Religion Watch Archives

Monitoring Trends in Religion - From February 1990 to January 2016

You are here: Home / Archives for Richard Cimino

Oucastes find growing Hindu acceptance in India

by

A recent issue of Panchjanya, a weekly published by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has suggested that Dalits (i.e. outcastes) and other members of the less respected classes in Indian society should be trained and appointed as head priests at major temples around the country, according to the Times of India (October 30). Hindu tradition reserves priestly functions […]

Religion in China — between communist reaffirmation and liberalization

by

There are contradictory trends in Chinese policy toward religion, according to China specialist Roman Malek: On the one hand, China would like to integrate mainline religions as contributions to the building of a harmonious society; on the other hand, there are attempts to revitalize the Communist ideology at a time of economic development, Malek notes […]

WCC facing competition, new funding patterns

by

Changes in funding, as well as a new assertiveness of Roman Catholicism and the growth of Pentecostalism ,are posing serious challenges to the international ecumenism of the World Council of Churches (WCC). TheHarvard Divinity Bulletin (Autumn) reports that traditional donors to the WCC who “have been willing to do their development work through WCC are increasingly […]

Current Research: November 2006

by

01: Charismatics, even more than their Pentecostal counterparts, comprise a growing percentage of the world’s Christians, according to a new survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. The study is the largest of its kind, including surveys of 10 countries with sizeable Pentecostal and charismatic populations. The study distinguishes charismatics from Pentecostals in […]

Noahides — growing movement or potential jewish converts?

by

A movement of gentiles observing some aspects of Jewish law and teachings is becoming more organized, thanks to the growing support of some Jewish groups. Moment magazine (October) reports that the Noahide movement is made up largely of ex-Christians (and usually ex-evangelicals and ex-fundamentalists) who adopt the Jewish concept that before the Ten Commandments, God ordained “seven […]

African and American Christianities — how far apart?

by

Recent denominational divisions and talk of the rise of the “global South” in Christianity suggest that the two continents are virtually worlds apart when it comes to Christian belief and practice. Philip Jenkins, whose books have popularized this scenario, is of the view that Africa in particular will eclipse Western Christian influence. In a recent […]

On/File: December 2006

by

01: A national campaign for repairing attacked Christian churches in the West Bank and Gaza in reaction to Pope Benedict XIV’s controversial speech on Islam was recently launched by Ahmed Bedier, director of the Central Florida chapter of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Bedier presented the first $5000 check to the Catholic Near East Welfare Association. […]

Findings & Footnotes: December 2006

by

01: New Roots in America’s Sacred Ground (Rutgers University Press, $23.95) by Khyati Joshi, fills a gap in examining the “lived religion” of second generation Indian Americans. Based on 41 interviews in the Boston and Atlanta areas, the book is unique in attempting to cover the Indian religious mosaic–Hindu, Sikh, Muslim and Christian. While the non-Hindu Indian […]

Catholic-Orthodox dialogue entering new phase

by

Positive new developments have occurred in relations between Roman Catholics and Orthodox, clearing the way for a new phase in the theological dialogue. The failure of the July 2000 meeting in Baltimore to agree on a common statement regarding uniatism (i.e. Roman Catholic efforts to incorporate groups allowed to keep the Eastern rite) had created […]