Vol. 8, No. 4 (Winter 2010)
Any effort to understand and improve the religion-development nexus will entail a "top-down" dimension (focusing on government policy) and a "bottom-up" dimension (focusing on the perspectives and behaviors of religious actors themselves). This issue of The Review of Faith & International Affairs brings top-down and bottom-up together in a common forum.
A Developing Story
Dennis Hoover Monday, 29 November 2010
Religion received less attention than it deserved in the recent discourse about the Millennium Development Goals and a new US global development strategy. Fortunately, however, in other quarters religion is faring better in the development discussion. [FREE]
Max Weber is Alive and Well, and Living in Guatemala: The Protestant Ethic Today
Peter Berger Monday, 29 November 2010
A century after Weber's famous essay, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Protestantism has changed dramatically. Today, there is an affinity between Pentecostalism—a movement vibrant in Latin America and Africa—and modern economic development. [FREE]
Read more: Max Weber is Alive and Well, and Living in Guatemala: The Protestant Ethic Today
Inspiring Development in Fragile States
Seth Kaplan Monday, 29 November 2010
Building social cohesion, social capital, and the capacity for self-governance should be the starting point for any development initiative. And few organizations are better equipped to reverse social atomization and catalyze local capacities for self-governance than faith-based organizations.
Catholic Social Teaching, MacIntyre’s Social Theory, and Global Development
Scott Thomas Monday, 29 November 2010
Several of the basic principles of Catholic social teaching are related to the main problems of developing countries, so Catholic social teaching can inform how the development community views culture and religion.
Read more: Catholic Social Teaching, MacIntyre’s Social Theory, and Global Development
Development, Religion, and Women’s Roles in Contemporary Societies
Katherine Marshall Monday, 29 November 2010
There are a range of areas where religion and gender intersect, each illustrating some reasons for tensions, areas for common ground, and potential avenues for productive engagement.
Read more: Development, Religion, and Women’s Roles in Contemporary Societies
Economic Globalization: The View from the Pews
James Guth Monday, 29 November 2010
How do religious factors influence public attitudes toward "cooperative internationalism"? This article presents findings from four large-sample studies of public attitudes that include questions on both economic globalization and religious affiliation.
“Good News” in the Fight Against Corruption
Roberto Laver Monday, 29 November 2010
Corruption is receiving far more attention from secular organizations than religious ones. The church needs to work locally on relevant and appropriate ways to engage the people it serves with the truth of scripture; to teach ethics and encourage public integrity; and to help reduce the gap between law and practice.
The Humanitarian Community Needs a Foreign Service
George Ward, Jr. Monday, 29 November 2010
The United States Foreign Service can serve as a model for human resource management and professional development in faith-based NGOs—training individuals to respond with speed and agility to crises, conduct long-term programs, and manage sizable work forces.
Read more: The Humanitarian Community Needs a Foreign Service
Evangelicals, Pope Benedict, and the Financial Crisis
Paul Williams Monday, 29 November 2010
Evangelicals at a recent conference responded to Pope Benedict's encyclical Caritas in Veritate, finding common ground and offering critique. Participants found the encyclical's responses to the financial crisis lacking, and they questioned its apparently unqualified enthusiasm for globalization.
Read more: Evangelicals, Pope Benedict, and the Financial Crisis
Work and Love in the Global Village: Responding to Caritas in Veritate
Ray Pennings Monday, 29 November 2010
Unions ought not to be about merely rights, redistribution, or social support. They are about stewarding human capital, ensuring its potential is realized, and providing a fair return on investment.
Read more: Work and Love in the Global Village: Responding to Caritas in Veritate
Fundraising: A Christian Perspective on Enabling Radical Hospitality
Robert Seiple Monday, 29 November 2010
When it is done properly, fundraising for Christian humanitarian organizations is not transactional. It is relational, and the depth of the relationship determines the on-going quality of the ministry.
Read more: Fundraising: A Christian Perspective on Enabling Radical Hospitality
Liberated Mindsets, Literate Minds: Reflections on Christianity and Development in Africa
Stephen Walter, J. Brady Anderson Monday, 29 November 2010
Since the Reformation the Christian tradition has insisted that its scriptures should and must be available to everyone. Both literacy and faith convey levels of liberation and empowerment that fundamentally reorder one's standing in life.
Read more: Liberated Mindsets, Literate Minds: Reflections on Christianity and Development in Africa
How Evangelicals Failed to Change the World
Anna Littauer Carrington Monday, 29 November 2010
A review of James Davison Hunter, To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010).
America's Holy War of Secular Theologies
Marisa Van Saanen Monday, 29 November 2010
A review of Robert H. Nelson, The New Holy Wars: Economic Religion vs. Environmental Religion in Contemporary America (University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 2010).
International Relations, Religion, and the Transcendent
Simon Polinder Monday, 29 November 2010
A review of Edy Korthals Altes, Spiritual Awakening: The Hidden Key to Peace and Security, Just and Sustainable Economics, A Responsible European Union (Leuven: Peeters, 2008).
Read more: International Relations, Religion, and the Transcendent