Religious Organisations in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia

Carole Rakodi is Emeritus Professor at the International Development Department, School of Government and Society, University of Birmingham, UK.

“This book is as comprehensive as can be given the wide-ranging and vastly under-researched field of religious organisations in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia that it tackles. Rakodi has accomplished a feat of synthesis and, most importantly, analysis that elevates the research field to new heights. A must-read for students and researchers, along with the first volume, this book clarifies the key concepts and parameters of what can be an unwieldy research field because of the complex and ever-changing nature of religious and societal interaction. In this volume on connections to society and the state, Rakodi unveils the entanglements of religious organisations in national and local political and social movements, demonstrating why blind attempts at co-option of religious assets for humanitarian and development ends are problematic. Instead, it is the kind of contextual analysis presented in this book, as tied to an understanding of key concepts and frameworks, that development programming with religious organisations needs.”Olivia Wilkinson, PhD, Director of Research"It is hard to think of anyone with a broader knowledge of the intersection of religious studies and development studies than Carole Rakodi, who directed an ambitious research programme on Religions and Development at the University of Birmingham, England, between 2005 and 2011. Since the programme closed, Rakodi has consolidated her mastery of a wealth of published material and she now offers a fair-minded and conscientious synthesis, always aware of the dangers of bias and overgeneralization, and leaving space for readers to arrive at their own conclusions. She documents in fine detail how religions (however we define the term) are double­­­­­­­­­-edged swords – nowhere more problematically than as analysed in her original and deeply considered chapter on the conflicting positions taken by religious movements on LGBT+ issues."Jonathan Benthall, Honorary Research Fellow, Department of Anthropology, University College London, and Director Emeritus, Royal Anthropological Institute

• PART I: Religions, societies and states: An introduction1 Conceptual building blocks2 Analysing religion, societies and states3 Developing an understanding of the roles of religious organisationsPART II: The social roles of religious organisations in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia: Practical efforts to improve welfare4 The social roles of Muslim organisations in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa5 Christian organisations in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia: Traditional and new patterns of social engagement6 Hindu and Buddhist religious organisations’ involvement in social welfare activities7 Religious organisations as education providers: Alternatives to or allies of governments?PART III: Religious values and organisations: Resisting or promoting social change?8 Religious involvement in women’s movements: The quest for changes in family law9 Religious actors in movements seeking social and legal recognition for sexual and gender minorities10 Conclusion