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A Study To Understand The Experiences Of Black American Christian Women In Leadership Positions Who Serve Within The Black Church, Keyona N. Harper

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study contributes to the gap in academic literature through the identification of themes within the participants' experiences of being a Black American female leader within the Black church. This study uses a hermeneutic phenomenological qualitative design to understand the experiences of Black American Christian women in leadership positions who serve within the Black church. The findings offer insight into the role of race, gender, religion, and environmental factors in the human experience. Through this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological research approach, data were analyzed to find universal themes of commitment to calling, pastor idolization, exclusion, navigating church culture, balancing personal and …

Exploration Of The Congruence Between Environmental Concerns And Eco-Spirituality Programming At Retreat Centers As Experienced By Participants, Jean Golicz

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this multiple-embedded case study was to explore the role of environmental awareness and concerns in influencing engagement in retreat practices that were organized around the theme of eco-spirituality and the impact on organizational leadership and program development at two retreat centers in the northeastern region of the United States. Roman Catholic retreat centers were the focus of the study as they endeavored to fulfill leadership directives reflected in the papal encyclical Laudato si’. The centers examined offered immersion in nature, reflection on the interdependence of organic systems, and the development of action plans to address environmental issues. …

Voices Of Change: Narratives Of African Americans And Their Recommendations For Reforming Law Enforcement Practices, Tanisha N. Hines-Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The focus of this study was to explore real-life experiences African Americans have with law enforcement to suggest changes that can be put into action to improve interactions, fairness, and accountability. This study, which makes use of a case study technique, examined perceptions of police interactions and engagement from the viewpoints of community members. The study specifically responded to the following two research questions: 1) What is the narrative of individuals in the African American community regarding law enforcement? 2) What changes do participants suggest are needed to improve interactions and establish a better relationship between the African American community …

Crafting Myths In Modern Times: Essentialising Duty, Obligation And Exchange In Religious Tourism, Anuja Jose, Vinita Chandra, Uday Pratap Singh

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This paper aims to study the factors that contribute to the success of present-day myths in religious tourism. It also seeks to investigate the factors that compel modern pilgrims to accept a certain myth and the role played by stakeholders of religious tourism in the creation of a myth. In order to explore these research questions, Kauḍī Mātā temple in Varanasi, a popular religious tourist spot for Southern Indians, was chosen for Case Study. Qualitative data have been generated through in-depth interviewing. Simultaneously, several myths of goddess Kauḍī Mātā were recovered from textual and digital sources in addition to the …

Sacred Seeds: The Transmission Of Knowledge Seen Through Aztec Religionand Agriculture, Ian S. Hohsfield

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The integration of religion and agriculture was a cornerstone of Aztec civilization, deeply influencing societal practices and knowledge systems. Scholars have long recognized the importance of religious rituals in ensuring agricultural success; however, the specific methods by which agricultural knowledge was transmitted within religious contexts—and how these methods may have contributed to knowledge gaps—remain underexplored. This thesis investigates the relationship between Aztec religious practices and the transmission of agricultural knowledge, focusing on how the methods of knowledge transmission influenced agricultural expertise and led to potential gaps. It does so by analyzing primary sources such as the Florentine Codex and the …

Secularism, Illiberalism, And Latino Voters In The 2024 Presidential Election, Jocelyn D. Lopez

Honors College Theses

This paper examines the intersection of secularism, illiberalism, and the shifting political alignment of Latino voters in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. It challenges assumptions that Latino voters naturally align with liberal democratic ideals, arguing instead that religious commitments, particularly among Christian Latinos, have increasingly aligned some with illiberal political movements. The analysis explores how conservative appeals to religious values resonate with voters who feel alienated by the perceived secularism of the Democratic Party. At the same time, these voters may overlook moral inconsistencies in candidates like Donald Trump if they believe he respects religious communities and challenges liberal norms …

Concerned Philosophers For Peace, Vol. 33 (2025), Concerned Philosophers For Peace

Concerned Philosophers for Peace

In addition to organizational information, honors, and awards, this issue contains the following articles:

• "The Nature, Ethics, and Politics of Uncivil Obedience," by Jennifer Kling
• "Hegemonic Gamblers Playing with Nuclear Fire," by Edward Demenchonok
• "The Truth Will Set Us Free: A Reflection and Response," by Angela Walter
• "On ‘The Post War Dream’: 80 Years Since the Nightmare," by Court Lewis

