Resurrecting Democracy: Faith, Citizenship, and the Politics of a Common Life

Through a case study of community organizing in the global city of London and an examination of the legacy of Saul Alinsky around the world, this book assesses the construction of citizenship as an identity, a performance, and a shared rationality. Part I identifies and depicts a consociational, populist, and "faithfully secular" vision of democratic citizenship by reflecting on the different strands of thought and practice that feed into and help constitute community organizing. Particular attention is given to how organizing mediates the relationship between Christianity, Islam, and Judaism and those without a religious commitment in order to forge a common life. Part II then unpacks the implications of this vision for how we respond to the spheres in which citizenship is enacted, namely, civil society, the sovereign nation-state, and the globalized economy.