Exploring the Intersection of Spirituality and Religion:Transcendence,Secularism,and Personal Beliefs in Contemporary Society

This paper explores the intersection of spirituality and religion,focusing on how transcendence,secularism,and personal beliefs shape contemporary spiritual practices.It examines the philosophical foundations of transcendence,the rise of existentialism,and the distinction between spirituality and religion.Secularism's role in fostering personal spirituality and reducing religious authority is discussed,alongside the psychological and societal impacts of spiritual transcendence.The paper also critiques the limitations of spirituality,emphasizing the need for a balanced approach that integrates cognitive development and mental health perspectives.

Secularization in the Holy Land： Challenges for the State- Secularism and Nationalism in Israel

Israel is on the way to become a secular state. Parts of the society are separating from the religious authority. Under the international pressure of the globalization it is getting more important for Israel to integrate in the western interpretation of secularization. It seems that a secular Israel could resolve the political and social inequality between the ethnic groups. But the process of secularization causes a couple of problems in the society. Since years Israel is on the move to fred his identity in a pluralistic and globalized world. The religious affiliation is decreasing in Israel. People do not believe privately anymore. In public it is still demonstrated, that Israel is united in the religious beliefs. Nationalism regains strength in Israel and causes new conflicts. This qualitative work based on hermeneutic and media analyses will show how problematic the way of secularization is and that the society will be probably even more unequal than before. If Israel is losing his ties of religious beliefs it needs to find a new identity But the increase of secularization causes also the increase of nationalism. Nationalism and in his extreme forms of religious nationalism or ethnocentrism will jeopardize equality under the population. Thus, the question has to be answered if a secular Israel will be more open, pluralistic or equal and fmaUy better prepared to meet the challenges of the politically unstable Middle East region and the globalization.

Secularism and Secularization in the Arab World

The development of secularism and secularization is a major issue in the Arab world in the intellectual,cultural and social dimensions.A general survey of the development of secularism and secularization in the Arab world is a premise to understand modern Arab politics,society and culture.

Identity(ies)and Transnationalization of Brazilian Evangelical Churches in Portugal:Case study of World Cathedral of Hope and Victory in Christ Churches

The presence of evangelicals in Brazil is a social and religious phenomenon that has aroused interest of many scholars due to its rapid and significant expansion in recent decades and its projection beyond national borders.Among evangelical denominations that stand out in this scenario are Pentecostal churches,which have developed intense missionary activity in several countries,including Europe.In this article,we intend to analyze features and challenges of Brazilian evangelical churches:World Cathedral of Hope(CIME)(Catedral Mundial da Esperança-ICME)and Assembly of God Victory in Christ(ADVEC)(Assembleia de Deus Vitória em Cristo-ADVEC)that operate in Portugal,seeking to understand issues of identity and belonging of these communities,their models of transnationalization,its evangelization strategies and its adaptations to Portuguese context,in the period from 2000 to 2020.

A Humanist God？ On the troubled Relationship Between Humanism and Religion Today

The relationship between humanism and religion has always been difficult, since the Renaissance. If we look at the Humanist Associations active today in the world, we find that the relationship has become almost a declared war. Religion appears to be the greatest enemy of humanism, i.e., of the humanity. Authentic humanism seems to be exclusively secular and atheistic： you can do good only if there is no God. In this contribution I look at some programmatic documents of Humanist Associations to understand the reasons for this contrast, in the background of secularization. The result is that some criticisms of religion -- its potential for violence and obscurantism -- are historically and theoretically justifiable but partial. Indeed, they show a poor and narrow vision of religion that leads to a narrow view of the human experience. A more complex vision of man requires a more complex vision of religion. A complex vision of man includes the most ＂irrational＂ and enigmatic aspects of our being, as love, death, pain, desire, imagination and even freedom and creativity. On this basis we can appropriately understand the historical and existential role of religion. Otherwise, if God is the one painted by humanists, God would not be good, let alone a good humanist.

How Global can Global Public Reason Be？

Joshua Cohen has recently remodelled Rawls＇ account of public reason into an explicitly global enterprise designed to both engage and regulate human rights discourses. Cohen＇s model is interesting because of the manners in which Cohen attempts to answer the questions the model begs： how can individuals with fundamentally incommensurable world views actually engage in common acts of practical reason with each other about issues like human rights？ What common convictions or a common social imaginary must these individuals share？ I argue that articulating potential common grounds on which acts of global public reasoning can transpire involves engaging with rather than seeking to reason autonomously from （or transcend） the material, social, and cultural forces--most importantly the tradition of liberal secularism which Cohen＇s model takes its normative bearings from--that make such discourses what they are. Doing so enhances the ability of a liberal secular human rights proponent to elucidate meaningful sites of common ground with others. Such common ground emerges not simply through toleration but also through critically engaging the worldviews of other globally public reasoners.