A Raced Theology Of The Human Person: An Expanded Theological Anthropology, Cary W. Dabney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on race as a critical, yet largely unaddressed, topic in Catholic theological anthropology. In Catholic colleges and universities that are recognized as members of the Cardinal Newman Society, theological concerns about race are deemed irrelevant for theological education in the faith and are altogether absent from the theology of the human person. As a result, this collection of institutions treats race as a specialty within pastoral theology, one that is significant to groups, but not a part of the fundamental theology of the human person. This ‘un-raced’ theological anthropology results in the institution’s inability to respond effectively …

The Influence Of Christianity And Islam On Educational Attainment In Africa: Using Literacy Rates As An Indicator, Natalia A. Castaner

Journal of African Policy Studies

This is a quantitative research study using current data from the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Member States through its Institute for Statistics (UIS) annual data collection for the 57 countries in Africa. This study shows that a religious factor, i.e., Christianity and Islam, has a significant effect on the levels of educational attainment within each specific country in Africa. This study illustrates the need to consider the impact religion has on educational attainment in Africa.

Shepherds Of Loss: Religion And Grief In The Shenandoah Valley, Ewan Benjamin

Honors Projects

This study explores the relationship between faith leaders and religious communities with the human experience of grief, death, and loss. Inspired by the researcher's own experience, this paper argues that the United States has a generally uncomfortable relationship with death and hypothesizes that religious traditions can serve to assist with grief in a positive way. After interviewing six religious leaders in the Shenandoah Valley, two themes arose: the mystery of death and the concept of "making space" for the grieving, dying, and dead. In the paper's conclusion, the faith leaders make known their own concerns with death in the United …

The Beautiful Game On A Muslim Pitch: How Football And Religion Are Shaping Identity And Society, Aaron W. Hughes, Leif Stenberg

Exploring Muslim Contexts

Examines how football and religion act together to shape both identity and society in Muslim contexts.

This book showcases how football and religion are becoming increasingly interlinked in Muslim contexts in order to interact with and influence both identity and society. The first part of the volume is devoted to issues of identity, showing how football aids in its construction, maintenance and subversion. The second part reveals the deep-rooted connections between football and political and religious establishments by demonstrating how these organisations frequently use the game to disseminate or propagate their larger messages.

Altogether, the contributors reveal how football has …

“Cry Harder!”: How Parents Traffic Their Children Through Forced Child Begging And Child Labor, Abigail K. Bellocchio

Sociology and Criminology Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the complex intersection of socioeconomic and cultural factors influencing forced child begging, a form of human trafficking, across different global regions. Through comprehensive literature analysis and examination of data from the Global K-anonymized Dataset from Counter-Trafficking Data Collaborative (2021), this research reveals a critical gap in human trafficking discourse: the absence of a unified definition and understanding of forced child begging. Despite affecting millions of children worldwide, forced child begging remains fragmented in academic literature, scattered across disciplines including child welfare, anthropology, and media studies rather than being centrally addressed in anti-trafficking frameworks. The research identifies that …

Islams’ Influence On Mental Health, Tala Soukieh

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This proposed study explores the intricate relationship between Islam and mental health among Muslims in the United States. The study employs a mixed methods approach to provide a comprehensive understanding of this dynamic. Given the significant role spirituality plays in mental health, this research integrates qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys to capture these perspectives, specifically in the Muslim community. The qualitative portion will consist of in-depth interviews to cover personal experiences and beliefs about Islam and mental well-being. Concurrently, quantitative surveys will be conducted to collect broader data on religious practices and their mental health outcomes. Significant gaps and barriers …

Ua12/2/2 Talisman: Connection, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Spring 2025 Talisman:

• Alali, Cecilia & Ragan Harrington. Connection
• Hardesty, Emma. On a Roll – Dungeons & Dragons
• Muscutt, Carson. Grinding Through Life – Molotov Skateshop
• Cox, Kate. Stopwatch
• Harrington, Ragan. 1 Campus, 7 Strangers – Logan Hesse, Nicholas Basile, Spencer Winterbottom, Alliyah Jones, Alex Gehring, Annie McClurg, Rowan Finley
• Vickers, Abigail. Forged in Combat – Mixed Martial Arts
• Wood-Morris, Oli. Survivors to Neighbors – Bosnian Refugees
• Jordan, Shylin. Severed Roots
• Bivens, Emily. Behind the Screen – Social Media
• Dean, Clarissa. Shear Talent – Shake Rag Barbershop
• Sutton, Avery. For the Love of the Old – Thrift Shopping
• Phelps, Maggie. …

