Browsing by Subject "Religion"
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- ItemRestrictedARHAP International Colloquium: Collection of Concept Papers(University of Cape Town, 2007) African Religious Health Assets ProgrammeARHAP INTERNATIONAL COLLOQUIUM 2007, Collection of Concept Papers
- ItemRestrictedARHAP Tools Workshop Report(2004-06) Cochrane, James R; Schmid, BarbaraThe African Religious Health Assets Programme (ARHAP) was proposed in April 2002 and initiated in December of that same year, under the joint leadership of three individuals: Dr Gary Gunderson and Prof Deborah McFarland, both of Emory University (Department of International Health), and Prof James Cochrane of the University of Cape Town (Department of Religious Studies). It is the front edge of a global religious health assets initiative. It was predicated upon a conviction that faith-based organizations, groups and movements, though playing a significant role in the delivery and promotion of health, are generally not well understood or sufficiently visible to public health systems in most societies. The underlying assumption, of course, is that we need a much more “intelligent science” about the role and importance of religious health assets (RHAs) than is currently available (or if available, then only in scattered and fragmented form). This assumption stems from the growing awareness in public health bodies of all kinds, from multilateral bodies such as the UN or the WHO and international NGOs to local governments, that faith-based health activities are a very important part of the effective meeting of ideals such as those embodied in the Millennium Development Goals and their equivalents at less global levels.
- ItemOpen AccessCase Study Focus: Papers and Proceedings(University of Cape Town, 2017-03-28) ARHAP International ColloquiumARHAP seeks to develop a systematic knowledge base of religious health assets in sub-Saharan Africa; thus to assist in aligning and enhancing the work of both religious health leaders and public policy makers in their collaborative effort to meet the challenge of disease, e.g. HIV/AIDS; and hence to promote sustainable health, especially for those who live in poverty or under marginal conditions.
- ItemRestrictedThe contribution of Religious Entities to Health Sub-Saharan Africa(2008-05) Schmid, Barbara; Thomas, Elizabeth; Olivier, Jill; Cochrane, James RBackground: While most partners in providing health care in sub-Saharan Africa agree that religious entities play an important role in providing health services, there is little comprehensive data about the scope and scale of their contribution, beyond data held by particular religious entities about their own health related work. In addition not much is known, beyond claims and often repeated statements, about the ways in which such health care is different from services provided in the public health system. 2. Aims and Objectives The overall purpose of this study was to provide a description of the contribution of faith based organisations (FBOs), institutions, and networks to the health of vulnerable populations in resource-poor areas of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA); and to identify key areas for investment that would accelerate, scale up and sustain access to effective services, and/or encourage policy and resource advocacy among and in African countries. There were two main parts to the objectives: 1) To give an overview for SSA of the coverage, role, and core health related activities of religious entities, including major networks, vis a vis public and other private sector health services delivery, and their relationship to government and to each other. 2) To give more detailed information for three country case studies in Mali, Uganda and Zambia: a) describing the capacity of faith based organisations to deliver health services and impact on health behaviour; the financial and/or material support they receive and how they are perceived by stakeholders; b) characterizing key faith based networks and describing how they work; c) describing how faith based organisations collaborate with each other and with governments. From these were to be drawn recommendations about key areas for potential investment that would improve population health outcomes. 3. Research overview: The research was conducted under the auspices of the African Religious Health Assets Programme (ARHAP), a research networks focussed on gaining a better understanding of the contribution of religious health assets to public health in Africa. The team of ARHAP researchers, from the University of Cape Town and the Medical Research Council was supported by an international, inter-disciplinary and multi-religious advisory group as well as in-country researchers.
- ItemOpen AccessDwelling in diversity: religion and belonging in Kibera, a neighbourhood in Nairobi(2023) Wilks, Tammy Vanessa; Ukah, Franklin-KennedyThis dissertation is an ethnographic study of how religious communities make and take place in Kibera, a neighbourhood that is also a homeland in the city of Nairobi. Since its establishment in 1907, the debate about who belongs in Kibera and to whom Kibera belongs has shaped how religious communities in Kibera define themselves and relate to each other. This debate is presently intensified by land struggles between religious communities on the one hand, and a series of unannounced bulldozing's on the other, as the Kenyan government advances its project to develop Nairobi into a world-class city. This study asks, how do religious communities in Kibera make religion work and maintain belonging to each other amidst such change and uncertainty, and where the meaning of Kibera ‒ as a neighbourhood, home, and homeland is contested? If the neighbourhood is routinely made and unmade, to what extent is religion the locus of belonging for the residents of Kibera? Through oral, social, and life histories, as well as archival materials, this ethnographic study examines how Kibera became an urban homeland in Nairobi, how the distinction between ‘home' and ‘homeland' creates a different sense of belonging for the religious communities who live there, and what it means for some religious communities to perform their religion in another's homeland. It argues that religious communities make religion in Kibera work by maintaining a sense of belonging to people and places elsewhere and in so doing, invent ways to respond to life in a changing and contested neighbourhood.
