ABSTRACT

Nonprofit organizations involved in the provision of housing operate in a complex network of relationships and collaborations. Overall, the service delivery roles of nonprofits bring them inexorably in contact with governing political institutions. Even those organizations eschewing public financing must deal with rules and regulations established by federal, state, and local governments. No nonprofit provides services in a vacuum. Capacity constraints force most nonprofits to interact with other organizations—public, private for-profit, and nonprofit—to provide services, respond to clients, enhance resources, and ultimately to engage the policy and political processes. While the faith nature of nonprofits clearly matters in how nonprofits provide services and interact with the public sector, the impact of faith orientation is rarely simple or straightforward. Generally, the nature of other organizations within collaborative networks is more important than the faith status of an individual nonprofit. The role of faith in service provision is more complex, and perhaps more limited, than much of the extant literature has suggested. 1 This chapter will proceed with a summary of findings and then explicitly revisit research questions posed in Chapter 1. The alternative models of the role of faith-based nonprofits will also be explored.