Religious Literacy Leadership in Higher Education

Report on minorities, pluralism and the law

Matthew Francis — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:48:00 +0000

Maleiha Malik (2012) Minority Legal Orders in the UK: Minorities, Pluralism and the Law. London: The British Academy.

Minority Legal Orders in the UK

The following information was supplied by Maleiha Malik for the EHRC Religion or Belief Research Network. Please add your own thoughts in the comments section below

Description

This report was launched by the British Academy Policy Centre in April 2012. Minority legal orders – the systemic, distinct, religious or cultural norms of groups such as Jews, Christians, Muslims, and others – are often misleadingly described as ‘parallel legal systems’. Since 9/11 and 7/7, they have been mainly discussed in the context of Islam and sharia law, and more often than not as an ominous threat to UK liberal democracy.

The report discusses the experience of religious and cultural diversity in the UK which underpins minority legal orders (popularly known as ‘parallel legal systems’). It sets out different state responses to minority legal orders and suggests future academic and policy research priorities in the area.

You can download the report and executive summary here.

Book on religious symbols and education

Matthew Francis — Mon, 14 May 2012 12:57:50 +0000

Erica Howard (2011) Law and the Wearing of Religious Symbols: European Bans on the Wearing Symbols in Education. London: Routledge

Law and the Wearing of Religious Symbols

The following is from the publisher’s description, please feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments

Description

‘Law and the Wearing of Religious Symbols‘ is an overview of emerging case law from the European Court of Human Rights as well as from national courts and equality bodies in European countries on the wearing of religious symbols in educational settings. The author argues that bans on the wearing of religious symbols in educational institutions in Europe constitutes a breach of an individual’s human rights and contravenes existing anti-discrimination legislation. The book offers a discussion of developments in Europe, including the French ban on Islamic head scarves which came into force in April 2011. In addition to an examination of recent bans, the book also assess the arguments used for imposing them as well as the legal claims that can potentially be made to challenge their validity. In doing this, the book suggests ways in which educational institutions can most fairly respond to requests for accommodation of the wearing of religious symbols and whether perhaps the adoption of other provisions or measures are necessary in order to improve the present situation.

This book will be of particular interest to students and academics in the disciplines of law, human rights, political science, sociology and education, but will also be of considerable value to policy makers and educators as well.

What are the main Trends in Religion and Values in Britain?

Matthew Francis — Thu, 03 May 2012 11:38:58 +0000

The last AHRC/ESRC Religion & Society Programme Westminster Faith Debate took place last night, with two of our Advisory Board members speaking – Professors Grace Davie and Linda Woodhead. In their differing, but complementary, presentations they set out the nature of religious change since World War II, leading up to the present picture (and with some very tentative comments about the future).

Professor Davie set out problems with the assumption of secularisation in modern times, pointing out that secularisation does not just refer to an absence of religion, but is also a specific form of values in itself. Since the 1990s there has been talk of ‘de-secularisation’ and ‘post-secularity’ as religion has been seen to make a ‘return’ to the public sphere. In giving a number of specific dates which she felt were significant in this process, Davie stated that 2001 was the year that finally cemented the return of religion in the public consciousness. But alongside the decline in religious belonging and indeed of religious influence in the public sphere, religious literacy has also declined. Years of neglect in RE have led to a situation where (Davie referred to an earlier speaker in the series, Professor Jim Conroy) pupils may know what to feed a Jewish friend, but have no idea about the values that inform those choices, or how to discuss them in a positive manner. Davie closed by pointing out that this lack of ability to talk about religion, at a time when it is frequently making the news, has led to ill-informed and ill-mannered debate, something which only more religious literacy can resolve.

Linda Woodhead introduced the term ‘de-reformation’ to the discussion, arguing that what we had seen in recent years reversed a lot of the changes the Reformation had made to organised religion in Europe (both speakers were careful to contextualise the issue of secularisation as primarily a European phenomenon, something that wasn’t picked up on later.) Belief in a personal god has halved since the 1960s, but beliefs in spiritual powers and angels have all increased substantially over the same period. Woodhead strongly argued that it wasn’t the case that traditional forms of religion had declined and left these new beliefs in their wake, but rather that it has been the other way round: lived religion, sought out in personal efforts, is alive and well and because of the growth of these ‘mash-up’ beliefs, traditional religion has declined.

The changes that Davie and Woodhead outlined were reinforced by the respondents. Aaqil Ahmed, who is Head of Religion and Ethics at the BBC, spoke about the change in religious programming that has, to some extent, mirrored the shifts in religious believing and belonging that were highlighted earlier. But he also spoken about the incredible lack of religious literacy, and how whilst there is often an appetite for the new kind of engaged and interesting programmes that are now being produced about religion, there is still a lack of basic understanding (he gave an example of speaking to a room of bright Oxbridge graduates and having to point out that Jesus was Jewish).

