Category: Religion, Spirituality
Introduction, Establishment, and Transformation: An Initial Exploration of the Cultural Shifts and Influence of I-Kuan-Tao in Malaysian Chinese Community
Yi-Kuan-Tao has been developing in Malaysia for nearly 60 years. It was initially introduced from mainland China and later from Taiwan starting from the 1970s. Yi-Kuan-Tao was considered a ‘new religion’ for the local Chinese community in Malaysia in its early stages, as Chinese immigrants primarily practiced Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity, or Catholicism upon settling in …
A Study of the Significance of Folk Religious Beliefs in the Ancestral Indoctrination in Penghu, Taiwan
The Penghu Islands are situated in the middle of the Taiwan Strait and are characterized by unique climate and geographic conditions. Over the centuries, they have been governed by various Chinese dynasties and foreign regimes. During the Qing Dynasty in China, when the situation was turbulent, local scholars noticed a decline in people’s morale. They …
Conceptual Analysis of Personal God Portrayed in Rabindranath Tagore’s Song and Poetry
The worshipping of personal God is a traditional religious practice in India since medieval period. The devotees use poetry, song dedicated to her/his God to worship the Almighty instead of the sacred Vedic hymns. This tradition was seen in songs (Bhajan) written by Mirabai, Tulsidas, Surdas and many more. This tradition was later carried on …
Religious-Digital Activism in the Time of COVID-19: A Discourse Analysis of the #ChurchInAction
In a predominantly Christian nation like the Philippines where the critique of the long-standing religious-normative ideals and traditions has expanded to the digital space, the church hierarchy and its faithful have not shied away from making their claims and defenses known through a subtle but effective digital strategy of hashtag activism. This paper seeks to …
The Human Traumas in Fazal Sheikh’s Photography
Trauma is the physical injury, the human wound, or the emotional shock and pain caused by an extremely upsetting experience. Metaphorically we use the term to speak of natural disasters. Fazal Sheikh is the American photographer who saw these human wounds within the humanity, within the human face of the other while suffering. His unique …
Complexity of Islamic Knowledge (Re)Production
With the proliferation of publicly engaged religiosities, most Islamic centres and institutions advanced women sections where women actively participate in shaping themselves and their perspective societies under the umbrella of da‘wah (call towards God). Women activism within/out institutional frameworks is not a new phenomenon but a marginalized one. This paper looks at teeming social actors …
The Moral Justice of Members of the LGBTQ+ in the Light of Three Theological Virtues: Faith, Hope, and Charity in the Philippine Society
The research analyzed the moral justice of members of the LGBTQ+ in the light of three Theological Virtues: Faith, Hope, and Charity in Philippine Society. The quantitative and qualitative method of research used for 600 respondents: students, parents of the University of Perpetual Help System-Las Pinas campus, and religious members of different congregations. The study …
A Study of Visual Symbolic Perception in Shamanic Rituals
Shamanism is a primal shape that transcends ordinary consciousness as a cross-cultural phenomenon. From the universal analysis of Shamanism. During the process of religious rituals, shamans use visual elements, such as costumes and masks, to form a spatially based graphic narrative relationship that generates an experience of sacred perception. However, the study of shamanic rituals …
Whose Festival? Ritual Reconstruction and the Shaping of “Sense of Place”: The Mazu Meets the Mary
On October 20, 2018, in Wanluan Township, Pingtung, Taiwan. A religious activity named “When the Holy Mother (Mazu) From the East Meets the Virgin (Mary) From the West – Let Love Fly” was co-organized by the Centennial Catholic Church of Wanjin and the Taoist Zongtian Temple of Taiwan. This was the first formal meeting between …
The Japanese Fox: A Rice Guardian or a Female Demon
Fox is often portrayed as a crafty, cunning or wicked animal in both Eastern and Western cultures. Tales and legends associated with fox are mostly telling stories about the animal’s undesirable characteristics, such as flattering someone for gain, preying human life for longevity, or assuming female forms for pleasure. In contrast with the notorious images …
A Register Analysis of Written Messages From the Papacy and the Universal House of Justice
This study investigates selected features of the Catholic and Bahá’í registers through an analysis of written messages from the Papacy and the Universal House of Justice (UHJ) using a corpus-based approach. The research questions of this study pertain to the situational characteristics and language patterns associated with these registers, and the functional relationships that connect …