scholarly journals Does faith matter? Exploring the emerging value and tensions ascribed to faith identity in South African faith-based organisations

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadine Bowers Du Toit
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
South African ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Development Theory ◽  
Christian Identity ◽  
African Study ◽  
Essential Component ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Grassroots Level ◽  
The Way

Faith-based Organisations (FBOs) have been at the forefront of a growing interest of the intersection between religion and development. Their value has been recognised as both pragmatic (such as reaching the poorest at the grassroots level and encouraging civil society and advocacy) and, perhaps more contentiously, also ‘spiritual’ in nature because of advantages arising from faith itself (such as hope, meaning, purpose and transcendental power). For many FBOs, religion is far more than an ‘essential component of identity … it is a source of well-being’. In this manner, FBOs challenge the modernist assumptions of traditional development theory, which view the spiritual and physical domains as separate. In fact, for some FBOs, ‘spiritual faith provides the fuel for action’. This paper reports on an aspect of the empirical findings of a South African study and explores both the way in which Christian FBOs understand their Christian identity and the way in which they articulate this through their use of scripture as a motivating or an envisioning tool.

Placing Faith in Development: How Moscow's Religious Communities Contribute to a More Civil Society

Slavic Review ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 71 (2) ◽  
pp. 261-287 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa L. Caldwell
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Vantage Point ◽  
Religious Communities ◽  
Russian Society ◽  
Development Programs ◽  
Religiously Affiliated ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Development Organizations ◽  
Alternative Vision

The development-oriented work of Moscow's religious communities is examined in this article, with a focus on how a core group of faith organizations present themselves as offering an alternative vision of intervention and improvement that seeks to protect Russian citizens from what proponents suggest are the shortcomings of previous democratizing and civil society ventures. Staff and supporters within Moscow's faith-based assistance sphere contend that religiously affiliated assistance organizations are successful, not only because they parallel secular development programs in promoting values and practices of capitalism, democracy, and global human rights, but more importantly because they also claim to move beyond these approaches to tend to the well-being and transformation of the entire human being. Consequentiy, proponents argue that faith-based organizations are more attuned to values of humane treatment and civility, thereby making them better positioned to build a new Russian society that brings citizens and the state together in productive and caring relationships. Ultimately, this attention to the perspectives and ideals of religiously oriented development organizations provides a different vantage point for reconsidering the promises and consequences of Russia's neoliberal and democratizing transformations.

scholarly journals The Relevance of Theology and Legal policy in South African society in connection with violence against women

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Doniwen Pietersen
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
South African ◽  
Violence Against Women ◽  
Well Being ◽  
African Society ◽  
Law Enforcement Agencies ◽  
South African Society ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Care Approach ◽  
The Church

The theological question raised in this article violence against women theologically, drawing and incorporating the South African government’s response to it in terms of legislation and policing strategies and the need for greater participation of communities to combat gender-related crimes. The caretaker approach of the church as the custodian of the Hebrew Bible was also highlighted. Even though a church-based care approach may be limited, it still has the potential to support the efforts of law-enforcement agencies. When women in communities do not feel safe and fear violence at the hands of men, they are forced to resort to the state to provide protection. Crime, including crime against women, draws on insecurities about the level of safety and well-being in communities. It cannot be prevented or eliminated by the police alone but by the concerted collaboration of the private sector, NGOs, faith-based organisations such as churches and the community itself.

scholarly journals A holistic interdisciplinary approach towards environmental justice and youth empowerment

2021 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marichen A. Van der Westhuizen
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Environmental Justice ◽  
South African ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Future Generations ◽  
Youth Empowerment ◽  
Environmental Initiatives ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
African Youth

South African youth is described as marginalised and vulnerable because of, amongst others, high unemployment rates, a lack of access to opportunities and environmental degradation that threatens their and future generations’ well-being. Both social work and faith-based organisations place value on the empowerment of marginalised youth, as well as on the importance of participatory environmental initiatives. Practice guidelines to effectively empower youth in this regard are, however, lacking. This discussion was aimed at determining how environmental social work can take place in collaboration with faith-based organisations to contribute to both the empowerment of youth and environmental justice. A search of literature from 2010 onwards was conducted, focusing on the terms ‘sustainable development’, ‘marginalised youth’, ‘environmental and/or green social work’ and ‘faith-based organisations’. Central themes were identified through a thematic analysis. Four central themes were identified for youth empowerment through an interdisciplinary approach to contribute to environmental justice, namely environmental responsibility, attitude, knowledge and concern. It was concluded that the potential of an interdisciplinary environmental approach may be based on collaboration and an openness to include a renewed change orientation where disciplines work together across boundaries in multiple spaces to support environmental change and youth empowerment simultaneously.Contribution: The framework for collaborative initiatives may service as a guide to support marginalised youth to actively participate in social and environmental justice initiatives to contribute to their own and future generations’ well-being.

