Religion Commons^™

Review Essay: Mitri Raheb On Christian Zionism, Loren D. Lybarger

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

A Short Supplemental Reading List For The Environment: Issues In Justice, Conflict And Peacebuilding, Ronald Pagnucco

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Guns, Bombs, And Pollution: Unraveling The Nexus Between Warfare, Terrorism, And Ecological Devastation In Iraq, Hogr Tarkhani

The Journal of Social Encounters

Iraq's environment has experienced significant pollution and degradation, earning it the dubious distinction of being one of the most polluted and degraded regions globally, according to the Globe Pollution Review. The past three decades of armed conflict have exacted a heavy toll on the country, resulting in widespread human suffering, including countless fatalities, injuries, and a massive displacement of people. Amidst this death and destruction, the ecosystem has also endured severe damage, and its decline carries long-lasting implications.

The environmental crisis in Iraq has been worsened by the presence of extremist groups such as the Islamic State (ISIS) and various …

On Dialogue And Beyond: Positive Environmental Peacebuilding In Palestine, Elsa Barron

The Journal of Social Encounters

In Palestine, environmental management has been used as a tool of military occupation and oppression. Yet even within that context, many community-based organizations have established programs relating to environmental peacebuilding. Of these initiatives, environmental dialogue programs have received significant attention and resources, even more so since the war in Gaza began in October, 2023. However, a deeper interrogation of these programs reveals the danger that dialogue and collaboration devoid of a critical analysis of power and injustice further perpetuates systemic oppression. Moving these programs into the realm of positive environmental peacebuilding requires a willingness to engage in this structural analysis. …

Review Of Writing Straight With Crooked Lines: A Memoir, Paul Pynkoski

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Review Of Radical Sufficiency: Work, Livelihood, And A Us Catholic Economic Ethic, Michael T. Mclaughlin

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Solidarity In Time Of Armed Conflict. Women’S Patterns Of Solidarity In Internally Displaced Person (Idp) Camps In Darfur, Western Sudan, Mawa Mohamed

The Journal of Social Encounters

This study, a vital part of a Ph.D. thesis, delves into the prolonged armed conflict's impact in Darfur, which has resulted in severe loss of assets and lives, disrupted livelihoods, and food insecurity. Among the most vulnerable are internally displaced women, primary targets of violence due to their caregiving roles and responsibilities. Addressing the gap in existing literature, this research explores the meanings, practices, experiences, and representations of solidarity among women residing in the Abu-Shouk IDP camp. Challenging conventional perceptions, the study highlights women's competencies and strengths, empowering them to develop unique coping strategies within the conflict context. It uncovers …

Review Of Healing Haunted Histories: A Settler Discipleship Of Decolonization, Tom Cordaro

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Subsidiarity: A Central Principle For Justice, Peace, And Sustainability In Mining, Caesar A. Montevecchio

The Journal of Social Encounters

The Catholic social teaching principle of subsidiarity states that problems should be dealt with at the lowest level possible, but the highest level necessary. It attempts to create structures of social power that can best protect the dignity of individuals and families and promote their human flourishing. In the case of mining, subsidiarity would say that the communities impacted by mining need to be centered and empowered to the greatest extent possible, but that the national, regional, and/or global nature of the issues at stake, like climate change, violent conflict, or economic justice, mean that community goals and decisions need …

Displacement Of The Rohingyas Of Myanmar, Land Grabbing, And Extractive Capital, Afroza Anwary

The Journal of Social Encounters

Research on the displacement of the Rohingya from their property has paid little attention to how the government’s land policies encourage various actors to seize that land and extract resources. This research is based on interviews with Rohingya refugees, reports from the United Nations and humanitarian agencies, and published academic work. Economic, social, and political factors are responsible for the displacement of Rohingyas. To argue that a single factor is responsible for their displacement would be incorrect, as research reveals a more complicated interaction of social forces. However, this paper considers the unique dynamics of land grabbing, land laws, ethnic …

The Fierce Urgency Of The Slow: How Pope Francis Is Calling Us To Save The Planet, Gerald W. Schlabach

The Journal of Social Encounters

Addressing the urgent issues facing humanity today, in his recent encyclical on social friendship, Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis reminds us that it is “all the more urgent that we rethink our styles of life, our relationships, the organization of our societies and, above all, the meaning of our existence” (no. 33). In this and in his previous encyclical on care for creation, Laudato Si’, Francis makes clear that we do not have a moment to waste. None of his diagnosis should “be read as a cool and detached description of today’s problems” (no. 56).

Before an onslaught of urgency backfires …

A Beacon Of Hope In A Troubled Context: Sketches Of The Life Of Mons. Paride Taban, Shepherd And Bridge-Builder, Alberto Eisman Torres

The Journal of Social Encounters

Monsignor Paride Taban, Bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Torit in Southern Sudan, is a multifaceted figure. Apart from his role as pastor and religious leader, he is an outstanding peace builder and the co-founder of the New Sudan Council of Churches, one of the most significant civil society institutions during the second civil war (1983 – 2005). This institution spearheaded numerous ecumenical initiatives including development work, humanitarian relief, training of grass-roots leaders and last but not least peace mediation. He is a relentless fighter for peaceful coexistence and tolerance in an environment marked by violence, oppression and impunity and …

Archbishop Antonio J. Ledesma: Advocate Of Peace And Development, Loreta Navarro-Castro

The Journal of Social Encounters

This essay describes the advocacy of Archbishop Antonio J. Ledesma, currently the co-president of Pax Christi Philippines and archbishop emeritus of the archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro, Mindanao, Philippines, towards peace and development not only in Mindanao but also throughout the country. He is a strong proponent of interreligious dialogue and the importance of addressing the roots of the armed conflict so there can be an enduring peace in the Philippines and beyond.

