Debating Religion and Forced Migration Entanglements

Description

This open access book brings into dialogue emerging and seasoned migration and religion scholars with spiritual leaders and representatives of faith-based organizations assisting refugees. Violent conflicts, social unrest, and other humanitarian crises around the world have led to growing numbers of people seeking refuge both in the North and in the South. Migrating and seeking refuge have always been part and parcel of spiritual development. However, the current 'refugee crisis' in Europe and elsewhere in the world has brought to the fore fervent discussions regarding the role of religion in defining difference, linking the ‘refugee crisis’ with Islam, and fear of the ‘Other.’ Many religious institutions, spiritual leaders, and politicians invoke religious values and call for strict border controls to resolve the ‘refugee crisis.’ However, equally many humanitarian organizations and refugee advocates use religious values to inform their call to action to welcome refugees and migrants, provide them with assistance, and facilitate integration processes. This book includes three distinct but inter-related parts focusing, respectively, on politics, values, and discourses mobilized by religious beliefs; lived experiences of religion, with a particular emphasis on identity and belonging among various refugee groups; and faith and faith actors and their responses to forced migration. Acknowledgments Praise for Debating Religion and Forced Migration Entanglements Contents Notes on Contributors 1 What’s God Got to Do with It? Debating Religion and Forced Migration Entanglements Religion and Spirituality Religion and Forced Migration Nexus Religious Persecution Religion and Trauma Religion in the “Refugee Crisis” Existing Knowledge: Religion in Refugee Studies Our Contributions to the Unfolding Debates References Part I Politics, Values, and Discourses: Religious and Secular 2 Contesting Flexible Solidarity: Secular and Religious Support for Refugees in Hungary Introduction Data and Methodology Concepts and Frameworks Promoting Flexible Solidarity Deserving and Undeserving Refugees Religious Leaders’ Attempts to Welcome the Stranger Contesting Flexible Solidarity Spontaneous Expressions of Solidarity Established Secular Charity and Aid Organizations Faith-Based Networks Human Rights Organizations International Organizations In Conclusion Notes References 3 Thou Shalt Not Deport? Religious Ethical Discourse and the Politics of Asylum in Poland and Israel Introduction Methods A Brief Chronology of the Asylum Debate in Poland and Israel Religious Ethics and the Politics of Migration in Israel and Poland Thou Shalt Love Thy Foreigner: Neighborliness and Pro-Asylum Policy Ordro Caritatis or Aniyey Ircha Kodmim: Religious Ethics and Anti-Asylum Policy Conclusions References Part II Lived Experiences of Religion: Belonging and Identity 4 Time and Topos in Migratory Trajectories: Mapping Memory and Lived Experiences of Religion Among Syrian Refugees in Norway Introduction Research Background and Methodology Entanglements of Religion in Conflict-Induced Displacement Time and Topos: Mapping Migratory Paths and Horizons Utopia: Negotiating Past and Future Forms of Coexistence Dystopia: Negotiating War, Violence, and Religious Identity Othering Heterotopia: Negotiating Religion Through the In-Betweens of Displacement and Exile Exile: Negotiating New Spaces of Experiences and Horizons of Expectations Conclusion Note References 5 “Emerging Forms of Authority in Land Access?”: The Occult and Witchcraft Among Malawian Migrants in Peri-urban Zimbabwe Introduction and Background Methodological Note Lydiate: A Brief Background The Nyau Cult The Nyau Cult as a Form of Authority in Access to and Security Over Land Witchcraft as a Form of Authority in Securing Land Conclusions Note References 6 Religion Constructed, Imagined, and Experienced: The Case of Syrian Refugees in Turkey In the Face of the Syrian Civil War Reception and Support Between Religion and Secularism Rhetoric Concerning Syrians Lived Experiences: Religion That Connects Lived Experiences: Beyond Faith Summary References Part III Faith and Faith Actors in Responses to Forced Migration 7 We Shall Overcome: A Case Study of the LGBT Asylum Task Force, a Parish Ministry Introduction LGBT Asylum Seekers and Religion LGBT People and Forced Migration Profile of the LGBT Asylum Task Force Development of the Task Force Operations and Achievements Challenges Conclusion References 8 Religion Resettles Refugees: Religion’s Role in Integration in the United States Introduction The Religion and Resettlement Project Scope of the Project Understanding Refugee and Refugee-Related Religion Reflections and Next Steps Conclusion Note References 9 “I Was a Stranger and You Invited Me in”: A Christian Perspective on the Humanitarian Crisis at the Poland–Belarus Border Introduction Shreds of Information The Crisis at the Border as a Response to the Other Violence Towards Activists “Empathizers” and “Utopian Humanitarianism” Dehumanizing Refugees Simply Be Human References 10 Religion and Forced Migration at the Crossroads References Index