Beyond Individualism: The Challenge of Inclusive Communities

George Rupp

Published by Columbia University Press 2015

Beyond Individualism

The Challenge of Inclusive Communities

George Rupp

Volume 29 in the series Religion, Culture, and Public Life

https://doi.org/10.7312/rupp17428

Overview
Contents

About this book

While individualism is a powerful force in Western cultures and a cornerstone of Western foreign policy, it elicits strong resistance in traditional communities. Drawing on decades of research and experience, Rupp pushes modern individualism beyond its foundational beliefs to recognize the place of communal practice in our world. Affirming the value of communities and the productive role religion plays in many lives, he advocates new solutions to such global challenges as conflicts in the developing world, income inequality, climate change, and mass migration.

The noted humanitarian and educator urges Western societies to engage with the core commitments of traditional communities.

Author / Editor information

George Rupp has served as dean of Harvard Divinity School and as president of Rice University, Columbia University, and the International Rescue Committee. As an activist and educator, he is committed to shaping fair institutions and building inclusive communities in both the developed and the developing worlds. His articles have appeared in the New York Times and the Washington Post, and he is the author of five books, most recently Globalization Challenged: Conviction, Conflict, Community.

Reviews

Susan Froetschel:
In this slim volume [Rupp] offers insights about the increasingly interconnected yet individualistic world, and concludes that greater inclusion can be pragmatic and does not require homogeneity, a principle that can be embraced by both the religious and secularists.

Aminul Hoque:
A powerful yet simple message emanates from this philosophical book.

Rupp offers an accessible and well-reasoned contribution to debates on the role of religion and community.

Diana Eck, professor of comparative religion and Indian studies, Harvard University:
Essential reading for leadership and citizenship in today's complex world of religious and cultural difference. As scholar, administrator, and activist, Rupp has seen the crisis of community first-hand, and offers readers a timely proposal for ethical, informed leadership in a global context.

Helene D. Gayle, president and CEO, CARE USA:
Beyond Individualism is a wonderfully accessible and personal meditation on the human desire to be part of something greater than oneself. Rupp's own experiences at places ranging from educational institutions to post-conflict communities around the world are a wonderful backdrop for examining how we can embrace diversity within communities of conviction

Scott Pelley, anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News:
George Rupp's vision comes in the nick of time for a world crowded with competing cultures. His philosophical scholarship combines with hard experience as an international humanitarian to reveal how our differences can be our salvation on a path to a just and inclusive future.

David Miliband, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee and former Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom:
Rupp brings a lifetime of thought and action to this passionate exploration of one of the biggest challenges faced by countries both large and small. The issues he raises are for all of us to ponder and act upon.

David N. Hempton, dean, Harvard Divinity School:
Rupp writes with great clarity and wisdom, and also with unmistakable moral conviction about issues with which he has direct personal engagement. Beyond Individualism is a book of passionate advocacy.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. Passionate Conviction and Inclusive Community Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	11
Part 1. Education as a Resource
2. The Challenges of American Provincialism Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	27
3 Religion and the Academy — A Lover’s Quarrell Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	39
4. Universities in the Search for Strategic Responses to Global Challenges Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	53
5. What Is the Good Life? Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	74
6. More Words for Students Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	85
Part 2. Action for Inclusion
7. Local Conflicts as a Global Challenge Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	103
8. People on the Move Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	119
9. Enhancing Local Capacity Globally Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	130
10. Religious Communities as a Resource for Conflict Resolution Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	144
11. Religion and Ecology Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	157
12. Why Community? Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	167
Conclusion Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	181
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	183

Language: English
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Main content: 224

eBook

Published: September 1, 2015
ISBN: 9780231539869