Oscar Romero And Juan Gerardi: Truth, Memory, And Hope, Scott Wright

The Journal of Social Encounters

Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero and Guatemalan Bishop Juan Gerardi were prominent defenders of human rights during the civil wars that characterized their two countries during the 1980s and 1990s. By their public proclamations and prophetic witness, they laid the foundation for the United Nations Truth Commission in El Salvador, the United Nations Commission for Historical Clarification in Guatemala, and the Recovery of the Historic Memory (REMHI) project in Guatemala. Inspired by the need to dignify the victims of state-sponsored violence by refusing to forget, and accompanying the survivors in their struggle for justice, Romero and Gerardi were instrumental in uncovering …

An Angry Shepherd: Sudanese Bishop Macram Max Gassis, John Ashworth

The Journal of Social Encounters

Bishop Macram Max Gassis is a near-legendary figure in Sudan since he first spoke out against human rights abuses in his country before a committee of the US Congress in 1988. Targeted by the Islamist military dictatorship which ruled Sudan for thirty years, for protesting enslavement, religious oppression, forced starvation and mass murder in Sudan, he lives in exile, bringing help and hope to his persecuted people.

This essay is condensed from the 2021 book by the same author with the same title.

The Church And Ethnopolitical Conflict In Kenya: 1982-2013, David Tarus

The Journal of Social Encounters

The chapter examines the role of the church in addressing the problem of ethnopolitical conflict in Kenya from 1982 to 2013. Though ethnocentrism within the Kenyan Christian community goes beyond the years cited to the colonial period and the immediate years following independence, the intensity of the problem after 1982 calls for special attention. The single event that marks political change in Kenya is the 1982 attempted coup. Although this was not successful, the coup heightened opposition against Moi’s rule and thus, 1982 marks the beginning of the recent history of Kenya, a history in which three phases may be …

Closing Keynote At The Catholic Peacebuilding In Times Of Crisis: Hope For A Wounded World Conference, H.E. Archbishop Gabriele Caccia

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Opening Plenary Address At The Catholic Peacebuilding In Times Of Crisis: Hope For A Wounded World Conference, H. E. Cardinal Charles Bo

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Introduction - Volume 6, Issue 2, Ronald Pagnucco

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Review Of Advancing Nonviolence And Just Peace In The Church And The World, William J. Collinge

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

The 1676 Project: Black And White Together In The U.S.A., Danny Duncan Collum

The Journal of Social Encounters

America’s post-George Floyd racial reckoning has brought a new focus on the country’s history of enslavement, segregation and systemic racism. However, this reckoning has often failed to recognize that the roots of systemic racism lie in the need of the wealthy planters in colonial Virginia to divide the African and English indentured servants who constituted a majority threatening to elite power. Nor do contemporary versions of U.S. history always account for the persistent reoccurrence of class-based interracial movements, such as the late 19^th century Populists, or their promise as a long-term solution to the country’s racial divides.

Everyday Peace: Historicising Local Agency In Managing Ethno-Religious Conflicts In Nigeria’S Middle Belt, Gloria Na’Antoe Longba’Am-Alli

The Journal of Social Encounters

Over the years, critical studies scholars have criticised liberal peacebuilding strategies for their elitist top-down policies, which hardly pay attention to the local concepts and acts of peace. Critical peace and conflict studies scholars’ advocacy for ‘everyday peace’ comes from negotiated governance, where loosely coordinated processes surpass liberal peace's top-down policies. Therefore, everyday peace recognises people's commentaries and practices shaping their resistance, resilience, and negotiation with conflicting groups. In particular, women and people far from city centres are often marginalised or are not included in peacebuilding efforts. In recognising these people’s limited involvement, this article draws on oral interviews, archival …

Review Of Dorothy Day: Dissenting Voice Of The American Century, Susan Crawford Sullivan

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Review Of Catholic Social Activism: Progressive Movements In The United States, James Cavendish

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Review Of Let Us Dream: The Path To A Better Future, Bill Droel

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Battle For The Bible, Battle For The Soul Of Humanity, Patricia M. Mische

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, The Death Penalty, And War, John Sniegocki

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Harm, Healing, And Human Dignity: A Catholic Encounter With Restorative Justice, Rev. Prof. Peter Ignatius Gichure

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

We Do Not Have Borders: Greater Somalia And The Predicaments Of Belonging In Kenya, Bashir Haji

The Journal of Social Encounters

Karen Weitzberg opens her book with a proverb from the early Somali independence era: “wherever the camel goes, that is Somalia.” This quote sets the precedence for the book illustrating Somalis’ rocky relationship with borders. Originally, Somalis were nomadic pastoralists that frequently moved around, crossing borders. However, after many African countries gained independence, new border lines were drawn up. As a result of this new reality, many Somali clans were forced to claim their territorial land and were also shut out from other regions, thereby impacting their way of life. Weitzberg, a Stanford graduate with a background in African and …

The Mischaracterization Of The Pakhtun-Islamic Peace Culture Created By Abdul Ghaffar Khan And The Khudai Khidmatgars, Shelini Harris

The Journal of Social Encounters

Abdul Ghaffar Khan and his Khudai Khidmatgar Movement, whose peace activities included nonviolent resistance to British rule in India, have remained relatively unknown despite the magnitude of their achievement and significance (100,000 strong peace army). Even among appreciative peace scholars their nonviolence has been mischaracterized as an adoption of Gandhi’s teachings; Khan is referred to as the Muslim Gandhi. I argue that this is due to a reliance on biased colonial sources, concomitant racist characterization of the Pakhtuns and Islam, and an insufficient understanding of violence. I illustrate how this movement’s motivation and inspiration were deeply rooted in Pakhtun culture …