Three Theories of Religious Activism and Violence: Social Movements, Fundamentalists, and Apocalyptic Warriors

Gregg, Heather S.

doi:10.1080/09546553.2014.918879

Cited by 36 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 10 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In her analysis of different types of religious activism, Gregg (2016) argues that religious activists are either (i) involved in social movements which challenge social practices and government policies, (ii) fundamentalists who defends specific interpretations and practices of the faith, or (iii) apocalyptic warriors who look to hasten the apocalypse. However, like much of the scholarship on "religiously-motivated action", this analysis has been framed through Abrahamic traditions, promoting a clear separation between the religious and the secular realms as pointed out by Gunning and Jackson (2011, p. 370), who highlight how the idea of "religious terrorism" can be traced back to an article by David Rapoport (1984).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Narratives in Action: Modelling the Types and Drivers of Sikh Activism in Diaspora

Singh

2020

Religions

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Using data gathered for an investigation of “Sikh radicalisation in Britain”, in this article I develop a typology of different types of activism among Sikhs in diaspora based on an analysis of historic and contemporary media sources (newspapers, radio, television, online), academic literature, ethnographic fieldwork and a series of semi-structured interviews with self-identifying Sikh activists. I assess the reasons behind a variety of different incidents involving Sikh activists, how Sikh activists view the drivers of their activism and to what extent this activism can be regarded as being “religiously motivated”. I critique existing typologies of “religious activism” by developing a typology of Sikh activism which challenges the distinction often made between “religious” and “political” action. I argue that “religiously motivated actions” must be understood in conjunction with narratives, incidents and issues specific to particular religious traditions and that generic motivations for these actions cannot be applied across all religious traditions.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Narratives in Action: Modelling the Types and Drivers of Sikh Activism in Diaspora

Singh

2020

Religions

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…First, religious fundamentalism is defined as a defensive reaction to modernization and secularization (Almond, Sivan, and Appleby 1995, Emerson and Hartman 2006). Fundamentalists believe that secularism forces religion to the margins of society and brings about moral decay (Gregg 2014:8). In this perspective, God's rule is favored over humanity's rule and religion is understood as the expression of a divine order (Tibi 1998:20).…”

Section: Theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Explaining Unfavorable Attitudes Toward Religious Out‐Groups Among Three Major Religions

Kanol

2021

Scientific Study of Religion

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Considering intensifying sectarian conflicts in recent years and increasing interreligious violence around the globe, there is a need to further our understanding of negative attitudes toward religious out‐groups. To investigate the driving factors behind these negative attitudes among members of the three major Abrahamic religions, I employ original data derived from a survey fielded among 10,046 respondents in eight countries (Cyprus, Germany, Israel, Kenya, Lebanon, Palestine, Turkey, and the USA). A rich body of literature documents the relationship between religious fundamentalism and prejudice. Other scholars have investigated out‐group hostility using an intergroup relations perspective, focusing on contact theory, and more recently, on discrimination. While controlling for other relevant factors such as demographic and socioeconomic variables, I investigate the role of religiosity and intergroup relations in explaining unfavorable interreligious attitudes. The results suggest that unfavorable attitudes toward religious out‐groups are most strongly associated with religious fundamentalism. This finding is robust across religious groups.

show abstract

“…Part of the trajectory is that religious members often believe that leaders are right, and any criticism of these leaders is a direct attack by evil. Gregg (2016) elaborates:…”

Section: Seven Angels Ministry Mental Incapacitation and Mafia Tendenciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can religion (un)zombify? The trajectories of psychic capture theology in postcolonial South Africa

Dube

2020

HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

‘Police arrested suspected criminals in a satanic place masquerading as a church … There is no church there, but there is Satanism … Those people are not praying for anything, but they have hypnotised abantu [people]’. Informed by a decoloniality lens in relation to motifs such as coloniality of power and knowledge and being, I argue that mafiarised religions in South Africa thrive through psychic capture theology. Some emerging religious movements subject their followers to unthinkable practices, which makes outsiders question the way in which both religious leaders and adherents operate outside the conventionally accepted practice of religion, and, instead, indulge in practices characterised by manipulation, corruption and mental destabilisation. I respond to two questions: What are the trajectories of a religion that zombifies, and how can the social pathologies of psychic capture theology be addressed? I respond to these questions with special reference to the Seven Angels Ministry and Penuel Mnguni. I argue that some emerging ministries strive to destroy the psychic ability of adherents, to achieve strategic distance that dehumanises, removes people from the zone of being, and causes them to question their ontological density. I end the article by arguing that there is a need for religion to be regulated, and reintroduced, to challenge religious mafias that thrive through mental destabilisation. In doing so, religion can be reconfigured and have relevance in a postcolonial state, such as South Africa, especially in contexts where the rationale of religious discourses is questionable.Contribution: The article contributes to knowledge in the sense that it calls for religion to be problematised and reconstructed within education and sociological space when it dehumanise and removes people from the zone of being. Through this approach, the article fits with the scope for the journal that calls for interdisciplinary approach to the study within the international contexts.

show abstract

Three Theories of Religious Activism and Violence: Social Movements, Fundamentalists, and Apocalyptic Warriors

Cited by 36 publications

References 10 publications

Narratives in Action: Modelling the Types and Drivers of Sikh Activism in Diaspora

Narratives in Action: Modelling the Types and Drivers of Sikh Activism in Diaspora

Explaining Unfavorable Attitudes Toward Religious Out‐Groups Among Three Major Religions

Can religion (un)zombify? The trajectories of psychic capture theology in postcolonial South Africa

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About