Showing papers on "Religious organization published in 2001"

Preventing the “Second Rape”: Rape Survivors' Experiences With Community Service Providers

Abstract: Although prevention efforts aimed at eliminating the occurrence of sexual assault are clearly needed, it is also important to consider how we can prevent further trauma among those already victimized. Prior research suggests that rape survivors may experience victim-blaming treatment from system personnel (termed secondary victimization or the second rape). This research examined how postassault contact with community systems exacerbated rape victims' psychological and physical health distress. Findings revealed that the majority of rape survivors who reported their assault to the legal or medical system did not receive needed services. These difficulties with service delivery were associated with both perceived and objective measures of negative health outcomes. Contact with the mental health system, rape crisis centers, or religious communities was generally perceived by victims as beneficial. This study suggests that the trauma of rape extends far beyond the assault itself, as negative community respon...

Religion and mental health: evidence for an association

Abstract: The relationship between religion and mental health has been debated for centuries. History shows that religious organizations were often the first to offer compassionate care to the mentally ill; however, for hundreds of years the religious establishment also persecuted the mentally ill. Nevertheless, the first form of psychiatric care in Western Europe and the US was known as 'moral treatment', in which religion played a significant role. The teachings of Freud and others during the early twentieth century concerning the neurotic influences of religion have had an enormous impact on the field, nullifying the quite favorable views toward religion held by nineteenth century psychiatrists. In this article, we review research that has found both negative and positive associations between religious involvement and mental health. We then examine the implications of this research for the clinical practice of psychiatry in the twentyfirst century.

Designing Democracy: What Constitutions Do

Abstract: "In modern nations, political disagreement is the source of both the gravest danger and the greatest security," writes Cass Sunstein. All democracies face intense political conflict. But is this conflict necessarily something to fear? In this provocative book, one of our leading political and legal theorists reveals how a nation's divisions of conviction and belief can be used to safeguard democracy. Confronting one explosive political issue after another, from presidential impeachment to the limits of religious liberty, from discrimination against women and gays to the role of the judiciary, Sunstein constructs a powerful new perspective from which to show how democracies negotiate their most divisive real-world problems. He focuses on a series of concrete concerns that go to the heart of the relationship between the idea of democracy and the idea of constitutionalism. Illustrating his discussion with examples from constitutional debates and court-cases in South Africa, Eastern Europe, Israel, America, and elsewhere, Sunstein takes readers through a number of highly charged questions: When should government be permitted to control discriminatory behaviour by or within religious organizations? Does it make sense to govern on the basis of popular referenda? Can the right to have an abortion be defended? Can we defend Internet regulation? Should the law step in if children are being schooled in discriminatory preferences and beliefs? Should a constitution protect rights to food, shelter, and health care? Disputes over questions such as these can be fierce enough to pose a grave threat. But in a paradox whose elaboration forms the core of Sunstein's book, it is a nation's apparently threatening diversity of opinion that can ensure its integrity. Extending his important recent work on the way deliberation within like-minded groups can produce extremism, Sunstein breaks new ground in identifying the mechanisms behind political conflict in democratic nations. At the same time, he develops a profound understanding of a constitutional democracy's system of checks and balances. Sunstein shows how a good constitution, fostering a "republic of reasons," enables people of opposing ethical and religious commitments to reach agreement where agreement is necessary, while making it unnecessary to reach agreement when agreement is impossible. A marvel of lucid, subtle reasoning, DESIGNING DEMOCRACY makes invaluable reading for anyone concerned with the promises and pitfalls of the democratic experiment.

Making a Case for Premarital Education.

