Product Description

Does global civil society offer hope of a world for all? Reflecting on globalization, ethics, and religion, social theorists and theologians consider answers to this pivotal question. In their ecumenical, interdisciplinary dialogue, capped off by five local case studies from around the world, they contemplate a globally inclusive social vision unbounded by national and ethnic borders and examine the ongoing relationship between civil society and the church that worships a Trinitarian God. Global civil society is the theme of this solid collection of essays. What is it? How might it relate to foundational Christian theology? How does it connect to important ecumenical movements of the twentieth century? What does it look like in practical cases? And can any theorizing about the global escape the evils of western colonial exploitation? The overall result is important dialogue on important world problems in the light of important Christian doctrines. Mark A. Noll University of Notre Dame Here is a body of genuinely ecumenical thinking and imaginative yet inviting critical scrutiny a rich resource for all who, being seriously concerned with the direction of human society and the role of faith within it, look for grounds of hope for our world. Keith Clements Conference of European Churches This volume advances significantly an important discussion of the meaning of global civil society and how Christian theology might engage it. . . . The range of voices represented here reflects the complex and urgent question of how we can continue a worldwide exchange of action and policy that will allow all people to live together in a genuinely humane fashion. No discussion of political theology, social theory, and cosmopolitanism can be continued without reference to this book. Robert Schreiter author of The New Catholicity: Theology between the Global and the Local