Orlando Woods, Department of Geography, National University of Singapore
關鍵詞
oligopoly; religious economy; religious competition; informal economy; evangelical Christianity; Sri Lanka
摘要
Existing religious economy models maintain that as religious regulation increases, levels of interreligious competition decrease. But new understandings of the market dynamics of religious oligopolies necessitate new understandings of religious competitiveness. A relational model of competitiveness using the case of evangelical Christianity in Buddhist-majority Sri Lanka is proposed. In Sri Lanka the informal religious economy is defined by competitiveness among evangelical Christian groups and, although not recognized by the state, is closely regulated. The focus in this article is on the scalar determinations of evangelical competitiveness, patterns of secrecy and subterfuge, the formation of strategic extra-group networks that enable competitiveness, and outcomes of a relational model. Three insights are offered that can be used as a starting point for further work on religious oligopolies, informal economies, and relational understandings of religious competition.
目次
Introduction 203 Normative Approaches to Religious Economy Theorization 204 Oligopoly Dynamics and Sri Lanka's Informal Religious Economy 206 Methodology 208 A Relational Model of Competitiveness 209 A. Scalar Determinations and Dissident Geopolitics 210 B. Patterns of Secrecy and Subterfuge 212 C. Strategic Extra-Group Networks of Influence 213 D. Outcomes of the Relational Model of Competitiveness 215 Conclusions 216 References 217
