At the ‘Religion on the Move in the Global East’ session at the East Asian Society for the Scientific Study of Religion’s inaugural conference, held from 3-5 July 2018 at SMU, scholars explored these questions like – How has the movement of people and beliefs across borders affected religious landscapes, cultures and identities? SMU Assistant Professor of Humanities Orlando Woods in his talk, titled ‘Fractured Lives, Newfound Freedoms: The Politics of Religious Seekership Amongst Chinese Migrants in Singapore’ said many migrants from China to Singapore, for example, encounter religion for the first time in their host country; indeed, many Christian groups in Singapore actively target Chinese migrants in their evangelisation efforts.
In work done together with SMU Provost Professor Lily Kong, Assistant Prof Woods is exploring how Chinese Christian converts in Singapore reconcile these differences, as well as how their conversion affects their relationships with groups such as other Chinese migrants, Singaporeans, family and friends.