Religion and Global Politics

by Rowe, Paul S.

• ISBN13: 9780195438123
• ISBN10: 0195438124
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-05-04
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Specifically designed for third- and fourth-year students, Religion and Global Politics examines the relationship between religion and world order. Part I consists of carefully selected case studies that introduce students to the empirical and theoretical questions underpinning religion andpolitics in the United States, Europe, India, East Asia, and Latin America at both the domestic and the international level. Offering a balanced and objective perspective, Part I examines a variety of faith perspectives including Christianity, Roman Catholicism, Hinduism, Judaism, and Islam. Part IIuses essential concepts to explore the role that religion plays in the construction of global order and the way religious groups affect the political process in contemporary societies with respect to issues of human rights, war and peace, conflict resolution, and globalization. Context is providedfor students in the form of an introduction (Chapter 1) that lays out the history of religion in global politics, as well as the theories that unite and divide political scientists. In addition, a clear conclusion encourages students to apply what they have learned by discussing the future ofreligion in global politics. The only text of its kind, Religion and Global Politics suggests the potency and enduring nature of religion in global politics and asks students to consider religion as a serious motivator of political desire. The text includes effective pedagogical tools, such as bolded key terms, chapter-review questions, boxed inserts, chapter conclusions, additional sources, web resources, and a glossary to assist students in engaging with and retaining material.

Author Biography

Paul S. Rowe is associate professor of political and international studies and senior research fellow in the Religion, Culture, and Conflict Research Group at Trinity Western University in Langley, BC.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. xii
Introduction and Theoretical Overview	p. 1
A New Beginning?	p. 2
Religion in the Premodern International System	p. 3
The Post-Westphalian System and the Secularization of Global Politics	p. 10
Modernization and Secularization	p. 12
Critiques of Secularization	p. 14
Perspectives on the Politics of Ethnicity and Religion	p. 16
Taking Culture Seriously	p. 18
Responses to Globalization	p. 19
9/11 and After	p. 20
Understanding Religion: Definitions and Directions	p. 21
Religion and Global Politics: A Survey	p. 23
Religion and the Domestic Bases of State and Foreign Policy
The Roman Catholic Church	p. 28
A Brief History of Christianity and the Roman Catholic Church	p. 30
The Modernizing Church: Changes under Vatican II	p. 35
The Church and the Vatican Today	p. 39
Liberation Theology	p. 40
A Diversity of Political Movements	p. 44
Change, Continuity, and New Challenges	p. 45
The Church under Benedict XVI	p. 47
Conclusion	p. 48
Christianity and US Politics	p. 52
The 'City upon a Hill': Competing Themes in US Politics	p. 53
Religion in American Public Life: A Historic Perspective	p. 55
The Twentieth Century and 'Social Christianity'	p. 56
Christianity and the US 'Mission' in the World: The Cold War	p. 58
Streams of Christian Activism	p. 60
The Rise of the 'Religious Right'	p. 64
Onward Christian Soldiers?	p. 67
Seeds of a Middle Way	p. 68
Other Religions and US Politics	p. 72
Conclusion	p. 73
Judaism, Zionism, and Israeli Politics	p. 77
A Brief History of Zionism	p. 79
Dimensions of Zionism to 1948	p. 84
Political and Ethnic Divisions in the State of Israel	p. 85
'Greater Israel'	p. 87
The Settler Movement and the Rise of Israeli Revisionism	p. 89
The Rise of Shas	p. 95
Religious Parties and Coalition Politics	p. 96
The Wider Coalition: Christian Zionism	p. 98
Conclusion	p. 99
Political Islam and the State	p. 102
Introduction to Islam	p. 103
The Fusion of Islam and Politics: A Contentious Debate	p. 106
The Medieval and Colonial Ages	p. 107
The Birth of Modern Islamic Activism	p. 109
Revolutions and Revivalism: Islamism to the 1980s	p. 113
The Crucible of Radicalization: Afghanistan, bin Laden, and Militant Jihad	p. 118
Islamism Today: Democrats and Demagogues	p. 120
The Sunni-Shi'i Divide	p. 125
Conclusion	p. 127
Religion and Politics in India	p. 130
What is Hinduism?	p. 132
Hinduism, Islam, and Indian Independence	p. 135
The Rise of Hindu Nationalism	p. 139
Sikh and Hindu Nationalist Movements in the 1980s	p. 141
The Ayodhya Incident and the Rise of the BJP	p. 144
Hindutva, Foreign Policy, and the Issue of Kashmir	p. 147
Flashpoints and Pressures: The Continuing Problem of Interreligious Relations	p. 150
Conclusions	p. 151
Buddhism and Politics	p. 154
Buddhism's Rise and Eclipse in India	p. 155
The Basic Tenets and Vehicles of Buddhism	p. 158
Sri Lanka: Buddhism Betrayed?	p. 161
Buddhism in East and Southeast Asia: Protest and Peace	p. 163
Tibetan Nationalism: Unattainable Nirvana?	p. 167
Conclusions	p. 171
Religion and Global Order
Religion, Democracy, and Human Rights	p. 176
Religion and the Expansion of Liberal Democracy	p. 178
Human Rights and Constraints on Religious Freedom	p. 181
Religions, Human Rights, and Democracy	p. 182
Religion in International Human Rights	p. 186
Religion and Human Rights in Practice	p. 190
Religious Freedom and the Politics of Human Rights	p. 194
Conclusions	p. 195
Religion and War	p. 199
'Religious' Wars of the Past	p. 201
Religion and War in the Modem World	p. 203
The Just War Tradition	p. 208
The Tradition of War in Islam	p. 211
Himsa and Ahimsa Traditions in Hinduism and Buddhism	p. 213
Religion and Terrorism	p. 215
Conclusions	p. 218
Religion and Conflict Resolution	p. 221
Religious Resources for Conflict Resolution	p. 222
Religious Activism in Support of Conflict Resolution	p. 227
Religion as Interested Observer	p. 230
Religion as Peacemaker	p. 231
Religion as Protagonist	p. 234
Religion as Peace	p. 236
Conclusions	p. 239
Transnational Religion, Globalization, and Development	p. 243
Religion and Globalization	p. 245
The Influence of Transnational Organization: Global Religious Networks	p. 247
Religion, the Media, and the Global Political Sphere	p. 250
Migration, Religion, and Integration	p. 253
Religion and Development	p. 254
A Divided World? Notions of Division Rooted in Religion and Civilization	p. 258
Conclusions	p. 259
Conclusion: Religion in a 'Secular' Age?	p. 263
The Rise and Decline of the Secular State	p. 264
A Secular Age?	p. 266
Hostility or Hospitality?	p. 268
Glossary	p. 271
Index	p. 277
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.