We argue that these symbiotic relationships mirror how religion hegemonizes popular imagination and members' consumption through marketization in contemporary Christendom. This study extends our understanding of the dialectical relationship between religion and the market by showing that religion can use marketization to perpetuate its hegemony within and beyond the market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central European countries with a historically dominant Roman Catholic heritage belong to a particular cluster in respect to the governance of religion. This paper focuses on Hungary and Slovakia and addresses the effect of religious nationalism on the regimes of governance of religion in the two countries. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, there was a brief period of neutral stance towards religion, which was characterized by liberal values. With the introduction of the bilateral Concordat agreements with the Holy See, both countries started to treat traditional Christian Churches preferentially. By the 2010s legislation in both countries created restrictive entry barriers for "new" religions. This created two or multi-tiered systems for "old" and "new" religions, in which the former enjoyed closer relationship with the state. As a result, the separation of church and state has become blurred. Preferentially treated churches reappeared in the public space as providers of certain educational and social services. Preferentially treated churches and the state developed asymmetrically interdependent relationships, the state having the upper hand. Meanwhile, increasingly populist and nationalist parties instrumentalized religion by involving Christianity in their nationalistic political discourse. This helped create a normative space, in which the state is able to give further preferential treatment to certain religious groups over others. The emphasis on Christian national identity underpinned these governments' narratives that conflates migration with security and Islam, which pushed those religious groups on the margins, which do not fit in the religious nationalist narrative of the increasingly right- and populism-leaning governing elite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This phenomenological study examines the experience of collective humiliation of the Naga people of Northeast India under British colonialism, the impact of Western missionary activity, and Indian politics after independence. The focus is on the impact that such long lasting domination has had and continues to have on the Nagas' identity. Continued humiliation, it is argued, can lead to a vicious cycle of retaliation and violence. The paper argues that rather than being dominated or retaliating, the Naga Christian should re-evaluate humility. Contrary to the criticism of some modern thinkers that humility is weakness and an instrument of oppression, Christians and the Church, inspired by Christ's kenosis (Phil 2), will find in humility an access to reconciliation as a tool for dialogue open to a future of justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historians have held that colonialism and Western missionary enterprise were two distinct and unrelated entries to pre-colonial Kenya. How then did Christianity for decades live side by side with colonialism? The impact of that unholy relationship is felt and sustained in contemporary forms of violence. Whiteness realizes that is hard to enter into something that is in harmony. Therefore, separation needs to happen for Whiteness to succeed. Unfortunately, much of our theological understanding today is tempered with a neocolonial mindset that separates the soul from the body for Christian triumphalism. This paper will analyze the impact of Whiteness in Kenya during and after colonialism to demonstrate how the British explorer-settler-missionary alliance oiled the religious and economic disenfranchising of African people. Secondly, it proposes a political theology that will restore 'Shalom' in a socially, economically, and spiritually broken country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the Ao Naga traditional religion detached from its colonial and Christian theological imprints is still in a very nascent stage. Literature review reveals that there are copious writings on Ao traditional religion, seemingly indicating that it is one of the most studied aspects of Ao society. Even though Ao traditional religion is the most studied aspect of Ao society, it is also one of the most misunderstood aspects of the society. Such misunderstanding stems from the bubble of references among the academic writers concentrated on colonial and Ao theologians' writings with negligible scrutiny. This paper is an attempt to break the bubble and challenge the mindscape by giving an alternative proposal. The first section critiques the colonial writings of J. P. Mills and W. C. Smith. The second section critiques work by Ao Christian theologians. In the last section, I propose a way of understanding Ao traditional religion gleaning from the work of contemporary animism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study is based on an in-depth thematic analysis of 20 interviews with German and Israeli adult survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA) by religious authority figures (RAF). This paper aims to explore survivors' experiences within the Jewish ultra-Orthodox and Christian communities, as well as to draw comparisons between the abusive