Recovering The Lost Art Of Medicine: A Role For Ignatian Spirituality, Cecilia Motherway

College Honors Program

Throughout history, medicine or healing has been deeply associated with religion and spirituality, from the ancient Greek healing god Asclepius to the medieval monastic medical tradition and beyond. This lies in their common cause: addressing the vulnerability of our human existence. Humanity has long recognized that our suffering and death raise existential questions concerning our mortality that may require perspectives greater than biology and rationality can provide. However, at the turn of the 20th century, as medical technology rapidly advanced, raising the average global life expectancy by decades, the medical field removed all non-scientific, non-secular influences to position itself as …

2025 Academic Conference Program

Holy Cross Undergraduate Academic Conference

No abstract provided.

An Aspirational Cultus? Tolkien Fandom At The Borders Of Belief, Tom Emanuel

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

This paper draws upon fan studies, sociology of religion, and J.R.R. Tolkien’s theory of sub-creation to theorize the religious implications of Enyalië (Quenya: remembrance), the emotionally charged graveside memorial which closes the U.K. Tolkien Society’s annual gathering in Oxford. Employing a framework of religion as sacred worldbuilding, the author argues that Enyalië is best understood as the “secondary liturgy” of the “secondary faith community” that is Tolkien fandom. The paper concludes that Tolkien’s fiction, his community of devoted fans, and the lineaments of religious ritual have combined, in Enyalië, to produce a fan practice which troubles the boundaries …

Holy Grounds And Coffee Grounds: Tourism, Authenticity, And The Adaptive Reuse Of Sufi Shrines In Tunisia, Leanna Baker

Tunisia and Italy: Politics and Religious Integration in the Mediterranean

This study explores the transformation of Sufi shrines in Tunisia into café spaces that cater to tourists while maintaining traces of religious significance. Through historical research, site visits, and interviews, I examine how these hybrid spaces navigate the tension between sacredness and commercialization. Using theories of authenticity and religious tourism, I analyze how Islamic aesthetics are repurposed to attract visitors, often without their awareness of the shrine’s spiritual role. An additional case study of a shrine now functioning as a ceramics studio offers an alternative model of adaptive reuse rooted in cultural sustainability. Rather than viewing commercialization as simple erasure, …

Community-Based Research And Catholic Higher Education In Solidarity: Embracing The Risks And Gifts Of Interdependence, Linda Land-Closson

The Journal of Social Encounters

With common ground in the work of solidarity and the common good, Community-Based Research (CBR) and Catholic Higher Education (CHE) can be brought into a mutually beneficial dialogue. Accordingly, this article serves first as a reminder of the radicality of solidarity, second as a callout to CHE for often falling short of solidarity-in-action, third as an invitation for CHE to offer understandings of solidarity as discernment tools to mitigate harm in the changing field of CBR, and finally as an invitation to CBR to be aware of and continue promoting solidarity through good judgment.

Exploring The Growth And Impact Of Contemporary Mindfulness Programs In Japanese Society, Shreya Wagh

Japanese Society and Culture

In today's fast-paced world, mindfulness practice offers a peaceful way to enhance awareness and find clarity in the mind. This practice, rooted in Hindu and Buddhist traditions, aims to achieve spiritual enlightenment. In the late 20th century, mindfulness was adapted into secular, evidence-based therapeutic interventions in the West, leading to its widespread inclusion in healthcare, education, and corporate settings globally. The Westernized version of mindfulness has also been reintroduced to its countries of origin. Japan is no exception. The purpose of this article is to comprehend the rise and growth of mindfulness programs in Japan by analyzing existing literature, particularly …

Session Iic: Religious Studies Presentation 3 - Prayer Benefits In Relation To Mental Health, Emma Beam

Life of the Scholar Multidisciplinary Conference

My presentation is on a research paper I wrote for my Adult Discipleship class in Fall 2024. It discusses the relationship between prayer and mental health by identifying ways prayer can have benefit on mental health, factors that are required in order for prayer to have benefit on mental health, different types of prayer and how they impact mental health, and different mediationg variables between prayer and mental health.

