Purpose
THE
RELIGION AND SOCIETY CENTER fosters the exploration and development of
religiously-based social teachings as they can apply to today's
multi-cultural and multi-faith society.
Towards
that end, THE RELIGION AND SOCIETY CENTER strives to institutionalize
interfaith dialogue so as to explore:
-
religious teachings, and assumptions as to their authority, about the
good society and human nature;
- religiously-rooted ritual, and how these might be experienced as
spiritual practice that can inform a social vision, motivate spiritual
practitioners to engage in social issues, and sustain individuals and
groups in their efforts to improve society;
- questions of religious particularism and universalism - not to
elliminate the importance of distinctions and diversity - but to
illuminate the importance of the tapestry of teaching that the many
religious traditions of the world can bring to each others'
understanding of the good society and human nature.
THE
RELIGION AND SOCIETY CENTER has four primary areas of exploration:
-
Social Values
- Religious Authority
- Religious Practice
- Interfaith Dialogue
SOCIAL VALUES
American
society is going through its greatest reevaluation of social values
since the Great Depression. Many of those values under consideration
are being voiced in religious terms. Religious traditions do have much
wisdom to offer in the realm of social values. Yet, in many cases, the
religious teachings brought into the societal discussion reflect only a
narrow application of teachings from a small number of traditions
present in the society. At times religion is used as a tool to support
specific, pre-established social agendas rather than as a source of
guidance for developing social thought.
At
other times, religious perspectives are poorly presented because
American society is religiously extremely diverse. A great number of
religious traditions coexist within American society. Attempts to apply
the social wisdom found in religious traditions may sometimes result in
favoring the teachings of some traditions over others. Any attempts to
favor by law the social teachings of some religious traditions over
other traditions can present a challenge to religious liberty. But
historically and legally, American society is committed to protecting
freedom of religious expression. As a result, in an effort to avoid the
challenges to religious liberty that often accompany the application of
religious concepts to social issues, some advocate excluding the
insights of religion altogether from the public discussion.
The
Religion and Society Center is built on the assertion that somewhere
between coercion and irrelevance there is a proper and useful role for
religion in society. The Center seeks to explore and develop that role.
RELIGIOUS
AUTHORITY
What
is the nature of religious authority? Why does it make a difference to
us what religious traditions teach? When a religious text tells us
something, how closely or literally should that teaching be translated
into social practice? When we question particular traditional religious
social teachings, how do we derive guidance from religious traditions
even as we simultaneously challenge them?
RELIGIOUS
PRACTICE
Is
there a relationship between religious devotional teachings, focused on
the internal spiritual life of individual human beings, and the social
teachings of religious traditions? Does personal religious practice
affect an individual's state of mind, which then affects the society
that individual is helping to create? Does the society we live in
affect an individual's state ofmind, which then returns to affect the
society we live in? If so, how might religious practice affect this
interaction?
INTERFAITH
DIALOGUE
Contemporary
society is a multi-faith and multi-cultural society. What are the
differences in social teachings suggested by various religious
traditions? How can the teachings of each religious tradition take the
teachings of other traditions into account? How can religious teachings
be applied to society when there are so many different religious
traditions existing in that society?
