Distinguishing Between Belief and Culture: A Critical Perspective on Religious Identity

• In Event: Division J Vice Presidential Session: Revising CAS's (Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education) Campus Religious, Secular, and Spiritual Programs (CRSSP) Standard for the Next Decade

Abstract

Current literature about religion in higher education typically emphasizes belief as a central component of religious identity. Through framing this discourse with a critical social justice lens, I argue that there needs to be a purposeful distinction between religious/spiritual belief and religious identity/culture in order to acknowledge the socio-cultural nature of religion and to more clearly understand the privilege/oppression dynamic associated with it. By describing the way Christian privilege and religious oppression are often independent of individuals’ religious or spiritual beliefs, I discuss implications of this over-emphasis on belief for religious minorities and explain how focusing instead on religious culture can help make campus-based interfaith initiatives more social justice-oriented.

Author

• Sachi Edwards, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa