An Awareness to the Meta-Socio-[Religio-Cultural]-linguistics Background of Contemporary Irish Society, an Interdiciplinary Study of Peace and Conflict: Through Irish Mythology, based on selected Submissions Published in the 1930s Irish Ecclesiastical Record Journals. (original) (raw)

“Religions and Conflicts. Towards a Framework for Analysis”, Arès, vol.XXIII(1), April 2008: 37-55.

Since 1945, religions, and religious differences, are amongst the most common factors of internal or internationalized conflicts. This has generated the idea that conflicts with a strong religious dimension were necessarily more savage, brutal and backward than others. However, research shows that religion can also be inimical to nationalism and conflict, and that it can be used as a soothing element in deteriorating situations or peace processes. In this perspective, this article shows that the impact of religions on conflicts is the result of the interplay between a doctrinal content (which can itself be further disaggregated into what the founding texts say, how religious authorities interpret them in the light of the current context, and how these interpretations are understood and translated at the grassroots level), the sociological dimension of Churches (their status in society, their attitude towards worldly matters and their internal divisions), and the evolution of the context in which they are embedded (in particular the changes that are likely to affect their position in a given society). Résumé Depuis 1945, les religions et les différences religieuses constituent l'une des causes les plus courantes de conflits internes ou internationalisés, ce qui a généré l'idée que les conflits possédant une forte dimension religieuse étaient nécessairement plus sauvages, brutaux et primitifs que les autres. Toutefois, les recherches montrent que religion et nationalisme ne font pas toujours bon ménage, et que la religion peut être utilisée comme facteur d'apaisement en cas d'escalade d'un conflit, ou lors d'un processus de paix. Dans cette perspective, cet article montre que l'impact des religions sur les conflits est le résultat de l'interaction entre le contenu de la doctrine (ce que disent les textes fondateurs, comment ils sont interprétés par les autorités religieuses dans un contexte donné, et comment ces interprétations sont comprises et traduites au niveau local), la dimension sociologique des Eglises (leur statut dans la société, leur attitude vis-à-vis des affaires temporelles, leurs divisions internes), et l'évolution du contexte dans lequel elles sont placées (en particulier les changements qui sont susceptibles d'affecter leur position dans une société donnée).

Religions in Times of Peace: Conceptualizing the Practice of Interreligious Dialogue in the Post‐ Conflict Environment

Indonesian Perspective, 2016

The article makes the case of collaborating the notion of interreligious dialogueand the concept of the zone of peace in an attempt to provide a more practical yeteffective channel of reconciliation in the context of post‐interreligious violence. There arethree critics implied throughout the article. First, that the current state of most ofinterreligious dialogue in post‐conflict settings is lack of two things, namely, the inclusivestructure that would allow non‐scholars and non‐clergies to engage in the theologicaldialogue, and a coherent structure for the currently diasporic efforts in interreligiousdialogue. Second, that the concept of zone of peace is severely limited, particularly due toits dependence on material modalities in forging the path of reconciliation toward peace.And third, that the elusive and elitist nature of interreligious dialogue in post‐conflictsettings, and the limited material modalities of the zone of peace can be expanded bycollaborating the two notions in...

Ethnoreligious Otherings and Passionate Conflicts

Oxford University Press, 2022

Departing from the mainstream practice and conventional wisdom of materialist and rationalist accounts of internal and intrastate conflicts, the book demonstrates how and why emotions, symbolic predispositions, and perceptions are just as powerful and useful in understanding and explaining these phenomena. By uncovering the invisible albeit concrete emotive, symbolic, and perceptual causal mechanisms underpinning ethnoreligious otherings and the resulting violent protracted conflicts, the book aims to help address the incongruence between how the actual actors operating within these contexts think and act and the existing theories and models of how they are expected to behave. Accordingly, the book has three main goals. First, to highlight the centrality of emotions, symbolic predispositions, and perceptions in providing a more holistic and realistic understanding of otherings and conflicts. Second, to illustrate how the ethnoreligious othering framework developed and applied in the study bolsters and advances process tracing explanations by systematically incorporating context-specific intersubjective meanings into causal accounts of the events under investigation. And third, to emphasize the importance of recognizing religion and nationalism as legitimate constituents and instruments of contemporary realpolitik by underlining their enduring security utility and essence at individual, group, and state levels. As argued and established throughout the book, because the causal mechanisms driving ethnoreligious otherings and passionate conflicts are simultaneously emitting and are propelled by deeply entrenched emotions, symbolic predispositions, and perceptions, achieving durable peace settlement requires reconciliation initiatives and regulation strategies that directly and unapologetically incorporate and address these neglected “immaterial” and “irrational” forces.

The Origin & Resolution of the Conflict in Northern Ireland

Nationalism and separatist movements are in rise. While some separatists are using democratic methods like referenda, some separatists are engaged in violence. Today comprehending Northern Ireland conflict is much more important than before since both of the methods had been used. The study aims to show how an ethnic & nationalist conflict that involves religious believes had been resolved. For to have a better understanding, the article begins with the nature of the conflict then focuses the process that lead to peace and finally analyzes the peace agreement’s context.

"Ambivalence of the Sacred": Cultural Dynamics of Religion and Peace

“Ambivalence of the Sacred”: Cultural Dynamics of Religion and Peace, 2024

In the extensive existing literature, religion has often been ambivalently associated with both conflict and peace. Arguably, such an "ambivalence of the scared" can significantly be studied at the functional, rather than essential, dimension of religion. Drawing mainly on Hardenberg's theories of socio-cosmic field, value, and resources, as well as Ninian Smart's dimensional anatomy of religion, this study aims to interpret cultural dynamics in a systematic correlation between religion and peacebuilding. Based on the description and analysis of data collected from a qualitative research in Paderborn (Germany) and Mashhad (Iran), and with a thematic focus on interreligiosity in the two settings, this article approaches religion as a ResourceCulture for peacebuilding and suggests that the "ambivalence" can be interpreted in light of a discernible contingency in resources, meanings, and values, as well as the role of human agency in their production, interpretation, and consumption.