Is religion a force for good? Reformulating the discourse on religion and international development
2013; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 34; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1080/02255189.2013.787052
ISSN2158-9100
Autores Tópico(s)International Development and Aid
ResumoAbstract Abstract Questions about the role of religion in international development highlight the ongoing tension between traditional and late modern societies, and the predicaments of international collaboration and interdependence in a postcolonial global context. They also highlight the need to clarify the ethical and practical contexts of development, given that religion crosses the boundaries between “traditional” and “modern”, “oppressor” and “oppressed”. This article argues that development workers must be knowledgeable about, concerned with and sensitive to the religious interests and values of the local community. Secular development policies must therefore seriously consider the importance of religion in global society. Résumé Le questionnement actuel sur le rôle de la religion dans le développement international témoigne de la tension entre les sociétés traditionnelles et les sociétés modernes avancées et des difficultés de la collaboration internationale et de l'interdépendance dans un contexte postcolonial mondial. Il invite à clarifier le contexte éthique et pratique du développement étant donné que la religion traverse la limite entre le traditionnel et le moderne et entre l'oppresseur et l'opprimé. Les praticiens du développement doivent faire preuve d'une grande sensibilité à l'égard des intérêts et des valeurs des communautés locales. Les politiques laïques de développement doivent également tenir compte de l'importance de la religion dans la société mondiale. Keywords: religiondevelopmentaidNGOsfaith-based organisations Notes There are also non-Christian development projects in these regions, including those run by Muslim, Baha'i, Jewish and other groups. For more on the religion in the West, see Statistics Canada (n.d. Statistics Canada. n.d. “Overview: Canada Still Predominantly Roman Catholic and Protestant.” Analysis Series: Religions in Canada. http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/Products/Analytic/companion/rel/canada.cfm [Google Scholar], available at http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/Products/Analytic/companion/rel/canada.cfm#growth) as well as Bramadat and Seljak (2008b Bramadat, P. and Seljak, D. 2008b. Christianity and Ethnicity in Canada, Edited by: Bramadat, P. and Seljak, D. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). For example, one Sunday morning I went for a walk around the streets of Kampala. I came upon a very large crowd on the sidewalk around a building. As I drew nearer, I realised it was a Catholic church in the midst of celebrating a Mass. The church was so full that plastic chairs had been placed outside on the sidewalk of the plaza and still other people were standing or sitting on the walls and curbs or leaning up against nearby trees. I asked a person in the crowd if it was some special event and was told that it was just a regular Mass, one of the five that would take place that day. He explained that they had to put the chairs outside in order to accommodate all the people who attend. “Late modernity” is a variation on “postmodernity” that for a number of reasons has become a highly problematic term. Essentially, postmodernity attempts to describe societies that include all the elements of the modern era and add the new realities of globalisation and rapid technological advances. There is much disagreement about when or if one era has ended or been succeed by another. I prefer to use Anthony Giddens' phrase late modernity because it implies that many of the characteristics of the modern era remain and have even been heightened by technology and global mobility. For more on this see Giddens (1991) Giddens, A. 1991. Modernity and Self-Identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Age, Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. [Google Scholar], Beck (1999) Beck, U. 1999. World Risk Society, Malden, MA: Polity Press. [Google Scholar] and Bauman (2000) Bauman, Z. 2000. Liquid Modernity, Cambridge: Polity Press. [Google Scholar]. For example, Catholicism's liberation theology and numerous faith-based development projects including the Aga Khan Foundation, Free the Children, World Vision, American Jewish World Service and others. 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For more details on the impact of the tsunami see Arlikatti et al. (2010) Arlikatti, S., Peacock, W. G., Prater, C. S., Grover, H. and Sekar, A. S. 2010. Assessing the Impact of the Indian Ocean Tsunami on Households: A Modified Domestic Assets Index Approach. Disasters, 34(3): 705–731. (doi:10.1111/j.1467-7717.2010.01166.x)[Crossref], [PubMed] , [Google Scholar]. Of course, a downside of this kind of approach is the pressure on those in positions of responsibility to engage in favouritism, nepotism, or other forms of corruption. Whether or not such a model increases or decreases the amount of corruption that occurs within development projects is not the subject of this paper, but bears further analysis as it would provide meaningful insights that could improve development models globally. There is a large body of literature on corruption and development. See for example Bracking (2008) Bracking, S. 2008. Corruption and Development, Edited by: Bracking, S. 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