Contributions of Religious Leaders to the Conceptualization of World Peace : A comparative case study of Statements by Bahá’í, Catholic, and Tibetan Buddhist Leadership

Sammanfattning: In this research, Lua Nazerian examines the conceptualization of three different statements given by leaders of the Bahá'í, Catholic, and Tibetan Buddhist faiths on the topic of world peace. Moreover, through a comparative analysis, each conceptualization was examined in light of the different degrees they agree or contradict each other and whether a coherent contribution could be made to a common concept of world peace. The research was conducted in two stages, first, through the thematic analysis method some major principles and overarching themes specific to each statement and relevant to the concept of world peace were identified, followed by a comparative analysis with the support of two operative questions. Furthermore, as there are multiple challenges with studying the abstract and complex concepts of peace and religious voices, the study was conducted through the lens of the statements rather than through religions to avoid this pitfall. It was found that while determining the overall coherence of each perspective, some common philosophical premises and core understandings of human nature and interconnectedness appeared to cohere. Meanwhile, some fundamental differences arose on the level of theological starting points that affected the overarching approach to world peace as such. However, these differences did not contradict a coherent contribution of a common conceptualization of world peace. Although the findings of this research are in the emerging stages of the evolution of further research, the contribution of its undertaking is of value to the field of religion in peace and conflict studies.