Abstract: Making A Case for Premarital Education* This article advances the argument that engaging in broadly applied premarital education efforts can reduce marital distress and divorce. Because of the complexity of design issues and difficulties inherent in outcome studies, researchers will reasonably continue to debate the effectiveness of premarital education regimens. Furthermore, there is a great deal more to be discovered that will guide prevention efforts in ways that will improve the effectiveness of those efforts in the future. Using a combination of rational argument and empirical findings, 4 key benefits of premarital education are discussed: (a) it can slow couples down to foster deliberation, (b) it sends a message that marriage matters, (c) it can help couples learn of options if they need help later, and (d) there is evidence that providing some couples with some types of premarital training, for example, the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP), can lower their risks for subsequent marital distress or termination. Key Words: marriage, divorce, premarital, prevention. It is estimated that approximately 40% or more of new marriages among the younger generation will eventually end in divorce (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1992, p. 5). Not only many marriages end in divorce, but current evidence also suggests that marital distress negatively affects physical health (e.g., Bur-man & Margolin, 1992), mental well-being (see Halford & Bouma, 1997 for a review), and work productivity (e.g., Forthofer, Markman, Cox, Stanley, & Kessler, 1996). The staggering costs of marital failure have led many political leaders, religious leaders, persons in the media, and public policy advocates to issue calls to "do something," with something of a "marriage movement" gaining momentum in the U.S. This movement is reflected in many activities. For example, various private organizations have become active in sounding the alarm about marital and family breakdown (e.g., the annual Smart Marriages, Smart Families conference in the U.S., the Association for Couples in Marriage Enrichment, the Institute for American Values, and the Family Life Educator initiative of the National Council on Family Relations). These particular efforts reflect growing acceptance of a prevention mindset. One of the more prominent calls within the broader marriage movement is for couples to undergo premarital education (e.g., McManus, 1993; Parrott & Parrott, 1995a; Stahmann & Hiebert, 1997; Stanley, 1997). Although these calls have historically been answered within religious organizations, there are also substantial efforts in various state governments to prevent marital distress and divorce. To be clear, "prevent" is a bit of a misnomer here. It is more realistic to aim for significantly reducing risk factors and the resulting harmful impacts, thereby improving the quality of life for adults and children alike. A society cannot prevent divorce and marital distress in any absolute sense, but it is a worthy goal to attempt to reduce such negative outcomes at cultural and couple levels. That is what is meant here by prevention. State-level initiatives aimed toward prevention include efforts to establish covenant marriage as an option (e.g., Louisiana and Arizona; Spaht, 2000), to encourage couples to undergo premarital education (e.g., Florida and Texas), or to initiate a broadbased, large-scale effort to strengthen marital and family relationships (e.g., Oklahoma). Despite various efforts aimed at increasing the availability of premarital education to couples, many questions remain unanswered: * Is premarital education generally effective? * Is it effective for all couples? * Are we able to reach couples at higher risks for marital failure? * Are some forms of premarital education more effective (or plausibly so) than others? * Are some forms of premarital education more effective for some types of couples than others? …

Community‐Based Premarital Prevention: Clergy and Lay Leaders on the Front Lines*

Abstract: This study reports on the results of the dissemination of an empirically-based, premarital education program within religious organizations. The following major results are discussed with respect to premarital prevention: (a) Clergy and lay leaders were as effective in the short run as our university staff; (b) couples taking the more skills-oriented intervention showed advantages over couples receiving naturally occurring services on interaction quality; and (c) couples reported that the communication skills components of premarital education were the most helpful. he staggering costs of marital failure have led religious, political, and policy leaders to call for a variety of efforts to strengthen marriages, a key example being calls for couples to undergo preventive premarital training (e.g., McManus, 1993; Parrott & Parrott, 1995). But will such calls to ‘‘do something’’ be answered with wisely guided interventions based on empirical data? This report is part of a project designed to help to answer relevant questions: Who is best poised to provide prevention services to couples premaritally? How effective can the services be when provided in the community? What factors affect the adoption and ongoing implementation of prevention services in community-based settings? With roughly 75% of first marriages occurring in religious organizations (ROs), religious leaders are a logical point of action for broad-based, premarital prevention efforts. Although there is a compelling rationale for the role religious leaders can play in prevention efforts (Stanley, Markman, St. Peters, & Leber, 1995), less than half of religious organizations currently provide premarital services of any consequence (Trathen, 1995). Additionally, researchers have raised concerns about the effectiveness of much of the premarital training that currently is provided to couples (Schumm & Silliman, 1997; Sullivan & Bradbury, 1997). As part of a larger project, this report presents shortterm outcomes for couples receiving either conventional premarital services from their religious organizations or PREP (Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program; e.g., Markman, Stanley, & Blumberg, 1994). The goal of this study was to assess the degree to which a program that has demonstrated promising preventive efficacy in university settings (clinical trials) could yield similar results in more natural, community-based settings. As such, this research is designed to test the effectiveness of dissemination in the community by assessing the extent to which clergy and lay leaders can readily and successfully implement the program in their set

