Religion Watch Archives

Monitoring Trends in Religion - From February 1990 to January 2016

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Featured Story: Women rabbis in vanguard of new synagogue forms

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Women rabbis are at the forefront of starting new synagogues, even if they don’t go by that name as they push at the boundaries of traditional Reform, Conservative and Orthodox branches of Judaism. These “indie synagogues” are known for their exuberant prayer styles and their success at attracting larger numbers of unaffiliated young Jews has […]

Current Research: May 2015

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01: Nations that are strongly religious are less innovative in science and technology, according to a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research. Economists Roland Benabou, Davide Ticchi and Andrea Vindigni studied the relationship between religious populations and the rate of patent applications filed by a country’s residents. In both international and cross-state U.S. […]

Hindu Nationalism’s gentler face finds recognition in Britain

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A new variant of Hindutva, or Hindu nationalism, is finding mainstream recognition in Britain, writes Edward Anderson in the journal Contemporary South Asia (Vol. 23, No.1). What Anderson calls “neo-Hindutva” is different from “orthodox” Hindu nationalism, represented by the Rashtiya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), in that the former is less tied to Hindu majoritarian politics and […]

Central Asia feeling impact of Indian Islamic revival movement

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Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Central Asia has become fertile ground for Middle Eastern Islamic influences, but Muslim movements from the Indian subcontinent are also gaining inroads in this region, likely carrying its own geopolitical impact, writes Bayam Balci in the journal Religion, State and Society (Vol. 43, No. 1). For the past […]

Hindus, Sikhs feeling discrimination, consider exiting Afghanistan

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Many Hindus and Sikhs have left or are considering leaving Afghanistan due to increasing discrimination by the country’s religious majority, reports Hinduism Today (April/May/June). Hindu and Muslim residents estimate that the population has declined to about 7,000 from the approximately 200,000 Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan before 1992. One issue in contention is the Hindu […]

Findings & Footnotes: May 2015

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01: There are a growing number of Muslim chaplains in the military in Western nations and, like their counterparts in the prison chaplaincy [see March RW], they tend to operate along the lines established by Christian churches in such ministries, writes Kristina Stoeckl and Olivier Roy in the current issue of the journal Religion, State, […]

On/File: May 2015

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A Continuing Survey of New Groups, Movements, Events and People Impacting Religion The Practice is an “experimental gathering” that began last year and takes place within Willow Creek, one of the premier megachurches in the U.S. Although Willow Creek was influential in the spread of seeker-sensitive services and “entertainment evangelism,” the new service, which is […]

A global Catholic moment for Africa—or is it Latin America?

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While African Catholics have been viewed as the future of the church by their sheer numbers, there are also signs that the African church is in a position to become a moral voice on its continent as well as in global Catholicism, writes John L. Allen on the Catholic website Crux (March 24). Allen notes […]