Religion and Globalization

Rashīd Riḍā's six fatwas to China, disregarded by historians of China and by historians of Salafism, greatly expand our historical understanding of transnational intellectual exchanges between Muslim reformers in the interwar period. The questions that prompted the fatwas shed new light on the specific issues that divided Sino-Muslim nationalists in the republican era, when a Chinese awakening coincided with an Islamic awakening. They also reveal why a Sino-Muslim scholar, seeking external arbitration, decided to write to a Muslim authority in Cairo. The fatwas that ensued show, in turn, the care that Riḍā took to transmit his legal methods and religious values to a foreign country, where Muslims mainly followed the Ḥanafī school of law. On the basis of the fatwas, which were translated into Chinese, the article offers not an arbitrary, abstract, or ahistorical understanding of the origins of Salafism in China, but a concrete grasp of Salafism in translation.

The thesis titled An Understanding of the New Age Through the Lens of an Embodied Experience of the Sacred is a writing of anthropological character which aims to explain how the New Age phenomenon manifests in the context of globalization.
From an Anthropological stance, the New Age is a cultural phenomenon of religious connotation. It is part of a process of Globalization of Religion (Csordas 2009) in the context of a Global Religious System (Beyer 2006). The New Age phenomenon is embodied throughout the deterritorialized trajectories of its spiritual foragers (De la Torre 2013) in a quest for an experience of the Sacred as Otherness. The consequence of these trajectories is an intertwined rhizome (Deleuze & Guattari 1987) configured by a complex interconnection of eclectic elements gravitating around the experience of the sacred in a global society.
These concepts are used to demonstrate how the New Age manifests in the embodied experience of persons in concrete local contexts, maintaining a constant dialogue with the global dimension of the New Age. Three particular cases are analyzed regarding this objective: Aztec Dancing (Olivas 20014), Neomayanism and Deoceltism (2016,) and Neoshamanism (Itzhak 2015).

The viability of creating ethnicity as a cross border zone of communication has been explored in philosophy, science and the arts, in both East and West, in ‘classical’ as well as ‘indigenous’ discourse, in the historical as well as the contemporary context. A hermeneutic, circular journey has been undertaken again and again between tradition and modernity, past and present, nature and culture, subject and object, one and many, the Being and the beings, the thought and the un thought, the self and the other. This proves the feasibility of turning globalization from a challenge into an opportunity and of harnessing ceaseless border crossings to a cooperative rather than a competitive, violence ridden framework. The goal of an equal rather than unequal flow of knowledge and resources between the Global North and the Global South is a distinct possibility and its quest is a feasible venture.

¿Cuáles son los principales retos a los que se enfrenta el mundo con-temporáneo? Si juzgamos la historia reciente a la luz de las metas, los valores y el programa político occidental moderno, terminaríamos enumerando una serie de resistencias de orden cultural y político que habría que vencer para que la marcha del desarrollo prosiga feliz-mente su cauce. Sin embargo, y he ahí el problema, quizá lo que valga la pena sea más bien enfocar nuestra atención en esas resistencias, no como obstáculos en un supuesto camino válido por sí mismo y que nadie cuestiona, sino como síntomas de necesidades de fondo, de orden social, político, cultural y hasta existencial, que los procesos de globalización han desatado y puesto en evidencia. Fenómenos que aparentemente son consecuencias negativas de la globalización o que invitan a juzgar sus procesos negativamente, pero que no se habrían articulado tan claramente y no tendrían tanta fuerza si no fuera por la globalización misma, que la constituyen y hacen que tengamos un concepto histórico y filosófico cada vez más profundo de lo que la globalización significa como experiencia histórica humana transcivilizacional.

