Orthodox Christian Material Ecology and the Sociopolitics of Religion

目标：这个项目问：“物质生态在塑造全球正统的社会政治中扮演什么角色？”作为全球政治话语和材料在宗教社会动态中的作用的案例研究。影响：东正教是一种基于话语的传统，但很少有研究关注它如何运作的具体细节。专注于话语也倾向于过分强调话语和信仰。但是，如果像马克斯·穆勒一样，我们坚持宗教必须从感知开始，而不是从“信仰超自然”这样的概念开始呢？这意味着我们不是在概念上，而是在地方和全球宗教团体的物质文化中，对东正教这样的话语传统进行批判。这重新构建了我们如何理解宗教，并提前宗教实践对我们经验的物质方面的影响，如健康，环境和地缘政治。背景：宗教的许多社会科学兴趣着眼于生活宗教的变化从一个地方到另一个地方。然而，也有一些时刻-例如在2018年4月，乌克兰总统要求希腊牧首干预乌克兰的俄罗斯教会-宗教不能只在当地生活的表达中进行研究。乌克兰冲突等局势因当地东正教教会之间的历史紧张关系而复杂化。对身体、人和环境的神学解释上的分歧，在教会内部、教会与外部机构之间、国家之间，引发了政治紧张。话语的物质性必须被视为传统的形式和实践的核心。研究：本项目以三个研究领域为框架，重点关注全球东正教社会政治的物质条件，在东正教基督徒和宗教机构中进行研究。该项目调查了物质生态（包括身体，建筑环境和更广泛的“自然”秩序）的属性和启示如何塑造并在东正教会的话语中进行编排。这三个领域是身体、人和环境。身体领域解决了诸如IVF和器官捐赠等医疗干预等问题，这些问题在全球东正教中存在不同程度的争议。物质的身体成为一个地方谈判道德商品（如延长寿命，生育，尊重上帝）。人域检查不同教会授予的关于家庭和婚姻实践（例如离婚，计划生育）的许可的差异。围绕身份政治的讨论也越来越多，一些人呼吁对同性恋和女性神职人员采取开放的态度。身体、人和教会的材料被整理成历史上偶然的、在历史上偶然的、科学上曲折的、支持或反对“进步”运动的论点的基础。最后，环境领域研究人类、特定地点和整个地球之间的关系。东正教神学家强调“地球的管理”，并呼吁积极参与生态保护。像全球变暖这样的问题有明确的宗教必要性，因为科学数据表明人类未能履行上帝赋予的看护者角色。控制土地（包括克里米亚和耶路撒冷等地）也成为具有地缘政治影响的宗教义务。输出：该项目将出版一本关于东正教社会政治的物质方面的学术著作，一本为普通读者撰写的关于东正教当代问题的关键案例研究的书，六篇学术文章，关于东正教基督徒及其家园的健康和福祉的各种问题的白色文件和政策建议，以及与利益攸关方社区领导人共同编写的小册子，以帮助解决社区环境中的社会问题。

Aims: This project asks 'What role does the material ecology play in shaping the sociopolitics of Global Orthodoxy?' as a case study for global political discourse and the role of material in the social dynamics of religion.Impact: Orthodox Christianity is a tradition based on discourse, but there has been very little research looking at the specifics of how it works. Focusing on discourse also tends to over emphasise words and belief. But what if, like Max Muller, we insist that religion must start with what is perceived, not with concepts like 'belief in the supernatural'? This means we situate discursive traditions like Orthodoxy not in concepts but in the material culture of local and global religious groups. This reframes how we understand religion, and forefronts the impact that religious practice has upon material aspects of our experience like health, the environment and geopolitics.Context: Much social scientific interest in religion looks at the variation in the lived religion from one place to another. However, there are moments - such as in April 2018 when the President of Ukraine asked the Greek Patriarch to intervene into the Russian Church in the Ukraine - when religion can not be studied only in the local lived expression. Situations such as the conflict in Ukraine are complicated by historic tension between local Orthodox Churches. Disagreements in the interpretation of the theology of the body, person, and environment foment political tension within the Churches, between the Churches and external bodies, and between nations. The materiality of discourse must be seen as central to the form and practice of the tradition.Research: Framed in terms of three research domains, this project focuses on the material conditions of Global Orthodox sociopolitics, conducting research amongst Orthodox Christians and religious institutions. The project investigates how the properties and affordances of the material ecology (including the body, the built environment and wider 'natural' order) shape and are marshalled within the discourse of the Orthodox Churches. The three domains are the Body, Person, and Environment. The Body domain addresses issues such as medical interventions, like IVF and organ donation, which are, across Global Orthodoxy, contentious to varying degrees. The material body becomes a place for negotiating ethical goods (eg extending life, fertility, honouring God). The Person domain examines the variance in permission different churches grant concerning family and marriage practices (eg divorce, family planning). There is also a mounting discourse around identity politics, with some voices pushing for an open approach to homosexuality and women clergy. The material of the body, person, and Church are marshalled as the grounding for historically contingent, philosophically premised, and scientifically inflected arguments for or against 'progressive' movements. Finally, the Environment domain examines the relationship between humans, specific locations, and the earth as a whole. Orthodox theologians highlight an emphasis on 'stewardship of the earth' and call for active engagement in ecological conservation. Issues such as Global Warming take an explicitly religious imperative, as scientific data points to human failure to fulfil their God-given role as caretakers. The control of land (including places like Crimea and Jerusalem) also becomes a religious duty with geopolitical impact.Output: This project will produce one academic book on the material aspects of the sociopolitics of Orthodox Christianity, a book written for a general audience looking at key case studies around contemporary issues in Orthodoxy, six academic articles, white papers and policy advice on various issues relating to the health and wellbeing of Orthodox Christians and their homelands, and pamphlets written with stakeholder community leaders to help address social issues within the community settings.