Does faith matter? Exploring the emerging value and tensions ascribed to faith identity in South African faith-based organisations

Abstract

Faith-based Organisations (FBOs) have been at the forefront of a growing interest of the intersection between religion and development. Their value has been recognised as both pragmatic (such as reaching the poorest at the grassroots level and encouraging civil society and advocacy) and, perhaps more contentiously, also ‘spiritual’ in nature because of advantages arising from faith itself (such as hope, meaning, purpose and transcendental power). For many FBOs, religion is far more than an ‘essential component of identity … it is a source of well-being’. In this manner, FBOs challenge the modernist assumptions of traditional development theory, which view the spiritual and physical domains as separate. In fact, for some FBOs, ‘spiritual faith provides the fuel for action’. This paper reports on an aspect of the empirical findings of a South African study and explores both the way in which Christian FBOs understand their Christian identity and the way in which they articulate this through their use of scripture as a motivating or an envisioning tool.

Faith Based Organizations: Types and Typologies. A Scoping Review (2010-2021)

“…Thirteen authors include informal initiatives or organizations as FBOs in their research; one author (Du Toit, 2019) explicitly states that he does not. The remaining articles only look at formal FBOs that have a clear organizational structure and de facto exclude informal initiatives or organizations.…”

Faith-based social service delivery in a country with low religious affiliation: The case of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church

“…Some authors consider FBOs remarkably similar to secular social service delivery organizations, sharing with them humanistic values and low threshold access (Chambré, 2001; Davelaar and Kerstens, 2012; Herman et al, 2012). Others, however, argue that FBOs use unique resources: these may be highly motivated believing staff and volunteers (Bowers Du Toit, 2019; Ebaugh et al, 2003; Graddy and Ye, 2006) or assistance from local religious bodies with historically established access to vulnerable populations (Cloke and Beaumont, 2012). Furthermore, faith is seen to be directing FBOs in the provision of non-materialistic values, a moral compass, a sense of solidarity, and support in the search for meaning in life and individual transformation (Chambré, 2001; Davelaar and Kerstens, 2012; Herman et al, 2012; Williams, 2016).…”

“…Though the faith aspect of these organizations often attracts the staff of FBOs, clients are primarily seeking the social care itself (Ebaugh et al, 2003). Studies document that faith can even have a marginalizing effect, for example, when the client does not share the same value system and proselytization is a regular part of the social service delivery (Bowers Du Toit, 2019; Cloke and Beaumont, 2012; Davelaar and Kerstens, 2012; Manuel and Glatzer, 2019). Pentecostal theologies, in particular, might tend to demand submission to its spiritual culture, including the need to convert and to receive the blessing (Furness and Gilligan, 2010; Williams, 2016).…”

A congregational view on church and community development in South Africa: An empirical study

“…As religion has the capacity to impact social and cultural norms and alter worldviews, churches that serve as stewards of religion have a key role in paradigm shifts of this nature. Churches play a crucial role in the transformation of communities because of their transformative power and the establishment of new motives (Bowers Du Toit 2019;Öhlmann et al 2022;Öhlmann, Gräb & Frost 2020), hence, they are crucial to community development (Clarke 2011).…”