Differences in the Way to Conceive Happiness Relate to Different Reactions to Negative Events

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Fuochi ◽  
Chiara A. Veneziani ◽  
Alberto Voci
Keyword(s):  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Satisfaction With Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Stressful Events ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
Negative Events ◽  
Orientations To Happiness ◽  
Specific Reactions ◽  
The Way

Abstract. This paper aimed to assess whether differences in the way to conceive happiness, measured by the Orientations to Happiness measure, were associated with specific reactions to negative events. We hypothesized that among orientations to pleasure (portraying hedonism), to meaning (representing a eudaimonic approach to life), and to engagement (derived from the experience of flow), orientation to meaning would have displayed a stronger protective role against recent negative and potentially stressful events. After providing a validation of the Italian version of the Orientations to Happiness measure (Study 1), we performed regression analyses of the three orientations on positive and negative emotions linked to a self-relevant negative event (Study 2), and moderation analyses assessing the interactive effects of orientations to happiness and stressful events on well-being indicators (Study 3). Our findings supported the hypotheses. In Study 2, meaning was associated with positive emotions characterized by a lower activation (contentment and interest) compared to the positive emotions associated with pleasure (amusement, eagerness, and happiness). In Study 3, only meaning buffered the effect of recent potentially stressful events on satisfaction with life and positive affect. Results suggest that orientation to meaning might help individuals to better react to negative events.

Strategic threats to energy security as risks of quality of people's life

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 730-744
Author(s):  
V.I. Loktionov
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Energy Security ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Scientific Methods ◽  
Analysis And Synthesis ◽  
General Scientific ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Economic Well Being ◽  
The Way

Subject. The article reviews the way strategic threats to energy security influence the quality of people's life. Objectives. The study unfolds the theory of analyzing strategic threats to energy security by covering the matter of quality of people's life. Methods. To analyze the way strategic threats to energy security spread across cross-sectoral commodity and production chains and influences quality of people's living, I applied the factor analysis and general scientific methods of analysis and synthesis. Results. I suggest interpreting strategic threats to energy security as risks of people's quality of life due to a reduction in the volume of energy supply. I identified mechanisms reflecting how the fuel and energy complex and its development influence the quality of people's life. The article sets out the method to assess such quality-of-life risks arising from strategic threats to energy security. Conclusions and Relevance. In the current geopolitical situation, strategic threats to energy security cause long-standing adverse consequences for the quality of people's life. If strategic threats to energy security are further construed as risk of quality of people's life, this will facilitate the preparation and performance of a more effective governmental policy on energy, which will subsequently raise the economic well-being of people.

Religion and Medicine

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeff Levin ◽  
Stephen G. Post
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Clinical Decision ◽  
Religion And Medicine ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Baylor University ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Impact

In Religion and Medicine, Dr. Jeff Levin, distinguished Baylor University epidemiologist, outlines the longstanding history of multifaceted interconnections between the institutions of religion and medicine. He traces the history of the encounter between these two institutions from antiquity through to the present day, highlighting a myriad of contemporary alliances between the faith-based and medical sectors. Religion and Medicine tells the story of: religious healers and religiously branded hospitals and healthcare institutions; pastoral professionals involved in medical missions, healthcare chaplaincy, and psychological counseling; congregational health promotion and disease prevention programs and global health initiatives; research studies on the impact of religious and spiritual beliefs and practices on physical and mental health, well-being, and healing; programs and centers for medical research and education within major universities and academic institutions; religiously informed bioethics and clinical decision-making; and faith-based health policy initiatives and advocacy for healthcare reform. Religion and Medicine is the first book to cover the full breadth of this subject. It documents religion-medicine alliances across religious traditions, throughout the world, and over the course of history. It summarizes a wide range of material of relevance to historians, medical professionals, pastors and theologians, bioethicists, scientists, public health educators, and policymakers. The product of decades of rigorous and focused research, Dr. Levin has produced the most comprehensive history of these developments and the finest introduction to this emerging field of scholarship.

When Political Transitions Work

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanie du Toit
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Transition To Democracy ◽  
Political Transitions ◽  
Political Reconciliation ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
African Experience ◽  
The One

Reconciliation emphasizes relationships as a crucial ingredient of political transition; this book argues for the importance of such a relational focus in crafting sustainable political transitions. Section I focuses on South Africa’s transition to democracy—how Mandela and De Klerk persuaded skeptical constituencies to commit to political reconciliation, how this proposal gained momentum, and how well the transition resulted in the goal of an inclusive and fair society. In developing a coherent theory of reconciliation to address questions such as these, I explain political reconciliation from three angles and thereby build a concept of reconciliation that corresponds largely with the South African experience. In Section II, these questions lead the discussion beyond South Africa into some of the prominent theoretical approaches to reconciliation in recent times. I develop typologies for three different reconciliation theories: forgiveness, agonism, and social restoration. I conclude in Section III that relationships created through political reconciliation, between leaders as well as between ordinary citizens, are illuminated when understood as an expression of a comprehensive “interdependence” that precedes any formal peace processes between enemies. I argue that linking reconciliation with the acknowledgment of interdependence emphasizes that there is no real alternative to reconciliation if the motivation is the long-term well-being of one’s own community. Without ensuring the conditions in which an enemy can flourish, one’s own community is unlikely to prosper sustainably. This theoretical approach locates the deepest motivation for reconciliation in choosing mutual well-being above the one-sided fight for exclusive survival at the other’s cost.

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