Acts of Faith: Explaining the Human Side of Religion. By Rodney Stark and Roger Finke. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. 343 pp. $48.00 (cloth); $18.95 (paper). At a recent American Academy of Religion meeting, after a brilliant paper was presented on God and religious experience, the speaker was asked this question by an academic: "But how can you say these things in our postmodem, anti-enlightenment, pluralistic age?" Acts of Faith secures the thesis that not just talk about, but devout belief in, God is rational, widespread, and shows no sign of abating. For a vast number of well-educated, articulate human beings talk of God is not very difficult at all. Acts of Faith is an important treatment of the sociology of religious belief and should be considered required reading by anyone interested in the social standing and assessment of religion. It overturns the conventions of a great deal of earlier sociological inquiry into religion and stands as a model of clarity and rigor. Rodney Stark and Roger Finke begin by documenting the social and intellectual history of atheism, noting how history, sociology, and psychoanalysis have been employed to exhibit the irrationality of religious belief. They underscore how many of these projects have done little more than presup- pose the credulous nature of religion. There is something darkly humorous about the many techniques employed by "intellectuals" and social scientists to explain why religion persists and even grows amidst "modernity." Stark and Finke's analysis is devastating. From the outset through to the last chapter the writing is crisp and at times quite amusing. Here is a passage from the introduction, lamenting the fact that many sociologists focus their work on fringe religious groups: A coven of nine witches in Lund, Sweden, is far more apt to be the object of a case study than is, say, the Episcopal Church, with more than two million members. Some of this merely reflects that it is rather easier to get one's work published if the details are sufficiently lurid or if the group is previously undocumented. A recitation of Episcopalian theology and excerpts from the Book of Common Prayer will not arouse nearly the interest (prurient or otherwise) than can be generated by tales of blondes upon the altar and sexual contacts with animals (p. 19). Stark and Finke have written a text that abounds in technical case studies, while at the same time giving us a book that is a pleasure to read. The introduction and first three chapters alone are a tour de force. They expose the blatant inadequacy of sociological work that reads religious belief as pathology or flagrant irrationality. They challenge the thesis of impending, virtually inevitable secularization, for instance, in part by refuting the claim that in the distant past almost everyone was religious. …

Acts of Faith: Explaining the Human Side of Religion

Death anxiety is a common phenomenon in all societies. Older adults may be more prone to death anxiety than their younger counterparts; however, death anxiety among older adults is not well understood. This study explores the relationship between meaning in life, self-esteem, and death anxiety in senior citizens in China. A total of 283 older adults participated in this study; data were collected via the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and the Death Anxiety Scale. Results show that the dimensions of meaning in life, presence of meaning (r = − 0.43, p < 0.01), search for meaning (r = − 0.31, p < 0.01), and self-esteem (r = − 0.54, p < 0.01) were each negatively correlated with death anxiety. Regression analysis reveals that meaning in life significantly predicted self-esteem and death anxiety (F = 45.70, p < 0.01; R2 = 0.33). Path analysis indicated that self-esteem either completely or partially mediated the effects of meaning in life on death anxiety in older adults. Overall, meaning in life appears to be significantly correlated with death anxiety in older adults, and self-esteem can mediate this effect.

/pdf/relationship-between-meaning-in-life-and-death-anxiety-in-a1gs5mhbxp.pdf

Relationship between meaning in life and death anxiety in the elderly: self-esteem as a mediator

Tourists’ pro-environmental hotel behavior has a significant effect on the sustainable development of tourism and hospitality industry. This study examined the effect of religiosity on tour...

How and when does religiosity contribute to tourists’ intention to behave pro-environmentally in hotels?

