Religion & Society

I n the wake of World War II, as the world emerged from devastating conflict and entered the post-colonial era, some commentators predicted that rising prosperity would herald a new, post-religion age. The secularizing tendencies that were carving huge slices off religious allegiance in the West would be replicated across the world, according to this view. Such commentators also anticipated that religion, in its surviving form, would be rationalist, liberal and concerned with the here-and-now rather than the Hereafter. Read on here . This article first appeared in Renewing Minds: A Journal of Christian Thought , Jackson: Union University, Issue 2 (2012).

The world’s largest Muslim movement is in crisis. Tens of thousands of supporters of the vast international network led by Islamic theologian and philosopher Fetullah Gülen languish in prisons in Turkey and other countries. Gülen himself faces extradition to Turkey from the US to face charges of subversion if Washington accedes to the Turkish request. Ankara is now linking the release of American Pastor Andrew Brunson, imprisoned on trumped-up terrorism and espionage charges, with Gülen’s extradition. Read on here .

Some things will never change in New Zealand. The spectacular scenery in the South Island, so graphically captured in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy of films, will remain for the benefit of future generations, as will the more subtle but equally appealing beauty of the country’s North Island. Similarly, but less desirable, the country’s location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, will remain for posterity. Rapid change However, society is changing rapidly and with it the religious identity of New Zealand. Census statistics are useful in painting a portrait of that change. Between the censuses of 2006 and 2013, the proportion of New Zealanders declaring themselves as Christian dropped from 51.7% to 44.9%. The greatest challenge to Christian identity in this rapidly secularising nation comes from those who declare themselves to be without religion: 32.2% in 2006 and 38.5% in 2013. It is quite possible that the proportion of those without f...

For today's radio interview on Vision Radio with Neil Johnson, presenter of "Twenty20", click here .

The Marrakesh Declaration , ignored by the mainstream media, has been acclaimed as a new dawn by some commentators: as promising an era of tolerance and pluralistic harmony in the Muslim-majority regions, where religious minorities have suffered so much for so long. With so much bad news coming from the Muslim world, new voices of hope are bound to receive a warm welcome. Between 25–27 January, around 300 dignitaries gathered in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh under the auspices of King Mohammed VI of Morocco. This event represented the culmination of four years of planning, led by Sheikh Abdallah Bin Bayyah of Abu Dhabi, President of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies. The conference title was ‘The Rights of Religious Minorities in Predominantly Muslim Majority Communities: Legal Framework and a Call to Action’. As the name suggests, its specific goal was to address the discrimination and persecution experienced by religious minorities living under Islamic major...

In recent months a Christian-Muslim controversy has preoccupied the population of Sydney. A Muslim outreach group, MyPeace [www.mypeace.com.au/] under the leadership of Muslim Australian activist Diaa Mohamed, has erected a series of large billboards promoting Islam in prominent positions around the city. So far three billboards have been erected, variously declaring “Jesus: a prophet of Islam”, "Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad: Prophets of Islam" and ''Mary and prophet Jesus: read about their lives in the [Qur’an]”. Explaining the motives of MyPeace, Mr Mohamed referred to widespread misunderstanding of Islam among non-Muslims, stating that the billboards were primarily designed to clear away misconceptions. “We've been accused of trying to convert people to Islam and all that sort of stuff. If this was a campaign to do that, I would say it openly,” said Mr Mohamed. “This particular campaign was just to build bridges and extend a hand." Reactions fr...