There were a lot of other important points and issues raised during this debate, including in some of the questions. I have chosen, rather unsurprisingly, to focus on religious literacy, but you can read the papers and, soon, see the podcasts here. What all the speakers highlighted last night was, that despite the undoubted decline in religious belonging, the changing face of religious institutions, and the rise in personal ‘mash-up’ religion, there is still a need to teach and develop skills that enable people to discuss and debate these issues in an articulate fashion.

New book – Faith and Social Capital

Matthew Francis — Tue, 01 May 2012 09:22:18 +0000

Faith and Social Capital After the Debt Crisis

Faith and Social Capital after the Debt Crisis

Adam’s new book, ‘Faith and Social Capital After the Debt Crisis‘ is now out. The following are the publisher’s description and review. Obviously more personal insights from the book will follow, and you are welcome to leave your own comments.

Description

This book examines the impact of viewing faiths as social capital, exploring whether faith can help rebalance society by drawing communities together

The founding father of ‘social capital’, Pierre Bourdieu, said that treating the church as an economic enterprise would lead to uproar, disbelief and the laughter of the bishops. Yet, in the last couple of decades, policy-makers and social scientists have increasingly sought to capitalize on faith by asking whether it produces social capital. In the context of faith-based social action in communities, this book asks what becomes of faiths when seen as social capital? Is the social subjugated to the capital part of the equation? As the debt crisis took hold, doesn’t the relationship between the social and capital seem increasingly unbalanced? Using new research, theory and critical analysis, this book asks whether faiths can help rebalance society in favour of the human scale of life in communities, focusing on the value of the ordinary relationships which are already there, regardless of their wider ‘use’.

Review

‘Not only is this book a wonderful introduction to what faith-based social action contributes to the UK today, it also puts forward a striking and significant argument. Dinham suggests that the notion of ‘social capital’, fashionable with policy-makers and faith groups alike, has been so hollowed out that it fails to make sense of faith’s distinctive contributions to society – good and bad. Faith has many dimensions, not least reverence for what is good, true and Godly. To judge it in terms of the ‘capital’ it can generate is to subject it to a market logic which turns it into a mere instrument of social policy and economic progress’. – Linda Woodhead, Professor of the Sociology of Religion, Lancaster University and Director of the AHRC/ESRC Religion and Society Programme, UK

Launch event: ‘Minority Legal Orders in the UK’ – 19 April 2012

Matthew Francis — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:33:52 +0000

The British Academy Policy Centre is holding a launch event for ‘Minority Legal Orders in the UK: Pluralism, Minorities and the Law’.

Minority legal orders — the systemic, distinct, religious or cultural norms of groups such as Jews, Christians, Muslims, and others — are often misleadingly described as ‘parallel legal systems’. Since 9/11 and 7/7 they have been mainly discussed in the context of Islam and sharia law, and more often than not as an ominous threat to UK liberal democracy.

Follow this link for further information.

What limits to religious freedom?

Matthew Francis — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 11:57:23 +0000

In terms of a debate, the latest AHRC/ESRC Religion and Society Westminster Faith Debate was one of the best of the series. All of the debates have had quality and knowledgeable presenters (of course, I could be accused of bias as both Adam and I have been amongst those presenting), but last night saw more passion and disagreement – necessary for debate, as opposed to seminars or lectures for example.

Peter Jones (Professor at Newcastle University) and Maleiha Malik (Professor in Law at King’s College London) presented on the basis of their research within the Religion and Society Programme, with Malik particularly impressing with a clear presentation on issues where belief has conflicted with other protected characteristics, especially sexuality. She also went ‘off-script’ to talk about the recent ban on anti-gay adverts on London’s buses.

Where the debate really took off was when questions were taken from the floor. Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali argued that morality trumped the law, and that laws should be revisited in light of moral concerns – although it was pointed out in response that objection to the law should not occur without consequences. Lisa Appignanesi (from PEN), called for civility, rather than respect, and that while difference could be debated and discussed it should not be done in a setting of ‘frigid tolerance’, which ‘respect’ is all too often reduced to.

The call for civility was, I believe, one of the key messages to come from the debate. But so was Malik’s point that the law is not value free – if our laws were legislated under Koranic principles they would look very different. Jones’ earlier point that claiming intolerance is often akin to saying “I don’t like this” should be viewed with this in mind. We may not like what a law says we should do, but the correct response is to campaign to change that, not seek exemption from it.