Neoteric Nationalism in India: Secular or Religious?

The nationalism in India emerged with the national movement as an urge of political independence,but it is not necessarily a derivative of nationalism.In this post-independence period,the concept took a drastic change from politico-cultural nationalism to particularistic nationalism of many groups and now essentially religious nationalism.The present blend of nationalism is interpreted as Hindu nationalism.It evolved from nationhood to nationalism.In this open world,Indian nationalism has been unrolled with a Hindu dominating policy due to which religion in India got politicized.The surge of religion is too high in India has become an important political agenda.It has shuttered the participation of the religious minority from the mainstream of politics.This paper is an endeavour to present this new discourse of Indian nationalism which emerged at the backdrop ofHinduism.

The Legal Position and the Cultural Role of the Churches During the Communist Era in Hungary

In my essay I would like to present the role of the Hungarian Catholic Church as a national“institution”after 1945.The communist dictatorship supplied the authority of the churches to reshape the society based on a new ideology.One of the milestones of this process was the years after 1947 when the church schools were secularized and the monastic orders were disbanded.Cardinal József Mindszenty was the main character of the act of resisting.The second milestone was around 1956 when there was a limited cooperation:some of the schools became church school again but with a high control.From 1988 came the third milestone when the presentations of the bishops were bounded formal to the authority of state and after a short period the church became independent from it.In my paper,I would like to present these milestones and what were the effects on the Hungarian society in a juridical and cultural way.

The Outsider Perspective: Classical Chinese Philosophy in the Narrative Framework of the European Enlightenment

The purpose of this article is to enhance the understanding of how Classical Chinese Philosophy has been interpreted and transferred by Enlightenment thinkers into the narrative framework of European philosophy as a far-reaching source of ideas and inspiration with a driving force for promoting modern European social change. We examine outsider perspectives within the context of Enlightenment thinking that contributed to advances in the cross-cultural understanding of how Chinese stories could be disseminated in the framework of East-West dialogue.

Secular Change in Stature of Urban Chinese Children and Adolescents, 1985-2010

Objective Research evidence shows a secular trend in Chinese physical growth in recent years.The aim of this study was to analyze and assess changes in stature of children and adolescents during the 25 years from 1985‐2010,using national data.Methods Data came from successive cycles of the Chinese National Survey on Students＇ Constitution and Health（CNSSCH）.Subjects were 7‐ to 18‐year‐old children and adolescents.Results An overall positive secular trend occurred in urban China during 1985‐2010.The overall average rates of increment were 2.4 and 1.7 cm/decade for boys and girls,respectively.Total increases in adult stature for boys and girls were 2.6 and 1.7 cm,yielding rates of 1.0 and 0.7 cm/decade,respectively.Cities with different socioeconomic levels had different characteristic trends.Mean stature increases in big cities were larger than those in moderate and small cities,and boys and girls in moderate and small cities showed greater potential for growth in stature.Conclusion An overall positive secular growth trend was associated with socioeconomic progress and differed with area socioeconomic levels.School policies and strategies should be developed based on increased stature,and should continue narrowing the inequity between different socioeconomic populations.

Global Sea Level Change and Thermal Contribution

The global long-term sea level trend is obtained from the analysis of tide gauge data and TOPEX/Poseidon data. The linear trend of global mean sea level is highly non-uniform spatially, with an average rate of 2.2 mmyear^-1 in T/P sea-level rise from October 1992 to September 2002. Sea level change due to temperature variation （the thermosteric sea level） is discussed. The results are compared with TOPEX/Poseidon altimeter data in the same temporal span at different spatial scales. It is indicated that the thermal effect accounts for 86% and 73% of the observed seasonal variability in the northern and southern hemispheres, respectively. The TOPEX/Poseidon observed sea level lags behind the TSL by 2 months in the zonal band of 40%-60% in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Systematic differences of about 1-2 cm between TOPEX/Poseidon observations and thermosteric sea level data are obtained. The potential causes tbr these differences include water exchange among the atmosphere, land, and oceans, and some possible deviations in thermosteric contribution estimates and geophysical corrections to the TOPEX/Poseidon data.