La tesis explora etnográficamente el proceso de adaptación que viene dándose hace algunas décadas del budismo tibetano al contexto bonaerense y, especialmente, dentro de la comunidad del centro de práctica y enseñanza budista tibetano, el Kagyu Tekchen Chöling.
Realizamos un breve recorrido histórico a modo de introducción al budismo, sus escuelas y el proceso de globalización de esta tradición a partir del cual se hizo presente en la diversidad religiosa argentina. Mostramos algunas de las ideas más recurrentes en el centro de Dharma, las cuales dan forma a lo que presentamos como "comunidad de habla o de lenguaje", ordenadas en tres entradas de un Glosario Conceptual. Realizamos también una descripción etnográfica del centro de Dharma como contexto de práctica del "entrenamiento espiritual budista" en vías de alcanzar una transformación de sí a partir del conocimiento anclado en la experiencia que, en su grado más alto de compromiso, supone un modo de vida: el camino del bodhisattva. El objetivo de transformación fue problematizado a partir de la idea de trabajo de sí y, para eso, tuvimos en cuenta la inscripción de dicho entrenamiento en el linaje Kagyu del budismo tibetano y el rol de los lamas dentro del centro. Desarrollamos la idea de que las prácticas del dar se convierten en modos de relación enraizados en la moral budista y, a partir de una reflexión sobre otra práctica central, la meditación analítica, revisamos la categoría de dividuo desde el debate individuo, dividuo, porosidad.
Para ello, problematizamos antropológicamente la traducción y la articulación con sentidos locales como una vía para abordar el fenómeno de la adaptación del budismo tibetano al contexto bonaerense y estudiamos la transformación que los argentinos conversos al budismo sin antepasados orientales realizan en sus modos de experimentarse a sí mismos, su relación con otros seres y su relación con lo existente.

Il fenomeno religioso suscita crescente interesse tra gli analisti di politica internazionale. Esso è oggi largamente considerato un elemento chiave per una più ampia e approfondita interpretazione degli eventi mondiali. In effetti, la disciplina politologica delle relazioni internazionali ha per lungo tempo escluso la religione dai parametri ritenuti fondamentali per lo studio della politica mondiale. Il “ritorno” della religione (anzi, delle religioni) sulla scena internazionale è stato considerato da analisti, studiosi e diplomatici come un aspetto dell’avvento di un’era post-secolare.
Questo libro tenta di rispondere ad alcune domande che mi sono posto, al riguardo, durante i lunghi anni di servizio all’estero come diplomatico italiano. Ho la sensazione che i miei incontri ravvicinati con le religioni nell’arena internazionale non siano finiti, e per tale ragione ho deciso di tenerne traccia, iniziando un esercizio di riflessione che rappresenta una miscela di inquadramento teorico e di esperienza empirica.

The most celebrated "return" of religion on the international scene has been considered by analysts, scholars, and diplomats mainly as a confirmation on a wider scale of the hypothesis of a "post-secular" era. What is missing, however, is a reflection on the present-day functioning of religions in connection with the systemic analysis of international relations in a phase of global transformation. If world religions are to be taken seriously in the field of international relations, this would require an approach to their role in the international system as a structural element rather than a mere cultural phenomenon with only a derivative or secondary influence on world order. In particular, it will be useful to make a clear conceptual distinction between the two diverging paradigms of "globalization" and "universalism," as embodied in an explicit or implicit way in many world religions today; and to investigate if and how religions could contribute to the formation of a global collective identity, both symbolic and pluralistic.

Religions are gaining growing attention in international circles as a key element to take into account for a better understanding of world events. It is widely recognized today that religions have multiple influences on international relations, including their ability to confer legitimacy, to influence the world-views of leaders and their constituents, the tendency of religious conflicts to spill over borders, and through transnational
phenomena and issues which overlap with religion, including human rights and terrorism. The role of religions is also increasingly important in promoting forms of organized and institutionalized international cooperation, with specific reference to cooperative activity between states that reflects the rules, laws, norms, or practices of international society.

