"L’arrivée d’Internet provoque des évolutions dans le rapport aux médias des communautés religieuses. Il y a une volonté de visibilité externe grâce à l’usage d’Internet comme moyen de communication et comme mode de présence. À partir de l’exemple de l’Union fraternelle des cro
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yants de Dori au Burkina Faso, cette contribution analyse l’appropriation d’Internet par des acteurs interreligieux pour sortir de leur isolement et de jouer le rôle d’agents religieux de paix dans le monde. Le cas de l’UFC montre que si les religieux se saisissent du web, l’interreligieux peut être mobilisé pour promouvoir des objectifs sociaux et politiques dans les sphères publiques africaines." (Résumé)
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"The aim of this article is to introduce and examine the work of Christian media, mainly the satellite television channels, in the Middle East. The reason for focussing only on the satellite channels is because the television channels are still the main players and have attracted more attention, esp
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ecially since television programs have adapted multi-layered media platforms. As a result their audience can choose when and how to view their preferred programs. Therefore, in this paper, firstly, I will briefly describe the general understanding of the function of media technology in the Middle East. Secondly, the Arabic and Farsi Christian channels will be introduced together with their functions. Thirdly, the importance of Christian media will be discussed in three segments: Christian manifestation in the region; a voice for peace, hope and healing; an alternative belief system for the disillusioned and seekers. This section will also give a critique of the work of Christian channels. I will conclude that Christians, as well as the region, are in need of hearing the voice of Christ who speaks of hope, faith and love in order to bring peace into the devastated Middle East. It follows that Christian media have a great opportunity and responsibility to present voices of hope and courage, to restore the forgotten history of Christ within the cultures of the Middle East, and to disciple the seekers of the truth." (Abstract)
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"This case study investigates SAT-7 – a Christian independent satellite-TV network – in its context – the Middle East and North Africa – with a majority of Islamic inhabitants and traditions. It examines and describes what the actual implemented strategy is in order to do the daily work of S
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AT-7. Three sub-questions, aimed to explain the strategy in further detail, look at how SAT-7 operates, how they design their programming, and how they tell the stories of themselves. These describe strategic measures. The empirical data are two sources of evidence; I) interviews with a “pool of leaders” in SAT-7, and II) formal documentation presenting the written institutional narrative of SAT-7. This study focuses on theories of media and religion, religious programming and institutional narratives. The analysis sets out to describe, interpret and explain the findings of strategic measures done by SAT-7. The key strategic measure is being present in the region. SAT-7 is for the Middle East, by the Middle East. This presence includes crossing religious borders, including Christians – even a cooperation of several Christian denominations. An enhancement of cultural authenticity and coexistence becomes the result after taking cautious steps, never attacking, denigrating, or perhaps more important, proselytizing, others. SAT-7 presents the “love of God” – bringing hope and reconciliation to the region." (Abstract)
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"This two-part volume contains a comprehensive collection of original studies by well-known scholars focusing on the Bible’s wide-ranging reception in world cinema. It is organized into sections examining the rich cinematic afterlives of selected characters from the Hebrew Bible and New Testament;
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considering issues of biblical reception across a wide array of film genres, ranging from noir to anime; featuring directors, from Lee Chang-dong to the Coen brothers, whose body of work reveals an enduring fascination with biblical texts and motifs; and offering topical essays on cinema’s treatment of selected biblical themes (e.g., lament, apocalyptic), particular interpretive lenses (e.g., feminist interpretation, queer theory), and windows into biblical reception in a variety of world cinemas (e.g., Indian, Israeli, and Third Cinema)." (Publisher description)
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"Kathrin Nieder-Steinheuer hat ein Modell entwickelt, mit dem sich die kommunikative Verfasstheit der Kategorie des Christlichen im Unterhaltungsformat analysieren lässt. Grundlegend dafür ist der in den untersuchten Formaten festgestellte Zusammenhang zwischen kirchlichen Räumen und geographisch
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en Konzepten einerseits und religiöser Normativität und statistisch-normalistischen Konzepten andererseits. Die bisherige theologisch dominierte Religiotainment-Forschung wird somit durch ein nicht normatives Analyseinstrument für die kulturelle Gegenwart des Christlichen im Unterhaltungsformat ergänzt." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"This book focuses on the construction of the human rights discourse inside two religiously affiliated organizations: The Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) and Pax Romana (IMCS / ICMICA). These organizations have been formally accredited as NGOs by the UN, label themselves a
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s religious, and look back upon a long and intense cooperation with the UN. Lehmann presents material from the archives of those two organizations that has so far rarely been used for academic analysis. In doing so, as well as documenting the encounters between those organizations and the UN, and looking at the Protestant and Catholic spectrum, the book provides new insights into the very construction of the notions of 'the religious' and the 'secular' inside those organizations." (Publisher description)
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"In summer 2012, the Archbishop of the Church of Sweden appeared on Twitter. There was only one problem – it was not the Archbishop himself who was tweeting, but an anonymous person. A discussion then ensued on Twitter and in the blogosphere between those in favor of the Archbishop and his departm
