This panel session is a collaborative effort between the Religion Migration Unit and the International Women's Caucus. The category of gender is a central factor to any discussion of migration including the causes, characteristics, and consequences of migration. This session explores how gendered cross-border relationships, including different and diverse types of marriage, are shaped by and shape the dynamics of religion and migration. Engaging Jordanian, Korean, and American contexts, the papers draw on a variety of methodological approaches to analyze and assess the significance of gender as an analytical category as well as an activist category in the current geopolitical context.
This article is a theological exploration into the marginalization of Cross-border female marriage immigrants within Korean churches. The author employs a feminist interpretation of Orpah from the book of Ruth—the Moabite widow who chose to return to her mother’s house—to challenge the conventional expectations held by the Korean government, families, and churches that marginalize cross-border marriage immigrants: the unquestioning assimilation into the cultural norms and the performance of the traditional female roles. By revisiting Orpah’s courageous decision not to renounce her mother’s house, the author explores how her story can empower immigrant women not only to retain and pass down their cultures but firmly believe that their decision will be met with blessings (1:8b). Furthermore, by highlighting Naomi’s role in encouraging and blessing Orpah, the author underscores the church’s responsibility to foster a safe environment for women to express themselves rather than legitimizing marginalization.
The U.S. reality is permeated with migration waves that have led to a Hispanic/Latine population of over 62 million. In the present essay, I assess how a sample of Latine married couples within a Catholic parish discern a home outside their birthplace. I interrogate how such a community seeks, creates, and implements a spirituality of migration born out of the struggles before, during, and after the process of forced mobility. I enter this journey by sharing some of the most valuable lessons on the migration journey these couples have had via interviews. I clarify the terms of in-between, lo cotidiano, la lucha, accompaniment, vocation, and Christian Spirituality through the import of relevant theologians and spiritual writers who offer vital wisdom to this complex reality. Finally, attention is given to the implications of an emerging spirituality of migration as this group discerns how to build a home away from home.
This paper focuses on a particular type of Islamic marriage, so-called imam marriages, which are not recognised by the Jordanian state but widely practised among and with Syrian refugees since their influx to Jordan in 2011. State institutions and European faith-based organisations advocate the registration of religious marriages on the basis of fulfilling UN conventions on gender and human rights.
Through a case study of Syrian refugees in Jordan, this paper offers new insights into the ambiguity inherent in the enforcement of marriage registration and the impact of humanitarian interventions on gender rights and the safety of displaced individuals in the Middle East. It further highlights the need for a nuanced understanding of gender justice and security and underscores the importance of considering the broader implications of such interventions, particularly on the lives and well-being of displaced people in the global south.