scholarly journals Considering the Contradictions of Religion and Orthodox Christianity as concomitantly endorsing strife and accord – a Social Capital Perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francois du Toit (RIP) ◽  
Angelo Nicolaides
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
New Testament ◽  
Religious Leaders ◽  
Orthodox Christianity ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
The Social ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Social Associations ◽  
Social Capital Perspective

This paper contributes to the existing literature by providing an discussion and a critique of the discourse of social capital as it relates to Christianity and in particular to an Orthodox stance. Religion is acknowledged as responsible for promoting factions in the world, as well as for the strife amongst the various religious groups. The New Testament is studied with the constituents of social capital – networks (groups), norms and trust – as a foundation for evaluating the ministries and teaching of Christianity with regards to the role thereof in promoting strife and unity and ultimately harmony amongst people. The ministry of Jesus Christ was distinctly opposed to the prevailing social capital in the then Jewish territories, as is the case in the epistles when speaking to the non-Jewish parishes. The prevailing normative principles were frequently censured, and the confrontational manner in which the established social groups were related to, aggravated by the entirely inclusive but absolutely exclusive standpoint, is deemed inexcusable and resulted in the execution of Christ and a number of his apostles and other followers. The threat to the trust amongst the Jewish citizens and also between the general population groups and religious leaders proved to be a major driving force in ongoing persecutions. Unity amongst the early Christians proved elusive and the absence of heterogeneity as a requirement for socially cohesive networks and groups served to explain this challenge. Diversity of ethnicity, language and culture impeded the spontaneous social associations. The epistles provide us with a rich account of the significance of diversity and the constant efforts towards unity and societal harmony. This is in concord with the Orthodox faith which is strongly in favour of acceptance of diversity and love for others. Social capital is an stimulating idea that has since biblical days become a focus for community advancement initiatives. The social capital perspective of the New Testament easily transcends into our reality of today and supports the relevance of Christian principles two thousand years later.

scholarly journals Armoedekultuur: Die leefwereld van die Nuwe Testament en die situasie in Suid-Afrika vandag

1996 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andries Van Aarde
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
New Testament ◽  
Social Dynamics ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Culture Of Poverty ◽  
Economic Statistics ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Social Scientific

Culture of poverty: The world of the New Testament then and the situation in South Africa today. In this article poverty in the world of the New Testament is explained in the  light of the social dynamics of the first century Eastern Mediterranean. The focus is on the sub-culture of the disreputable poor. Features of a culture of poverty are reflected upon from a social-scientific perspective in order to try to understand why poverty is intensifying in South Africa today. The article aims at identifying guidelines for Christians in using the New Testament in a profound way to challenge the threat of poverty. The following aspects are discussed: the underdevelopment of third-world societies over against the technical evolution in first-world societies during the past two hundred years, economic statistics with regard to productivity and unemployment in South Africa, the social identity of the disreputable poor, poverty within the pre-print culture of the biblical period, and the church as the household of God where Christians should have compassion for others.

Relationship Among the Dimensions of Knowledge Management from the Viewpoint of Social Capital Based on Interpretive Structural Modelling (A Case Study)

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (03) ◽  
pp. 1550024 ◽  
Author(s):  
Houshang Taghizadeh ◽  
Abdolhossein Shokri
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Knowledge Management ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Statistical Population ◽  
Leadership And Management ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Capital Perspective ◽  
Internal Relationships

The main purpose of the present research is to identify the internal relationships among the dimensions of knowledge management from the viewpoint of social capital. The statistical population includes 50 Professors and experts in the field, who have been defined as connoisseurs. The data have been collected through the use of the researcher-designed questionnaire. The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by content validity, and its reliability was determined by test–retest method. The results indicate that the dimensions of knowledge management, from the social capital perspective, have relatively strong, reciprocal systemic relations with each other. Among the dimensions of knowledge management studied in the research, the "leadership and management" dimension has been identified as the strongest dimension from the viewpoint of leading power, and the "intellectual capital" has been recognised as having the highest rate of dependence on the other dimensions of knowledge management regarding the social capital of knowledge management. The results obtained from the identification and evaluation of the systematic relations can be used as a guide by managers and decision-makers in designing strategic programs concerning knowledge management within the organisation while having social capital in mind.

