ABSTRACT
Much of public and academic discourse in the past decades was dominated by the so-called “secularization thesis”, claiming that modern societies would become more and more secular, while religion was retreating. The increasing awareness of the significance of religion on global issues has become apparent not only in academics, but also amongst practitioners and policy makers. Religion is notoriously hard to define and is usually framed in terms of substantial (referring to some kind of content or dogma) vs. functional (referring to the function of religion, such as creating identities or in- and outsiders) definitions. Reality demonstrates that religion has an ambivalent or dual nature, whereby it can be used to promote both peace and violence. With over 90 percent of the population adhering to the Christian faith, religious actors and especially Christian churches play a significant role in Rwanda’s societal and political processes.
