New Religions and Globalization Opening Remarks at “2011 International Conference of New Religion in a Globalized East”
新興宗教與全球化「世界新興宗教研究中心2011國際年會」開幕辭

釋昭慧（台灣宗教學會理事長）

Principal, Dean, distinguished guests, scholars and students,
校長、院長、各位貴賓、學者以及同學們：

It is my pleasure to be invited to the opening ceremony for The 2011 International Conference of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), co-organized by Aletheia University, ISAR (Institute for the Study of American Religion) and the International Association for the Study of New Religions.
本人很榮幸！受邀參加「世界新興宗教研究中心2011國際年會」開幕典禮。本次會議由真理大學、美國宗教研究中心（ISAR）及新興宗教研究國際協會共同合辦。

The theme of the conference is “New Religion in a Globalized East: Taiwan, Southeast Asia and the World”. This is a very meaningful and interesting topic. Since ancient times, new religions have arisen periodically around the world. Before the era of globalization, the content and form of new religions have taken shape from both the spiritual experiences of their leaders and their local culture. Now as we enter the era of globalization, how will new trends in mass media and multicultural exposure impact the genesis of new religions? This is a matter worthy of academic attention. 
本次會議主旨是「在全球化的東方看見新興宗教：台灣、東南亞與全世界」，這是非常有意義而有趣的主題。古往今來，世界各地的新興宗教一直層出不窮，在全球化的時代以前，新興宗教的內容與形態的塑造，來自領導人的冥契經驗及在地文化。而現在，我們進入了全球化時代，在大眾傳播媒體及多重文化的影響之下，如何形成新興宗教的新趨勢呢？這是一個值得學術界關注的課題。

However, the emergence of new religions also brings about religious pluralism. And with globalization becoming ever more pervasive, the blurring of cultural boundaries pushes us closer towards cultural homogeneity. In light of this progression, will the content and form of new religions become increasingly similar? Will they draw from multiple regions and inherit common traits from international influences?
無論如何，新興宗教的出現也帶來宗教的多元主義。並且，隨著全球化越來越遍佈，文化界線的模糊促使我們越來越趨近文化的同質性。在這一進展之下，新興宗教的內容與型態會變得更相似嗎？它們將被多重區域形塑，且承接國際影響而會有共同的特徵嗎？

New religions may still have a strong personal touch and localized color, but it is possible that globalization will impact the nature and function of new religions in our society. Thus 新興宗教容或仍然具有強烈的個人風格與地方色彩，但在我們的社會中，新興宗教的性質與功能可能會受到全球化的衝擊。是以，我們必須仔細考慮這些影響，以決定如何恰當因應未來各種新興宗教事件。

I believe that the scholars in this conference will arrive at their own fair conclusions, and will have many engaging viewpoints to share.
我相信，在這次會議中的諸位學者，將會得出公允的結論，並且將分享許多精采的觀點。

Principal, Dean, thank you for the opportunity to speak here today. Fellow guests, please enjoy the conference. May all of us have a healthy, happy and harmony lives.
感謝校長及院長，給予本人與會致辭的機會。請各位來賓愉悅地享受本次會議，並祝福大家有個健康、快樂與和諧的人生。

2011.6.21，于真理大學「世界新興宗教研究中心2011國際年會」