- ItemOpen AccessEstimating the development assistance for health provided to faith-based organizations, 1990-2013(Public Library of Science, 2015) Haakenstad, Annie; Johnson, Elizabeth; Graves, Casey; Olivier, Jill; Duff, Jean; Dieleman, Joseph LBACKGROUND: Faith-based organizations (FBOs) have been active in the health sector for decades. Recently, the role of FBOs in global health has been of increased interest. However, little is known about the magnitude and trends in development assistance for health (DAH) channeled through these organizations. Material and METHODS: Data were collected from the 21 most recent editions of the Report of Voluntary Agencies. These reports provide information on the revenue and expenditure of organizations. Project-level data were also collected and reviewed from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. More than 1,900 non-governmental organizations received funds from at least one of these three organizations. Background information on these organizations was examined by two independent reviewers to identify the amount of funding channeled through FBOs. RESULTS: In 2013, total spending by the FBOs identified in the VolAg amounted to US$1.53 billion. In 1990, FB0s spent 34.1% of total DAH provided by private voluntary organizations reported in the VolAg. In 2013, FBOs expended 31.0%. Funds provided by the Global Fund to FBOs have grown since 2002, amounting to $80.9 million in 2011, or 16.7% of the Global Fund's contributions to NGOs. In 2011, the Gates Foundation's contributions to FBOs amounted to $7.1 million, or 1.1% of the total provided to NGOs. CONCLUSION: Development assistance partners exhibit a range of preferences with respect to the amount of funds provided to FBOs. Overall, estimates show that FBOS have maintained a substantial and consistent share over time, in line with overall spending in global health on NGOs. These estimates provide the foundation for further research on the spending trends and effectiveness of FBOs in global health.
- ItemOpen AccessHaram Means Forbidden(2023) Charles, Zubayr; Coovadia, ImraanThe thesis titled ‘Haram Means It's Forbidden' primary deals with the intersectionality of the religion of Islam and Homosexuality within a South African setting. The main narrative that arises within the thesis is the notion of “Can one be homosexual and Muslim?” In Islam homosexuality is known as haram (forbidden) and being gay is strongly frowned upon and believed to send one to hell. Many homosexual Muslim men live their lives filled with mental health issues, stemming from the idea of not being accepted by God, and the communities that they belong to. In many modern Islamic communities, men that identify as homosexual are still ostracised and ridiculed, and this thesis provides insight into the mind and life of a character struggling to find balance between religion and sexuality. This thesis centres the protagonist, Muhammad Gilbert, recounting his initial experience experimenting with his sexuality. He thereafter experiences a toxic relationship – which many young gay men experience. Furthermore, Muhammad has a co-dependent relationship with his mother, which the thesis explores. Through the character of Muhammad Gilbert, the thesis provides a much-needed narrative that exhibits the life of a gay Muslim subculture prevalent in a Cape Coloured community. There are less than twenty novels around the world that with the specific topic of the intersectionality of the religion of Islam and Homosexuality, and out of those twenty stories, none have a South African setting, despite there being approximately 600 000 Muslims living in South Africa. With this thesis, I hope to start a much-needed conversation surrounding the treatment of homosexual men, and others identifying with the LGBTQ+ spectrum, within Muslim Communities. It is evident that there is still a vast change that needs to occur within the mindsets of Muslims that justify their hatred towards the LGBTQ+ community because of religion.
- ItemOpen AccessMonotheism in the New Religious Movements of Japan: Historical and Taxonomical Challenges in Western Studies(2023) Chandler, Kegan; Porcu, ElisabettaThe study of Japan's New Religious Movements (NRMs) has long been a preoccupation of Western scholars. However, significant disagreement and confusion has existed in the West over whether some of these movements, exemplified in this study by Kurozumikyō, Tenrikyō, and Konkōkyō, are monotheistic or not. Scholars have alternatively described these NRMs as “polytheistic,” “monotheistic,” or “pantheistic,” while some have attempted to straddle multiple categories at once, or have treated these movements as entirely sui generis. This thesis, focusing on Western studies, argues that this long history of Western dissonance is the result of a complex layering of taxonomical, socio- cultural, and academic issues, including too-narrow definitions of monotheism, nationalistic discourse in Japan, scholarly avoidance of “Western” terminology and concepts, essentializing East-West dichotomies which emphasize “Japanese polytheism” and “Western monotheism,” and scholarly assumptions about devotional practices. This thesis begins to address this classificatory impasse by first expanding on recent advancements in the taxonomy of religion, including a definition of monotheism that takes into account its nuances and includes new monotheistic subcategories, and then by revisiting the teachings of Kurozumikyō, Tenrikyō, and Konkōkyō through this interpretive lens. In addition to problems of categorization, this thesis also contributes to the resolution of issues related to the historical development of monotheism in the NRMs. On an assumption that premodern Japanese religion offered NRM founders no trace of monotheism, some Western scholars have concluded that the emergence of NRM monotheism must be owed to contact between the founders and Kakure Kirishitan (Hidden Christians). This thesis conducts a new historical investigation in light of the new taxonomy, ultimately revealing several more plausible Japanese, non-Christian sources of monotheism in the history of Japanese religion. These findings indicate the need for a reformation of the image of monotheism in Western studies of Japan.