structures and disclosure in these two contexts. The results point to the complexity of CSA by RAF, which is embedded in the survivors' perceptions of themselves as emotionally and cognitively captured by the perpetrators who are a symbol of a parent or God and faith. The participants expressed great concern regarding disclosing the abuse against the backdrop of familial, cultural, and community inhibitors, such as fear of social stigmatization, inability to recognize the abuse, and the taboo of sexuality discourse. The survivors' traumatic experiences were intensified in light of negative social responses to disclosure and encounters with insensitive officials. A comparison of the cultures revealed differences regarding the nature of community life and educational institutions, which may have shaped the disclosure and recognition of the abuse. The study highlights the importance of comparative follow-up studies related to this phenomenon in order to examine its universal and unique cultural contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper adopts a theological perspective to reflect on the question of what a response by Christian churches, and individual Christians, should be vis-à-vis current threats to democracy. The paper proceeds in three steps. First, an analysis of the problem, with a particular regard to the European context, is provided by exploring some examples of the contemporary threats to democracy. Second, a number of approaches are outlined based on theological resources in order to address the problem constructively and to build resilience. Finally, an argument is made that hope represents the criterion that should give orientation and sustain Christian deliberation on and engagement in society, including political life. While shaped by the Protest background and affiliation of its author and written from the post-communist, Central European context, this paper strives for a wider ecumenical outlook and engagement, seeking a broader relevance and implications beyond the boundaries of Christian churches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contends that in Africa, the belief in the reality of the spirit world is a persistent phenomenon, which occupies a significant place in their religiosity. By building their theologies around the existential needs of the African people, the prophetic and deliverance ministries represent a contextual approach to Christianity in Africa. Nevertheless, an examination of the strengths and weaknesses of these ministries reveal that their approach may fit well into the African cultural milieu, but their emphasis is a threat to the progress of Christian discipleship in Africa and among Africans in the diaspora. Despite their rapid numerical growth, the deliverance ministries cannot bring the African out of the fear of witchcraft and other supernatural powers. The paper concludes that to be able to mitigate the challenges of these ministries, pragmatic solutions being discussed at the academic levels must be made accessible to grassroots prophets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Almost everywhere throughout the Majority World (MW), that is Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Christianity used to be called the 'white-man's religion'. But that is the case no more—the church has exploded all over the MW. In this paper I would like to look at this shift in Christianity worldwide, and what implications it has for the global church, and especially for us in Asia. My purpose here is not to highlight the weaknesses of the Western church and to glorify the growth of the churches in the MW. Rather my hope is that this will help us have a clearer understanding of the challenges before us so that we can labor more fruitfully for the advance of the gospel in the Asian context. In the process I will also raise questions which hopefully will help point the way forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction to collection of papers by group of scholars and ACO missionaries brought together to discuss the developments within the ACO over the past hundred years during a conference that was organised by Dr Wilbert van Saane of Haigazian University (Beirut) in January 2021. I will briefly summarise what strikes me as characteristic of the ACO on the basis of these articles, and conclude with a discussion of how this may contribute to further reflection in Mission Studies and World Christianity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many Christian churches in parts of Ghana dominated by Akans do not allow corpses to be brought inside the church during funerals services. Others face constant and vehement objection when it is done. Cultural differences on the subject have fuelled heated disputes that have led in some cases to severe congregational division. Opposition is often sustained by a culturally biased approach to biblical texts concerning sacredness and defilement as related to Old Testament sanctuary and temple ritual. Particularly, the religious philosophy of mmusuo provides the psycho-emotive motivation from which many Akan Christians vehemently oppose the practice as sacrilegious. It also provides an analytical and rhetorical framework for appropriating various biblical passages relating to religious sacrilege. This paper unpacks this framework and proposes effectively contextualized theology as a means of avoiding such erroneous conflations and resolving the disputes that arise at the interface of African culture