Towards an integrative theory of religion and politics

In the social sciences, debate on the relationship between religion and politics is mainly the subject of analysis in the sociology of religion and the theory of international relations. While each of these fields promotes different approaches to study their interdependency. The individual's perception of religion and politics is neglected by current research. The faithful, who participates in religious ceremonies, listening and behaving according to specific religious teachings, actively engaging in the liturgical life of the institutional form of his religion, has a specific way of understanding the relationship between religion and politics. I argue that this aspect is under-researched and misrepresented in the literature of sociology and international relations. However, a more complex analysis is offered by the study of nationalism, and especially by its ethnosymbolic approach, which includes at the micro and macro societal level the presence of myths and symbols as part of the individual's and the nation's life. An integrative theory analysing the connection between religion and politics takes into account the role of myths and symbols from the perspectives of both individuals and ethnic communities.

Methodology choices and the construction of facts:some implications from the sociology of scientific knowledge

This paper has two objectives: first, to provide a brief review of developments in the sociology of scientific knowledge (SSK); second to apply an aspect of SSK theorising which is concerned with the construction of scientific knowledge. The paper offers a review of the streams of thought which can be identified within SSK and then proceeds to illustrate the theoretic constructs introduced in the earlier discussion by analysing a particular contribution to the literature on research methodology in accounting and organisations studies. The paper chosen for analysis is titled “Middle Range Thinking”. The objective of this paper is not to argue that the approach used in this paper is invalid, but to seek to expose the rhetorical nature of the argumentation which is used by the author of the paper.

Transatlantic representations of Religion

Introduction to special issue: Transatlantic representations of religion

Representing religion in the European Union:does God matter?

Religious actors are becoming part of the EU bureaucratic system, and their mobilisation in Brussels and Strasbourg in the last decade has increased dramatically. This book explores the mechanism and impact of religious representation by examining relations between religious practitioners and politicians in the European Union from the Second World War until today. This book seeks to answer the following questions: How do (trans)national religious groups enter into contact with European institutions? What are the rationale and the mechanisms of religious representation in the European Union? How are religious values transposed into political strategies? What impact has relations between religious practitioners, EU officials and politicians on the construction of the European Union? Examining religious representation at the state, transnational and institutional levels, this volume demonstrates that ‘faith’ is becoming an increasingly important element of the decision-making process. It includes chapters written by both academics and religious practitioners in dialogue with European institutions and will be of great interest to students and scholars of European politics, history, sociology of religion, law and international relations.

Impact of religion on business ethics in Europe and the Muslim world

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Sexuality and Christianity:understanding the attitudes and negotiations of young adults in the UK

Christianity has historically incorporated numerous strands of thinking on sexuality; in some cases, problematizing sexuality through the endorsement of celibacy and asceticism while at other historical and contextual moments, marriage and procreation become ideals (Price 2006). Contemporary Christians negotiate many sexual scripts (including ‘secular’ ones), but ‘appropriate’ Christian sexuality is still usually defined in terms of monogamy, the containment of sex within marriage, and heterosexuality. This chapter will explore the attitudes, beliefs and practices toward sexuality of young Christian women and men aged between 18 and 25 and living in the UK, based on a qualitative and quantitative research project entitled Religion, Youth and Sexuality: A Multi-faith Exploration, which utilized questionnaires, in-depth interviews and video diaries. The chapter will consider the variations in attitude between young people from different Christian denominations in relation to three themes: sex outside of marriage, celibacy and monogamy.

Connecting a sociology of childhood perspective with the study of child health, illness and wellbeing:introduction

In the last decades we have seen a growing interest in research into children's own experiences and understandings of health and illness. This development, we would argue, is much stimulated by the sociology of childhood which has drawn our attention to how children as a social group are placed and perceived within the structure of society, and within inter-generational relations, as well as how children are social agents and co-constructors of their social world. Drawing on this tradition, we here address some cross-cutting themes that we think are important to further the study of child health: situating children within health policy, drawing attention to practices around children's health and well-being and a focus on children as health actors. The paper contributes to a critical analysis of child health policy and notions of child health and normality, pointing to theoretical and empirical research potential for the sociology of children's health and illness.

Connecting a sociology of childhood perspective with the study of child health, illness and wellbeing:introduction

This chapter focuses on concepts and theoretical points of departure found in child health and wellbeing studies. Firstly, seeing children as a social group draws attention to the ways this group is placed and perceived in the structures of societies. Children as a social group need to be understood in relation to other social groups. Secondly, understanding children as social agents and as co-constructors of their social worlds is fundamental to studying their experiences and ways of dealing with health and wellbeing in everyday life. Thirdly, in recent years, there has been a turn towards seeing children as beings. The chapter discusses the child health issues and concerns in contemporary society. Children are diagnosed with an increasing range of conditions and are subject to more and more elaborate child health and welfare interventions, reflecting a medical perspective on the changing panorama of illness and health risks in the 21st century.

The unhappy marriage of religion and politics:problems and pitfalls for gender equality

This article explores how religion as a political force shapes and deflects the struggle for gender equality in contexts marked by different histories of nation building and challenges of ethnic diversity, different state–society relations (from the more authoritarian to the more democratic), and different relations between state power and religion (especially in the domain of marriage, family and personal laws). It shows how ‘private’ issues, related to the family, sexuality and reproduction, have become sites of intense public contestation between conservative religious actors wishing to regulate them based on some transcendent moral principle, and feminist and other human rights advocates basing their claims on pluralist and time- and context-specific solutions. Not only are claims of ‘divine truth’ justifying discriminatory practices against women hard to challenge, but the struggle for gender equality is further complicated by the manner in which it is closely tied up with, and inseparable from, struggles for social and economic justice, ethnic/racial recognition, and national self-determination vis-à-vis imperial/global domination.

Catholic literature and secularisation in France and England, 1880-1914

This book is the first comparative study of its kind to explore at length the French and English Catholic literary revivals of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It compares individual and societal secularisation in France and England and examines how French and English Catholic writers understood and contested secular mores, ideologies and praxis, in the individual, societal and religious domains. It also addresses the extent to which some Catholic writers succumbed to the seduction of secular instincts, even paradoxically in themes which are considered to be emblematic of Catholic literature. The breadth of this book will make it a useful guide for students wishing to become familiar with a wide range of such writings in France and England during this period. It will also appeal to researchers interested in Catholic literary and intellectual history in France and England, theologians, philosophers and students of the sociology of religion. CONTENTS: Preface and acknowledgements Introduction 1. Individual and societal secularisation in France and England 2. Recovering the porous individual 3. Thinking and believing 4. The fragments of secular society 5. Mending secular fragmentation 6. Ultimate societal values 7. Catholic religiosity and the hierarchical Church 8. Catholic religiosity and the charismatic Church Conclusion Bibliography Index

Religion, politics and law in the European Union: an introduction

EU enlargement - to countries in Central and Eastern Europe in 2004, the inclusion of Bulgaria and Romania in 2007, and increasing debates on Turkey’s membership - has dramatically transformed the European Union into a multi-religious space. Religious communities are not only shaping identities but are also influential factors in political discourse. This edited volume examines the activities of religious actors in the context of supranational European institutions and the ways in which they have responded to the idea of Europe at local and international levels. By bringing together scholars working in political science, history, law and sociology, this volume analyses key religious factors in contemporary EU architecture, such as the transformation of religious identities, the role of political and religious leaders, EU legislation on religion, and, the activities of religious lobbies. This book was published as a special issue of Religion, State and Society.