- ItemOpen AccessPrevalence and risk factors of overweight and obesity among children aged 6–59 months in Cameroon: a multistage, stratified cluster sampling nationwide survey(Public Library of Science, 2015) Tchoubi, Sébastien; Sobngwi-Tambekou, Joëlle; Noubiap, Jean Jacques N; Asangbeh, Serra Lem; Nkoum, Benjamin Alexandre; Sobngwi, EugeneBACKGROUND: Childhood obesity is one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century. The prevalence of overweight and obesity among children (<5 years) in Cameroon, based on weight-for-height index, has doubled between 1991 and 2006. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and risk factors of overweight and obesity among children aged 6 months to 5 years in Cameroon in 2011. METHODS: Four thousand five hundred and eighteen children (2205 boys and 2313 girls) aged between 6 to 59 months were sampled in the 2011 Demographic Health Survey (DHS) database. Body Mass Index (BMI) z-scores based on WHO 2006 reference population was chosen to estimate overweight (BMI z-score > 2) and obesity (BMI for age > 3). Regression analyses were performed to investigate risk factors of overweight/obesity. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 8% (1.7% for obesity alone). Boys were more affected by overweight than girls with a prevalence of 9.7% and 6.4% respectively. The highest prevalence of overweight was observed in the Grassfield area (including people living in West and North-West regions) (15.3%). Factors that were independently associated with overweight and obesity included: having overweight mother (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.51; 95% CI 1.15 to 1.97) and obese mother (aOR = 2.19; 95% CI = 155 to 3.07), compared to having normal weight mother; high birth weight (aOR = 1.69; 95% CI 1.24 to 2.28) compared to normal birth weight; male gender (aOR = 1.56; 95% CI 1.24 to 1.95); low birth rank (aOR = 1.35; 95% CI 1.06 to 1.72); being aged between 13-24 months (aOR = 1.81; 95% CI = 1.21 to 2.66) and 25-36 months (aOR = 2.79; 95% CI 1.93 to 4.13) compared to being aged 45 to 49 months; living in the grassfield area (aOR = 2.65; 95% CI = 1.87 to 3.79) compared to living in Forest area. Muslim appeared as a protective factor (aOR = 0.67; 95% CI 0.46 to 0.95).compared to Christian religion. CONCLUSION: This study underlines a high prevalence of early childhood overweight with significant disparities between ecological areas of Cameroon. Risk factors of overweight included high maternal BMI, high birth weight, male gender, low birth rank, aged between 13-36 months, and living in the Grassfield area while being Muslim appeared as a protective factor. Preventive strategies should be strengthened especially in Grassfield areas and should focus on sensitization campaigns to reduce overweight and obesity in mothers and on reinforcement of measures such as surveillance of weight gain during antenatal consultation and clinical follow-up of children with high birth weight. Meanwhile, further studies including nutritional characteristics are of great interest to understand the association with religion, child age and ecological area in this age group, and will help in refining preventive strategies against childhood overweight and obesity in Cameroon.
