Volunteerism, Social Work, and the Church: A Historic Overview and Look into the Future

This article sets forth the relationship between volunteerism, social work, and the church as consisting of three discernable periods: 1) recognition of volunteerism, rooted in the church, as the origin of the profession; 2) a general attempt by the social work profession to separate and distinguish itself from volunteerism and religiously motivated services; and 3) periods of reconciliation in times of need. The authors conclude by positing the need for context-specific optimal partnerships between religious and secular professionals and religious and secular volunteers. Two case examples of context-specific optimal partnerships will be followed by implications for social work educators and practitioners