and Christian religion, especially in multicultural congregations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I provide an analysis of how the then-imminent event of the Ghanaian 2016 elections operated within and interrupted a born-again Christian understanding of social and political change. I argue that much can be gained from understanding Pentecostal Christianity in Ghana by paying close attention to how born-again Christians anticipate and participate in shaping the near future. My analysis of this period, just before (and after) the 2016 elections—from the perspective of born-again Christians in Ghana—contributes to an engagement with the immanent and imminent qualities of ethical life. In accounting for the ways in which the Christian "God" and the "nation" overlap or collide in born-again Pentecostal discourse and practice in Ghana, I propose that the precise configuration of how these forces come together and come apart has a force that complicates how we imagine ethics as something explicit in discourse or about the ability to step back in reflection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Botswana is one of the countries severely impacted by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Despite an extensive HIV prevention campaign, the incidence of HIV, particularly among women, remains high. Condoms play a significant role in preventing new HIV infections, although men and women do not consistently use them. Objective: The study assessed the individual, relationship and community factors associated with consistent condom use among women in Botswana. Design: A cross-sectional study using secondary data drawn from a national survey on Gender-Based Violence Indicators in 2012. Methods: The primary survey sampled 639 women, aged 18 years and older, using a multistage procedure. The final sample size for the secondary analysis included a total of 480 women who were sexually experienced and had reported using condoms with their male partners. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed to assess the association between consistent condom use and the explanatory variables. The multivariate logistic regression adjusted for cluster/community random effects. Results: About 43% of the women used condoms consistently in the past year. Consistent condom use was more likely among women who were employed in the past year (adjusted odds ratio = 1.77; 95% confidence interval = 1.25-2.50). While, women who lived with their partners (adjusted odds ratio = 0.46; 95% confidence interval = 0.28–0.74), had non-Christian beliefs (adjusted odds ratio = 0.52; 95% confidence interval = 0.29–0.92), perceived that their partners would be angry if they ask to use a condom (adjusted odds ratio = 0.19; 95% confidence interval = 0.06–0.58) and perceived that their community says women need their husband's permission to do paid work (adjusted odds ratio = 0.56; 95% confidence interval = 0.38–0.83) were less likely to use condoms consistently. Conclusion: Consistent condom use among Botswana's female population is suboptimal. Consistent condom use was higher among women with employment, and lower among women who lived with their partners, had non-Christian beliefs, feared their partners' reaction upon asking for condom use and held inequitable community gender beliefs. To enhance women's consistent use of condoms, friendly condom use information, female economic empowerment strategies and programmes that involve religious leaders and promote progressive and healthy masculine practices in Sexual Reproductive Health/HIV interventions should be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the lack of sufficient non-governmental prisoner re-entry services in the Czech Republic, many post-release activities are provided by faith-based organizations (FBOs). However, the Czech Republic is considered to be one of the most atheistic countries in the world. Most of the Czech population is at least apathetic toward organized religion. This study examines how re-entry FBOs present Christianity to the public in the religiously indifferent Czech Republic. The primary focus is on how the organizations present themselves to the public. We employ qualitative content analysis examining names, logos, mission statements, and other documents of 14 re-entry FBOs. The analysis reveals four general themes within the organizations' public presentations: Ambiguity when expressing religious topics, Christianity as an offer, Christianity as a form of social movement (self-legitimization), and Christianity as a pro-social lifestyle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the theoretical and historical development of the term "cult," from its inception in the work of Troeltsch to more modern delineations of the term in the work of researchers studying new religious groups. The usurpation of the term by popular usage associated with strong negative connotations is discussed, along with efforts by a few contemporary scholars to salvage the term by redefining it in ways which attempt to combine traditional and popular meanings. The futility of this approach is discussed, and the paper concludes with suggestions that scholars should avoid the term and that it should not be allowed to be used in legal proceedings because of its confused and negatively connoted meaning in contemporary society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the issue of church involvement in social justice actions. The question addressed is whether the