Lucien van Liere

Teasing ‘Islam’: ‘Islam’ as the Other Side of ‘Tolerance’ in Contemporary Dutch Politics

ABSTRACTThis article deals with the role of ‘Islam’ in contemporary Dutch political discourses on tolerance. I will show how Islam is described as an ideology (and not as a religion) competing with liberal values. I argue that political disputes are not at all about Islam as a living religion, but about ‘Islam’ as a culturally presumed menace to, or negative projection of, dominant Dutch imaginaries, such as tolerance and free speech, that are taken as elementary conditions for a liberal democratic state. The first part of this article deals with the staging and development of ‘Islam’ in Dutch politics since the 1970s. Part two develops a theoretical understanding of the framing of ‘Islam’ as the opponent of ‘tolerance’ and argues that this position shows a typical modern stance.

Tell us our story : Understanding 'religion and violence' in multiple contexts of learning

AbstractThis article raises the question about how definitions of religion and violence can be understood as links to the context in which they are formulated. The focus is on the context of academic learning. Understanding a definition as a micro-narrative that reflects the cultural ‘archive’, the author uses two academic contexts (i.e. Utrecht, The Netherlands and Jakarta, Indonesia) to show how religion and violence are differently understood. These differences are taken as significant information for understanding how the topic of ‘religion and violence’ is related to cultural understandings of the place of religion in society. The question is raised how ‘narrative learning’ can help as a strategy to raise awareness about the preconditioning of (academic) definitions of ‘religion and violence’.

PATTERNS OF VIOLENCE:RELIGION AND THE FRAMING OF DIFFERENCES

This article seeks to understand three motives that are closely linked with violence: distance, impersonality and reciprocity. These three general human features contribute highly to the persistence of violence in different contexts. Analyzing religion-related violence means understanding the human preconditions for the appearance of violence. These preconditions are not religious per se, but can be inaugurated, conserved or enhanced by faiths or religions, resulting into a higher complexity of the violent conflict. The aim of this article is to show how this process works, how different and complex influences from local faiths to globalization(s) can change or even transform a conflict into religion-related violence. To do this, the three motives will be discussed to the background op de so-called Kuta bombing in 2002. Finally, this article will emphasize the notion that religion-related conflicts need a religious perspective to work towards a possible solution.

Representing 'Religious Violence', Understanding the Role of Religion as Simplifier and Magnifier of Violent Conflict

In debating present-day world conflicts it seems impossible to avoid discussing the role of religion. Religious fundamentalisms around the globe, the phenomenon of global religious terrorism and the use of religious language in conflict areas all contribute to the statement that religion is, as popular writer Sam Harris argues, ‘the most prolific source of violence in our history’ (Harris, 2004, p. 27). However, it is hard, if not impossible, to argue that religion is something in itself that by definition instigates violent conflict. Religion seems to function rather as a tool that gives meaning to people within the complex context of daily life through (social) rituals, texts, morals and discourse. If social tensions rise, fear increases and violence looms, this religious ‘meaning’ becomes important to understand what goes on. Religion represents a violent conflict within specific religious terms of language. This representation, however, frames the conflict as a religious conflict, often neglecting the complex socioeconomic and political context in which the conflict originated. In this contribution I will examine the role of religion as simplifier and magnifier of violent conflict.

Fighting for Jesus on Ambon, Interpreting Religious Representations of Violent Conflict

Between 1999 and 2002 religion-related riots took place on the Maluku islands in Indonesia. After the first clash, in January 1999, the conflict disseminated rapidly along religious lines. Religious language was used in order to understand what was going on, inscribing the conflict into specific religious traditions. However, using religious language to understand the conflict also framed the conflict into an essentialist religious battle with an important religious meaning. In this article I will explore the possibility to understand the religious framing of this conflict as a religious variety of what Vamik Volkan has coined ‘chosen trauma’. Applying this term to the situation in Ambon, elucidates the impact of religious language on violent conflicts.