This study is comprised of four chapters and an Epilogue. Chapter 1 treats, by way of historical description, the founding of America's institutions of higher learning as defacto centers of evangelical Protestant indoctrination and ethos. Chapter 2 is a record of the rejection of evangelical Protestantism in the interest of making the colleges and universities nonsectarian. This was accomplished first by a gradual "broadening'' of the curricula. Later, the schools became altogether secularist in disposition. Chapter 3 recounts the factors leading to the changes in the institutions. Chapter 4 is an evaluation of competing truth claims in the aftermath of the demise of Protestantism and a review of the gains and losses that came with the change. Finally, the Epilogue is a case study of one institution that reversed the trend. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / M.Th. (Systematic Theology)

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Ethnicity, sectarianism and economic instability are fundamental variables of internal security threats to Pakistan. Religious extremism has created an unenviable image of Pakistan in the eyes of the rest of the world and has affected the country adversely. At the same time inter-provincial grievances could potentially cause serious damage to the federation. Despite recent economic recovery and sound macro policies, the absence of genuine socio-economic development has provided ethno-sectarian elements and regional forces grounds to exploit and weaken Pakistan internally. This paper argues that ethno-sectarian problems are major security threats to Pakistan and will remain a huge impediment to the goals of economic prosperity. Interdependence of these multifaceted threats and their overall impact on internal security is the focus of this analysis. Pakistan needs to address these national security threats and find a viable solution in a reasonable timeframe to find its rightful place in the community of modern nations. The immediate requirement is to introduce political, economic and education reforms and take bold initiatives to obviate present and future threats. This paper recommends three-pronged strategy to counter ethnosectarian threats to Pakistan: halt then reverse present trends, enforce rule of law and lastly introduce fresh incentives for socio-economic development. / Lieutenant Colonel, Pakistan Army

This project takes popular organizations in mid-twentieth century Lebanon as its focus. These socio-political groupings were organized at the grassroots, made up of young men, and included scout organizations, social justice movements, student clubs and workers' associations. Employing a cultural history approach, the dissertation examines the cultural productions of these types of groups, ranging from group anthems to uniforms, letters of the rank and file to speeches of leaders. With these primary sources, it captures the cultures that took shape around five main actors in the field of street politics: the Lebanese Communist Party, the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, the Kata'ib Party, the Najjadeh Party and the Progressive Socialist Party. And as these groups condoned and committed acts of sectarian violence in the 1958 War and the Lebanese Civil War of 1975-1990, this dissertation also investigates the distinct cultures that formed around these groups during wartime. In the end, I argue that both inside and outside of moments of conflict, popular organizations cultivate and mobilize multiple, interactive identities to make sense of their actions, sectarian or otherwise. Moreover, I find that a critical site to explore these complex processes is their routine practices grounded in duty, strength and honor. Part I of the dissertation examines identity formation within these five groups, and the physical and symbolic spaces they produced in Beirut during the 1920s-1950s. Informed by Pierre Bourdieu's theories on social life, this historical background shows how organizational attempts to project uniqueness, win over recruits, and make partisan, often sectarian, claims over the whole Lebanese nation created boundaries between these groups. Also, the lives of individuals within these groups, regardless of the group's distinct vision for Lebanon, were colored by cultures of discipline and defense, working to normalize practices linked to violence. In Part II the dissertation takes up the two historical events of social mobilization and conflict in which these groups participated: the 1958 War (where the Kata'ib, once a nationalist scout group, serves as the focus for the investment in sectarianism) and the Two-Year War of 1975-1976 (where the Lebanese National Movement - specifically the Lebanese Communist Party, once a workers' association, and the Progressive Socialist Party, once a social justice movement - serve as the focus for the investment in anti-sectarian frames). First, through investigating the changing positions of these popular organizations throughout these two wars, the dissertation argues that these groups are active agents in producing sectarian violence, adding nuance to past characterizations of conflict in Lebanon. Second, by capturing the quite seamless shift towards practices of violence, it finds that the quotidian and routine also lay at the center of violence. Finally, by analyzing the textual and visual productions of these groups leading up to and during war, the dissertation finds that multiple and interacting identities, such as national, populist (i.e., fulfilling the needs of people and winning their support in a particular locality) and sect are mobilized to perform violence. Accordingly, sectarian violence, as it emerged in the mid-twentieth century, is sectarian because these groups defined it in sectarian (and antisectarian) terms, not because the violence was rooted in immutable sectarian differences. Collectively, “Winning Lebanon: Popular Organizations, Street Politics and the Emergence of Sectarian Violence in the Mid-Twentieth Century” seeks to bring the local level and the cultural into the study of conflict, and add nuance to the understanding of sectarianism and sectarian violence in Lebanon and the broader Middle East.

