Religion & Secularism Archives - Green European Foundation

Feb 15 2017

“Green Values, Religion and Secularism” in Dublin

By GEF

The project Green Values, Religion and Secularism

Following the successful implementation of the project Green Values, Religion and Secularism over the past two years, and the publication of a book under the same name, this conference addressed themes which arose from the seminars held during the past year to promote the book, and which were outlined in the concluding project report at the end of 2016.

The Conference

In an era of trending populism, the conference intended to remind a wide audience of both academia and Green activists of the necessity to consider the values underpinning European democracy and civil society and to engage in a dialogue to educate a wide public on Green viewpoints on how these values can be practiced in the world today. The event aimed at engaging in dialogue with academics on and religious communities on Green values and with Greens on the topic of religious and philosophical values. Therefore, the debate built on the following themes, which emerged during the project activities over the past two years.

Programme

The green critique of modernity approaches a religious critique of humanism, understood as humans being the measure of all things. Green values are also critical of the idea of the isolated individual as the basis of social and economic life. What are the core values which inspire ecological and social activism?

9:30-13:00h MORNING SESSION

Welcome and Introduction: Andrew Pierce on behalf of the Irish School of Ecumenics Trinity College and Nuala Ahern on behalf of Green European Foundation and GFI.

Chair Dr Geraldine Smyth (Adjunct Associate Professor, ISE): ‘What are the core values which inspire ecological and social activism?’

Dr Erica Meijers (Theologian and Co-Editor of ‘Green Values, Religion and Secularism’): the work of the German poet Novalis shows that the critical tradition of the Enlightenment and the longing for a world that is whole has always belonged together.They can both contribute to an inclusive humanism today.
Dr Andreas Weber (Biologist and cultural change expert): Only a science, politics and economics that puts the living world at its heart will be truly sustainable. Andreas discusses the idea that nature is a living commons and is not only about competition, but also about the commoning activities of a myriad of individual agents living in an ecosystem.
Dr Cathriona Russell (Assistant Professor in Theology, TCD): Integrating the good life and duty in environmental ethics.
Dr John Feehan (Geologist, botanist and environmental philosopher): Science, Spirituality and the Tao: Inching towards a Deeper Consilience.
Followed by Q&A session.

14:15-17:00h AFTERNOON SESSION

Chair Dr Andrew Pierce (Head of Discipline Irish School of Ecumenics): Spirit has been conceived as superior to the earthbound and the carnal in western philosophy since the Greeks, Moreover spirit has been located in the male mind and sexuality and materiality in the female body. Does the papal encyclical ‘Laudato si’ alter the idea of sin to include the desecration of the material world?

Dr John Dillon (former Regius Chair of Greek at Trinity College, founder and Director Emeritus of the Plato Centre);
Dr Mary Condren (Centre for Gender and Women’s Studies TCD; Director of Womenspirit Ireland);
Dr Jacob Erickson (Assistant Professor, Loyola Institute);
Catherine Devitt (Environmental Justice Officer, Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice);
Followed by Q&A session.

More information

Registration: For more information, contact the Green Foundation Ireland.
Date & Time: 1 July 2017, 9:30-17:00
Venue: Trinity College Dublin, Irish School of Ecumenics

Feb 09 2017

Love0

Green Values, Religion and Secularism Report

By GEF Uncategorized

The project Green Values, Religion and Secularism was about dialogue and plurality within the Green movement. For two years, we have been debating and reflecting in a conversation on the relationship between secular and religious values in a political context. We published a collection of interviews and we conducted and took part in debates, seminars and media events. In this report, we try to give a small glimpse into the topics we talked about and the insights we gained.

In the publication and in the seminars two major themes were discussed. Firstly, the interconnectedness of religious or secular values and political attitude; secondly, the role of religion in the public forum. Topics that came up were the difficulty of defining religion and its changing role in society; conflicts between religions and fundamental rights, such as the freedom of religion and the principle of sexual and gender equality; the role of Islam in Europe and the relationship between spiritual worldviews and the struggle for a sustainable and just society.

The wide network of the Green European Foundation and its partner foundations were crucial in exploring these topics reflecting deeply on culture and identity in Europe. In this report, you will find a summary of the themes discussed as well as some recommendations how the Greens could proceed with this urgent debate on the relation between religions and secularism both in society as in our parties

Jan 11 2017

Love0

Green Values, Religion and Secularism

By GEF Uncategorized

In the last decades, the relationship between religion and modern society has shifted. As a consequence, there have been fierce debates on issues such as ritual slaughtering, homosexual teachers in schools, the wearing of the headscarf in public institutions and the relationship between Islam and terrorism. In a new publication titled ‘Green Values, Religion and Secularism’, Green politicians from different European contexts reflect on the way their own religious or secular values influence their political attitude; the role of religion in the public forum; conflicts between fundamental rights, such as the freedom of religion and the principle of sexual and gender equality; the role of Islam in Europe and the question of whether religion is a source of inspiration or an obstacle for Green politics.

Religion and politics have much in common. They share the longing for another world, one in which peace and justice will reign. They also share the dangers of this desire: the temptation to force their own imaginative order onto others. Both religion and politics have to find a way to deal with the tension between the actual world and the world as they imagine it should be. The fact that they do this in very different ways is part of the explanation why religion and politics, by definition, have a difficult relationship. Modern political movements have roots that go back one or two centuries at most, whereas religious traditions have much older sources. However, this doesn’t discharge either of them from the task of interrogating and reinterpreting their traditions in the light of new challenges.

Although Green parties often have an uneasy relationship with religion, the debate about values, religious or secular, cannot be escaped within a Europe haunted by many different crises at the same time. This publication is an invitation to work towards a more coherent debate within the Greens on the changing role of religion in society.

The book is edited by Erica Meijers (De Helling) and Nuala Ahern (Green Foundation Ireland). It features conversations with politicians and activists from France, Turkey, Poland, Ireland, Greece, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

You can ready the publication by downloading the pdf below or order your own hard copy and support the project.