Faith in Civil Society : Religious Actors as Drivers of Change

Religious associations and communities are increasingly recognised as important social actors across the world, belying common European assumptions of a universal development path of secularisation. The last decades, states have taken a renewed interest in religious associations, an interest reflected as well within international development cooperation. While this has given augmented recognition to the role of religious actors, it has also brought to fore differences in perspectives and values, and raised issues on how to respect – or strive to overcome – these. This volume addresses how religious faith can be a force for social change, where people mobilise around shared identities with spiritual as well as political objectives. Through case studies and analyses from across the world, the volume contributors discuss how faith-based communities manifest themselves as important social actors, and how they deal with sometimes conflicting values and notions of change, within their own communities and in relation to other actors