Faith as social capital: Religion and community development in Southern Asia

Abstract: A.T. Ariyaratne’s contention that a preoccupation with the material and financial dimensions of development can undermine its spiritual and cultural dimensions may sound somewhat romantic and impractical. His Sarvodaya Movement, however, based on the philosophy that the material improvement of communities is merely a means to their spiritual awakening, is one of the worldi¯s largest and most effective community development organizations. Most villages in Sri Lanka have had some contact with and been benefited by Sarvodaya community development work. The Sarvodaya Movement is tremendously popular in Sri Lanka, largely because it seeks to facilitate spiritual awakening through community and economic empowerment (Bond, 1996).

Faith in development : partnership between the World Bank and the Churches of Africa

Abstract: Most of Africa's poor are deeply religious. Not only are faith communities among the poor, in many cases they are the poor. Like other faith communities, the Christian Church in Africa has grown impressively. Its development role must be taken seriously, not just because it is trusted and broad-based within Africa, but also because it is a part of a global movement capable of improving the lives of the poor. The papers in this report were presented at the Churches of Africa/World Bank Conference on Alleviating Poverty in Africa, which was held in Nairobi, Kenya, in March 2000. Representatives of African churches came together with senior staff at the World Bank for discussions on a topic of mutual and urgent concern: alleviating poverty in Africa. Participants at the conference expressed a wide range of viewpoints, including treating people as subjects rather than objects, promoting investment and industrialization through human capital formation, listening to the "voices of the poor," recapturing lost market shares in promary commodity markets, the ideal patterns of church development practice, gender inequality, enterprise solutions for addressing poverty, and the church's role in promoting social justice and as well as income generation and service delivery.

Child sponsorship, evangelism, and belonging in the work of World Vision Zimbabwe

Abstract: In this article, I examine the child sponsorship program of World Vision Zimbabwe-offering perspectives from nongovernmental organization (NGO) employees, sponsors, sponsored children, and rural communities being assisted. I demonstrate how transnational processes of giving and membership in a global Christian family contrast with Zimbabwean interpretations of humanitarian assistance and efforts to initiate a Zimbabwean child sponsorship program amidst growing local inequalities. In effect, new perceptions of economic disparity are produced by the very humanitarian efforts that strive to overcome them. I explore the intimate and personal relationships encouraged by sponsorship and the political economies within which they are situated, which include jealousies, desires, and altered senses of belonging. [Africa, NGOs, humanitarianism, transnationalism, development, Christian evangelism, Zimbabwe] This is a study of the paradoxical effects of Christian humanitarian programs of child sponsorship. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) involved in child sponsorship seek to transcend economic disparity via personal relationships between individuals in "developed" nations and the children they sponsor in "less-developed" nations. These organizations speak to the potential of eradicating poverty, improving lives spiritually and economically, and uniting sponsors and sponsored children in an international community. The paradox lies in that, as much as these efforts inspire a liberatory potential, they also accentuate localized experiences of poverty and transform relationships of belonging for sponsors, the children they sponsor, and employees of the NGOs. The results of such efforts are indeed ambiguous. The liberatory potential to link people and transcend inequality on a global scale occurs in local political economies that reinforce the very disparities that sponsorship aims to overcome. This is not to say that humanitarian aid is a hopeless task, but that it is a multidimensional process that must be understood in such a spirit. In this article, I investigate the dual consequences of child sponsorship through an analysis of one religious NGO, World Vision in Zimbabwe. I frame my analysis with the narrative experiences of two men in their twenties-a Zimbabwean who was formerly a child sponsored by World Vision and a Canadian sponsor who visited the child he sponsored in rural Zimbabwe. The cases educe how evangelical narratives of child sponsorship simultaneously transcend difference and exacerbate it-producing unintended consequences for both sponsors and their children. Culled from a larger project focusing on Christian NGOs and the relationships between religious ideas and economic development in Zimbabwe, my focus on World Vision arises from research I conducted in World Vision's offices (in California 1994-95, in Washington, D.C.

Predictors of breast cancer screening in a panel study of African American women.

