Philanthropy in the World's Traditions (Philanthropic and Nonprofit Studies)

"The cross-cultural understandings this book provides can do much to help us determine the distinctive shape and form American religious philanthropy might take in the future." ―Christian Century "The provocative information challenges the assumptions that philanthropy is a primarily Western or Christian tradition, and it clarifies the need for additional study." ―Choice An investigation of how cultures outside the Western tradition understand philanthropy and how people in these cultures attempt to realize "the good" through giving and serving. These essays study philanthropy in Buddhist, Islamic, Hindu, Jewish, and Native American religious traditions and in cultures from Latin America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. A study of global giving. “The provocative information challenges the assumptions that philanthropy is a primarily Western or Christian tradition.” —ChoiceThis book is an investigation of how cultures outside the Western tradition understand philanthropy and how people in these cultures attempt to realize “the good” through giving and serving. These essays study philanthropy in Buddhist, Islamic, Hindu, Jewish, and Native American religious traditions and in cultures from Latin America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.Contributors include Steven Feierman, John A. Grim, Leona Anderson, Ananda W. P. Guruge, G. D. Bond, Leslie S. Kawamura, Said Amir Arjomand, Joanna F. Handlin Smith, Mary Evelyn Tucker, Derek J. Penslar, Amanda Porterfield, Miroslav Ružica, Mark Juergensmeyer, Darrin M. McMahon, Gregory C. Kozlowski, Adele Lindenmeyr, Vivienne Shue, Andrés A. Thompson, Leilah Landim.“The cross-cultural understandings this book provides can do much to help us determine the distinctive shape and form American religious philanthropy might take in the future.” —Christian Century Though voluntary association for the public good is often thought of as a peculiarly Western, even Christian conception, this book demonstrates that there are rich traditions of philanthropy in cultures throughout the world. Rather than search for expressions of Western conceptions of philanthropy, experts in area studies set forth to investigate how particular cultures understand philanthropy and its role in society, how people in these cultures attempt to realize "the good" through giving and serving. These essays study philanthropy in Buddhist, Islamic, Hindu, Jewish, and Native American religious traditions and in cultures from Latin America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, South Asia, China, and Japan. Each essay describes a distinctive form of philanthropy in a given culture and historical period, its genesis, its functioning, and its relative importance within the culture and the culture's predominant religious traditions.

The cross-cultural understandings this book provides can do much to help us determine the distinctive shape and form American religious philanthropy might take in the future. — Christian Century

The provocative information challenges the assumptions that philanthropy is a primarily Western or Christian tradition, and it clarifies the need for additional study. — Choice

An investigation of how cultures outside the Western tradition understand philanthropy and how people in these cultures attempt to realize the good through giving and serving. These essays study philanthropy in Buddhist, Islamic, Hindu, Jewish, and Native American religious traditions and in cultures from Latin America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

Though voluntary association for the public good is often thought of as a peculiarly Western, even Christian concept, this book demonstrates that there are rich traditions of philanthropy in cultures throughout the world. Essays study philanthropy in Buddhist, Islamic, Hindu, Jewish, and Native American religious traditions, as well as many other cultures.