Background: Due to the current environmental crisis, sustainable consumption (SC) behaviour and its drivers has gained significant attention among researchers. One of the potential drivers of SC, religion, have been analysed in the last few years. The study of the relationship between religion and adoption of SC at the individual level have reached mixed and inconclusive results. Methods: Following the PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review of articles published between 1998 and 2019 was conducted using the Web of Science and Scopus databases. Search terms included sustainable consumption, green consumption, ethical consumption, responsible consumption, pro-environmental behaviour and religion. Results: This systematic review reveals that contradictory results are due to methodological and theoretical reasons and provides a unifying understanding about the influence of religion on SC practices. Results highlight the role of religion as a distal or background factor of other proximal determinants of environmental behaviour. Conclusions: This paper contributes to the literature concerning SC by synthesising previous scholarship showing that religion shapes SC indirectly by affecting attitudes, values, self-efficacy, social norms and identity. The review concludes with a research agenda to encourage scholars the study of other unexamined mediating constructs, such as beliefs in after life, cleansing rituals and prayer, moral emotions, moral identity, the role of virtues and self-restrain.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/19/7901/pdf

The influence of religion on sustainable consumption: a systematic review and future research agenda

Hydroxyl radical production via catalytic activation of HOCl is a new type of Fenton-like process. However, metal-chlorocomplex formation under high chloride conditions could deactivate the catalyst and reduce the process efficiency. Herein, in situ electrogenerated HOCl was activated to •OH via a metal-free, B/N-codoped carbon nanofiber cathode for the first time to degrade contaminant under high chloride condition. The results show 98% degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) within 120 min (k = 0.036 min-1) under sulfate conditions, while complete degradation (k = 0.188 min-1) was obtained in only 30 min under chloride conditions. An enhanced degradation mechanism consists of an Adsorb & Shuttle process, wherein adsorption concentrates the pollutants at the cathode surface and they are subsequently oxidized by the large amount of •OH produced via activation of HOCl and H2O2 at the cathode. Density functional theory calculations verify the pyridinic N as the active site for the activation of HOCl and H2O2. The process efficiency was also evaluated by treating tetracycline and bisphenol A as well as high chloride-containing real secondary effluents from a pesticide manufacturing plant. High yields of •OH and HOCl allow continuous regeneration of the cathode for several cycles, limiting its fast deactivation, which is promising for real application.

Boosting Hydroxyl Radical Yield via Synergistic Activation of Electrogenerated HOCl/H2O2 in Electro-Fenton-like Degradation of Contaminants under Chloride Conditions.

https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/9/3/72/pdf

Religious Beliefs and Environmental Behaviors in China

Polyaniline derived carbon membrane and its in-situ membrane fouling mitigation performance in MBR based on metal-free electro-Fenton.

Background Halo gravity traction (HGT) has been reported to be a safe and effective adjunctive method for the management of scoliosis. However, the direct effects of HGT on the lung recovery of adult patients with scoliosis remain obscure. Objective To investigate changes in lung volume and pulmonary function in adult patients with severe scoliosis who underwent posterior spinal fusion concomitant with preoperative halo gravity traction. Methods A total of 47 patients with a minimum 5-year follow-up who underwent posterior spinal instrumentation and fusion using preoperative halo–gravity traction were analyzed. Pulmonary function tests and three-dimensional CT were performed to evaluate changes in lung function and lung volume, respectively. Results There was significant change in the Cobb angle of the major curve after halo gravity traction (P < 0.0001). Significant improvement in both Cobb angle (P < 0.0001) and thoracic kyphosis (P = 0.034) after corrective surgery was observed. Pulmonary function did not change significantly during traction. However, a significant decline in absolute and percent-predicted pulmonary function values was noted following surgery. The average change in lung volume did not show statistical differences during traction. At 5-year postoperative follow-up, the mean values revealed a significant increase in total lung volume (P < 0.0001) and concave lung volume (P < 0.0001) with surgical correction, but no statistically significant change in lung volume on the convex side (P = 0.57). Postoperative pulmonary complications occurred in nine cases with lower preoperative pulmonary function, indicating the importance of performing spirometry before corrective surgery. Conclusions We found that halo gravity traction prior to corrective surgery was less useful in improving pulmonary function in adult patients with severe scoliosis. However, these patients were expected to have increased lung volume after correction of the deformity.

/pdf/pulmonary-recovery-following-corrective-surgery-in-adult-1cihatpn.pdf

Pulmonary Recovery Following Corrective Surgery in Adult Patients With Severe Scoliosis: A Minimum of Five-Year Follow-Up

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Religious Beliefs and Environmental Behaviors in China

Polyaniline derived carbon membrane and its in-situ membrane fouling mitigation performance in MBR based on metal-free electro-Fenton.

Pulmonary Recovery Following Corrective Surgery in Adult Patients With Severe Scoliosis: A Minimum of Five-Year Follow-Up