ABSTRACT

Although its beginnings can be traced back to the late 19th century, the interfaith movement has only recently begun to attract mainstream attention, with governments, religious leaders and grassroots activists around the world increasingly turning to interfaith dialogue and collective action to address the challenges posed and explore the opportunities presented by religious diversity in a globalising world. This volume explores the history and development of the interfaith movement by engaging with new theoretical perspectives and a diverse range of case studies from around the world. The first book to bring together experts in the fields of religion, politics and social movement theory to offer an in-depth social analysis of the interfaith movement, it not only sheds new light on the movement itself, but challenges the longstanding academic division of labour that confines ‘religious’ and ‘social’ movements to separate spheres of inquiry.

chapter 1|27 pages

Introduction

Interfaith and social movement theory

chapter 2|20 pages

Interfaith political activism in the United States

Understanding variation in the cultural challenges of being and doing interfaith

chapter 3|20 pages

Faith embedded and embodied

Interfaith collaboration to address Islamophobia in the United States

chapter 4|19 pages

InterAction Australia

Countering the politics of fear with netpeace

chapter 5|17 pages

Making space for faith

Interfaith initiatives in Denmark

chapter 6|18 pages

Empowerment or oligarchisation?

Interfaith governance of religious diversity in two German cities

chapter 7|17 pages

Local governance of religious diversity in Southern Europe

The role of interreligious actors

chapter 8|19 pages

Singapore’s interfaith movement

Embedded autonomy and precarious toleration

chapter 9|21 pages

Beyond normative secularity

Politics of interfaith dialogue in Lebanon

chapter 11|21 pages

Transnational interfaith diplomacy

The interfaith G8/G20 shadow summits

chapter |10 pages

Epilogue

Understanding a decentralised social movement