Secular Changes of Stature in Rural Children and Adolescents in China, 1985-2010

Objective To analyze and assess secular change in stature in rural children and adolescents in China from 1985 to 2010. Methods Data were obtained from the 6 rounds of the Chinese National Survey on Student＇s Constitution and Health. The subjects enrolled in the study were children and adolescents aged 7-18 years in rural areas of provincial capitals. Results An overall positive secular trend in stature occurred in rural areas of provincial capitals in China from 1985 to 2010. The overall average increase rates were 3.1 and 2.4 cm/decade for boys and girls, respectively. The total body height increases for grown up boys and girls were 3.6 and 2.3 cm and the increase rates were 1.4 and 0.9 cm/decade, respectively. There were differences in body height increase among eastern, central and western regions. The average body height of the children or adolescents in eastern region was highest, followed by central region and western region. The overall increase rates in central region were highest among the three regions. The difference between eastern/central region and western region was obvious. 〈br〉 Conclusion Positive secular trend in stature of children or adolescents has occurred in rural area of China, and rural boys and girls showed a great potential for continuous growth. More attention should be paid to the differences in children＇s body height between western region and eastern/central region.

Secular Changes on the Distribution of Body Mass Index among Chinese Children and Adolescents, 1985-2010

Objective To analyze the change in Body Mass Index （BMI） distribution among Chinese children and adolescents for the development of more effective intervention for childhood obesity. Methods Data on the national students＇ constitution and health survey between 1985 and 2010 was used for this study. Subjects were students aged 7-18 randomly selected from 30 provinces in China. BMI for-age curves were developed by LMS method, and the trend of BMI distribution was determined by comparing the upper BMI percentiles and analyzing the skew shift of distribution between 2985 and 2010. Results An overall positive swift trend of BMI between 1985 and 2010 was observed among the Chinese school-age children and adolescents. The average median of the BMI increased from 16.8 and 17.0 ks/m2 to 18.2 and 17.9 kg/m2 in 25 years, with increments 0.56 and 0.36 kg/m2 per decade for males and females, respectively. The more obvious increments were found at the high BMI. The total increments of BMI in this period were 4.03 and 2.20 kg/m2 at the 85th, 6.24 and 3.57 kg/m2 at the 95th, and 6.99 and 4.27 kg/m2 at the 97th percentiles, for males and females, respectively. Conclusion Obvious increments were observed at high BMI of the Chinese children and adolescents. More effective interventions should be taken for control and prevention of obesity and its health consequence for these subgroups. It is necessary to establish a risk-complex system consisting of the identification of BMI scope, the screen of the disease risk factors and the assessment of excessive adiposity.

Secular trends in incidence of lung cancer by histological type in Beijing, China, 2000-2016

Objective: The objective of this study was to characterize secular trends in the sex-specific, age-standardized incidence of lung cancer by histological type in Beijing, China, from 2000 to 2016 based on data from a populationbased cancer registry.Methods: Data on the incidence of cancer from 2000 to 2016 were obtained from the Beijing Cancer Registry.We examined trends in the sex-specific, age-standardized incidence of lung cancer by histological type using a Joinpoint regression model.Results: A total of 117,409 cases of lung cancer were diagnosed from 2000 to 2016. Overall, 73,062(62.23%)patients were males. The most common histological type among both sexes was adenocarcinoma; however, the proportion of adenocarcinoma differed significantly between males and females(45.36% vs. 77.14%, respectively,P<0.0001). The age-standardized incidence of total lung cancer increased from 2000 to 2010 with an annual percent change(APC) of 2.2% [95% confidence interval(95% CI), 1.5% to 2.9%] and stabilized thereafter. Among males, the incidence of total lung cancer peaked in 2008 and then decreased slightly, with an APC of-1.1%(95%CI,-2.1% to-0.1%). Among females, the incidence increased continuously during the study period, with an APC of 1.4%(95% CI, 0.9% to 1.9%). The incidence of squamous cell carcinoma decreased significantly in recent years among both sexes, with APCs of-2.6%(95% CI,-4.5% to-0.6%) from 2007 to 2016 for males and-5.4%(95%CI,-7.2% to-3.6%) from 2004 to 2016 for females. In contrast, the incidence of adenocarcinoma increased continuously throughout the study period, by APCs of 4.0%(95% CI, 2.6% to 5.4%) for males and 6.2%(95% CI,4.8% to 7.6%) for females. The incidence of small cell carcinoma peaked in 2007 and stabilized thereafter among males, whereas it peaked in 2012 and then decreased with an APC of-14.7%(95% CI,-25.3% to-2.6%) among females. The incidence of large cell carcinoma and other specified malignant neoplasm did not change much,whereas the incidence of unspecified type decreased among both sexes during the study period.Conclusions: Although the incidence of squamous cell carcinoma decreased significantly among both sexes in recent years in Beijing, China, adenocarcinoma increased continuously throughout the study period among both sexes. Knowledge of differences in trends is useful for surveillance and control of lung cancer. However, the reason for the increase in adenocarcinoma remains unclear and warrants investigation.

