What does religious faith have to do with environmental stewardship? Rev. Fletcher Harper of GreenFaith joins us to discuss the history and work of his ecumenical environmental advocacy organization. We cover the biblical basis for environmental stewardship and explore why religious groups have been relative latecomers to the “green movement.” Rev. Harper also discusses the various projects GreenFaith has been involved in and how his group has been received by members of other religious communities and the secular environmental movement. Our podcast also explores the relationship between religious individuals and the government when it comes to improving environmental quality. Rev. Harper makes the case that it is important not only to change the culture, but to get the incentives right if Christians and other faith traditions want to make a positive impact on society.

Know of anybody you think should appear on the show? Email the host at tgill (at) uw (dot) edu.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

What case can be made for promoting religious freedom worldwide? Prof. Timothy Shah discusses the moral, political, and strategic reasons why religious liberty is a crucial human right and why it is often called “the first freedom.” He reviews the justifications for religious freedom from three different faith traditions — Judaism, Christianity, and Islam — as well as the ontological reasons why religion should be considered for special consideration in debates about human rights. Tony even uses the word ontology in the discussion, but don’t let that scare you off since he didn’t know what it meant until very recently and our conversation is both enlightening and extremely accessible.

Click the Facebook logo on the right hand column to receive weekly updates on future podcasts!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

What do you get when to take a seasoned sociologist and a senior research associate, put them in a rented Dodge Charger for six weeks, and them tell them to find academic enlightenment? A religious road trip, that’s what! Christopher Scheitle tells us tales of his trip with Roger Finke to far flung places such as Memphis, Houston, Colorado Springs, San Francisco, Detroit and Brooklyn in search of what the American religious experience is all about. They visit a wide variety of congregations and take away some important lessons about the diversity and similarities of religious folks in the United States. We also find out who is the better driver – Chris or Roger.

Share this experience with your friends and colleagues with our social networking links below. Thanks!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

Timur Kuran (Duke University) discusses the movement known as Islamic economics, focusing on its origins, policy prescriptions, and consequences. We survey the thought of Sayyid Abul-Ala Mawdudi in the middle part of the 20th century, how his ideas spread and were institutionalized in the 1970s. Attention is paid specifically to Islamic banking, interest rates, and social welfare policies.

Tell your friends about our podcast using the social media links below!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

Dark networks are clandestine organizations that often engage in nefarious behavior. Often associated with religious terrorist groups, these dark networks are the focus of our discussion with Prof. Sean Everton of the Naval Postgraduate School. He covers the nature of these groups, how we learn about them via network analysis, and how counter-insurgency efforts are being crafted to disrupt these networks in places like Colombia, Indonesia, and Iraq.

Make a New Year’s Resolution to connect with Research on Religion via iTunes or our Facebook page.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

Did religion or church-state institutions have anything to do with the great economic divergence between Christian Europe and the Islamic world beginning in the 11th century? Prof. Jared Rubin of Chapman University reviews the economic history of these two civilizations, covers the dominant explanations for the observed divergence, and then discusses his own research showing that the relationship between religious and political authorities in each region of the world had a great deal to do with why Europe surged ahead economically. We focus primarily on the role of usury laws and financial interest, but Prof. Rubin gives us a taste of some of his work relating to the economic importance of the printing press.

Never miss an action-packed episode. Subscribe to Research on Religion on iTunes or use our RSS feed. See the links on the right hand side of our webpage.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

Prof. Allen Hertzke of the University of Oklahoma joins us to discuss religious liberty around the world. We cover why religious liberty has become an increasingly important issue in foreign affairs and why many intellectual and government elites tend to dismiss its importance. The conversation also includes current threats to religious freedoms in many parts of the world and what positive effects might arise from the spread of religious liberties.

Learn more about this topic by clicking “read more” below. We have links to valuable reading material and additional podcasts!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

A week before the 10th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Prof. Monica Toft of Harvard University joins us to discuss what we have learned about religiously-motivated violence over the past decade. She discusses findings from her new book “God’s Century” on terrorism, informal violence, and civil war. Our conversation covers a wide range of geographic territory and faith traditions, touching upon the IRA in Ireland, Hindu nationalism in India, the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, as well as movements in the Arab Middle East.

Subscribe to our series on iTunes and share this podcast with your friends on Facebook and other social media outlets.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

Is the global resurgence in public religiosity over the past 40 years linked in any way to the increase in democratic governance over the same period of time? Prof. Dan Philpott (Notre Dame) covers the historical trends of church-state relations and discusses how changes in political theologies and the increasing independence of religious organizations have provided a fertile ground for political democratization in some corners of the world. We examine how and why some religious traditions have been involved in promoting democracy under authoritarian conditions. Our discussion turns toward some speculation about the future of the “Arab Spring” at the end of our interview. This is the first part of a discussion of the book “God’s Century: Resurgent Religion and Global Politics.”

You can help us spread the word by clicking on one of the social media sites below!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---

Prof. Ahmet Kuru of San Diego State Univeristy joins Research on Religion to discuss the increasing presence of Islam in Europe and how various European nations are accomodating Muslim immigration. We address the contemporary origins of this immigration and how countries such as Great Britain, Germany and Frane have had different responses to integrating Muslims into their political and cultural arenas. We cover the recent ban in the hijab (Muslim headscarf) in France and also talk about how the US response to Muslim immigrants differs than Europe. Prof. Kuru introduces us to his concepts of assertive and passive secularism.

Subscribe to Research on Religion on iTunes and Zune. And help us spread the word by telling two friends or colleagues about us.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]

---