This exciting volume pioneers the study of the complex relationship between religion and deliberative democracy, a practice that places importance on the need for citizens to come together to identify shared concerns and issues, work through choices and options for action, weigh consequences and trade-offs, and possibly take collective action to influence decisions and policies.Chapters use case studies to demonstrate instances where deliberative democracy has advanced the positive...

Between 1867 and 2000, the Canadian government sent over 150,000 Aboriginal children to residential schools across the country. Government officials and missionaries agreed that in order to “civilize and Christianize” Aboriginal children, it was necessary to separate them from their parents and their home communities.For children, life in these schools was lonely and alien. Discipline was harsh, and daily life was highly regimented. Aboriginal languages and cultures were denigrated...

From the UK Church's complicity in the transatlantic slave trade to the whitewashing of Christianity throughout history, the Church has a lot to answer for when it comes to race relations.Christianity has been dubbed the white man's religion, yet the Bible speaks of an impartial God and shows us a diverse body of believers.It's time for the Church to start talking about race.Ben Lindsay offers eye-opening insights into the black rel...

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby sets out a radical vision for 21st century Britain in this updated paperback edition.It is now three years since Justin Welby first published his Reimagining Britain. The fundamental message of that book remains as urgent as ever. But in this revised and expanded edition, Welby has taken fully into account the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Brexit and all the social and political unrest that has ensued. If anything, ...

"A fine volume on the moral meaning and function of philanthropy…makes the case that philanthropy is essential to democratic society."— ChoicePhilanthropy has existed in various forms in all cultures and civilizations throughout history, yet most people know little about it and its distinctive place in our lives. Why does philanthropy exist? Why do people so often turn to philanthropy when we want to make the world a better place? In essence, what is phila...

In recent years, a number of controversies have emerged from inside Canadian universities. While some of these controversies reflect debates occurring at a broader societal level, others are unique to the culture of universities and the way in which they are governed. In University Commons Divided, Peter MacKinnon provides close readings of a range of recent incidents with a view to exploring new challenges within universities and the extent to which the idea of the university as ...

The New Urban World Journal was started by the International Society of Urban Mission and is now published semi annually by the Urban Shalom Society. This edition is the second part of our series on the City We Need. Inspired by the United Nations' Habitat 3 and the New Urban Agenda, the journal explores themes related to creating city spaces where all can thrive and flourish. Articles include what a safe city looks like; the connection between shalom and cohesive territorial development a...

An incisive political tract that calls for a return to humanist values: equality, liberty, a return to community, mutual respect, freedom from poverty, and an end to theocracy and fundamentalism. The authors argue that a return to these values constitutes “a path to hope,” leading the way out of the present worldwide malaise brought on by economic collapse, moral failure, and an ignorance of history.For the authors, 20th-century fascism was no mere abstraction—it w...

Our democracies repeatedly fail to safeguard the future. From pensions to pandemics, health and social care through to climate, biodiversity and emerging technologies, democracies have been unable to deliver robust policies for the long term.In this book, Graham Smith asks why. Exploring the drivers of short-termism, he considers ways of reshaping legislatures and constitutions and proposes strengthening independent offices whose overarching goals do not change at every election. M...

There is a war going on in our nation's political discourse. Polarizing labels--left/right, Republican/Democrat, young/old, rich/poor, traditional/progressive--define and divide us. And in the process we've lost a vision for the common good.Jim Wallis believes our life together can be better. And he thinks both conservatives and liberals have something to offer in finding answers to today's complex problems. Personal responsibility and social responsibility are equally important: w...

This study of charity in Uganda "challenges current international development norms and standards . . . as . . . refusals to redistribute wealth" ( Washington Post).Believing that charity inadvertently legitimates social inequality and fosters dependence, many international development organizations have increasingly sought to replace material aid with efforts to build self-reliance and local institutions. But in some cultures—like those in rural Uganda, wh...

This book investigates the substantial and growing contribution which African Independent and Pentecostal Churches are making to sustainable development in all its manifold forms. Moreover, this volume seeks to elucidate how these churches reshape the very notion of sustainable development and contribute to the decolonisation of development.Fostering both overarching and comparative perspectives, the book includes chapters on West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, and Burkina Faso) and South...