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ent and mainly social media proponents. The present article describes and analyzes the social media debate, and how authority and hierarchies are negotiated in and through social media. The analysis is based on Heidi Campbell’s “Religious-Social Shaping of Technology” model, and emphasizes the need to take into account not only the faith and tradition of the religious actor, but also the societal context in which the negotiating process takes place. In this case, the concepts of “mediatization” and “secularization” are used to understand the broader context of the process." (Abstract)
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"The paper focuses on the social media use in religious communication by Kerala Christians who largely migrated after India's independence to Ahmedabat, Gujarat, India. Further, the paper attempts to analyze the way digital and social media are accessed and utilized by the migrant Kerala Christians
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in Ahmedabat for religious as well as non-religious purposes. The paper is basedon a survey of social media and a pilot study was carried out by interns of a business school in Ahmedabat which was followed by a large survey of three religious groups namely Hindu, Muslim and Christian during February-April 2015. The present paper is based on a survey of 211 Christian respondents in the total sample of 711." (Page 67)
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"This article aims to assess the activities of Kingfisher FM, a faith-based community radio station, and its contribution to development in Port Elizabeth and its environs. A qualitative data collection method, in the form of group interviews, was used to collect data. The analysis of data indicates
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that a number of opportunities for audience participation are provided by the station. Thus, it was found to operate as a Christian radio station according to its licence and for its defined target audience. Within the framework of audience participation, however, Kingfisher FM also functions as a medium for development in that it involves its audience in a variety of operational, planning and programme design activities, which provide audience-specific input and thus help to ensure that the programme content remains closely informed by audience realities." (Abstract)
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"The report reveals that for most respondents, Christianity is a concept that is foreign to Turkish culture. Whilst this situation is a consequence of the low numbers of Christians, it is also influenced by educational content and the media. Despite the rich history of Christianity in Turkey, the ex
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istence of numerous ancient Christian sites and centuries of living side by side, only a fraction of the public has a good level of knowledge about Christian history and practice. More creative and holistic inclusion of Christianity in formal education curricula and in the mass media can contribute to improved understanding and the public’s ability to recoup and value its lost heritage. More than half of the respondents state that neither the media nor the public is objective in its treatment of non-Muslims. It may be helpful to develop a deeper understanding of this reported partiality in future research. Questions also arise regarding the public’s significant over-estimation of the proportion of Christians in the general population and whether this is linked to fear or perceptions of bias." (Conclusion)
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"Seit August 2015 ist der Fernsehsender Spas des Moskauer Patriarchats in fast allen Haushalten Russlands zu empfangen. Seine bewegte Vorgeschichte, Gerüchte über Verbindungen zu US-amerikanischen konservativen Kreisen sowie ein neues Nachrichtenprogramm legen enge Verbindungen mit dem "orthodoxen
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Oligarch" Konstantin Malofeev und seinem Internet-Fernsehkanal Zargrad-TV nahe, den eine tendenziöse Berichterstattung über die Ostukraine und eine neoimperiale eurasische Ideologie auszeichnen." (Seite 11)
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"From Jesus to the Internet is the first systematic survey of the historical relationship between Christianity and media. Although many see the relationship between religion and media as a distinctly modern phenomenon, in this book the scholar Peter Horsfield examines Christianity through its histor
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y as a mediated phenomenon, showing how profoundly it has been shaped by the many media forms used in embodying and spreading its stories." (Back cover)
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"Have you ever picked up a volume of theology, read the first page, and decided you would rather scrub the bathroom floor than read another page? Theology does not need to be abstract, dull, boring, tedious, dense, inconsequential, trivial, remote, immaterial, or unimportant. Theology should not lea
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ve readers feeling bewildered and lost. Expressing Theology challenges writers of theology to craft engaging, compelling, and beautiful prose that grabs readers' attention and makes reading a pleasure. Expressing Theology provides writers of theology–academics, aspiring, and published–with perspectives and writing techniques to write theology that readers want to read." (Publisher description)
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"New Media and Religious Transformations in Africa casts a critical look at Africa's rapidly evolving religious media scene. Following political liberalization, media deregulation, and the proliferation of new media technologies, many African religious leaders and activists have appropriated such me
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dia to strengthen and expand their communities and gain public recognition. Media have also been used to marginalize and restrict the activities of other groups, which has sometimes led to tension, conflict, and even violence. Showing how media are rarely neutral vehicles of expression, the contributors to this multidisciplinary volume analyze the mutual imbrications of media and religion during times of rapid technological and social change in various places throughout Africa." (Publisher description)
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