Description
Local faith-based NGOs (FBOs) are a major force in international development. Almost all religious traditions call followers to charity and non-profits are often the perfect vehicles for such work. History has shown, however, that religious faith also carries the potential for violence and exclusion. Especially for FBOs working in countries plagued by religious conflict, this reality can highlight dubious and harmful undercurrents in their work. "For the Love of God" examines the ways history and religious identity influences FBOs in Lebanon, Sri Lanka and Bosnia Herzegovina and finds that they often reinforce rather than transcend schisms found in the larger society. Based on over 100 interviews with FBO staffers in these countries, Flannigan reveals the darker, more ambivalent side of altruism.
