The Dimensions that Establish and Sustain Religious Identity: A Study of Chinese Singaporeans Who are Buddhists or Taoists by Daniel H. Y. Low (review)

The Dimensions that Establish and Sustain Religious Identity is based on the author’s doctoral dissertation of the same title. Daniel Low, a Chinese Singaporean Christian researcher (see p. 58), adopts a qualitative approach to “discover and explain the dimensions that establish and sustain the religious identity of Chinese Singaporeans who are either Buddhist or Taoists” (p. xv). This intriguing monograph draws on Low’s one-month research in Singapore between September 4 and October 4, 2012. Low conducted thirty-two one-hour long interviews with sixteen Buddhists and sixteen Taoists in “places convenient for the participants,” and undertook participant observations in various temples and places of worship (see pp. 66, 68, 73). He analyzes the data using a “Grounded Theory Method,” and proposes his theory of “The Enfolding Presence and Power of Spiritual Realities” to argue that religious identity is established and sustained by the domains of “recognition, appreciation, and dedication” (p. 142). None of these terms, however, are fully explicated and theorized in the book.

The organization of this concise study, which is constrained by the standard format of a dissertation, can be divided into two parts. The first part presents the research background, literature review, and methodology. After a foreword by Taoist priest Chung Kwang Tong, chapter 1 discusses the rationale, purpose, scope, limitations, and significance of the book. Low defines “religious identity” as “an individual’s awareness of and commitment to: (a) a continuous and invigorating inner well-being, and (b) a sense of belonging and a need to extend the well-being to the sociocultural community associated with the divine” (p. 6). Chapter 2 reviews the literature on religious practices of Chinese Singaporeans, as well as the sociological and historical studies on Buddhism and Taoism in Singapore. Chapter 3 continues the literature review, but focuses on the theories of identity and identity formation, and scholarship on religious identity and religion’s impact on identity. Chapter 4 explains the reasons for a qualitative research approach. It also discusses the research methods and procedures used in the book.

The second part of the book examines the dimensions of Chinese Singaporeans’ religious identity by focusing on three “dynamic domains,” namely, recognition, appreciation, and dedication. Chapter 5 begins by vaguely explaining the proposed theory of “Enfolding Presence and Power of Spiritual Realities.” It suggests that the domains of recognition, appreciation, and dedication stem from the respective subdomains of “(a) participation and revelation; (b) transformation, direction, and protection; and (c) aspiration and obligation” (p. 74). The chapter then points out that the “recognition” domain emerged from Chinese Singaporean Buddhists and Taoists’ symbolic forms and activities such as chanting, meditation, and making offerings, as well as their “face-to-face meetings” with spiritual realities (p. 81). Chapter 6 investigates how “appreciation” of the divine efficacy and teachings of Buddhism and Taoism contributes to the sustenance of religious identity. It suggests that Chinese Singaporean Buddhists and Taoists are appreciative of how the spiritual realities brought about “transformation, direction, and protection” (p. 101). According to Low, transformation, direction, and protection are achieved through the participation in rituals as well as the recitation of religious texts. The chapter also highlights that Christian evangelization of Buddhists and Taoists has led to “unhappy sentiment” and that “the resulting tensions continue to present challenges toward future interreligious interactions and harmony in Singapore” (p. 123). Chapter 7 discusses how the “dedication” domain, which is shaped by the informants’ perception of the presence and power of spiritual realities, influences their future commitment to Buddhism and Taoism. It demonstrates that the “enfolding presence and power of spiritual realities” sustain and establish the religious identity of Chinese Singaporeans who are either Buddhist or Taoists (p. 139). In the final concluding chapter (chapter 8), Low discusses the...