The Influence Of Hadrah Arts And Emotional Intelligence Towards The Students Social Skills At Mts Nurusshibyan, Siti Fatimah

Journal of Indonesian Tourism and Policy Studies

This study aims to determine the effect of hadrah activities and emotional intelligence on the social skills of students at Madrasah Tsanawiyah Nurusshibyan, Singkawang City. This research uses a quantitative research method with the use of questionnaires as a data collection tool. The subjects of this study were students at Madrasah Tsanawiyah Nurusshibyan in Singkawang City totaling 181 people with the following characteristics: MTs students, grades VII-IX, 101 female respondents and 80 male respondents. The sample determination used the Slovin formula with a Margin of Error of 5%. The results of the study are as follows: (1) Social skills at …

Recovering Palestinian Lives: Qudsiyya Khurshid From Mandate Palestine To Postwar Pennsylvania, Andrea L. Stanton

Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship

This article works to recover the life story of Qudsiyya Khurshid, a once well-known Mandate Palestinian intellectual and educator, who wrote essays for publication and for broadcasting on the Palestine Broadcasting Service, while working as a principal at girls’ schools in al-Bireh and Jerusalem. One of a number of educated women active in the Mandate public sphere, she disappeared from public consciousness after the Nakba. But in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, where she had moved with her husband, a naturalized U.S. citizen, she became a prominent figure in civic work and as a community speaker on Palestinian and Middle Eastern life …

Gilberto Martinez Full Interview Transcript, Urban Green Lab, Tennessee State University

Hear from Gilberto Martinez - Nashvillian Working Outside

No abstract provided.

Biblical Theodicy The Evolution Of Satan As A Solution To The Problem Of Evil, Madison Estrada

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis attempts to serve two functions. The first is to discuss how the problem of evilin Christianity has been a problem not only in modernity, but also with premodern authors and editors of biblical canon. The second is to explain how the literary character of Satan has developed alongside the narrative in a way that seeks to answer to the problem of evil in the form of a literary theodicy. While it may be demonstrated in the textual evidence that this character can take away some of the ethical implications imposed on God by taking on evil himself, it …

My Omaha, John C. Lyden

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of My Omaha (2025), directed by Nick Beaulieu.

Religious Parties And The Construction Of Political Identity: A Comparative Study Of Indonesia And Türkiye, Athifa Sharanda Putri Tabina, Adhi C. Fahadayna, M. Faishal Aminuddin

Jurnal Politik

This study examines the influence of religious-based political parties on political identity by comparing Indonesia and Türkiye. The background of this research lies in the role of religious parties in shaping political identity in Muslim-majority countries, where these parties must balance their adherence to religious doctrine with democratic values. The research problem examines how religious-based parties, such as PKS in Indonesia and AKP in Türkiye, construct their political identities within differing political systems. Using a quantitative approach with a comparative design and linear regression analysis, the study tests the impact of variables such as religious representation, associational networks, political education, …

Humans Are Far Dearer Than Gold, Richard Gorban

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The author of the article proves that the genocidal war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine is aimed at the total destruction of both the Ukrainian nation and its culture, based on the methodological principle of actualizing biblical texts in the current circumstances and by selecting elements from the exhaustiveness of the content of the Book of Isaiah, the Prophet, which are able to reveal the ontological foundations of this war. It is the clash between the two incompatible experiences of existence: the existence of a human community in peace and that of a community in war. Ukraine has become …

The Politics Of U.S. Religious Freedom And The War On Gaza, Elizabeth Shakman Hurd Phd

Department of Religion Events

It is not possible to understand what is happening in Gaza, or in the US, without understanding the religious politics of American support for Israel. This lecture delves into the swirling mixture of religion, history, and politics that shape relations between these two states. The structure of that relationship also shapes what it means to be religiously free in the US today. Whose religion is free? And whose is defined as heresy, terrorism, or anti-Americanism? At a moment in which US-Israeli relations have come under unprecedented strain and scrutiny, it is helpful to approach this relationship from outside the demands …

Building An Inclusive Community: Hosting An International Graduate Student Orientation, Adelia B. Grabowsky, Liza J. Weisbrod, Timothy Dodge, Juliet T. Rumble

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

In 2018, library faculty at a large, public land grant university formed a working group tasked with assessing the information needs of graduate students and implementing action plans to support this user population. From the beginning, the librarians recognized that graduate students are not a homogeneous group. Desiring a more nuanced understanding of these students, they held focus groups in 2019 to explore students’ experiences with navigating graduate school and, more specifically, the University library. One sub-group of particular interest to them was international graduate students, who make up a sizable percentage of the graduate student population on campus. International …