church can involve itself in social action without losing the support of church members. In this paper I have examined the church membership support of the Campaign for Human Development the Catholic church's education-action program which, especially through its grant-making program, concretely addresses the issue of poverty and powerlessness. This study shows that in spite of the very sensitive and sometimes controversial issues confronted by the Campaign, the church membership has not withdrawn its support of the program. On the contrary, over the past three years membership contributions to the Campaign have risen at a rate of about 22 percent nationally. The findings in this paper also suggest that the annual rate of increase in membership support is even greater in those areas where the local church-diocese, parish, or clergy-have been more visibly involved in the justice education or funding activities of the Campaign for Human Development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to examine patterns of social participation among middle class neo-Pentecostals. This paper presents evidence, based on the study of a neo-Pentecostal group in western Virginia, that participation in a group with sect-like characteristics does influence the participant's pattern of organizational involvement. The evidence strongly indicates that neo!Pentea costals decrease the variety and amount of their social participation after joining the neo-Pentecostal group. The growth of neo-Pentecostalism has brought into question prior socio-logical approaches to Pentecostalism which emphasized socio!economic deprivation. Neo-Pentecostalism has emerged among those who are not economically and/or socially deprived in the conventional sociological sense. The socio-economic approach to Pentecostalism was closely associated with traditional sect-church theory. In the literature Pentecostalism was identified as sectarian and appealing primarily to the lower socio-economic classes of society.

Background: As the spiritual family for many African Americans, the church presents an opportunity to improve communication about palliative care and hospice (PCH). However, sustainable change in church-based, practices related to PCH requires a compreshensive, multilevel approach.Objectives: Our primary goal was to encourage churches to embrace palliative care and hospice as acceptable alternatives for end-of-life care by creating venues to improve communications about PCH. This paper compares our experience in 5 churches, revealing lessons learned and the challenges of engaging, implementing, and maintaining a multilevel approach in the churches, and our strategies in response to those challenges.Design: Descriptive study Settings/Subjects: We partnered with 5 African American Churches in the Philadelphia Region. We targeted pastors, other church leaders, and congregants.Methods: We created 1) a leadership-education program, 2) an intensive training program for church-based lay companions (health visitors), and 3) messages and materials to increase knowledge and influence attitudes about PCH.Results: We impacted church structures and policies as shown by: integration of the project activities into existing church structures, new church-based programs dedicated to training lay companions and church leaders, new roles for church members (church liaisons) dedicated to this project, and new materials and messages focusing on PCH for the general congregation.Conclusions: We demonstrated the feasibility of engaging the African American church in a comprehensive, multilevel process designed to improve communication about palliative care and hospice (PCH). Our success demonstrates the potential of the African American church as a community resource for lay education about PCH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the impact of Christianity on the institutions of divine kingship and chiefship among the Asante people of Ghana during the late pre-colonial and colonial periods. The thrust of the paper is that separate categories of religion and politics emerged in Asante society as the colonial administration sought to facilitate missionary work and conversion while at the same time they supported the chiefs as the secular rulers of the country. The analysis is based on Dumont’s ideas on the differentiation of the political category and the characteristics of the modern state. Dumont’s own work on secularization focused on long-term historical developments that were markedly different from the abrupt changes described here. Nevertheless, his ideas help us significantly in comprehending the profoundness and radicality of this transformation. Additionally, the aim of the paper is to provide some historical background for understanding debates about the nature and value of traditional chieftaincy in present-day Ghana. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents a study of Street Pastors in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. Street Pastors are Christian volunteers who look after vulnerable people in the night-time economy. In this manner, they provide securitas through empathy and care. The motives of Street Pastors for engaging with partygoers are multi-layered, but their personal faith appears to be a key explanation. A certain kind of orthodox certitudo -- of being safe in, and saved by, a higher power -- gives the pastors their strength to go out on the street, face the unknown and feel compassion for their fellow citizens. As such, both 'securitas' and 'certitudo' highlight positive (that is, constitutive) connotations of safety and security not commonly heard in the criminological literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers are at the frontlines of the fight to identify and cope with child sexual abuse (CSA) among their pupils. Their methods of coping with CSA cases, both personally and professionally, are strongly influenced by their socio-cultural contexts and religious beliefs. