Interviews – Page 4

Toward a rebirth of the Orthodox Church in China – Interview with Mitrophan Chin

By Religioscope, 23 October 2004

While the presence of Western Christian Churches in China is a well-known fact, many people are not aware that the Orthodox Church has also been present in that country for more than 300 years. It has never fully recovered from the turmoils of the “cultural revolution” of the 1960s and its antireligious policies. However, there are efforts from several sides to revive Orthodox life in China. Attempts to revive Orthodoxy in China also take place in virtual space. In this interview, the webmaster of Orthodox.cn, Mitrophan Chin, tells us more about the history, current situation and prospects for the Orthodox Church in China.

The interview was conducted online in October 2004. Mitrophan Chin was interviewed by Jean-François Mayer.

The Gülen Movement: a modern expression of Turkish Islam – Interview with Hakan Yavuz

By Religioscope, 21 July 2004

Fetullah Gülen is an important figure in contemporary Turkish Islam. A book edited by Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito offers a well-informed introduction by Western and Turkish experts to the Gülen movement. Its impact is not limited to Turkey: the community has created more than 300 modern schools, not only in Turkey, but also in several other parts of the world.

M. Hakan Yavuz and John L. Esposito (eds.), Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse (New York): Syracuse University Press, 2003, XXXIV+280 pp.

The interview was conducted by Jean-François Mayer.

Traditionalism: René Guénon’s legacy today – Interview with Mark Sedgwick

By Religioscope, 5 June 2004

A newly-published book by Cairo-based scholar Mark Sedgwick, “Against the Modern World”, is the history of one of the most important anti-modernist movements of the twentieth century. The Traditionalist movement, composed of a number of often secret and sometimes very influential religious groups in the West and in the Islamic world, affected the lives of many individuals and entered into both mainstream and radical political life in Italy and Russia. It also influenced the development of religious studies…

Mark Sedgwick, Against the Modern World: Traditionalism and the Secret Intellectual History of the Twentieth Century, New York: Oxford University Press, 2004, 368 pages. Just click on the title if you would like to know the price of this book and – if you want – order it from Amazon.
The interview with Mark Sedgwick was conducted by Jean-François Mayer. Additional information on
Sedgwick’s research and his book can be found on his website, Traditionalists.org.

Islam in Tajikistan – Interview with Abdullo Hakim Rahnamo

By Religioscope, 25 April 2004

“During the many centuries that Islam has been present in our region, it has become a substantial part of our culture and history. Therefore Islam is regarded not only as a religion of most of the population of the country but as a substantial and organic part of the historical culture. Or, we can say, one of the constituent parts of the Tajik culture.” From the end of the Bukhara Emirate to the post-Soviet times, an overview of the history and current situation of Islam in Tajikistan.

The interview with Abdullo Rahnamo took in Dushanbe in October 2003. He was interviewed by Jean-François Mayer. The tape recording was transcribed by Nancy Grivel-Burke. The transcript was revised by Prof. Rahnamo in April 2004.

Religion and technology: MacQibla, a prayer time calculator for Muslims – Interview with Trygve H. Inda

By Religioscope, 21 April 2004

For a Muslim traveller or a businessman dealing with Muslim partners, it is not always easy to know Muslim prayer times. But a globe-trotting software developer has created a tool for Macintosh, which provides “accurate prayer times for any date and location”. Discover MacQibla – version 3.0 just released!

The interview with Trygve H. Inda was conducted via e-mail by Jean-François Mayer.

France and “cults”: a new orientation – Interview with Jean-Louis Langlais

By Willy Fautré - Compass Direct, 15 April 2003

Compass Direct met with Jean-Louis Langlais, president of the Inter-ministerial Mission for Vigilance and Fight against Sectarian Deviances (MIVILUDES), a task force created by government decree in France in November 2002 to replace the Inter-ministerial Mission for the Fight Against Sects (MILS).

Vatican: the best intelligence service in the world? – Interview with David Alvarez

By Religioscope, 29 January 2003

In a well-documented and balanced book, Professor David Alvarez offers a history of Papacy and intelligence, from Napoleon to the Second World War. Religioscope has asked him a few questions.

Books by Prof. David Alvarez on spionage and the Vatican:

Spies in the Vatican: Espionage & Intrigue from Napoleon to the Holocaust, Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2002 (342 p.)

Nothing Sacred: Nazi Espionage Against the Vatican, 1939-1945 (with Robert A. Graham), London / Portland: Frank Cass, 1997 (XIV+190 p.)

Albania: signs of a comeback in religion – Interview with Jim Forest

By Zenit.org, 28 January 2003

The world may have forgotten Albania, but the Orthodox and Catholic churches haven’t. Jim Forest, secretary of the Orthodox Peace Fellowship, gives his view on what has been happening in the former Communist nation.

From deprogramming to strategic interaction – Interview with Steven Alan Hassan

By Religioscope, 19 January 2003

Steven Alan Hassan has been a familiar name among those involved in the “cult controversies” for over twenty-six years. A former member of the Unification Church, he is one of the leading figures among experts counseling people away from groups that they consider destructive. He has explained to Religioscope what his approach is and how it has evolved over the years.

The United Church of Christ and the World Wide Web – Interview with Andrew Lang

By Religioscope, 3 September 2002

The website of the United Church of Christ has often been praised as an example of what a good church website should be. Let’s learn more from its coordinator!