Abstract: Purpose: This study examines the predictors of breast cancer screening participation in a panel study of African American women over age 40. We examine the effect of depression, age, beliefs and concerns about breast cancer and its risk, communication with social networks regarding screening, marital status, participation in religious organizations, breast cancer family history, and participation in a breast cancer education program. Methods: Participants were recruited from 30 African American churches, two low-income housing projects, and from a health fair at a historically African American University (N = 364). Participants were interviewed upon recruitment, and three months later. Multinomial logistic regression models are estimated to assess the relative impact of covariates on the odds of getting a mammogram while controlling for other factors. We also assess predicted probabilities of screening at specific levels of covariates. Results: We find that age, marriage, an educational intervent...

Daoism and Chinese Culture

Abstract: A long-awaited textbook that introduces the major schools, teachings, and practices of Daoism, this work presents a chronological survey that is thematically divided into four parts: Ancient Thought, Religious Communities, Spiritual Practices, and Modernity. The work offers an integrated vision of the Daoist tradition in its historical and cultural context, establishing connections with relevant information on Confucianism, Chinese Buddhism, popular religion, and political developments. It also places Daoism into a larger theoretical and comparative framework, relating it to mysticism, millenarianism, forms of religious organization, ritual, meditation, and modernity. The book makes ample use of original materials and provides references to further readings and original sources in translation. It is a powerful resource for teaching and studying alike.

Development and Religion: A Different Lens on Development Debates

Abstract: In much international development work, religion has been a marginal, if not an ignored, topic. The inverse applies for many faith institutions, which have viewed the work and thinking of development institutions with skepticism. Research, operational action, joint reflection, and dialogue on common issues have been patchwork. Recent initiatives, notably the Jubilee 2000 campaign spotlight on issues of poor country debt, have highlighted how significant the linkages and areas for exploration are, yet many opportunities for dialogue on topics of common concern and differing perspectives (e.g., education, social impact of modernization, and roots of poverty) are still missed. The events of September 11, 2001, have underscored starkly the powerful links between religion and modernization and posed a host of new questions about how the links operate and how thinkers and actors should respond. This article focuses on a specific initiative aimed at bridging this gulf, the World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD...

Unmet Health Needs of Two Billion : Is Community Financing a Solution?

Abstract: One of the most urgent and vexing problem around the world is how to finance and provide health care for the more than two billion peasants and ghetto dwellers in low- and middle-income countries. Part I of this paper develops a conceptual framework for community financing and uses it to clarify and classify the variety of community financing schemes. This section of the papers discusses the impact of community financing schemes on outcomes and compares them to several African countries. Part II uses the conceptual framework developed above to explain why some community financing schemes in Asia have been successful and why some have failed. The review points to a number of measure that governments could take to strengthen such community financing. They include subsidizing the premiums of the poor, providing technical assistance to improve scheme management capacity, and forging links with formal health care networks. Satisfaction with the scheme was often related to the nature of direct community involvement in their design and management. A critical factor was the matching willingness and ability to pay with the expectation of benefits to be received at some later time. The review also highlighted several areas of government actions that appear to have a negative impact on the function of community financing schemes. Top-down interference with scheme design and management appeared to have a particularly negative impact on their function and sustainability.

Relationships Among Giving, Church Attendance, and Religious Belief: The Case of the Presbyterian Church (USA)

Abstract: Using data from a survey of members and elders of the Presbyterian Church (USA), we estimate relationships among religious contributions, church attendance, and theological belief Survey respondents indicated whether they were theologically conservative or liberal, and we hypothesized that the level and the composition of giving would be affected by theological belief We found that conservative Presbyterians gave more in total, and gave more to the local church and to non-Presbyterian religious organizations than did more liberal Presbyterians, while more liberal Presbyterians gave more to secular charities than did conservative Presbyterians

The New Holy Clubs: Testing Church-to-Sect Propositions

Abstract: The familiar sect-to-church theory holds that successful sects will gradually become more church-like over time, reducing the level of tension they hold with their environment. H. Richard Niebuhr (1929), the originator of sect-to-church theory, took it for granted that transformation was possible only in the church-like direction - that churches could not reverse the process and become more sectlike. Recent theoretical developments, however, suggest that under certain conditions, and where groups are market-dependent, religious organizations will shift in the direction of higher tension with their environment (Stark and Finke 2000). Using recent data from Methodist congregations, we test selected propositions from these new theoretical developments.