Women in the New Testament World

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Hylen
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Roman History ◽  
Social Expectations ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
The Social ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Women's Lives ◽  
Economic Well Being

This book presents and interprets evidence for women’s lives in the social context of the New Testament. Some of the evidence from this period of Roman history suggests that women’s roles were sharply restricted. Other evidence shows women taking on leadership roles, managing property, and the like. Previous interpreters have often argued that the two kinds of evidence describe different groups or arenas where women’s activity was either forbidden or allowed. However, this book argues that the evidence points to complex gender norms that were sometimes in tension. The culture widely recognized modesty, submission to men, and silence as virtues of women. Yet society also encouraged women to contribute to the economic well-being of their families and to serve as patrons of individuals, groups, and cities. The chapters of the book address the virtues of women, their legal status, wealth, patronage, occupations, and speech. Each chapter explores the way the New Testament writings emerge out of and reflect this complex set of social expectations for women.

Orchestrating an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in an emerging country: The lead actor’s role from a social capital perspective

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (8) ◽  
pp. 767-786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Porras-Paez ◽  
Jana Schmutzler
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Industrial Development ◽  
Social Capital Theory ◽  
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem ◽  
Capital Theory ◽  
Weak Institutions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Resource Endowment ◽  
Emerging Country ◽  
Social Capital Perspective

During the recent years, the question of whether an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem emerges organically or is man-made has been disputed. This paper explores the case of an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in a developing country. We argue that in the context of lagging industrial development and weak institutions, a lead actor needs to step in to aid the emergence of an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem. We argue that only a locally embedded actor who has the resource endowment and the legitimacy to do so can assume such a role. By applying social capital theory, we show that deliberate strategies by this lead actor to densify the social network within the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem will assist in establishing trust and future collaboration, which will result in productive entrepreneurship.

Spinoffs and their endowments: beyond knowledge inheritance theory

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 570-589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Furlan ◽  
Roberto Grandinetti
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Theoretical Research ◽  
Integrative Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Integrative Framework ◽  
The Social ◽  
Conceptual Paper ◽  
Social Capital Perspective ◽  
Crucial Part

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to integrate knowledge inheritance theory with the social capital perspective to explain the initial endowments of spinoffs. Design/methodology/approach – The authors maintain that social capital plays a crucial part, both as a mechanism supporting the generation of intellectual capital prior to a spinoff’s foundation, and as an endowment that complements this capital once the spinoff is founded. Knowledge inheritance remains a fundamental mechanism for the formation of a spinoff’s intellectual capital. Its other endowment, social capital, derives from three types of relationship that future entrepreneurs develop within, through and outside their parent firm, all three of which are crucial to the formation of a spinoff’s intellectual capital. Findings – The first result of the theoretical research is an integrative framework of a spinoff’s endowments. Moreover, the authors apply this framework to address two key research questions in the spinoff literature, i.e. whether spinoffs can differ from their parents in terms of intellectual capital; and why spinoffs tend to co-locate near their parents, in geographical clusters. The integrative approach helps to tackle these questions. Originality/value – This conceptual paper offers a more comprehensive explanation of the emergence of spinoffs in terms of their initial endowments than the knowledge inheritance theory.

scholarly journals Knowledge sharing in online smoking cessation communities: a social capital perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chenglong Li ◽  
Hongxiu Li ◽  
Reima Suomi ◽  
Yong Liu
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Smoking Cessation ◽  
Knowledge Sharing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Online Health Communities ◽  
Structural Capital ◽  
The Social ◽  
Health Communities ◽  
Social Capital Perspective ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeAlthough knowledge sharing in online communities has been studied for many years, little is known about the determinants for individuals' knowledge sharing in online health communities (OHCs) surrounding smoking cessation. Examining the determinants of knowledge sharing in such OHCs from the social capital perspective may prove particularly enlightening.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire-based online user survey of two smoking cessation OHCs, one based in Finland and one based in China, was performed. Performing data analysis with partial least squares (SmartPLS 3.0), the authors developed a model conceptualizing the structural, cognitive and relational dimensions of social capital as drivers for knowledge sharing in smoking cessation OHCs, with users' stage in giving up smoking as a moderator.FindingsThe results show that structural capital (social ties) and relational capital (reciprocity) are important motivators behind knowledge sharing in smoking cessation OHCs, and the authors found a moderating effect of the stage in quitting on the antecedents' relationship with knowledge sharing in these OHCs.Originality/valueThe study enriches understanding of knowledge sharing in smoking cessation OHCs, contributing to theory and identifying practical implications for such groups' administration.

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