Religious Diversity in Southeast Asia and the Pacific

Secular New Zealand and Religious Diversity: From Cultural Evolution to Societal Affirmation

“…It is a private matter for citizens to pursue as they see fit. Nevertheless the New Zealand government in 2004 joined with a number of other governments in the Southeast Asia and South Pacific region to meet more or less annually for a formal regional interfaith dialogue (Bouma, Ling, & Pratt, 2010). The emerging globalised expressions of a religiously motivated terrorism were brought closer to home by the Bali bombing in 2005, and perhaps even more so by the London bombings that same year-many more New Zealanders are familiar with the London Underground than they are with Balinese beaches.…”

Bonding and bridging among first generation Asian migrants in Australian protestant churches

“…The changes since the 1970s have seen a move towards multiculturalism (Clyne and Jupp 2011, Bouma 1995, Bouma, Ling, and Pratt 2014, but one which has its critics and which has met with some resistance (Jupp 1995, Ang 2003. In 1995 James Jupp wrote:…”

“…Economic issues are concerned with how successfully migrants are able to join and thrive in the workforce, while social issues concern settlement patterns, social cohesion and national identity. Despite local variations and some widely reported incidents (the 2005 Cronulla beach riots are often cited as an example) most migrants settle into Australian society successfully (Collins 2013, Clyne and Jupp 2011, Bouma, Ling, and Pratt 2014. This does not mean that ethnic minorities always find it easy, and Collins (2013, p.146) argues that 'Racist attitudes and racial discrimination persist.…”

Religious Pluralism

“…Often, several experts on different religious traditions collaborate to publish such a book, leading to a pooled expertise, but also creating specific problems (see below). Well-known international publications of this kind are Eck (2001) for the USA, Bouma et al (2010) for Asia and Australasia, Ferrari and Pastorelli (2012), Pollack (2008), Vertovec (2007) and Willaime (2004) for European countries.…”