The nonprofit sector in Canada : roles and relationships

Abstract: The size and complexity of the not-for-profit sector, the role of religious organizations in the delivery of social services, the distinctive roles of not-for-profits in caring for the elderly in Ontario and Quebec, the advocacy role of ethno-cultural organizations at the national level, and accountability dilemmas facing not-for-profit organizations are just some of the topics tackled in this book, illustrating the rich diversity of the not-for-profit sector.

The Ambiguous Embrace: Government and Faith-Based Schools and Social Agencies

Abstract: The Ambiguous Embrace: Government and Faith-Based Schools and Social Agencies. By Charles L. Glenn. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2000. xii + 315 pp. $35.00 (cloth). In this important and provocative book about educational policy in the United States, Episcopal priest and Boston University professor Charles Glenn argues that faith-based institutions ought to be playing a far more active role in American public life than they are at present. In Glenn's estimation, it should be possible for government to make funds available to religious schools and social service agencies without either violating the principles of the First Amendment or stifling-by way of "a fatal embrace" (p. 9)-the theological beliefs and goals of the institutions themselves. Three basic assumptions inform the author's well-reasoned thesis. First, Glenn believes in the usefulness of providing support to "value-generating and value-- maintaining agencies" (p. 3) that mediate between individuals and the state. Second, he is concerned about both the weakening of institutions that once fostered a sense of moral obligation in the American citizenry and the emergence of what social theorist Richard John Neuhaus calls the "naked public square" (p. 7). And third, he favors the development of educational voucher programs, in which control of tax-generated funds would belong to the parents of the children being educated rather than to the so-called "monopoly" (p. 116) of "well-organized public employees" (p. 8) currently overseeing local school systems. Even if public funds were shifted to faith-based private schools, Glenn insists, this would not contravene constitutional guarantees of the separation of church and state because parents, not government officials, would choose how the money was spent-a situation not unlike the recognition and indirect support religious organizations already receive as charities under the federal income tax code. In making his case for what would amount to a fundamental transformation of American public education, Glenn employs an impressive collection of data and ideas culled from diverse sources. He devotes considerable space, for instance, to analyzing the status of educational and social service institutions in several western European countries. As he notes, Germany and the Netherlands rely heavily upon religious organizations for delivery of many of the public services that constitute the welfare state in those nations. Glenn also examines the social service programs of religious organizations such as Teen Challenge (a Pentecostal street ministry among urban youth gangs), the Salvation Army, and Catholic Charities, all of which receive some limited government patronage. …

Aging on Television: The Picture in the Nineties

Abstract: GENERATIONS A realistic portrait? Television is the central and most pervasive mass medium in the culture of the United States. In the past fifty years it has come to play a distinctive and historically unprecedented role as our nation's most common, constant, and vivid learning environment. Americans, and increasingly many of the world's people, spend much of their time in the world of television, whether watching broadcast programming, cable, a timeshifted program on the VCR, or a theatrical movie on their DVD or VCR. In the average U.S. home, the set is turned on for about seven hours each day, and the average person watches more than three hours a day (Vivian,1999). Children and older people typically watch the most television. Today, however, with the proliferation of cable systems on most college campuses, even college students watch a considerable amount of television. Very few people escape exposure to television's vivid and recurrent patterns of images, information, and values. Television is a lucrative business because it is so pervasive in society, and the business of television is selling. Television sells products by attracting audiences for its commercials. In essence, what television sells is audiences or "eyeballs: And while it might seem that television is free or relatively inexpensive, basic cable fees are reasonable because we pay for television in the form of higher prices for most of the advertised products. Television is also the nation's primary storyteller. Its stories are found in dramas, action adventures, situation comedies, reality programs, the news, and even in commercials. Television is the wholesale distributor of images in popular culture. Children are born into homes in which, for the first time in human history, a centralized commercial institution rather than parents, religious organizations, or schools tell most of the stories. This storytelling function of television is extremely important because the stories teach viewers about the intricacies of the world and its people and provide a wealth of images, all of which become part of the lifelong cycles of socialization and resocialization. In this way, television has joined the ranks of socialization agents in our society and in the world at large. Lifestyles associated with different stages of the life cycle are culturally determined. Images of old age cultivate shared conceptions of aging and the age roles that people assume. Television, with its abundance of characters in all phases of the life cycle, provides an almost inescapable set of messages about aging, the elderly, and the process of aging. This discussion describes some of the messages and stories about aging and old age that television tells its audiences. Specifically, it examines how aging and the elderly were presented in the prime-time network programming of the i99os. It is based upon the analysis of characters in major and supporting roles in twelve week-long samples of prime-time network programming broadcast between the spring of 1993 and the fall of 2000. The sample includes situation comedies, action-adventure programs, dramas (e.g., "ER"), magazine-format programs (e.g., "20-20"), and reality shows (e.g., "Cops"). They allowed us to examine television's messages in the aggregate-what the average viewer typically sees. The research did not focus on single programs, networks, individual viewing habits, or artistic merit. The analysis measured age in two ways: An estimate of each characters chronological age and a measure of "social age," which categorizes age from the perspective of stages in the life cycle. Social age isolates characters who are children or adolescents, young adults, settled or middle-aged adults (those who have steady employment, a family, for example), and older people. In addition, the analysis looked at the intersection of these measures of age with other measures of characterization, including demographic (gender, race, work, marital status) and descriptive (involvement in violence, character type) features. …

