Multifaith movements in ultramodernity

Ultramodernity (Willaime 2006), following on from modernity, has been characterised as an era of fear, risk and uncertainty and paradoxically as a time of great hope and global interdependence (Baumann 2006; Beck 2006; Obama 2006). Following the events of September 11, 2001, the Bali and London bombings, a climate of fear has inspired a plethora of policies that have eroded civil liberties, jeopardising trust in state systems and thereby inadvertently elevating the risk of further violence, particularly in so-called Western societies. Conversely, ultramodern scholars, including Jürgen Habermass and Ulrich Beck, have advocated cosmopolitan solutions to more effectively and cooperatively counter global risks. These optimistic scenarios, while reaching populist proportions, have also received their fare share of criticism (Brassett 2008). Indeed, when we look toward the current state of the United Nations it is difficult not to lose hope. Where is the proof that Immanuel Kant’s cosmopolitan condition is coming into being in the global arena beyond these sociological theories? I argue that the rise of multifaith movements in ultramodernity provides this much needed evidence.

Netpeace and the cosmopolitan condition : multifaith movements and the politics of understanding

The ultramodern era has been characterized paradoxically as one of great fear and great hope. Reactions to the tragic events of September 11, 2001 provide evidence of this ambivalence whereby a politics of fear and exclusion permeated Western societies, accompanied by a growing interest in collaborative cosmopolitan solutions addressing the most pressing global risks of our times. Culturally, religiously and linguistically diverse (CRALD) community experiences in the state of Victoria, Australia well illustrate this dichotomy. Drawing on this case study, I argue that the rise of multifaith and multi-actor peacebuilding networks in ultramodernity provide evidence that cosmopolitan solutions can effectively counter global risks, in this case particularly terrorism, and advance common security among diverse faith communities and across diverse sectors. In so doing I develop a new netpeace framework arguing that the politics of fear is best countered by a politics of understanding.