Articles

Syncretism, Religious Freedom and Revival: Taiwan’s Yiguandao

By Joanna Eva - Religioscope, 9 June 2024

Having originated in mainland China one hundred years ago, Yiguandao is a fast growing religious movement and one the largest religions in Taiwan, where it relocated the center of its activities in the mid-20th century. Today, it exists as a highly adaptive transnational religious movement devoted to self-cultivation and social harmony. Moreover, in contrast with other Chinese religious traditions, the group’s millenarian teachings lend believers a sense of urgency as they carry out proselytizing activities across the world.

Conference: The 17th International Conference on Taoist Studies: Taoist Ways of Enhancing Life—I Ching, Feng Shui & Personal Cultivation

By Staff – Religioscope, 23 January 2024

Religious studies scholars from Asia, Europe, and North America joined Taiwanese researchers, practicing Taoists, and local members of the contemporary Weixinism religious movement to present academic papers as well as reports on personal experiences with Taoist practices, I Ching divination, and applications of feng shui.

The True Jesus Church in Taiwan: Resilience, community, and the centrality of truth in a Chinese Christian movement

By Joanna Eva - Religioscope, 6 December 2023

The True Jesus Church was founded in 1917 by a Chinese silk merchant named Wei Enbo. Later taking the Christian name Baoluo (Paul), Wei claimed to have received a vision in which Jesus personally baptized him, and called on him to restore Christianity to its original purity. This report is an account of the historical context of this unique branch of Christianity, and the experiences of its members in Taiwan today.

Syria: The Sheikh, the Bride and the Pilgrim – “Temporary marriages” in Sayyidah Zaynab

By Olivier Moos - Religioscope, 13 September 2021

The ten-year conflict in Syria has impacted every aspect of society. This includes new incentives in both the marriage economy and the sex market: some rural areas have seen a substantial increase in polygamous marriages, while some cities have witnessed the development of a religiously sanctioned sex-for-money trade.

Report: Salafists and antiquities trafficking in Syria

By Olivier Moos, 11 February 2020

This report investigates how Salafist groups conduct and manage the illegal trafficking of antiquities in south-west and north-west Syria, with a particular focus on Idleb Governorate. It provides details on the interactions among the actors involved (diggers, traders, armed groups and smugglers) and analyses the various kinds of interactions between religious beliefs and norms, on the one hand, and the illegal trade in cultural assets, on the other.

Egypt: Al-Azhar struggles to balance politics and tradition

By James M. Dorsey, 18 June 2019

Caught in the crossfire of ambitious geopolitical players, Al-Azhar struggles to chart a course that will guarantee it a measure of independence while retaining its position as the guardian of Islamic tradition. So far, Al-Azhar has been able to fend off attempts by Mr. Al-Sisi to assert control but has been less successful in curtailing the influence of Gulf states like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that increasingly are pursuing separate agendas.

Dr. James M. Dorsey is a senior fellow at Nanyang Technological University’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, an adjunct senior research fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Middle East Institute and co-director of the University of Wuerzburg’s Institute of Fan Culture.

The Return of the Gold Dinar – An analysis of the Islamic State coin production

By Olivier Moos - Religioscope, 23 December 2018

Although a theoretically ever-expanding Caliphate does not recognize international borders or traditional states, its leadership nonetheless strived to reproduce all the traditional signs of sovereignty. Last but not least, they created a new currency. Minting of dinars and dirhams was the final component in solidifying the physical reality of the group’s millenarian utopia.

United States: Neopagans casting spells for and against Trump

By Richard Cimino, 20 March 2018

Neopagan supporters and detractors of the U.S. presidency of Donald Trump are using magical rituals to either bless or curse the new administration and their political opponents. While Neopagan groups have long joined magic with politics, this marriage of mysticism with activism was most strongly evident in the months after Trump’s election in 2016, drawing criticism from some quarters of the American pagan community.

Additional reports:

Astrea, “Join the Magic Resistance. Bind Trump”, Starlight Witch – Patheos, Oct. 28, 2017
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/starlight/2017/10/bind-trump/

Tara Isabella Burton, “Each month, thousands of witches cast a spell against Donald Trump”, Vox, Oct. 30, 2017
https://www.vox.com/2017/6/20/15830312/magicresistance-restance-witches-magic-spell-to-bind-donald-trump-mememagic

Research: “occulture” and alternative forms of religiosity in contemporary Azerbaijan

By Adeline Braux, 2 March 2017

Analysing the current phenomena of alternative religiosities through a post-Soviet lens may be productive in the Azerbaijani context, given the so-called “religious revival” experienced by the countries of the former Soviet Union. This article focuses on three specific groups/areas in Azerbaijan: ekstrasensy and parapsychologists, popular “occulture”, and the Hare Krishna community.

United States: church planting and the re-branding of American Christianity

By Richard Cimino, 25 November 2016

Church planting, once the specialty of evangelicals, is now becoming more common among mainline Protestants seeking to reverse decades of decline in their ranks. In the process of starting new churches both kinds of Protestants are reworking their identities to appeal to the growing ranks of Americans loosely tied or not affiliated with religious institutions.

Richard Cimino is the founder and editor of Religion Watch, a newsletter monitoring trends in contemporary religion. Website: www.religionwatch.com.