This thesis presents an analysis of adult education programs concerned with reconciliation, and more specifically with reconciliation pedagogy used by community organisations in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland for many years was the site of inter-ethnic violence expressed through sectarian and paramilitary presence, but has moved towards a more peaceful, civil society in recent years. This thesis investigates how the role of the citizen-subject in the new Northern Ireland is constituted in adult education programs and how funding regimes govern such community relations initiatives. The thesis offers a critical analysis of interviews with tutors, participants, designers and managers involved in a selected peace and reconciliation course. A broader view on reconciliation pedagogy and curriculum in anti-sectarian adult education in Northern Ireland leads to a closer exploration of social practices and power relations surrounding the chosen course, while drawing upon selected aspects of social theory, Foucauldian discourse analysis and concepts of governmentality. The analysis revealed that the chosen anti-sectarian course, ‘Us and Them’ (Workers Educational Association), proposes individualisation and responsibilisation as alternatives to community identities and nationalistic myths of origins. Equal rights are interpreted as equal rights to cultural expressions, and culture is continuously privileged over other structural differentials in Northern Ireland such as poverty, class or colour. ‘Us and Them’ is one component of a large machinery of projects designed to address the conflict situation in Northern Ireland. This machinery finds its centre in the Northern Ireland Community Relations Council, which privileges certain knowledges based on cultural consociationalism over others and which distributes funds for peace and reconciliation projects accordingly. Furthermore,the thesis examines how contemporary policy papers addressing community relations shape discourses found in anti-sectarian strategies and the rationales, strategies and policies informing “Us and Them’. The aim of the analysis is to explore the power and potential (and the limitations) of individualisation and responsibilisation as techniques in peace and reconciliation pedagogy in post-settlement ethnic conflict situations.

This thesis presents an analysis of adult education programs concerned with reconciliation, and more specifically with reconciliation pedagogy used by community organisations in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland for many years was the site of inter-ethnic violence expressed through sectarian and paramilitary presence, but has moved towards a more peaceful, civil society in recent years. This thesis investigates how the role of the citizen-subject in the new Northern Ireland is constituted in adult education programs and how funding regimes govern such community relations initiatives. The thesis offers a critical analysis of interviews with tutors, participants, designers and managers involved in a selected peace and reconciliation course. A broader view on reconciliation pedagogy and curriculum in anti-sectarian adult education in Northern Ireland leads to a closer exploration of social practices and power relations surrounding the chosen course, while drawing upon selected aspects of social theory, Foucauldian discourse analysis and concepts of governmentality. The analysis revealed that the chosen anti-sectarian course, ‘Us and Them’ (Workers Educational Association), proposes individualisation and responsibilisation as alternatives to community identities and nationalistic myths of origins. Equal rights are interpreted as equal rights to cultural expressions, and culture is continuously privileged over other structural differentials in Northern Ireland such as poverty, class or colour. ‘Us and Them’ is one component of a large machinery of projects designed to address the conflict situation in Northern Ireland. This machinery finds its centre in the Northern Ireland Community Relations Council, which privileges certain knowledges based on cultural consociationalism over others and which distributes funds for peace and reconciliation projects accordingly. Furthermore,the thesis examines how contemporary policy papers addressing community relations shape discourses found in anti-sectarian strategies and the rationales, strategies and policies informing “Us and Them’. The aim of the analysis is to explore the power and potential (and the limitations) of individualisation and responsibilisation as techniques in peace and reconciliation pedagogy in post-settlement ethnic conflict situations.