Sacred places, civic purposes : should government help faith-based charity?

Abstract: Long before there was a welfare state, there were efforts by religious congregations to alleviate poverty. Those efforts have continued since the establishment of government programs to help the poor, and congregations have often worked with government agencies to provide food, clothing and care, to set up after-school activities, provide teen pregnancy counseling, and develop programs to prevent crime. Until now, much of this church-state cooperation has gone on with limited opposition or notice. But the Bush Administration's new proposal to broaden support for ""faith-based"" social programs has heated up an already simmering debate. What are congregations' proper roles in lifting up the poor? What should their relationship with government be? Sacred Places, Civic Purposes explores the question with a lively discussion that crisscrosses every line of partisanship and ideology. The result of a series of conferences funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and sponsored by the Brookings Institution, this book focuses not simply on abstract questions of the promise and potential dangers of church-state cooperation, but also on concrete issues where religious organizations are leading problem solvers. The authors - experts in their respective fields and from various walks of life - examine the promises and perils of faith-based organizations in preventing teen pregnancy, reducing crime and substance abuse, fostering community development, bolstering child care, and assisting parents and children on education issues. They offer conclusions about what congregations are currently doing, how government could help, and how government could usefully get out of the way. Contributors include William T. Dickens (National Community Development Policy Analysis Network and the Brookings Institution), John DiIulio (White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives and University of Pennsylvania), Floyd Flake (Allen AME Church and Manhattan Institute), Bill Galston (Unversity of Maryland), David Hornbeck (former superintendent, Philadelphia Public Schools), George Kelling (Rutgers University), Joyce Ladner (Brookings Institution), Joan Lombardi (Children's Project), Pietro Nivola (Brookings Institution), Eugene Rivers (Azusa Christian Community Center), Isabel V. Sawhill (National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy and the Brookings Institution), Lisbeth Schorr (Harvard Project for Effective Interventions), Peter Steinfels (New York Times), Jim Wallis (Sojourners), and Christopher Winship (Harvard University).

Including Children with Mental Retardation in the Religious Community

Abstract: ingful for all children and adults—but particularly for people involved in inclusive religious education programs. Although intentions may be good, the religious community sometimes engages in practices that result in segregation, such as having separate classes for persons with disabilities, furnishing modes of transportation not used by people without disabilities, or setting aside a special seating section of the worship service for people with disabilities. This article describes some practical strategies and engaging activities community members can use to promote inclusion in religious programs (see box, “What Does the Literature Say”).

Faith-Based Organizations, Community Development, and the Reform of Public Schools

Abstract: (2001). Faith-Based Organizations, Community Development, and the Reform of Public Schools. Peabody Journal of Education: Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 222-240.

