01: The role of religions in global capitalism is the special focus of the November/December issue of the journal Society. The special symposium, based on a Boston University conference on the subject, looks at Islamic, Jewish, Pentecostal, Eastern Orthodox and Chinese religions’ relationships with the market.
A central question that all the contributors address is how these religions provide resources that deal with the promise and problems of the free market. Anthropologist Robert Hefner looks at the complexities of Islamic economics and argues that the distinctive Muslim practices of zakat (charity) and interest-free banking may have less effect (both for Muslims and non-Muslims) than the unfolding “culture war” between the Muslim efforts to impose ethical constraints and the new practices and lifestyles modern capitalism makes possible.
Robert Woodberry’s article on the economic consequences of Pentecostal belief finds a paucity of research on this topic, yet the work that has been done suggests that the faith may be more adept at helping move people out of poverty than helping them climb to the economic elite (partly due to these churches high financial demands on members). In his article on Russian Orthodoxy and the market, Christopher Marsh finds both a religious ethic of work hard, and support for a prominent role for the state in the economy (short of communism). Because the Russian church is highly trusted (in contrast to other institutions), its popular document, “Collection of Moral Principles and Rights of Business,” and the proliferation of parish-sponsored fairs selling a wide range of goods, may be “examples of how Orthodoxy can help provide a proper business environment.”
Chinese religions and philanthropies are highly market friendly. Robert Weller notes that the many new Buddhist and syncretistic groups in Taiwan– such as the Way of Unity– and, to a lesser extent in China, either serve to legitimize capitalism and wealth or function as alternatives to market values, most clearly seen in the recent growth of Chinese Buddhist philanthropies. For more information on this issue, write: Society, Rutgers, 35 Berrue Circle, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8042
02: David W. Miller’s new book God at Work (Oxford, $24) is an in-depth and impressive overview and study of the “faith at work” movement which attempts to integrate business with spirituality and religion.
The book, part history, part sociological analysis, and part theology, divides the faith at work movement into three waves or stages: the Social Gospel (1890s-1945, the Ministry of the Laity era (1946-1985), and the Faith at Work era (1985-present). The first two stages stressed worker rights but gave short shrift to lay involvement and leadership on work issues; the churches during this period tended to view the faith/business relationship through the lens of conflict (liberation theology) or compartmentalization (personal piety and conservatism).
Miller writes that the current stage unfolded during what economist Robert William Fogel termed the “Fourth Great Awakening,” a period of egalitarian reform where ethical and spiritual resources are as important as material resources. The emergence of the baby boom generation with its interest in experiential spirituality and personal growth intensified the quest to integrate work with faith. Today, Miller finds this “third wave” movement still burgeoning (the intersection of business with spirituality is the most published new topic in business school literature), whether in New Age, evangelical or generic religious expressions (as in the case of workplace chaplains).
Strangely, however, the faith in work movement has not gained much traction within religious institutions. Denominational leaders and pastors often do not connect the Gospel message to the issues and concerns of those operating in the business world for a variety of reasons (ranging from an ideological bias against business to a deficiency of education in a theology of work or vocation). Miller seems to find the most hope for churchly involvement in the faith at works movement among evangelical institutions, though new centers have started at Yale and Luther seminaries.
03: Andrew Greeley and Michael Hout’s new book, The Truth About Conservative Christians (University of Chicago Press, $22.50) manages to uncover novel and surprising findings on a much- published topic. The book, mainly an analysis of available survey data from the General Social Surveys, agrees that evangelical Protestants are a unique and influential group, though they are not as different from the rest of Americans as is generally assumed. A factor moderating at least the political difference of evangelicals from other Americans is the authors’ inclusion of black Protestants, known for their Democratic voting, in their analysis of conservative Christian behavior.
But the authors assert that even for white evangelicals “income and economic issues are far more significant than moral values for the trends in both voting and party identification.” They find that three out of five working-class conservative Christians tend to vote Democratic, more than working-class mainline Protestants. Other provocative chapters include Greeley’s and Hout’s thesis that demographics explain evangelical growth–evangelical Protestants have more children and no longer tend to switch to mainline churches when moving up the class ladder; an examination of the evangelical lifestyle (conservative Christians watch as much or even more Public Television as other Americans); and an account of how Pentecostals are “super conservative Christians,” stronger on most measures of belief and practice than other evangelicals.
04: The identities of the various Baptist denominations usually get lost under the amorphous “evangelical” label or are considered irrelevant in “post-denominational” America. But the new book, The Baptist River (Mercer University Press, $24) confirms that not all Baptists are undifferentiated evangelicals and that denominational practices and beliefs still drive congregations and congregants. Most of the contributors to the book, edited by W. Glenn Jonas, Jr., note that the historic patterns of dissent and divisions among Baptists continue to this day. While much has been written on the Southern Baptists, chapters on the less-studied smaller groups are especially valuable, providing both history and accounts of current trends.
A contribution on the fundamentalist independent Baptists–typified by Bob Jones University–suggests that their stress on separatism may be leading to defection and decline. Other groups with a strong rural character, such as the Free Will and Primitive Baptists (extreme Calvinists who are against evangelism and political involvement) are at loggerheads with the new South, yet their unique traditions seem to have more staying power.
The chapters focus on the older traditional groups, African-American National Baptists, Seventh Day Baptists, American Baptists, as well as newcomers, such as the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, Reformed and Sovereign Grace Baptists, and Full Gospel (charismatic) Baptists.