Explaining Māori atheism in Aotearoa New Zealand
(2021-2024)
Principal Investigator: Dr Masoumeh Sara Rahmani,
Study of Religion, Victoria University of Wellington
Co-Investigator: Prof Peter Adds,
Te Kawa a Māui - School of Māori Studies, Victoria University of Wellington
Co-Investigator: Dr Geoff Troughton,
Study of Religion, Victoria University of Wellington
Indigenous experiences represent one of the most neglected yet critically productive sites for exploration within the fast-emerging field of atheism and nonreligion. Recent cross-cultural research demonstrates that atheism — like the broader nonreligion construct — incorporates a wide range of self-understandings, views, and commitments. Inclusion of Indigenous perspectives extends our understanding of this diversity, adding essential insights for the development of a rich and comprehensive causal understanding of atheism.
Between 2006 and 2018, the percentage of Māori (Indigenous New Zealanders) identifying with “no religion” on the national census increased from 36.5% to 53.5%. This change coincided with a substantial decline in Māori affiliating with Christianity and traditional Māori religion. Despite these dramatic shifts, we know little about Māori atheism, or indeed the individual, sociocultural, and historical processes contributing to Māori deconversion.
This project sought to offer a well-evidenced causal account of why and how some Māori became or remain atheists. We conducted in-depth interviews with Māori a/theist to identify key causal factors of atheism at the individual and societal levels. Given the complicated post-colonial and bicultural context of Aotearoa New Zealand, our analysis pays close attention to the intersectionality between the history of colonisation, Christianisation, Māori cultural revitalisation policies, and the impact of online social media on the emergence of Māori atheism.
Funded by the Explaining Atheism Programme [61928 - John Templeton Foundation]
Mindfulness meditation: A secular religion for unbelievers?
(2017-2019)
Principle Investigator: Dr Masoumeh Sara Rahmani,
Coventry University, UK
Co-Investigator: Dr Miguel Farias,
Coventry University, UK
Co-Investigator: Dr Valerie van Mulukom,
Coventry University, UK
Mindfulness Meditation (MM) inhabits a niche in the life of many individuals who desire fulfilment through self-transformation, yet wish to keep religious traditions at arm’s-length. It is estimated that one-fourth of non-religious Americans meditate on a weekly basis (Pew Forum, 2017). This project carries out a cross-cultural investigation of the nature and particularities of unbelief among practitioners of MM.
We will adopt a mixed method, with a longitudinal approach. Our team will develop psychological surveys, and conduct indepth interviews in the UK and the US, to assess both explicit and implicit beliefs about MM. We will explore the extent of which MM’s teachings and language function as a coherent system of meaning, thus shaping the practitioners’ self-concept, values, and worldviews, and providing them with emotional and motivational support. Our analysis will thematically outline the variations of unbelief by taking account of biographical, sociocultural, and linguistic structures that influence and support each position. We envisage that this project will generate two peer-reviewed articles, one book chapter, two popular science articles for non-academic audiences, four conference presentations, and that our findings will receive coverage from popular press. Given that MM is becoming increasingly mainstream in Western societies, it is important to account for the gamut of unbeliefs that are constructed and maintained within the Mindfulness subculture, if we are to arrive at a comprehensive understanding of the phenomena we commonly label as ‘unbelief.’
Funded by the Understanding Unbelief Programme [60624 - John Templeton Foundation]