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the experiences of Christian Arab teachers in Israel coping with the CSA of their pupils. Twelve Christian Arab elementary school teachers in Israel were recruited for the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and a qualitative thematic analysis was employed based on a descriptive phenomenological-psychological approach. Two key themes emerged from the analysis: (a) The teachers' intense emotional reactions regarding the CSA of their students and the empowerment some found in handling such difficult situations, and (b) The teachers' Christian beliefs and identity strongly affected their understanding of CSA and their approach to intervention. The findings indicated the dialectical position of the teachers' religio-cultural context, particularly the duality of the Christian value of forgiveness, a powerful resource for their coping, yet with adverse implications for children's vulnerability. This unique risk should inform training teachers regarding CSA matters. Teachers must also have systems that support them and allow them to reflectively examine their coping styles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article demonstrates the overlooked similarity between Scheeben's and Rahner's accounts of God's self-communication to the human person through uncreated grace. It then argues that though Scheeben's conception of God's universal offer of grace evinces similarities with Rahner's "supernatural existential," Scheeben differs from Rahner by emphasizing the distinction between nature and grace. This study can help theologians to better situate Scheeben's theology amid its current renaissance and to reappropriate Rahner's basic insight about divine self-communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experience and understanding of ‘church’ in the Global South differs radically from the North. This is due to differences in size, background cultures and spiritualities, different experiences of the public space, varying resources and diverse leadership models, among other aspects. However, Pentecostalism in the North is more influential in theologizing and publishing, while the texts they produce do not always resonate with Southern needs and contexts. This paper wrestles with this situation and attempts to outline some tentative aspects of a Pentecostal ecclesiology from the South. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Chinese Protestant Christianity has been continually growing over the past three decades, with an estimated one million converts per year. A number of studies have sought to explain this phenomenon. This paper critically reviews existing studies of China's "Christianity Fever" and then outlines the role of the community as one crucial factor in the conversion process. With its emphasis on communality, as a central element of both Christian theology and the fellowship activities that are part of Christian practice, Protestant Christianity fills a gap opened up by the change in traditional familial and social structures. By discussing specific aspects relating to the communal nature of Christianity, such as familism, elitism, and dynamics at work in face-to-face evangelism, this paper offers an alternative reading of existing studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sets out a new approach to Christian theology, which accentuates its interdisciplinary potential through a rigorous interaction with the natural sciences. The approach here developed treats the natural sciences as a dialogue partner in an intellectually rigorous engagement with reality. After exploring the origins and development of this approach, and clarifying its leading features, the paper engages with three major issues which arise froma 'scientific theology': the implications of provisionality in the dialogue between science and religion; the critique of the concept of 'nature' as the basis of Christian theology; and the idea that a scientific theology represents a response to its distinctive object. It is argued that a unitary understanding of reality, such as that mandated by a Christian doctrine of creation, does not demand that all human intellectual disciplines should adopt identical methods for their tasks, but that they should accommodate themselves to the distinctive natures of those aspects of reality which they attempt to represent and depict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the nature and social impact of religion in contemporary South Korea in order to bring into relief the main characteristics of the country religious culture. The paper shows that South Korea is religiously diverse, with traditional religions such as Shamanism and Buddhism coexisting peacefully with Christianity. The paper also shows that the county has experienced a rapid growth of religions, especially Christianity, since the early 1960s and that the Christian "success story" is largely due to the religion's incorporation of beliefs and practices that promise the fulfillment