*2.1. Religion as Community: Authorities, Relationships and Identities*

Thinking about religion as community is central to the approach of French sociologist Émile Durkheim (1858–1917). Religion, according to Durkheim, is "a unified system of beliefs and practices ... which unite into one single moral community called a Church, all those who adhere to them" (Durkheim 1915, p. 47). Next to other aspects, it is the integrative function of religion that is emphasized here and its ability to build relationships and communities. Durkheim and his followers in the structural functionalist approach are interested in the way religion establishes and supports structures and institutions in society, including the family and the state. This includes the establishment of authorities both in the temporal and spiritual arena. As such, religion serves the stabilization or attestation of a given community.

Connected to religion's role in establishing communities is its significance in creating identities, both in a personal and a collective sense. By belonging (or not belonging) to a certain community, by adhering (or not adhering) to the required social and moral codes, senses of the self are being constructed and a ffirmed. In conflict, the community and identity forming aspects of religion are highly relevant. In times of upheaval, belonging to a community can provide reassurance and stability. At the same time, the self-identification with a community and the obedience to its authorities tend to foster an in-group/out-group mentality. Religion as community thus becomes a boundary marker of who belongs and who does not. This becomes especially problematic when this boundary marker is connected with other concepts such as nationhood. India's current Hindu-nationalist agenda, for instance, illustrates how the religious boundary marker "Hindu" becomes synonymous with that of "being Indian". While political strategies like these usually serve to strengthen national coherence, they often result in conflicts with religious minority groups who feel discriminated by religiously defined concepts of the nation.

### *2.2. Religion as a Set of Teachings: Concepts, Norms and Values*

Religion can also be viewed as a set of teachings. These inherited teachings often contain dogmatic aspects, i.e., what to believe, from which ethical dimensions follows, i.e., how to act. The contents of a set of teachings are the focus of a "substantial" understanding of religion, rather than a "functional" perspective displayed by Durkheim and others (cf. Werkner 2016). In the Abrahamic religions, these teachings are collected in their respective Holy Scriptures, Torah, Bible and Quran (as well as traditions of law deriving from various sources such as the Jewish Halacha and Islamic Sharia), while other religious traditions rest primarily on oral rather than on written narratives. Religious sets of teachings are regarded as divine inspiration and serve not only to make sense of life, but they

<sup>3</sup> For this, I will combine the approaches of Frazer and Friedli (2015) and Frazer and Owen (2018), who each point to different dimensions of religion in conflicts (cf. Schliesser et al. forthcoming).

also o ffer clear guidance and instructions on how to behave. This shared understanding can help to increase social cohesion, ye<sup>t</sup> it can also lead to othering by creating insiders and outsiders.

Understanding religion as a set of teachings that includes fundamental concepts and normative implications also means taking the inherent ambiguity of religion into consideration. Religious teachings can be used for peace and for war. While religiously motivated peace-makers often refer to Scripture as their orientation and motivation (cf. Little 2007), the same holds true for Islamist suicide bombers (cf. Kruglanski et al. 2009). A common ideal such as peace and justice can become a powerful driving force for interreligious dialogue and cooperation, working together for the same goals from different religious foundations. At the same time, religious concepts and values can be used to confront the powers-that-be. Much of the social and political criticism of, for instance, South American Liberation Theology stems from a specifically Christian understanding of justification and justice (Boff and Boff 1987).

### *2.3. Religion as Spirituality: Personal Experience, Motivation and Meaning*

Religion has a spiritual dimension that has bearings on peace and conflict situations. The spiritual dimension refers to the personal experience of faith as it plays out in certain life styles and behavioral choices. These can be set in both an individual or a collective context, such as in a monastery, an ashram or a Sufi circle. The World Conference of Religions for Peace defines spirituality broadly as "an awareness of responsibility rooted in an ultimate concern" (Jack 1980). This "awareness of responsibility" can be a powerful motivator. It inspired, for instance, Gautama Buddha's engagemen<sup>t</sup> to challenge the Brahmin-priests' authority and the caste system in general. While being rooted in the inner self, religious spirituality can become the catalyst for far-reaching external action that can be both promoting and di ffusing conflict. At the same time, shared spiritual experiences (meditations, worship, Scriptural readings) can serve to create strong bonds between the participants. While this can lead to othering and exclusion ("them" vs. "us"), it can also help to connect across religions or communities.

Next to its motivating function, religion as spirituality also serves to bestow ultimate meaning. Here, the eschatological framework that many religions provide, i.e., the conviction that there is a horizon of meaning that transcends the individual's life span, becomes of importance. Connecting one's own life with its limitations to this larger purpose, coupled with the conviction of "doing God's will", can help to find meaning beyond the individual's experience. Again, the conviction of "doing God's will" can be found in both peacemakers' and in terrorists' rationales.
