Problematizing religious truth: Implications for public education

Rosenblith, Suzanne; Priestman, Scott

doi:10.1111/j.0013-2004.2004.00025.x

Cited by 14 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In previous works i have argued that addressing matters of truth is central to the study of religion (Rosenblith, 2005;Rosenblith and Priestman, 2004). Thoughtful colleagues have responded to my arguments by suggesting that issues of truth are either not sufficiently central to be the focus of the study of religion or alternatively, matters of truth are too important to religion to be dealt with prior to post-secondary schooling.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Beyond coexistence

Rosenblith

2008

Theory and Research in Education

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Toward a more ref lective religious pluralism su zan n e r o s e n b l i t h Clemson University, South Carolina, USA ab s t rac tIf a pluralistic democratic state such as the United States wishes to move beyond coexistence and toward a more reflective religious pluralism, then public schools must take epistemic issues seriously. Taking a cue from multicultural education, many have called for including the study of religion from a cultural perspective. I argue instead that, while studying religion from a cultural perspective is necessary, for a comprehensive education in religious studies it is not sufficient. In order to enable our youngest generation with the skills and tools to be knowledgeable, thoughtful and respectful citizens, students must grapple with the thorny matter of religious truths. k e ywo r d s education, multiculturalism, public education, religious pluralism, truthMutual respect requires a widespread willingness and ability to articulate our disagreements, to defend them before people with whom we disagree, to discern the difference between respectable and disrespectable disagreement, and to be open to changing our own minds when faced with well reasoned-criticism. (Gutmann, 1994: 24)

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Beyond coexistence

Rosenblith

2008

Theory and Research in Education

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Second, they do not prepare students to live in a society in which difference is inevitable, nor to deal peacefully with the differences between religions that may cause tensions, conflicts, and misunderstandings. In other words, the focus on the similarities between religions is a kind of wishful thinking that ignores the intractable divisions arising from different normative claims (Barnes 2014), and it misses the point of how believers perceive and appreciate their own religions (Kunzman 2006;Rosenblith and Priestman 2004;Wright 2007). This line of thinking has not made the world a safer place (Prothero 2010), and it does not lead to the civic tolerance that is crucial for living in democratic and multicultural societies.…”

Section: The Limitations Of the Civic Approach To Religious Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Balancing the Communitarian, Civic, and Liberal Aims of Religious Education: Islamic Reflections

Saada

2022

Religions

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Balancing the communitarian, civic, and liberal aims of faith-based education presents a significant challenge to most religious education teachers. The communitarian approach to religious education is the most common, as it socializes children to become members of a given faith community. It recognizes students’ rights to collective identity and belonging. The civic approach to religious education asks, “what is the preferred meaning of respect in a religiously pluralist society, and how can it be promoted in the context of a deep belief in the primacy of one religion?” This approach also concerns itself with managing religious identities in a multifaith and democratic society. Liberal religious education involves asking the question, “how can one’s own religious doctrine be taught so as to allow the widest possible scope for critical reflection within [and about] a faith tradition?”. The current review essay addresses these questions by exploring the meanings, significance, and limitations of each approach and their possible implications for Islamic education in Israeli-Arab and Muslim-majority schools.

show abstract

“…First, it gives them the potential to function as bridges between persons and their community and those who have attachments to different communities. Second, while the value of ideals can be discussed (see for instance Noddings 1993) or their importance can be scrutinized, they do not lend themselves to an examination of the epistemological basis or truth claims of religious beliefs in public schools as some propose (see Rosenblith 2008;Rosenblith and Priestman 2004). In our view, such discussions certainly have their place, but a number of conceptual and logistical obstacles in schools stand in the way of this happening.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Education in Public Schools Should Include Religious Ideals

Ruyter¹,

Merry

2008

Stud Philos Educ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article aims to open a new line of debate about religion in public schools by focusing on religious ideals. The article begins with an elucidation of the concept 'religious ideals' and an explanation of the notion of reasonable pluralism, in order to be able to explore the dangers and positive contributions of religious ideals and their pursuit on a liberal democratic society. We draw our examples of religious ideals from Christianity and Islam, because these religions have most adherents in Western liberal democracies that are the focus of this article. The fifth and most important section ''Reasonable pluralism and the inclusion of religious ideals in public secondary schools'' provides three arguments for our claim that public schools should include religious ideals, namely that they are important to religious people, that they are conducive for the development of pupils into citizens of a liberal democracy, and that the flourishing of pupils as adults is advanced by encountering religious ideals. We also offer a more practical reason: religious ideals can more easily be included within public education than religious dogmas and rules.

show abstract

Problematizing religious truth: Implications for public education

Cited by 14 publications

References 0 publications

Beyond coexistence

Beyond coexistence

Balancing the Communitarian, Civic, and Liberal Aims of Religious Education: Islamic Reflections

Why Education in Public Schools Should Include Religious Ideals

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About