On the correlation of nonlinear variables containing secular trend variations： numerical experiments

Due to global warming, the general circulation, underlying surfaces characteristics, and geophysical and meteorological elements all show evident secular trends. This paper points out that when calculating the correlation of two variables containing their own obvious secular trends, the interannual correlation characteristics between the two variables may be distorted （overestimated or underestimated）. Numerical experiments in this paper show that if two variables have opposite secular trends, the correlation coefficient between the two variables is reduced （the positive correlation is underestimated, or the negative correlation is overestimated）; and if the two variables have the same sign of secular trends, the correlation coefficient between the two variables is increased （the positive correlation is overestimated, or the negative correlation is underestimated）. Numerical experiments also suggest that the effect of secular trends on the interannual correlation of the two variables is interchangeable, that is to say, as long as the values of the two trends are not changed, the two variables interchange their positions, and the effect of the secular trends on the interannual correlation coefficient of the two variables remains the same. If the two variables have the same-（opposite-） sign trends, the effect of secular trends on the interannal correlation coefficient is more （less） distinctive. A meteorological example is given.

Exploring the metamorphic consequences of secular change in the siliciclastic compositions of continental margins

Shale and greywacke compositions from the Archean to Phanerozoic record a secular change in the siliciclastic material that comprises much of Earth＇s continental margins, past and present. This study explores the metamorphic consequence of these compositional changes, by comparing phase equilibrium models constructed for average Archean, Proterozoic, and Phanerozoic shale and greywacke compositions equilibrated along two Barrovian-type geotherms： 1330℃/GPa（A） and 800 ℃/GPa（B）. Our models show that Archean siliciclastic rocks can retain up to 4 vol.% water at middle to lower crustal conditions, nearly twice that of Proterozoic and Phanerozoic compositions. The increased ferromagnesium content of Archean siliciclastic rocks stabilizes chlorite to higher temperatures and results in a biotite-rich assemblage at solidus temperatures. Accordingly, water-absent biotite dehydration melting is predicted to play a greater role in the generation of melt in the metamorphism of Archean aged units,and water-absent muscovite dehydration melting is of increasing importance through the Proterozoic and Phanerozoic. This secular variation in predicted mineral assemblages demonstrates the care with which metamorphic facies diagrams should be applied to Archean compositions. Moreover, secular changes in the composition of shale and greywacke is reflected in the evolution of anatectic melt towards an increasingly less viscous, Ca-rich, and Mg-poor monzogranite.

The Influence of Secular Trends in Body Height and Weight on the Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity among Chinese Children and Adolescents

Objective To explore the influence of secular trends in body height and weight on the prevalence of overweight and obesity among Chinese children and adolescents. Methods The data were obtained from five cross-sectional Chinese National Surveys on Students＇ Constitution and Health. Overweight/obesity was defined as BMI-for-age Z-score of per the Wold Health Organization （WHO） reference values. Body height and weight for each sex and age were standardized to those reported in 1985 （standardized height＂ SHY, standardized weight： SWY） and for each sex and year at age 7 （standardized height： SHA; standardized weight： SWA） using the Z-score method. Results The prevalence of overweight/obesity in Chinese children was 20.2% among boys and 10.7% among girls in 2010 and increased continuously from 1985 to 2010. Among boys and girls of normal weight, SHY and SHA were significantly greater than SWY and SWA, respectively （P 〈 0.001）. Among boys and girls with overweight/obesity, SHY was significantly lower than SWY （P 〈 0.001）, and showed an obvious decreasing trend after age 12. SHA was lower than SWA among overweight boys aged 7-8 years and girls aged 7-9 years. SHY/SHW and SHA/SWA among normal-weight groups were greater than among overweight and obese groups （P 〈 0.001）. Conclusion The continuous increase in the prevalence of overweight/obesity among Chinese children may be related to a rapid increase in body weight before age 9 and lack of secular increase in body height after age 12.

