23AR28-11

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AR 28:11 - How much we don't know about the faiths around us

In this issue:

AMERICAN RELIGION - "increased religious literacy could lead to a decrease in polarization"

ANTHROPOLOGY - the little-known "witch" cult of Carlos Castañeda

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE - "yet another reformation"

Apologia Report 28:11 (1,608)
April 6, 2023

AMERICAN RELIGION

"How much do Americans know about the faiths around them? And what helps us most to understand our neighbors' faiths?" by Ryan Burge (RNS, Feb 15 '23) -- "Pew asked individuals to assess their level of knowledge about a variety of faith traditions, from different types of Christians (evangelical and mainline Protestants, Catholics and Mormons) to faith groups that make up a smaller portion of the population, such as Jews, Muslims and Buddhists." In fact, "Americans, it turns out, feel they have a good idea of their neighbors' faiths. ...

   "The Pew American Trends Panel also included a religious literacy battery that consisted of eight questions about different faith traditions found in the United States. These questions were offered in multiple-choice format - with three potential answers listed. But they also allowed respondents to say they were unsure of the correct answer." The responses suggest that we tend to grossly overestimate our knowledge. A discussion of the results follows.

   "Those with higher levels of educational attainment answered more of the questions correctly - little surprise there. Among those with a high school diploma or less, the mean score was about four questions out of eight. Among those who had completed a four-year college degree, the mean score was about six questions correctly answered.

   "What's noteworthy, however, is how much taking a world religions class helped with religious literacy. At each level of educational attainment, a person who took world religions classes scored about half a point better than those who did not take a world religions class. This is clear and measurable evidence that these courses have a long-term impact on knowledge about faith traditions."

   Burge concludes with this: "Zeenat Rahman, executive director of the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, <www.bit.ly/40yne3x> has argued that increased religious literacy could lead to a decrease in polarization. It is sure to come in handy for those of us who imagine we know and welcome our neighbors." <www.bit.ly/3nEwpRk>

   For the above item by Rahman, see "Reflections on the Role of Religion in Society" (The Aspen Institute, Jan 25 '22), <www.bit.ly/3U32zBX> 

   Also see "Attention mass-media leaders: What should Americans know about each others' faiths?" by Richard Ostling (Get Religion, Apr 6 ‘23) <www.bit.ly/43cKHZt>

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ANTHROPOLOGY

"The Anthropologist Who Became a Shaman Cult Leader: Florinda Donner and Carlos Castañeda were both accused of fabricating their encounters with Indigenous healers" by Tim Brinkhof (High Times, Feb 20 '23) -- "Browsing through an antique bookstore in Quito, I stumbled on a [1982] book called Shabono: A Visit to a Remote and Magical World in the South American Rain Forest....

   "It's hard to separate the story of Florinda Donner from that of Carlos Castañeda. Castañeda, like Donner, was a California-based anthropologist accused of fabricating his studies on Indigenous healing. He claims to have met Don Juan Matus, the Yaqui sorcerer at the center of his bestselling 1968 book The Teachings of Don Juan, whilst waiting for a Greyhound bus in Arizona. ...

   "Although The Teachings was shunned in academic circles, it made a huge impact on the general population. Castañeda's recollections of inhaling the dust of psilocybin mushrooms and turning into a crow after smoking devil's weed were required reading for anyone involved in the sex and drugs culture of the late 60s.  

   "Though he might have been a lousy anthropologist, Castañeda was a masterful storyteller who knew how to use his gift to bewitch those around him. Following the publication of his third Don Juan book, Castañeda - by then a multimillionaire - purchased a two-story house in Los Angeles' Westwood Village. This is where his personal writerly following would flourish into what some would now consider to have been a full-blown cult. 

   "One of Castañeda's followers was Gloria Garvin, who sought him out after reading The Teachings under the influence of pumpkin pie laced with hashish. ...

   "Castañeda referred to his favorite followers as his 'witches.' The witches lived with him at the Westwood compound and wore identical, short haircuts. They also claimed to have met the semi-fictional Don Juan. Witches recruited other witches at Castañeda's L. Ron Hubbard-inspired lectures and seminars on shamanism and human transcendence - preferably 'women with a combination of brains and beauty and vulnerability,' according to ex-followers interviewed by Salon. ...

   "Testimony maintains Castañeda's following had all the characteristics of a cult. Followers were pressured into cutting off contact with their friends and family. Only Donner, who was considered Castañeda's intellectual and spiritual equal, remained in touch with her parents, albeit sporadically. ...

   "A day after Castañeda's [1998] death, Donner and three other women close to Castañeda disconnected their phones and seemingly vanished into thin air. ...

   "Those who survived Castañeda are convinced he genuinely believed everything he preached. As one ex-follower told Salon, 'he became more and more hypnotized by his own reveries.' 

   "It seems the witches did as well. In Shabono, Donner parades fiction as fact. ...

   "At any rate, it's a really, really well-written book." <www.bit.ly/3G98cZN>

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SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

"The coming Anglican split over Gay Marriage -- the African Church rebukes the West" by Fredrick Nzwili (RNS, Feb 16 '23) -- "Conservative Anglican archbishops in Africa [who together represent more than 35 million Anglicans] are challenging a decision by the Church of England to allow clergy to bless same-sex couples' marriages, warning that the move puts the worldwide Anglican Communion in further jeopardy.

   "The leaders are reacting to the Feb. 9 vote at the Church of England's General Synod to permit the offering of prayers and liturgies at civil marriages. The compromise measure included the church's desire to 'lament and repent' its failure 'to welcome LGBTQI+ people and for the harm that LGBTQI+ people have experienced — and continue to experience — in churches.'

   "The church has not changed its doctrine that marriage is a lifelong union between one man and one woman, but the archbishops of Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria are rejecting the decision to bless the unions as contrary to the teaching of the Bible.

   "The Church of England joined the Episcopal Church of America, the Anglican Church of Canada, the Church in Wales, the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Episcopal Church of Brazil and a few other member churches in recognizing all civil marriages. ...

   "'The Church of England … has now departed from the Bible and their message is the opposite,' said [Archbishop Stephen Samuel Kaziimba Mugalu of Uganda]. 'They are even offering to bless that sin. That is wrong. As the Church of Uganda, we cannot accept that. God cannot bless what he calls sin. ...

   "'There is no way we are walking together,' said Kaziimba. 'These are the provinces that have walked away, but we pray for them to repent.'"

   Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit, the primate of the Church of Kenya, protested: "We make a humble request to these churches: Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead."

   "According to Archbishop Henry Chukwudum Ndukuba of Nigeria in a statement on Sunday (Feb. 12), 'History is about to repeat itself. The Anglican Church is at the threshold of yet another reformation, which must sweep out the ungodly leadership currently endorsing sin, misleading the lives of faithful Anglican worldwide.'" <www.bit.ly/40DiMQY>

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