Research On Religion

Posts Tagged ‘conflict’

Davis Brown on Religion, Initiating War, and Data

Does the religious composition of a nation and its leaders have an impact on whether a country will initiate a war? Prof. Davis Brown, a research fellow at Baylor’s ISR, discusses his most recent article on this subject and details a new data set that he has constructed (and is expanding) to answer questions like this one and others. His analysis reveals that countries with a Christian war ethic have been much less likely to initiate wars than ones with an Islamic war ethic, dating back to 1946.

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Ron Hassner on Sacred Spaces & Holy Conflict

Tags: Chilean miners, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Church of the Nativity, conflict, Emile Durkheim, Ground Zero mosque, Haram el-Sharif, Islam, Israel, judgment of Solomon, Mormonism, Palestinians, sacred ground, sacred space, Temple Mount

Why are conflicts over holy shrines and other sacred spaces so often violent and intractable? Prof. Ron Hassner (UC-Berkeley, political science) offers an intringuing answer that revolves around the nature and various characteristics of sacred ground. Our discussion covers the breakdown of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians in 2000, the recent controversy over the “Ground Zero mosque” in New York City and several other examples.

This is an encore performance of an interview that aired in the fall of 2010. We will be back with a fresh interview next week.

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Gary Friesen on Christian Reconciliation Services and Peacemaker Ministries

Tags: Billings (MT), conflict, conflict resolution, embezzlement, Eritrea, forgiveness, Ken Sande, lawsuits, legal services, litigation, moral hazard, moral impropriety, non-profit organizations, parachurch organization, Peacemaker Ministries, professionalization of conflict, reconciliation, tort claims, training conferences

What happens when a congregation or a denomination finds itself beset with conflict? Who you gonna call? Tony invites Gary Friesen, executive vice-president of Peacemaker Ministries, to explore the world of Christian reconciliation services. Peacemaker Ministries is a non-profit organization that has been at the forefront of providing third-party conflict resolution services for religious groups and also provide training services for clergy and laity to avoid or de-escalate conflict on their own using biblical principles. This is a fascinating look at what happens when things don’t always go smoothly in church.

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Ron Hassner on Sacred Spaces and Conflict

Tags: Bill Clinton, Camp David, Chilean miners, Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Church of the Nativity, conflict, Emile Durkheim, Ground Zero mosque, Haram el-Sharif, Islam, Israel, judgment of Solomon, Mormonism, Palestinians, sacred ground, sacred space, Temple Mount

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Rodney Stark on the Crusades

Tags: anti-Semitism, Christianity, conflict, Crusades, Holy Land, Islam, pilgrimages, Pope Urban II, Vatican

Acclaimed sociologist and popular author Rodney Stark tackles a number of contemporary myths about the Crusades. Discover what motivated the Crusaders to pick up cross and sword and head to the Holy Land. (To download, right click on the button to the right and choose “save target as….”)

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