Double Religious Belonging

Aspects and Questions

Bibliographic Data

ID23168993
AuthorsCatherine Cornille (0009-0001-9820-9341, corresponding author)
Year2003
Volume23
Issue1
Pages43-49
Publication date2003-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueBuddhist-Christian Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0882-0945 • E-ISSN: 1527-9472
PublisherProject MUSE (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1353/bcs.2003.0007
OpenAlexW1996615956
LanguageEN
Citations received15
References cited1

The idea of double or multiple religious belonging seems to have become an integral feature of the religious culture of our times. It is no longer surprising to hear people refer to themselves as partly or fully Christian and Buddhist, and the hybridizing of Jewish and Buddhist religious identities has even led to a new terminology (Jubu). While this phenomenon has been part of Asian religious cultures for centuries, it is relatively new to the West, where a combination of political and religious forces have shaped religious identities around comparatively rigid and exclusive boundaries. With the gradual dissolution of traditional geographical and spiritual monopolies by particular religions, the religious field has become wide open and religious belonging increasingly a matter of choice and degree. The phenomenon of multiple religious belonging may be found in any combination of any number of religions. There are the Jews for Jesus; Christians who have become deeply involved in Muslim (mostly Sufi) religious practices; and Hindus who also consider themselves partly Christian or—more often—vice versa. But by far the most common phenomenon in the West is that of Christians or Jews who also profess to be Buddhist, hence the importance of discussing this phenomenon in this meeting on Buddhist-Christian dialogue.

Epistemology · Sociology · Philosophy · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Society, and Development

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