- ItemOpen AccessScience and Religion: friends or foes?(2014-08-04) Mall, AnwarThis three-lecture course will trace the historical relationship between science and religion, explore the ‘conflict hypotheses’ related to them and reflect on the successes of science. In recent decades science and religion seem in conflict, particularly with increasing evidence supporting Darwin’s theory of evolution. Evolutionary biologists have provoked people into considering what evidence for evolution means in relation to religious practice. In response, religious proponents have sprouted intelligent design theories, angrily taking legal action against the teaching of evolution in schools. But there are significant conciliatory positions on both sides of the divide, such as Stephen J. Gould’s theory of non-overlapping magisteria, in which science deals with the ‘how’ of life, and religion its meaning. It is generally agreed that science has contributed enormously to the progress of humanity especially since the 1600s. Despite our comforts derived from technological innovation, there is still little knowledge of and much suspicion about scientific activity, with scientific concepts difficult to grasp, their presentation ‘unfriendly’ and scientists ridiculing religion as an outdated dogma, made obsolete by evolutionary theory. From the perspective of a scientist, this course will explore some of the great ideas of science, some of its failings and its heady relationship with religion. The first lecture will include focus on the biological sciences, the second will deal more specifically with science and its relationship with Christianity and Judaism and the third with the historical status of science in the Muslim world and personal experience of views of science amongst local Muslims. LECTURE TITLES 1. The value of science: its current relationship with religion 2. Science in Christian and Jewish societies 3. Muslims and science: a personal view Recommended reading Coyne, J. 2009. Why Evolution is True. New York: Viking Press. Dawkins, R. 2006. The God Delusion. London: Bantam Press. Feierman, J.R. Ed. 2009. The Biology of Religious Behaviour: The Evolutionary Origins of Faith and Religion. Santa Barbara: Praeger. Haag, J., Peterson, G. & Spezio, M. Eds. 2012. The Routledge Companion to Religion and Science. Oxon: Routledge. * Only podcasts for lecture 1 & 2 are available for this lecture series. This lecture series was part of the 2014 UCT Summer School programme http://www.summerschool.uct.ac.za/
- ItemOpen AccessSexual health in relation to religious beliefs: perceptions of young women living in Khayelitsha(2019) Perera, Shehani; Swartz, AlisonSouth Africa continues to have the highest HIV-prevalence in the world, in addition to other sexual health-related issues. A vast majority of its population is also religiously affiliated with Christianity. This study sought to understand how young women living in Khayelitsha experience the relationship between sexual health and religion within the context of uncertainty and socio-economic deprivation. How their sexual health-decision making unfolds given the tensions that arise between religious expectations and socio-economic realities and how they perceive the partnership between religious organisations and public health facilities offering sexual health services was also explored. Data collection consisted of ethnographic field notes, 11 semistructured interviews and 3 focus group discussions with 6 people in each group. Data were then analysed using a thematic analysis approach. The findings reveal that young women experience the tension between religious expectations and their socio-economic realities through the “moral dichotomisation of right and wrong” and that this, in addition to the ‘dynamics of hypervulnerability’ consisting of gender inequalities and economic vulnerability, leads to a sense of lacking control over sexual health decision-making. The call for church involvement in sexual health-related matters reveals a deeper desire for various forms of support as they transition to adulthood in the context of uncertainty and socio-economic marginalisation. The article argues that young people navigating uncertainty and dealing with the complexities of transitioning to adulthood may perceive religion and the church to play the role of a custodian in sexual health issues, however, expectations of the church are difficult to live up to and sit in tension with socio- economic realities. Thus, a division of duties between religious organisations and public health facilities should be established to strengthen sexual health promotion and prevention efforts.
- ItemOpen AccessUnder-vaccinated groups in Europe and their beliefs, attitudes and reasons for non-vaccination; two systematic reviews(BioMed Central, 2018-01-30) Fournet, N; Mollema, L; Ruijs, W L; Harmsen, I A; Keck, F; Durand, J. Y; Cunha, M P; Wamsiedel, M; Reis, R; French, J; Smit, E G; Kitching, A; van Steenbergen, J EBackground: Despite effective national immunisation programmes in Europe, some groups remain incompletely or un-vaccinated (‘under-vaccinated’), with underserved minorities and certain religious/ideological groups repeatedly being involved in outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases (VPD). Gaining insight into factors regarding acceptance of vaccination of ‘under-vaccinated groups’ (UVGs) might give opportunities to communicate with them in a trusty and reliable manner that respects their belief system and that, maybe, increase vaccination uptake. We aimed to identify and describe UVGs in Europe and to describe beliefs, attitudes and reasons for non-vaccination in the identified UVGs. Methods: We defined a UVG as a group of persons who share the same beliefs and/or live in socially close-knit communities in Europe and who have/had historically low vaccination coverage and/or experienced outbreaks of VPDs since 1950. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and PsycINFO databases using specific search term combinations. For the first systematic review, studies that described a group in Europe with an outbreak or low vaccination coverage for a VPD were selected and for the second systematic review, studies that described possible factors that are associated with non-vaccination in these groups were selected. Results: We selected 48 articles out of 606 and 13 articles out of 406 from the first and second search, respectively. Five UVGs were identified in the literature: Orthodox Protestant communities, Anthroposophists, Roma, Irish Travellers, and Orthodox Jewish communities. The main reported factors regarding vaccination were perceived non-severity of traditional “childhood” diseases, fear of vaccine side-effects, and need for more information about for example risk of vaccination. Conclusions: Within each UVG identified, there are a variety of health beliefs and objections to vaccination. In addition, similar factors are shared by several of these groups. Communication strategies regarding these similar factors such as educating people about the risks associated with being vaccinated versus not being vaccinated, addressing their concerns, and countering vaccination myths present among members of a specific UVG through a trusted source, can establish a reliable relationship with these groups and increase their vaccination uptake. Furthermore, other interventions such as improving access to health care could certainly increase vaccination uptake in Roma and Irish travellers.