Differing Responses to an Ahmadi Translation and Exegesis. The Holy Qur'ân in Egypt and Indonesia

Abstract: There were two main external channels of Islamic reform in Indonesia between the 1920s and the 1960s. The first was the Egyptian link transmitted by those who had studied in the Hijaz and Cairo, and by the circulation of al- Manâr, an Egyptian journal chaired by Muhammad Rashid Rida (1865-1936) under the inspiration of his late master Muhammad cAbduh (1849-1905). 0) Al-Manâr was reasonably well circulated in Indonesia, being allegedly smugg led in through the port of Tuban in East- Java where there was no customs supervision. Otherwise personal copies obtained by students returning from al- Azhar and Mecca, or by the "hajis" returning from the pilgrimage, were to be found (see Bluhm-Warn 1997 : 297; Ali 1964 : 9). (2) Although its readership was confined largely to those who knew Arabic, cAbduh's ideas of Islamic reform were translated into Malay and featured in Southeast Asian periodicals like al-Imam (Singapore, 1906-08) and al-Munir (Padang, 1911-19). The second, and later, link of Islamic reform was the Indian (Indo- Pakistani) link introduced into Indonesia, then the Netherlands Indies, by missionaries from the Lahore-based Ahmadiyyah movement, and by the ci rculation of the works of other non-Ahmadi reformers, such as S ay y id Ahmad Khan (1817-1898), Ameer Ali (1849-1928), and Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938). The Lahori Ahmadiyyah, which attracted a number of Indonesian intellectuals, promulgated the ideas of Muhammad Ali (1874- 1951) and Khwajah Kamal-ud-Din (d. 1935) (see below) by spreading their works in English, Dutch, Indonesian and Javanese versions. This paper is concerned with the proposed translation of Muhammad Ali's English exeges isof the Qur'ân by the leader of Sarekat Islam Hadji Oesman Said Tjokroaminoto (1882-1935). In the mid- 1920s, both the Egyptian and Indian strands of Islamic reformism were represented in Indonesia's religious organizations. The Egyptian link was embodied by such organizations as al-Irsyad, Persatuan Islam (PERSIS), and Muhammadiyah. 0) The Indian form came to be taken up in the 1920s by the leadership of Sarekat Islam, Jong Islamieten Bond (JIB), and Studenten Islam Studieclub (SIS). Although both strands shared the same ideals for Islamic reform in principle, they were soon divided over the doctrinal soundness of Ahmadi scholarship. Hence when Tjokroaminoto's project to translate an Ahmadi exegesis became known, it was opposed strongly by the Egyptian-oriented reformist organizations led by Muhammadiyah, despite its leaders having previously given Tjokroaminoto a green light to proceed (see below). The initial uncertainty is also reflected in a request for a legal opinion (fatwa) sent to Rashid Rida by his former student Shaykh Muhammad Basyuni Imran (1893-1981), the Maharaja Imam of the Sultanate of Sambas, West Borneo. The present article thus focuses on the response of the Sunnite (non- Ahmadi) reformers to Muhammad Ali's book with Rashid Rida' s fatwâ as an entry point. Some important questions shall be dealt with here, namely : Why did the translation of the Qur'ân remain a sensitive issue for Muslims, even until comparatively recent times ? How did Rashid Rida view the prob lem, especially in his fatwâ on Muhammad Ali's translation (and comment aryw)h ich he formulated in response to a question from Indonesia? What were the debates on translation of the Qur'ân in Egypt and Indonesia?

An Agency Analysis of Church-Pastor Relations

Abstract: Incentives are critical to the study of economics. But do they work in non-traditional economic settings, such as religious organizations, in a manner consistent with economic theory? This study considers the agency relationship between churches and their clergy. This paper contends that pastor compensation is not typically tied directly to performance, but rather indirectly through promotion tournaments. Pastors whose performance is recognized as being exceptional are rewarded by being called to larger, more prestigious congregations. Given the difficulty of observing and measuring pastor performance this represents a sensible solution to the church–pastor principal–agent problem. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Beyond Strategic Control: Applying the Balanced Scorecard to a Religious Organization

Abstract: Kaplan and Norton have provided a framework to link control to an organization's vision-the balanced scorecard. This approach provides measures in four areas: (1) Customer, (2) Internal Business, (3) Innovation and Learning and (4) Financial. This article provides a starting point in adapting this method to a church by looking at four measurement perspectives: (1) Members/Attenders, (2) Internal Ministry Processes, (3) Ministering, and (4) Innovation and Learning. An example is then developed using a church's mission and visio

Can Faith-Based Organizations Compete?