While Baroness Neuberger said that when laws had to be involved society had failed, this misses the point that race and gender laws from the 1970′s onwards have led to a sea change in attitudes in this country, as indeed has the 2004 Civil Partnership Act – in this case in a surprisingly swift way – and it is hoped that so will the most recent equality laws. These laws are brought in as part of a wider debate in society, still ongoing not least in the form of the expected ruling on September 4th of the European Court of Human Rights on the four cases surrounding challenges to the 2010 Equalities Act. We look forward to those with interest.

New campus-based events

Matthew Francis — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:05:57 +0000

FlashPODs

Enhancing student experience through productive discussion

6th June, 2012 – 13.30 to 16.00
University of Birmingham

7th June, 2012 – 13.30 to 16.00
Goldsmiths, University of London

In partnership with Campusalam, the Religious Literacy Leadership Programme is putting on an interactive workshop specifically designed for university staff members who want to improve student experience around religion and belief.

In order to strengthen leadership in the important area of student experience, universities benefit from forums that elicit a diversity of student voices. The National Student Satisfaction Survey helps to paint a broad picture on some of these issues, but the challenge remains to understand the dynamic student experience of faith in each unique university context. Much interaction with students comes in situations of conflict or crisis, which greatly impact on student experience. These conflict situations can provide a valuable opportunity for reflecting upon student needs if the opportunity for cooperation and understanding is harnessed.

Our partner in this event, Campusalam, is a project that supports UK students of faith and belief and university staff with resources, skills and advice on contributing to positive change on campus. Mixing the spontaneity of a flashmob with the structure of a productive discussion, Campusalam has pioneered a student-led discussion group model called FlashPODs (Providers of Open Dialogue). They have trained 90 student leaders from 30 campuses in using this methodology to critically analyse difficult conflicts of faith and belief on campus.

Click here for more information and how to book. Please note that registration closes on 15th May, so book early to ensure your place.

Religion and welfare – podcast

Matthew Francis — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 15:28:28 +0000

Adam contributed to the recent book showcasing work funded by the Religion & Society Programme, edited by Linda Woodhead and Rebecca Catto ‘Religion and Change in Modern Britain‘. In that chapter Adam described the changing role of religion within British society since the second world war.

Adam was recently interviewed about his chapter, and in this podcast he expands upon the chapter by commenting both on what the future might hold in the context of the ‘Big Society’ initiative by the UK coalition government, as well as a consideration of the wider context including the US and Europe.

You can listen to the podcast here.

Religion and welfare

Matthew Francis — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 12:17:59 +0000

Adam recently spoke at the AHRC/ESRC Religion and Society Programme’s Westminster Faith Debates, on the role of religious organisations in an era of shrinking welfare.

You can read his paper, and listen to an audio podcast of his presentation on the Religion and Society Programme website, or watch the debate below.

This video was produced by the Religion and Society Programme and is hosted here with their kind permission.

Multifaith spaces in the UK

Adam Dinham — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:41:05 +0000

Following Dr Brand’s fascinating new findings on multifaith spaces in the UK, here are some thoughts about the implications for higher education:

A mushrooming of multifaith spaces in universities – but where are they on the campus, who looks after them (if anyone), and who can and DOES use them? These places need to be easy to find, well sign-posted, clearly and thoughtfully named (to reflect what the institution thinks they ARE) and not tucked away in a hidden corner for want of space elsewhere. Invest or don’t do it!

They do not need to be flashy or expensive – correct: simple is good, but dingy and crumbling is not conducive to meditation, prayer and reflection either. These spaces deserve as much tender love and care as any other space on campus.

Less is known about architecture and ornamentations – the full report will have much more to say about this. In the meantime, the main message is: have the confidence to ask; avoid compromise by having nothing or hiding everything in a cupboard till it’s needed – broker it, have it out, get the users together and see how they want to go forward. Shared kitchens are often a particular controversy, but symbols and images can be tricky too. ASK.

MF spaces merely ‘housing difference’ and subject to ‘sequential use’ – this may not be the pinnacle of your aspirations for inter-faith encounter but different traditions may want to use the space at different times, and discussing this in advance and working it out together can be an aspect of working well together. Other activities than worship may be better suited to multifaith activities – look at introducing a programme of discussions, cooking demonstrations, dance etc.

Encounters might have to be facilitated rather than left to occur spontaneously – but spontaneity can be good too. Serendipitous encounters can go a long way. Drop in to the space when you can, if you feel so inclined, and see who’s there.

Please comment. We’d love to hear your thoughts, experiences and practices.