of such material wishes as wealth and health. It is also shown that the influence of religion is actually expanding in South Korea today, as religious organizations continue to not only expand their involvement in social and welfare services but also extend their ownership and operation of commercial enterprises in such fields as the mass media, education, health care and publication. As regards the impact of religion on social class, politics, and attitudes toward social values, the paper shows that Buddhists have generally lower level of educational attainment, occupy lower economic class and hold more conservative political views and social values than Christians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Describing a Mundus Novus was a very singular task in the sixteenth century. It was an effort shaped by a permanent inherent tension between novelty and normality, between the immense variety of new facts (some extraordinary) and the demand of credibility. How did these inner strains affect the narrative style of the first descriptions of the natural world of ‘the Indies’? How were the first European observers of the nature of America able to simultaneously transmit the idea of immensity and regularity (mundus), and that of novelty (novus)? How did they attempt to describe new worlds knowing that there was a lot – perhaps too much – to tell? This paper focuses not on the much-discussed epistemological issues related to those questions, but on their narrative and stylistic consequences. We argue that the first Europeans meeting the new realities of the Americas or India had to meet new challenges, and these translated into texts with specific characteristics. Thus, their first descriptions are essentially different from the texts about the natural world that were written before or after the ‘discovery’. We show that they adopted very specific discursive approaches, and were deeply influenced by the credibility strategies of the medical profession in which they had been trained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite predictions that organized religion would decline with modernization and economic development, some forms of Christianity are thriving, particularly evangelically-oriented churches in the Southern hemisphere. However, their doctrine and strategies are not without controversy. Megachurches, Protestant churches with congregations exceeding 2000 members often embrace marketing and preach a version of ‘prosperity gospel’ where material success is taken to be proof of spiritual blessing. North American in origin, this form of religious organization has expanded throughout South East Asia. In this paper, we use a case study of a megachurch in Singapore – City Harvest Church – to explore how their involvement in marketing and the marketplace is constructed. Using a discourse analytic methodology, our findings show how the church purposefully uses the normative dichotomy between the sacred and secular to frame the meaning of their involvement in the marketplace, targeting particular types of enterprising and professionally-oriented individuals to embody their mission. Further we show how this construction reflects the pragmatism, entrepreneurial and business orientation of Singapore. Our research suggests potential for further study of the way the relationship between religion, markets and marketing are constructed, using methods that incorporate an understanding of context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender identity has become an increasingly complex area of ministry with youth. Gender identity refers to a person's experience of themselves as a boy or a girl or a different gender identity than that, such as transgender or one of several emerging gender identities. This paper will discuss transgender experiences, as well as more atypical experiences, to prepare those in youth ministry to provide more effective ministry to youth navigating gender identity and Christian faith. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some twenty years ago, the general theme for the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association focused on the ways in which various professions made use of sociologists and their research in pursuing the goals of their professions. Thus papers at that meeting described how sociologists contributed to medical, educational, political and other institutions. I was invited to read a paper on how sociological research was used by religious groups. This paper was later published in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion under the title "Uses of Sociology: By Religious Bodies" (Fuku-yama, 1963). In 1984 this writer was invited by the Lilly Endowment to study the current status of organized social research in the churches, particularly as these activities were institutionalized in denominations, councils of churches and theological seminaries. This project provided a welcomed opportunity to bring the earlier study up-to-date and this paper is a summary of what was reported to the Lilly Endowment in 1985. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the highlights of the 2nd Global Christian Forum held in Manado, Indonesia from October 4-7, 2011. Professor Dana Robert discussed her paper "Witness and Unity in 21st Century World Christianity," while Reverend Dr. Kim Sang-Bok David presented "Trends and Changes in World Christianity." Dr. Opoku Onyinah shared the chronology of Pentacolism and its legacy to world Christianity.