Sectarianism has shaped Lebanese culture since the establishment of the National Pact in 1943, and continues to be a pervasive roadblock to Lebanon’s path to development. This thesis explores the role of religion, politics, and Lebanon’s illegitimate government institutions in accentuating identity-based divisions, and fostering an environment for sectarianism to emerge. In order to do this, I begin by providing an analysis of Lebanon’s history and the rise and fall of major religious confessions as a means to explore the relationship between power-sharing arrangements and sectarianism, and to portray that sectarian identities are subject to change based on shifting power dynamics and political reforms. Next, I present different contexts in which sectarianism has amplified the country’s underdevelopment and fostered an environment for political instability, foreign and domestic intervention, lack of government accountability, and clientelism, among other factors, to occur. A case study into Iraq is then utilized to showcase the implications of implementing a Lebanese-style power-sharing arrangement elsewhere, and further evaluate its impact in constructing sectarian identities. Finally, I conclude that it is possible to eliminate sectarianism in Lebanon and move towards a secular state. While there are still many challenges to face in overcoming a long-established system of governance, I highlight the anti-sectarian partisan movements that are advocating for change, and their optimistic path to success.

No description available.

Interreligious peacebuilding is one of the oldest methods used in peacebuilding around the world, as religion is often one key factor in war and used both to fuel conflicts or to promote peace and co-existence. However, the use of interreligious dialogue in post-conflict societies is still not fully understood and researcher has still not encapsulated its different components. The purpose of this study was therefore to provide understanding of the use of interreligious dia-logue in a highly sectarian societies as contemporary Lebanon is. Therefore, to explore and contribute to this research field, I conducted semi-structured interviewees with a local peace-building organisation in Lebanon. The findings were analysis with an analytical framework, based on intergroup contact theory and research methods on religious dialogue. This study il-lustrated the challenges and opportunities Lebanese peacebuilders face when conducting dia-logues in a very religiously divided society. The findings presented that the affective and cog-nitive effects from interreligious dialogue do varies between individuals depending on their own view on being a majority or minority religion and their own prejudice against other beliefs. Therefore, this paper contributes to new insight on the effects of contact theories relevance in sectarian societies and could be utilised to enhance the peacebuilding efforts in Lebanon.

No description available.

After the invasion of Iraq and the destruction of Saddam regime in 2003, the US administration undertook the complete remaking of Iraq as a national-state. The initial steps of the US administration were the quasi eradication of the old Iraqi State. Then, this nation-building endeavor has been based on a federal constitution promoting an Ethno- sectarian power sharing and the attempt to transform what was once a centralized economy into a comprehensive market driven society. However, the post-2003 period had been marked by the rising of identity politics, the constant delegitimisation of the new political order and successive episode of massive violence. Obviously, the question of violence and its apex in 2006-2007, is central to understand the post-2003 period in Iraq. For the first time in Iraqi history, waves of ethno-sectarian violence seriously challenged the possibility of a common life for all the diverse components of the Iraqi society. The Iraqi nation seemed to have been consumed in an existential conflict between components and communal identifications once relatively integrated. Therefore, there is a need to render an analytical account of the aggressive rise of identity politics, the outbreak of violence and finally the episodes of civil war in 2005-2007 in Iraq. This study aims to answer these questions by tracking the different political and social processes that have been at play during the American occupation of Iraq and that lead to the events of 2005-2007. In order to do so, I will consider the dynamical relations that link political institutions, violence and self-identifications in regard to the Iraqi society and Iraq as a National State. This research is built as a case study based mostly on qualitative analysis and the collection of empirical data, interviews, and fieldwork observations as well as primary and secondary sources. I set out to identify actors and processes and determine a complex chain of reactions (a trajectory) that led to the current state of affairs in Iraq. This trajectory could be summarized in few sentences: The destruction of the old Iraqi State and the brutal implementation of Neo-liberal rationality and re- regulations policies by the US occupation ended into a dystopian economy and the creation of an "absent state" (Davis, 2011). Since its very first day, this US lead nation-building endeavor has been flawed by a complete lack of legitimacy and its substitution with coercion by the US and the New Iraqi "State" security apparatus. Meanwhile, the imposition and the institutionalization of Ethno-sectarian affiliations as a principle of political legitimacy contributed to transform the different communities of Iraq into main avenues for access and control of scarce economic and political resources. In a way, US occupation and new Iraqi elites were deflecting the political question of right following a movement similar to what Mamdani and Brown describe as a "Culturalisation of Politics" (2004, 2006). The result was a failure to establish a legitimate and functional political and economic order. This led to the rise of a System of Violence, organized around networks of violence. Within the System of Violence, Culturalisation of Politics would be translated into Culturalisation of Violence. This would contribute to the sectarianisation of space in Baghdad and other localities of Iraq, as well as "manufacturing" (Gregory, 2008) and essentialising sectarian representations and identifications within the society.