Abstract: On the heels of the 1996 Charitable Choice provisions, a variety of welfare reform measures are drawing smaller faith-based groups, especially congregations, into the social service arena. These ne...

The impact of religious organizations in promoting HIV / AIDS prevention.

Abstract: This paper examines the involvement of religious leaders and organizations in HIV/AIDS prevention in developing countries. Rather than “harm reduction” strategies such as condom use or treating sexually transmitted diseases many faith-based organizations focus on primary behavior change. Examples of this are fidelity to a single partner sexual abstinence or young people "delaying" the age at which they begin to have sexual intercourse. The author notes that this approach is met with skepticism by public health professionals. However he presents positive findings from Uganda Senegal and Jamaica that demonstrate a pattern of behavioral changes compatible with the prevention strategies favored by faith-based organizations as well as data showing stabilization and reduction in national HIV infection rates.

Religious Freedom in Germany

Abstract: I. INTRODUCTION At least from a U.S. perspective, religious freedom in Germany has become a matter of concern in recent years.1 It may well be time to reconsider the law and the facts of religious life in a country under scrutiny due to its twentieth-century history. Upholding religious freedom is a key issue in any community committed to the idea of human rights. After the end of the devastating rule of national-- socialism, Germany reestablished its long-standing cultural history in which it had intensively contributed to the development of human rights. The purpose of this article is to describe the various normative sources of religious freedom in Germany and to establish an understanding of religious freedom as a positive freedom in harmony with the legitimate culture of the people concerned. II. THE NORMATIVE SYSTEM A. Constitutional Provisions Religious freedom has a prominent place in Germany's constitution.2 Freedom of religion is protected before many other freedoms. Only human dignity,3 freedom and life,4 and equal protection5 are human rights placed before religious freedom in Germany's constitution. Religious freedom under the German constitution means freedom of belief and freedom to act according to one's beliefs. The constitution secures religious freedom for both individuals and collective bodies. The various freedoms guaranteed for religious institutions in Germany can be found in the German constitution, in the constitutions of the German Lander and in ordinary laws, and in the various treaties between the state and specific religions.6 In addition to the central guarantee of religious freedom, the constitution offers additional religious rights and institutional guarantees for churches and religious communities. According to Article 3 of the constitution, no one shall be prejudiced or favored because of his faith or religion.7 This guarantee is specified for civil rights, public office, and public service.8 Article 4 provides for the right to refrain from military service in the name of religion.9 Article 7 guarantees religious instruction in public schools and includes the right to abstain from that instruction.10 Article 7 also secures the right to establish and to run religiously or ideologically based private schools.11 Several far-reaching institutional guarantees for churches and other religious communities referred to in the German constitution12 have been incorporated from the German Reich's Weimar constitution of 1919 ("WRV").13 The most important provisions are as follows: there shall be no state church, i.e., no established church;14 all religious communities shall enjoy the right to self-- determination,15 the status of certain religious communities as public corporations,16 equal rights to associations that foster a non-- religious, philosophical creed,17 the guarantee of Sundays and feast-- days,18 and chaplainry in public institutions.19 The preamble to the German constitution also describes Germany's commitment to religious freedom. It states: "Conscious of their responsibility before God and humankind, animated by the resolve to serve world peace as an equal part of a united Europe, the German people have adopted, by virtue of their constituent power, this Basic Law."20 The reference to God and humankind acknowledges responsibility for the crimes committed during national-- socialism and responsibility to prevent a repetition of those events in Germany. This reference to God does not allude to nor establish any specific religious belief.21 Rather, by referring to God, the preamble acknowledges a sphere of transcendence, indicating a borderline for the state-that is, a field beyond the reach of the state. It suggests that there is something other than the political order established by the constitution, that the state is not all-powerful. The preamble is anti-totalitarian. B. Other Textual Sources of Religious Freedom Religious freedom in Germany is rooted as well in texts other than the constitution, such as the Lander constitutions, agreements between the government and specific religious organizations, and case law. …