Since the beginning of his mandate, Pope Francis has used the concept of periphery as a metaphor of social marginality. However, the notion of periphery also seems to target the asymmetries generated by the liberal version of globalization. Pope Francis' narrative has to be read in the broader context of the relation between religions and globalization. That interaction is usually conceptualized in terms of religions capitalizing on global "vectors", such as new information and communication technologies, processes of political and institutional integration, shared cultural patterns, transnational phenomena and organizations. An alternative way to analyze the role of religions consists in considering them as agencies defending the perspective of a universal community, putting into question the national political boundaries and contesting the existing global order. Understood in those terms, the concept of periphery reveals to be a powerful rhetoric device, insofar as it suggests that it is possible to get a wider perspective of the current state of the world looking form the edge rather than from the center.

The Church is always one generation away from extinction. There are larger trends that jeopardize the future of rural churches in my area.  Evidence suggests there will not be enough Millennials to keep these rural churches viable. The rural churches built themselves on the “world-as-it-used-to-be”.  But this world is fading with younger generations.  Current approaches are unlikely to keep the ship afloat 
The “world-as-it-used-to-be” distorted the biblical narrative culminating in Christ.  This story does not have weight with younger generations. If followers of Jesus in a rural context can embrace the correct biblical narrative, they can grow in their humanity and reflect Christ.  The real issue is not “how can we keep the churches afloat” but “what kind of church can make disciples of Jesus in a rural context”.  The rural churches in my area have an operating system that works against the production of disciples. These churches are in the last stage of their life cycle. Having a “good death” may be the best result for these churches.  A new matrix built to make disciples is the optimal result.
This matrix will reject the urban church operating systems that focus on numbers and the rural operating systems that focus on preservation. Leonard Sweet proposes a new model that reflects the operating system of Jesus that he believes is missional, relational and incarnational (MRI). 
The future rural church in my area needs this operating system built on the NT metaphor of Christ as the Icon of God. This metaphor connects us to the metaphor of the Church as “a river of living water”.  These metaphors reflect an MRI operating system as part of new matrix that grows disciples.
Growth in Christ demands a Kingdom of God mindset.  This happens through an emotional connection to a leader (s) who creates a learning community in an intimate context and practices certain kinds of spiritual disciplines.  This new church will build on the strengths of their rural culture and be experiential, participatory, image-rich and connective (EPIC).

Yoga in Britain reveals how yoga came to be an accepted, mainstream activity in the twentieth century. During this period, yoga transformed from an esoteric concept into a something that would be taught to thousands of middle-class women in adult education classes. For the post-war welfare state, yoga was understood as having potential public bene­fit in promoting physical health and wellbeing. The structure of yoga classes which developed in this context established certification structures and secular, replicable class forms. This setting is crucial for understanding the methods and expectations found in globally popular forms of yoga.

Moreover, yoga has not developed in a linear manner. Old and new forms co-exist, adapting to suit the specific needs of particular populations. In twentieth-first century Britain, yoga cannot be collapsed into a form of neoliberal commercialism or cultural appropriation, although these influences on yoga in Britain are also evident. Using extensive archival evidence and oral history interviews, the book reveals the diversity of individuals involved with the popularisation of yoga. In Britain, as throughout the globe, yoga continues to be understood and practiced in very distinctive ways by different people.

一貫道最早向國外傳播的地方是韓國與日本．到現在為止，兩國一貫道已經通過七十多年的本地化，這樣的過程中跨文化發展已經很明顯．本文探討一貫道或是說屬於所謂「先天大道系統」的宗教團體在日本的發展與現況．本文以本地的「天道」與「道德會館」為例，介紹一貫道日本化的一些方面，包括語言、人員、組織、儀式、宗教實踐（religious practice）等．天道是1949年被台灣天道（師兄派）天浩總壇領導人員在神戶成立的，1983年以後分裂出來的當地日式宗教團體．道德會館原來是1940年代從天津道德壇傳播出來的，1972年第一代前人王建東歸空、當地日本人當前人以後也歸屬日式宗教團體．通過兩個月的田野調查（2018年4月～6月）與歷史研究方式，本文介紹關於一貫道在日本跨文化過程的一些思考．