The Lens Through Which We Observe: Choosing A Conceptual Framework

Latest Version of Our Research Inquiry:
How are various urban religious spaces in Amsterdam--namely mosques, synagogues, and churches--used, both physically and discursively, to address the issues of their respective communities and to negotiate between religious unity and metropolitan diversity?

Conceptual Framework:
The "looking glass" that I feel, thus far, would be most appropriate in our investigation of religious institutions in urban spaces is Mieke Bal's discussion of tradition in Travelling Concepts in the Humanities: A Rough Guide (2002). In the chapter on tradition, Mieke Bal discusses how cultural norms, traditions, and symbols are purposefully and consciously constructed and perpetuated. The idea fits into a larger discussion, largely situated in the filed of anthropology, of social construction--that there is nothing inherently "natural" or "organic" about culture, but that all cultures are produced and reproduced by both its own members and outside forces. This production, as post-colonial theorists like Edward Said (whom Mieke Bal in fact cites) claim, often is--and has historically been--inextricably linked with power relations.
As Charles C. Ragin points out in Construcitng Social Research: The Unity and Diversity of Method, "analytic frames are fundamental to social research because they constitute ways of seeing" (61). Seeing, then, religious spaces and the practices of those spaces through the lens of what I refer to as "critical constructivism" will allow us to produce one, but obviously not only, informed representation of religious social life in the urban hub that is Amsterdam.

Methodology:
1. By the very nature of the research question, we will be engaged in a comparative study of three religious groups in the city of Amsterdam.
2. We will be observing and close reading physical space (i.e. the religious buildings themselves) and physical traces (documents produced or provided by the religious institutions, like newspapers, flyers, or books found in the buildings).
3. We will also engage in participatory observation, by attending services held in the various structures--particularly paying attention to the sermons.
4. We will be conducting interviews with members of the religious institutions--most likely, the leaders, both spiritual and administrative, of the congregations.
5. We will also use virtual methods, primarily in two ways:
a. visiting the websites of the places of worship (if the institutions have websites) to gain more insight into the kinds of discourses and issues with which the communities are engaged, as well as to gain background historical information about the buildings and the communities they serve.
b. researching the histories of religious communities in modern Amsterdam, via both scholarly and journalistic writings, to situate our knowledge within the larger realm of the history and place of religion in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam Research Interests / Preliminary Questions: Oh so many!!!

Although discussing preliminary interests for our research in Amsterdam was part of the “Environmental Behavior Assignment,” I felt like it warranted its own blog entry. Feelings catalyzed actions, and thus, here we are…
...and the concrete questions are delineated by bold, italicized font.

Idea 1:
The “environmental behavior” exercise accomplished more than allowing me to apply some of the theoretical concepts about which we have been learning in class; it allowed me to think of a specific research area of interest: the coffee shops in Amsterdam. Although they are not quite like the coffee shops in Seattle (!), they serve a similar purpose: a gathering place with features that are “neither here nor there.” By this, I mean that coffee shops (like restaurants and other similar spaces) are neither fully public nor truly private. But it is not only the public/private issue that is interesting. The other fascinating thing about such venues is that they become spaces in which a lot of discussion and discourse take place – in a manner more substantial than conversations on the streets, but more informal than academic discourses. Thus, I would be interested in investigating if, and how, coffee shops in Amsterdam serve as the intermediary spaces for important socio-political and cultural discourses and debates.

Idea 2:
Another area of interest for me in regards to a possible research project is the topic of multiculturalism in Amsterdam. Specifically, after watching Fitna and Submission, as well as reading Murder in Amsterdam, I have become very interested in the issue of Islam in the Netherlands. Now, I realize that this is a very broad interest (and one that probably many students on previous trips--as well as on this one--have possessed); thus, I would like to hone in on the subject of media, particularly the use of media in representing various minority groups. To phrase it in a question: how is Islam portrayed in Dutch media? How are Muslims and Middle Eastern immigrants* represented in the various modes of media in the Netherlands? To investigate this question, I would need to obtain visual and literary media (films, news articles, etc.) and perform close readings of them to see if any general trends seem to arise (particularly, I would be interested to see if the other films are similar to Fitna or Submission, or if there is a diverse representation of Islamic life in Dutch media.)
*This should go without mention, but I am fully aware that the two are not one and the same thing.

Idea 3:
Another interest of mine that was spawned by our discussions of Islamic society in Amsterdam lies in broader terms. As a city that is home to Jews, Christians, and Muslims (and a city that has very peculiar, unique histories of all three religious groups), I think it would be interesting to do engage in research that would allow me to do a comparative study of all three religious groups in the city. Specifically, and in an effort to incorporate the concept of "physical space" that has been so prevalent in our discussions, I think it would be interesting to look at religious buildings--namely, churches, mosques and synagogues--and to attend services held in the various structures, particularly paying attention to the sermons. This would all be done in an effort to answer: What kinds of dialogues and discourses do religious spaces foster or allow that are less prevalent in other spaces? How are religious spaces used by varying religious groups in Amsterdam to address issues of the respective communities?

Idea 4:
I realize that the questions presented in "idea 3" are not easy to answer, pose many hurdles, and necessitate a lot of sensitivity and respect, but I feel like the theme that lies at the core of them --how certain spaces allow for specific dialogues, or how certain spaces, especially cultural ones, negotiate identity and diversity--is quite worthy of exploration. With this theme in mind, I realize that one does not need to only look at religious spaces; one can investigate other spaces of multiculturalism that might be easier to access--like restaurants. Although this may initially seem "superficial", I think there is a lot that a person can learn about the topic of multiculturalism in an urban environment from investigating various ethnic restaurants.