The Global Resurgence of Religion and the Transformation of International Relations The Struggle for the Soul of the Twenty-First Century

by Thomas, Scott M.

• ISBN13: 9781403961570
• ISBN10: 1403961573
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781403973993
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-02-05
• Publisher: Palgrave MacMillan

Summary

The current global resurgence of religion is more wide ranging than a clash of civilizations driven by religious extremism, terrorism, or fundamentalism. This global cultural and religious shift is challenging our interpretation of the modern world--what it means to be modern--as a variety of social and religious groups struggle to find alternative paths to modernity. This book examines what this means for the key concepts and theories of international relations--international conflict and cooperation, diplomacy, the promotion of civil society, democracy, nation-building, and economic development-and how it is transforming them. The book serves as a guide for what it means to take cultural and religious pluralism seriously in the twenty-first century.

Author Biography

Scott M. Thomas is a lecturer in international relations and the politics of developing countries in the Department of Economics and International Development in the University of Bath, England. He is the author of The Diplomacy of Liberation (1995) and has published chapters on religion and international relations in over ten books and in various journals, including Millennium, International Affairs, and the SAIS Review.

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
Preface	xi
Introduction: The Struggle for the Soul of the Twenty-First Century	1	(20)
PART ONE BRINGING RELIGION BACK INTO INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS THEORY
``The Revenge of God?'': The Twentieth Century as the ``Last Modern Century''	21	(26)
Blind Spots and Blowback: Why Culture and Religion were Marginalized in International Relations Theory	47	(24)
In the Eye of the Storm: Explaining and Understanding Culture and Religion in International Relations	71	(26)
The Soul of the World? Religious Non-State Actors and International Relations Theory	97	(24)
PART TWO THE SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Wars and Rumors of War? Religion and International Conflict	121	(28)
``Creating a Just and Durable Peace'': Rethinking Religion and International Cooperation	149	(24)
Soulcraft as Statecraft? Diplomacy, Conflict Resolution, and Peacebuilding	173	(24)
Funding Virtue? Rethinking Religion, Civil Society, and Democracy	197	(22)
Where Faith and Economics Meet? Rethinking Religion, Civil Society, and International Development	219	(28)
Conclusion: How Shall We then Live?	247	(4)
Notes	251	(42)
Index	293