In October 2015, the Kairos Center brought together engaged scholars and religious leaders from around the country and the world, and from a range of faith traditions. At the center of that gathering was the idea that movements for human rights and religions are deeply tied to each other: sometimes at odds, even violently so, and other times enriching and drawing on one another to create a profound commitment to transforming the world into a more just place. Both religions and human rights offer a language for understanding the crises we face today, denouncing injustice, and envisioning a better future and the path to get there.
[aesop_image img=”https://kairoscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/spirit-of-struggle-gathering.jpg” alt=”Religions and Human Rights” align=”center” lightbox=”off” caption=”Participants in ‘The Spirit of Struggle’ gathering of religious leaders and scholars” captionposition=”left”]
In preparation for the “Spirit of Struggle” gathering, we put together a book of writings on the past, present, and possible relationship between human rights and religions. These are essays drawing on the knowledge and experiences of Kairos Center leaders and others who have taken on this question as part of their research and the movements they’re committed to. Below you’ll find the table of contents, and you can download the whole book as a free PDF by clicking here.
Religion and Human Rights Need Each Other | Larry Cox
Shakti: The Power of the Poor | Shailly Gupta Barnes
Reading the Bible with the Poor: A Biblical Hermeneutic for Social Transformation | Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis
Islam and Poverty in the Sahel: An Interview with Sheikh Maman Kiota | Adam Barnes
A Moral Movement for the Nation | The Rev. Dr. William Barber II
Abahlali base-Mjondolo and Building the Struggle From Below | An Interview with Mzwakhe Mdlalose and Dr. Richard Pithouse
Women, Islam, and the Secular-Religious Divide | An Interview with Dr. Sheherazade Jafari