Physical Growth of Children in Urban,Suburban and Rural China's Mainland:A Study of 20 Years' Change

Objective To describe secular trends on physical growth of children in China during the year of 1985‐2005 and to analyze the urban‐suburban‐rural difference and its change. Methods The measurements of height, weight and chest circumference obtained from two serial national cross‐sectional surveys for children aged 0 to 7 years in China were used to analyze the secular trends, and the growth differences among urban, suburban and rural children were compared. Results The average weight and height for both boys and girls from urban, suburban and rural areas have significantly increased in most age groups during the past 20 years; The average chest circumference increased slightly, ranging from 0.0 to 2.0 cm. From 1985 to 2005, the urban‐suburban difference in height had become smaller, and that in weight showed similar trend for children under 3 years old but became larger after 3 years old; the suburban‐rural difference both in height and weight became larger after 6 months old. The increment per decade in height was the greatest in the suburban group while the greatest increment in weight was the urban group. Conclusion Positive secular trends were observed among urban, suburban and rural areas in Chinese children under 7 years old during the 1980s and the 2000s, reflecting a rapid socio‐economic development in China.

Diabetes but not insulin is associated with higher colon cancer mortality

AIM： To evaluate whether diabetic patients had a higher risk of colon cancer mortality and its associated risk factors. METHODS： The sex-specific crude and age-standard- ized （to the 2000 World Health Organization popula- tion） mortality rates of colon cancer in the Taiwan Residents general population were first calculated from 1995 to 2006. The trends were evaluated by linear regression. A total of 113 347 diabetic men and 131 573 diabetic women aged ~〉 25 years at recruitment from 1995 to 1998 were followed up until the end of 2006. Age/sex- specific colon cancer mortality rate ratios were cal- culated comparing the mortality rates of the diabetic patients with the average mortality rates of the general population within 12 years （1995-2006）. A sub-cohort of diabetic patients （42 260 men and 49 405 women） was interviewed using a baseline questionnaire and Cox＇s regression was used to evaluate the risk factors for colon cancer mortality in these diabetic patients.RESULTS： The crude and age-standardized trends of colon cancer mortality from 1995 to 2006 increased significantly for both sexes in the general population. A total of 641 diabetic men and 573 diabetic women died of colon cancer, with a mortality rate of 74.4 and 54.3 per 100 000 person-years, respectively. Mortality rate ratios [95% confidence intervals （CIs）] showed a significantly higher risk of mortality from colon can- cer for the diabetic patients compared to the general population, with the magnitude increasing with de- creasing age： 1.65 （1.40-1.95）, 2.01 （1.78-2.27）, 2.75 （2.36-3.21） and 5.69 （4.65-6.96） for /〉 75, 65-74, 55-64 and 25-54 years old, respectively, for men; and 1.46 （1.24-1.72）, 2.09 （1.84-2.38）, 2.67 （2.27-3.14） and 3.05 （2.29-4.06）, respectively, for women. Among the sub-cohort of diabetic patients who had been in- terviewed with the baseline questionnaire, including information on age, sex, diabetes duration, diabe- tes type, body mass index, smoking, insulin use and area of residence, age and smoking were significantly predictive for colon cancer mortality, with respec- tive adjusted hazard ratios （HRs） （95% CIs） of 1.077 （1.066-1.088） and 1.384 （1.068-1.792）. Diabetes dura- tion became a significant factor when those who died of colon cancer within 5 years of diabetes diagnosis were excluded to minimize the possible contamination of diabetes caused by incipient colon cancer, with an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.021 （1.007-1.034）. Sex, dia- betes type, insulin use, body mass index and area of residence were not significant predictors for colon can- cer mortality in the diabetic patients. Although insulin use was categorized into subgroups of duration of use （non-users and users 〈 5 years, 5-9 years and i〉 10 years）, none of the HRs for colon cancer mortality was significant with regards to different durations of insulin use. CONCLUSION： Colon cancer mortality is increasing in Taiwan. A higher risk is observed in diabetic patients. Smoking, but not insulin use, is a modifiable risk factor.

Geomagnetic jerk extraction based on the covariance matrix

We normalize data from 43 Chinese observatories and select data from ten Chinese observatories with most continuous records to assess the secular variations(SVs)and geomagnetic jerks by calculating the deviations between annual observed and CHAOS-6 model monthly means.The variations in the north,east,and vertical eigendirections are studied by using the covariance matrix of the residuals,and we find that the vertical direction is strongly affected by magnetospheric ring currents.To obtain noise-free data,we rely on the covariance matrix of the residuals to remove the noise contributions from the largest eigenvalue or vectors owing to ring currents.Finally,we compare the data from the ten Chinese observatories to seven European observatories.Clearly,the covariance matrix method can simulate the SVs of Dst,the jerk of the northward component in 2014 and that of the eastward component in 2003.5 in China are highly agree with that of Vertically downward component in Europe,compare to CHAOS-6,covariance matrix method can show more details of SVs.