In this paper the famous “hymn” in Philippians 2:5–11 is considered from the perspective of the study of ritual failure. It is argued that the crucifixion of Jesus, as it is mentioned in this text, can well be considered as a ritual that, on the one hand, fails, given that it leads to Jesus' exaltation rather than to his permanent death, while it is at the same time reinterpreted as a consequence of Jesus' obedience rather than of his disobedience, as one would expect. Using the body of theory as it has been developed concerning ritual and its failure, it is shown how this reinterpretation of a ritual is more than “just” about ritual, but serves to carve out a space for early Christianity and its self-understanding in the web of power relationships that made up Greco-Roman society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opposition against greenhouse gas emissions reductions is strong among some conservative Christian groups, especially in the United States. In this paper, we identify five scripture-based arguments against greenhouse gas mitigation put forward by a core group of Christian conservatives (‘the Cornwallists’): the anti-paganism argument, the enrichment argument, the omnipotence argument, the lack of moral relevance argument and the cost-benefit argument. We evaluate to what extent the arguments express positions that can be characterised as climate science denialist and to what degree they are consistent with support for climate adaptation. Using Stefan Rahmstorf’s (2004) taxonomy of climate science denial, we conclude that the Cornwallists could be labelled climate change deniers. However, their opposition is not only based on denial of climate science but often rests on premises that render the science irrelevant, a position we term ‘relevance denialism’. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article introduces a series of articles about Christianity, Christian theology and Catholicism.

This paper examines the relationship between social contact with gays and lesbians and beliefs about homosexuality, and explicitly investigates whether this relationship is different for Christian evangelicals than for others. We find that although social contact with gays and lesbians is related to beliefs about homosexuality in ways predicted by social contact theory, those with a gay or lesbian friend hold more positive attitudes, this is not the case for Christian evangelicals. In fact, analyses reveal that the effect of social contact for Christian evangelicals is significantly less than the effect for non-evangelicals. Results suggest that social contact alone is not enough to positively change Christian evangelicals' beliefs about gay and lesbian individuals. This research adds to our knowledge about social contact by providing empirical evidence that all subgroups of the population are not affected equally by social contact with minority groups-an important piece of information for theoretical developments and policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If how the state is imagined shapes social and political action, the politics of state imagining provides an important site for progressive reflection. Arguing that conceptual approaches which support critique may not necessarily prove the best frameworks for supporting change, this article takes a left poststructuralist conception as its starting point to explore the place of conflicting interests, beliefs and affect in the make-up of the state and in shaping its enactment within civil society. Seeking to re-imagine state form in a way that enhances the state's relevance for progressive politics, the paper moves between (i) conservative Christian refusal to provide gay people with a service, as public sector staff and guesthouse owners; and (ii) feminist work in embodiment studies and on the intimate/impersonal, with its ways of thinking about, and imagining, a state that is oriented to encounters, dissonance, tension and change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nigeria ranks as the world's most violent place for Christians today. Christianity and Islam, the major religions in Nigeria, are known to preach love and peace worldwide. A brief review of the grim reality of the practical implications of these claims against endemic violence questions the meaning of religion in Nigeria. This article relates the abuse and violation of rights and, therefore, proposes the universal human right of religious freedom as a more reliable path to peaceful coexistence, as against tolerance, which today has been acknowledged as a failed strategy for enduring peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh in 1910 was followed in 1928 by a Conference in Jerusalem. Jerusalem emphasised 'the younger churches', the term then used for the churches that had resulted from missionary work. This article examines the International Missionary Council's conference of 1938, held at the Madras Christian College, Tambaram, near Madras. It had over 470 participants from 70 nations. A feature of great significance was that participants from what we now call the Global South were in the majority. This aspect has been noted, but not explored in detail. A book that was produced for the Conference, Evangelism for the World Today, edited by John Mott, which included many contributors from the Global South, has received virtually no coverage. This article examines Mott's neglected book, the role of Africans at Tambaram, the voices of women and the ongoing influence of the Conference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores theological education through the lens of the prophetic model and focuses on three aspects of the prophetic activity: (a) alerting the church to contemporary ‘fertility cults’, e.g. the subtle subjection of one’s faith to economic concerns, (b) exposing the church’s ‘doctrinal’ description of a reality which rather conceals and obstructs the understanding of the church’s actual life, and (c) appropriating the text in each context while remaining open to the challenge of other contextual readings. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]