Prospects and Ambiguities of Globalization

Assumptions and institutions that we have taken for granted for fifty years are proving inadequate for the world now emerging. Moreover, mono-casual explanations of rapid global change do not work. Religious as well as economic dynamics, cultural as well as political forces, environmental as well as military constraints, are frequently working at cross-purposes in shaping a globe we cannot yet fathom. The essays in this volume reach beyond the mere description of phenomena to explore deeper currents of institutional breakdown and competing cultural drives that are radically reshaping our world. Covering topics ranging from the New Silk Road to changes in school governance around the world, the authors offer a critical, historically-informed assessment of the diverse dynamics that are undermining or nullifying current paradigms of thought and action. Drawing on their diverse backgrounds in economics, international affairs, ethics, history, education, and religion, the authors share the conviction that long-standing assumptions about a state-centered, secular-tending, economically converging world are in large measure mistaken. A paradigm shift is required if we are to understand and constructively shape the twenty-first century world.

This study of America's role in the world is timely. Many of the authors write from a perspective that might be called the 'evangelical left' and engage a wide range of topics all touching on the changes globalization has generated. The conversations begun in this book can help many, including many Christians, to understand these extraordinary times., Few challenges and dynamics of this century are so widely recognized yet poorly fathomed as those brought on by globalization. Prophets glibly herald the infinite horizons of opportunity that globalization presents. Critics warn of the carnage and wreckage wrought in its wake. But rare are the voices that can help us interpret the religious and civic implications at stake. This timely work fills that hollow, reminding us that—as with earlier moments of globalization—religious ideas, actors, institutions, and commitments are shaping and responding to global processes at work today. Skillen and company deliver here a sturdy guide for understanding, appreciating, and evaluating the defining contours of the global plates and strata shifting uncertainly beneath our feet. They steady us and reassure us that religious faith remains an indissoluble force for responsible global engagement and transformation., Perhaps globalization, even more than postmodernity, is the dominant spirit of our times. This makes it one of the greatest challenges facing the twenty-first century. It is therefore essential that the Christian community, among others, grapple seriouslywith this reality. There are few more trustworthy guides through the tangled thicket of globalization than Jim Skillen. He has gathered together a fine group of scholars to address this issue from various disciplinary standpoints, offering an insightfulopening and conclusion that bind them all together..., Perhaps globalization, even more than postmodernity, is the dominant spirit of our times. This makes it one of the greatest challenges facing the twenty-first century. It is therefore essential that the Christian community, among others, grapple seriously with this reality. There are few more trustworthy guides through the tangled thicket of globalization than Jim Skillen. He has gathered together a fine group of scholars to address this issue from various disciplinary standpoints, offering an insightful opening and conclusion that bind them all together.

James W. Skillen is president of the Center for Public Justice, Washington D.C.