Religion

Clean bodies, dirty minds | Cleanliness is next to godlessness

PUBLIC displays of untidiness, such as graffiti, may promote bad behaviour (see article), but when it comes to personal cleanliness the opposite appears to be true. A study just published in Psychological Science by Simone Schnall of the University of Plymouth and her colleagues shows that washing with soap and water makes people view unethical activities as more acceptable and reasonable than they would if they had not washed themselves.

A milestone for Protestantism | Hola, Luther

LATIN AMERICAN countries have long celebrated a plethora of Roman Catholic public holidays, from Corpus Christi to St Peter and St Paul. But this year Chile set a regional precedent, declaring October 31st a public holiday in honour of “the evangelical and Protestant churches”. It marks the date in 1517 when Martin Luther pinned his 95 theses to the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany, starting the Protestant Reformation. Only Slovenia and some German states take it as a holid...

The Mystery Worshipper

Mr. Harrison belongs to a new breed of church consultants aiming to equip pastors with modern marketing practices. Pastors say mystery worshippers like Mr. Harrison offer insight into how newcomers judge churches -- a critical measure at a time when mainline denominations continue to shed members and nearly half of American adults switch religious affiliations. In an increasingly diverse and fluid religious landscape, churches competing for souls are turning to corporate marketing strategies ...

Religion and Spiritual Beliefs of South America

In addition to the predominant Catholic beliefs, there are many spiritual beliefs, based on ethnic and cultural heritages of South America.

Fear is their Religion

Fear is their Religion Peggy Elliot speaks out against the Taliban's treatment of women in Afghanistan. Imagine, if possible, a country where at least 97% of the female population suffers from major depression; where at least 86% of them display symptoms of significant anxiety and, the most horrifying, at least one-quarter of these women - nearly one-quarter of the entire female population - are seriously considering ending their misery by the means of suicide. Afghanistan, a remote and tr...

A CONVERSATION WITH: DAVID SLOAN WILSON; The Origin of Religions, From a Distinctly Darwinian View

How can a force that transforms convicted murderers into placid samaritans, and that has given the world Handel's ''Messiah,'' the mosaics of Ravenna and Borobudur Temple also have spawned the Salem witch hunts, Osama bin Laden and columnists who snarl that America should invade Muslim countries, ''kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity''? What sort of Jekyll-and-Hydra-headed beast is this thing called religious faith?

Church Gives Sanctuary to Gay Man and His Family

Mr. Keel had spent the previous months practicing this day’s words with a therapist. He had known the essence of what he had to say for far longer. “I’m gay,” he told his wife. Ms. Keel, for her part, felt less shock than relief, for something inexplicable about their breakup had just been explained.

Religion in the United States

Religion in the United States has a history of diversity, due in large part to the nation's multicultural demographic makeup. Among "developed nations", the US is one of the most religious. According to a 2002 study by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, the US was the only developed nation in the survey where a majority of citizens reported that religion played a "very important" role in their lives, an attitude similar to that found in its neighbors in Latin America.[1]

Religion and Violence: A Bibliography

The literature on religion and violence was already substantial before the Sept. 11 attacks, and it has swelled at an increased pace since then. I have not seen abundant evidence, however, that the serious reflections on violence expressed in these books has made a noticeable impact on the shape of higher education, on news media reporting, or on the thinking of government officials around the world. This is unfortunate. Popular opinion doesn't reflect on the complexity of violence. We assum...

Using My Religion: Reflections on the Role of Christianity in European Integration

Both the discussion about whether a reference to God should be included in the European Draft Constitution and the debates about whether Turkey is part of a European cultural identity have reminded us of the religious tensions and undercurrents of the European integration project. What is and has been the role of religion in European integration? What role, if any, should it play? This paper sets an exclusivist notion of Christendom against an inclusive reading of Christianity. We show how th...