Church, State and Civil Society

Fergusson, David

doi:10.1017/cbo9780511607097

Cited by 25 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…A review of the literature has revealed that in many cases, numerous church-state relation studies have concentrated on analysing which of the two institutions controlled the other at any given time in history and context (Sturzo 1962). Nevertheless, recent theological interest has shifted from analysis of church-state relations in terms of a diarchy (Sturzo 1962) -that is, which one controlled or was more powerful than the other -to how the Church, specifically, as part of the civil society should relate to the institutions of the wider community, culture, and government (Fergusson 2004;and Cooper 2007).…”

Section: The Problemmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is a need to look at Church and state relations in a newer light in the contemporary post-Christendom and post-modern era. One of the foremost thinkers in this novel way of evaluating Church-state relations is Fergusson's (2004) "Differentiated Model".…”

Section: The Differentiated Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sturzo 1962) to newer ones (cf. Fergusson 2004). It is not that the diarchal models have no value for the contemporary world -they do -instead, they have become increasingly difficult to apply within the present post-modern and post-Christendom Era.…”

Section: The Differentiated Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Church and State Relations in Zambia: An Evangelical Perspective

Munshya

2024

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Church and State Relations in Zambia: An Evangelical Perspective contributes to the debate regarding how Church and state relations emerged in Zambia and how religion plays a massive role in Zambia’s political development and civic engagement. Tracing the history of religion’s impact on pre-independence and post-independence Zambia, this study examines three impacts of religion on politics and government: religion legitimating government, religion providing checks and balances and religion providing the tools for change and revolution. This study used qualitative methods and is guided by a literature review on the historical development of Church and state relations in Zambia. Nevertheless, this literature data is analysed and framed within Osmer’s (2008:4) practical theology approach, which first examines the descriptive-empirical task and then moves to the interpretative task. It then examines the normative task and, finally, proposes a pragmatic approach upon which a practical action can be based. Past studies on Church-state relations in Zambia have ignored the Evangelical contribution. Furthermore, some have neglected to account for the impact of the African Traditional Religion world-view on Zambia’s religious character that mainly explains why Zambians have had few problems with a political worldview that synergizes the religious and the temporal. Unlike the European models of Church and state, the models in much of Africa, and hence Zambia, are not about which of the two institutions controlled the other between the Church and the state – but rather, how the Church, in this case, the Evangelical Church, should live in political space and in a state that has officially declared itself to be a Christian nation. This official declaration of Zambia as a Christian nation presents both the opportunities and the challenges for the Evangelical Churches in Zambia to live out their spiritual mission without being perceived as the arm of the Christian state. Specifically, how can the Evangelical Church live out its mission in a state that has declared itself Christian?

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Section: The Problemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Differentiated Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Church and State Relations in Zambia: An Evangelical Perspective

Munshya

2024

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“…"The alignment of churches with nationalist movements can produce deplorable consequences." 71 Christians are first and foremost citizens in the body of Christ that exceeds the borders of the state. Still, "the new communal identity determined the character of its members and called for their highest loyalty .…”

Section: From the Gospel Toward The Common Goodmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These differences lead Fergusson to construe Christian citizenship in nation states as "subordinated or stratified," not as alien. 73 Fergusson develops an account of Christian public engagement through civil society that moves from the gospel toward the common good. The church's mission in the world is to witness to Christ, and this witness extends outward in the pursuit of justice, peace, and charity.…”

Section: From the Gospel Toward The Common Goodmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward a Political Theology of Refugee Resettlement

Ralston¹

2012

Theological Studies

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The author evaluates the current partnership between the church, religious NGOs, and the US State Department on refugee resettlement. In conversation with refugee studies, he teases out positive implications of and limitations in two prominent models of postChristendom political theology, those of William Cavanaugh and David Fergusson. He then draws on the thought of Johann Baptist Metz and the practice of the Jesuit Refuge Service to suggest ways that a political theology of refugee resettlement might reform current practice and occupy a space between the theologies of Cavanaugh and Fergusson.

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Church and State

Lienesch¹

2014

The Encyclopedia of Political Thought

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In the history of political thought, few issues have been more central than the relationship between church and state, and few more complex and contested. From ancient times to today, thinkers have conceived of the connections between religious and political institutions in a wide variety of ways, with the two being sometimes combined, sometimes separated, and sometimes (in fact often) at odds. Christian writers have been particularly active in conceptualizing the relationship between church and state, and in applying those concepts to the modern nation‐state. But those from other religious traditions have contributed as well, as have secular theorists, inspiring an array of institutional relationships that ranges from theocratic regimes and established churches to secular states like today's France and Turkey, with multiple systems based on cooperation, neutrality, and strict church–state separation found in between. Moreover, while appearing to be static, relations between church and state are in fact quite fluid, changing frequently as a result of court decisions, public policies, and shifting political opinion. Today especially, with the appearance of religiously based political movements in many parts of the world, the issue has become even more complex and contested, as what was once seen as a dualistic and exclusive relationship between two dominant sources of power has become a multifaceted set of interactions that includes interest groups, social movements, and political organizations that engage in multiple forms of religious politics within civil society.

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Church, State and Civil Society

Cited by 25 publications

References 53 publications

Church and State Relations in Zambia: An Evangelical Perspective

Church and State Relations in Zambia: An Evangelical Perspective

Toward a Political Theology of Refugee Resettlement

Church and State

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