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Good works and God's work: A case study of C hurches and community development in V anuatu
Author(s) -
Clarke Matthew
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
asia pacific viewpoint
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.571
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 1467-8373
pISSN - 1360-7456
DOI - 10.1111/apv.12030
Subject(s) - faith , sociology , welfare , work (physics) , population , space (punctuation) , theology , political science , law , engineering , philosophy , demography , mechanical engineering , linguistics
Eighty per cent of the world's population profess religious faith, making religious belief a common human characteristic found in all cultures and societies. Within development studies' literature and practice, religion and faith have been largely ignored or misunderstood. While religious organisations are primarily concerned with providing spiritual leadership, an interest in the physical welfare of their communities is also a core aspect of their existence. Within V anuatu, an important community space is the church building with a range of community development activities taking place within it. This case study considers how community development activities are incorporated into the daily ministries of Christian Churches in V anuatu, including the use of church buildings as the location for these activities.