Peace Education And Religious Plurality

Does religion bring peace or war? In order to discuss this fundamental question, it is essential to reflect upon religious education that shapes the views of religion among young generations. This book has developed from the special panel on "Religious Education and Peace" for the 19th World Congress of the International Association for the History of Religions (IAHR), the largest international organization in religious studies, which took place in Tokyo in March 2005. Its international contributors discuss the kinds of religious education used for peace education that is attempted or needed, in their respective societies faced with tensions and conflicts, not only between different religions but also between religion and secularism. This is the first book in the field that includes both Asian and Western writers (from Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Israel, Germany, Spain, UK and USA). It is an innovative attempt to build a bridge between the study of religion/religious education and peace education. This book was previously published as a special issue of British Journal of Religious Education

Does religion bring peace or war? In order to discuss this fundamental question, it is essential to reflect upon religious education that shapes the views of religion among young generations. This book has developed from the special panel on "Religious Education and Peace" for the 19th World Congress of the International Association for the History of Religions (IAHR), the largest international organization in religious studies, which took place in Tokyo in March 2005. Its international contributors discuss the kinds of religious education used for peace education that is attempted or needed, in their respective societies faced with tensions and conflicts, not only between different religions but also between religion and secularism. This is the first book in the field that includes both Asian and Western writers (from Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Israel, Germany, Spain, UK and USA). It is an innovative attempt to build a bridge between the study of religion/religious education and peace education. This book was previously published as a special issue of British Journal of Religious Education

Whether formally incorporated into curriculum and teacher training or informally integrated in contexts such as state or NGO initiatives dealing with resolving social, ethnic, and religious conflicts, peace education is increasingly recognized as a critical component in addressing violence in contemporary plural societies. Peace education can constructively undertake a reframing of historical narratives while inspiring practical community activities. An important, but insufficiently studied and theorized aspect of peace education is the role of religion. The challenge to peace education in today’s globalized, diverse, mobile, and religiously pluralistic world is to be able to take both complex global and distinctive local situations into account. The contributions to this integrative collection of essays provide exactly these local and global perspectives on the state of peace education and its relationship to religion across pedagogy and curriculum, state policies, and activism within societies on the front lines of resolving internal conflicts, whether historical or recent, that often reflect aspects of religious identities.

This book brings together a group of teachers and teacher educators who have researched their own students’ learning in schools and universities as part of the EC funded REDCo Project. Combining the methods of action and practitioner research with the key concepts of Robert Jackson’s interpretive approach, the book illustrates the collaborative research of a group of professionals working together as a community of practice. • Part one sets out the key ideas of the interpretive approach and action research. • Part two reports case studies from individual researchers’ projects carried out in diverse though related settings: different schools, teacher education and local authority teacher training. • Part three traces the ideas of the ‘interpretive approach’, ‘action research’ and ‘community of practice’ across the individual studies. • Part four connects the research with wider themes and findings from the European Commission REDCo Project on religion, education, dialogue and conflict. The book is highly relevant to the work of teachers and teacher trainers in the field of religions and education, to researchers in this field, and to all interested in action research, practitioner research and communities of practice.

Spirituality, Religion, and Peace Education attempts to deeply explore the universal and particular dimensions of education for inner and communal peace. This co-edited book contains fifteen chapters on world spiritual traditions, religions, and their connections and relevance to peacebuilding and peacemaking. This book examines the teachings and practices of Confucius, of Judaism, Islamic Sufism, Christianity, Quakerism, Hinduism, Tibetan Buddhism, and of Indigenous spirituality. Secondly, it explores teaching and learning processes rooted in self discovery, skill development, and contemplative practices for peace. Topics in various chapters include: the Buddhist practice of tonglen; an indigenous Hawaiian practice of Ho’oponopono for forgiveness and conflict resolution; pilgrimage and labyrinth walking for right action; Twelve Step Programs for peace; teaching from a religious/spiritual perspective; narrative inquiry, Daoism, and peace curriculum; Gandhi, deep ecology, and multicultural peace education in teacher education; peacemaking and spirituality in undergraduate courses; and wisdom-based learning in teacher education. Peace education practices stemming from wisdom traditions can promote stillness as well as enliven, awaken, and urge reconciliation, connection, wisdom cultivation, and transformation and change in both teachers and students in diverse educational contexts. In various chapters of this book, a critique of competition, consumerism, and materialism undergird the analysis. More than just a critique, some chapters provide both conceptual and practical clarity for deeper engagement in peaceful action and change in society. Cultural awareness and understanding are fostered through a focus on the positive aspects of wisdom traditions rather than the negative aspects and historical complexities of violence and conflict as result of religious hegemony.

Nigeria, a country under a military regime for several years, transitioned to a civilian regime in May 1999. Since this change, violent conflicts between Christians and Muslims have continued to erupt. They constitute one of the gravest dangers facing Nigeria, a country with a population of 189 million people. What have Nigerian religious leaders done about this situation, especially in educational circles? Have they received formal educational training to understand the causes of this violence and especially how to provide alternatives for more peaceful relations within Nigeria? Does the current educational system in Nigeria provide the main ingredients for the promotion of a culture of peace? The absence and neglect of interreligious peace education as part of a peace education core program and the lack of an interreligious curriculum for peace education in the training of religious leaders are the two problems contributing towards the lack of effectiveness of religious leaders in promoting less violent and more peaceful living. The solution to the problem is proposed in this book entitled Interreligious Curriculum for Peace Education in Nigeria. The book develops a one-year curriculum, building on Yoruba, Islamic & Christian conceptions of peace, and teaches how to create safe, caring, spiritual, peaceful and successful interfaith relationships between all Nigerian religious communities. In the long term, the book helps to educate religious leaders to contribute, in themselves and with the help of their respective religious communities, to reducing the growing religious violence in Nigeria.

Religious Education and the Public Sphere reveals, through an analysis of theory and practice, that religious education is resting on historic and persistent assumptions about both religion and education. Drawing on work from Arendt and Weil, new ideas emerge regarding religious education's constituent elements: education and religion. It offers a new and timely proposal for religious education and argues for a broader understanding of religion, bringing a fresh contribution to current discussions regarding the relationship between religion and education in the public sphere. Some practical considerations emerging from theory developing through the earlier parts of the book are presented in the final section, including the teacher's role and what should guide religious education curriculum. At a time when there is raised interest in the role of religion in the public sphere internationally, this book aims to contribute something new, both theoretically and practically, to discussions regarding the role of religion in education is and relevant to educational contexts worldwide. This book will be vital reading for academics and researchers in the fields of religion and religious studies, education, philosophy of education and religious education, and will also be of great interest to teachers and policy makers working in the field of religious education in the public sphere.

This volume features chapters by international experts in education, sociology, and theology who consider a range of challenges faced by educators in primary and secondary schools that are becoming increasingly diverse in terms of the ethnic and religious backgrounds of pupils. From the non-religious, to the refugee, to student fundamentalism and even radicalization—these multiple, fresh approaches analyze the dynamics of the changing pedagogical landscape in an age of ever increasing globalization and cultural plurality. Today’s classrooms are often the most crucial spaces where children and adolescents encounter new cultural, religious, and other worldviews. Increasingly, teachers are called on to empower their pupils with the tools and competencies necessary to reflect on and process this plurality in ways that are productive for their intellectual growth and moral maturation. Regional case studies provide extensive data while offering insights into developments in school settings across Europe, in Turkey, and in the United States. In addition, a number of the contributions address the delivery, content, and policies of Islamic Religious Education in European contexts, the educational strategies employed in multi-religious societies, and interreligious dialogue in schools, whether intentional or spontaneous.