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The Syrian refugee crisis and global security threats : a case study of Germany
Full text linkIn recent times, various governments have increasingly regarded both newly arrived and well-established refugee groups as potential sources of concern, posing challenges to the internal stability of the state, regional security, and even global security. The concerns of European host states encompass a range of issues, including the inadvertent provision of a safe haven for foreign combatants, as well as the potential for affiliates of ISIS and other Islamist groups to exploit the hosting nation as a platform for carrying out terrorist activities. However, the academic community currently faces a dearth of theoretical frameworks and empirical investigations that establish a connection between the influx of refugees and instances of criminal behaviour or acts of terrorism. The objective of this study is to evaluate the assertion that Syrian refugees provide a potential risk to global security. This will be accomplished by a focused analysis of crime and terrorism rates inside Germany, a nation that had a significant influx of refugees from Syria during the period spanning from 2015 to 2020. This study posits and substantiates, via the utilisation of descriptive statistical analysis, the absence of a direct correlation between Syrian refugees and crime rates or instances of terrorism. Drawing upon primary German, English and Arabic sources, the study makes the conclusion that the increase in the number of Syrian refugees was not necessarily accompanied by an increasing threat to security.
Keywords: Syrian refugees, Global security, Terrorism, Threat, ISI
Reflections of a Gifford Committee convenor
Full text linkDavid Jasper outlines a brief history of the Gifford lectures series before giving us an insight into the work of the University of Glasgow Gifford committee during the time he served as its convenor
"The End of the Church? Conversations with the Work of David Jasper" edited by Bridget Nichols and Nicholas Taylor
No full textReview ofBridget Nichols and Nicholas Taylor, eds., The End of the Church? Conversations with the Work of David Jasper (Durham, UK: Sacristy Press, 2022), pp. xx + 264, ISBN 978-1789592528. £30.0
Keeping the conversation open: Open House and Vatican II
Full text linkThe Second Vatican Council (1962–65) set out a new vision of the role of lay people in the Roman Catholic Church whereby they were no longer seen as passive recipients of clerical initiatives, but as active ministers of the Gospel. This article describes the historical context from which Vatican II emerged and outlines the scale and significance of the changes it set in train. It then considers the Council’s developing theology of the laity and the challenges of implementing it. In the local context, the article examines the way in which these issues were reflected in the pages of Open House, an independent Scottish Catholic journal of comment, opinion and reflection, founded in 1990 with the aim of giving lay people a voice, enabling them to keep the conversation about Vatican II alive. It concludes by welcoming Pope Francis’ call for a synodal church, in which all the people of God share in the church’s life and mission, seeing this as offering a fresh interpretation of the Council and a new synthesis of its teaching
A future with hope: Diaspora churches in Scotland
Full text linkThis article presents the findings of a comprehensive study that sought to explore the nature and contributions of, and challenges faced by ethnic diaspora Christian congregations in Scotland. The objective of this project was to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences and dynamics of diaspora Christian congregations in Scotland, shedding light on their current and future roles within the broader Scottish religious landscape
Civil disobedience as performative truth-telling: A Glaswegian story of Christians in Extinction Rebellion at COP26
Full text linkUsing Matthew 5:38–42 as a basis, this paper explores civil disobedience through non-violent direct action as performative truth-telling. With particular reference to environmental protest groups during COP26 in Glasgow, this paper suggests that civil disobedience is an example of a transforming initiative, similar to that which Jesus offers in this passage from the Sermon on the Mount. Civil disobedience viewed as such becomes a creative pathway to expose situational injustice and simultaneously offers the oppressor a way of reconciliation and opportunity to transform the situation of oppression. In the context of climate crisis, the transforming initiative of civil disobedience offers the State an opportunity for truthful recognition of the severity of the crisis and implores reconciliation through meaningful action and reform. Finally, the paper explores the ways in which Christians can partner with secular protest operations, highlighting that nonviolence, prophetic witness and prayerfulness are central elements for engaging in civil disobedience as truth-telling. The integration of faith values with protest moves the action beyond civil disobedience towards sacred peacemaking
Pass the plate? Theological reflections on the changing practice of ‘offering’ within Scottish liturgical tradition
Full text linkAt a time when many congregations are changing their practice of uplifting an offering during worship, this article offers a commentary on the history of the development of offering from the early church to contemporary Scottish Reformed worship. It will be demonstrated that in both early and recent church history, the offering was understood as an element of worship, part of the people’s response to God and symbolic of a broader offering of the self to God’s service, and the case will be made for its retention in the liturgy as an invitation to participation in the ministry of the church
Resurrection – not restoration: Frank’s story
Full text linkThis short reflection was offered as a response to Prof Will Storrar’s paper given at the ‘A Future with Hope: Resurrection, Not Restoration’ conference held at New College, Edinburgh on 9 March 2024 (included in this issue of Theology in Scotland). Drawing from personal experiences, Rev Dr Richard Frazer contends that the church must move beyond maintaining outdated structures, focussing instead on nurturing the deeper spiritual work of renewal and hope. Despite institutional decline, God is still at work – embodied in acts of genuine welcome, forgiveness and transformation – offering a path forward amidst cultural upheaval
“James Clerk Maxwell: Faith, Church, and Physics” by Bruce Ritchie
No full textReview of
Bruce Ritchie, James Clerk Maxwell: Faith, Church, and Physics (Haddington: Handsel Press, 2024), pp. xxii + 474, ISBN 978-1912052851. £15.0