Evan Haefeli on the Dutch Origins of Religious Tolerance

tonygill — Sun, 23 Mar 2014 08:00:26 +0000

The story of rise of religious liberty in the United States generally revolves around the influence of English persons and events (e.g., Roger Williams, the Act of Toleration). However, a lesser known piece of the puzzle is the role that the Dutch played in promoting religious toleration back in The Netherlands, as well as their colonial possessions for a significant portion of the 17th century. Dr. Evan Haefeli, an associate professor of history of Columbia University, explains the critical and nuanced role that the good folks from the Low Countries played in shaping the political-religious landscape that emerged in 18th century America.

Our conversation begins with Tony’s general ignorance (as usual) of what “The Netherlands” are. Understanding the historical emergence of this disparate territory, and the important role that the long-standing revolt against Spanish Habspurg rule played, is critical to the emergence of religious toleration. Evan notes that The Netherlands are a mixture of different ethnicities and religious groups that are largely unified against a common adversary. It is important to realize that it was not only Protestants, namely Reformed Calvinists and Lutherans, that were revolting from Spanish hegemony, but a number of Catholics were instrumental in Dutch independence.

Prof. Haefeli then lays out the interesting tension that characterizes Dutch religious tolerance. Rather than being full bore religious liberty encoded in law, he uses the term “connivance” to describe the de facto system of “looking the other way” when it comes to religious differences. The term “connivance,” while signifying something malevolent in the English language, has a much different connotation in the Low Countries, where it is viewed as “looking through one’s fingers and ignoring some messy details.” The Reformed (Calvinist) Church in Holland and a few other territories of the Low Countries wanted to assert itself as the “public church” that everyone should belong to, but so long as non-Calvinists practied their faith in a non-public and “out of sight” manner, those groups would largely be left alone. Although there was religious tension that did manifest itself in violence at times, Catholics, Jews, and other Protestants were largely left to their own means so long as they were not a nuisance. Evan does note that some of the more aggressive harassment came against Lutherans, who the Calvinists thought should have been Reformed since they were so theologically close. This indicates that religious tension may not always be between two distinct theologies, but rather ones that only have minor differences.

We then cross the Atlantic and examine the Dutch foothold in the Americas during the 17th century. To Tony’s surprise, the territory held by the Netherlands was much more vast than what is usually discussed, namely the island of Manhattan; it extened up the Hudson River into the lower portions of New England. However, unlike the English who were primarily interested in settlement, the Dutch were more concerned with trade and, as such, their physical presence was much more sparse and centered around some key trading outposts. The disparate nature of Dutch colonialism (which also included significant portions of modern day Brazil and Africa) led to overextension and their eventual ousting by the English (after a bit of territorial give-and-take). Evan discusses how the notion of a “public church” combined with “connivance” (i.e., looking the other way) that was typical of the homeland was transferred over to the colonies. We also cover a short-lived attempt at radical tolerance in the colonial outpost of New Amstel, which was cut short by the British ousting the Dutch from the territory.

We conclude our discussion with a few observations about what this all means for our contemporary notions of religious liberty in the United States. Evan makes the claim that had the Dutch not been ousted from America in the late 1600s, our religious liberty regime might look significantly different with a greater role for a “public church” and with liberty taking on the guise of toleration rather than a solid set of rights. He also discusses some of his general take-aways for our contemporary understanding of religious liberty. Recorded: March 14, 2014.

Rebecca Shah on Religion & the Enterprising Poor in India

tonygill — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 03:21:56 +0000

Why are the poor, poor? Alternatively, what prevents the poor from improving their financial well-being? These questions have occupied the minds of political economists for centuries, but few beyond Max Weber have ever considered the role of religion as an explanatory factor. Dr. Rebecca Shah, a research associate at Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, discusses an ongoing research project called “Holy Avarice” with us. As she reveals, this project examines both wealthy Christian entrepreneurs and the role faith plays in their business success, and poor individuals struggling to break out of their dismal living conditions. We focus on the latter topic for this interview, which takes us to the slums of Bangalore, India to examine how religion affects the economic prospects of what Dr. Shah calls “the enterprising poor.”

Our conversation starts with a discussion of the living conditions of the three neighborhoods she examined during her research trips. The vivid portrayal of life in these poor communities sets the stage for how difficult it is for individuals trapped in poverty to escape. We then cover the role of lending and the different types of loans that are available to the poor. Borrowing funds to cover everything from short-term needs (e.g., paying rent, a doctor bill) to finding ways to finance a small business is a fact of life for individuals in these communites. Becky details how borrowing can have a negative effect on the poor, particularly if loans are used by individuals who tend to significantly undervalue the future. We then move to discuss the micro-finance (or micro-lending) movement that has become popular in recent decades and how women are organizing sangams (self-help groups) to create financial accountability amongst themselves. The role of women is emphasized in this interview given that critical role that they play in organizing small businesses in these communities, as well as the critical spiritual role they play in the family (a topic we review later). Becky relays a number of the social problems that beset women, including physical abuse from their husbands.

Our focus then turns to the role of religion. We discover the interesting religious diversity of these poor neighborhoods, including the recent growth of Pentecostalism amongst the population which is majority Hindu, but also contains a significant number of Muslims, Catholics and a smattering of other faiths. It is interesting to see how religious tensions are relatively minimal in the poor communities that Becky examines. We place the most attention on how Pentecostals are shaping the financial fortunes of poor women. Becky’s research has revealed that tithing to one’s religious community on a regular basis creates a degree of accountability and financial expectation that promotes a pattern of responsible saving. This behavioral pattern, in addition to the accountability that sangams create amongst their members, facilitates an economic discipline that allows entrepreneurial women to achieve some economic success. Other ritualistic behaviors such as fasting also sends signals to members in the community who may not share a particular individual’s religious faith, but nevertheless helps to build bonds of trust among different people. Becky’s research also shows how a woman’s Pentecostal faith and the practice it entails can also mitigate problems such as domestic violence and alcohol abuse amongst the men in the household, a trend that has also been witnessed in Latin America. Recorded: June 6, 2013.

Research On Religion » religious tolerance

Evan Haefeli on the Dutch Origins of Religious Tolerance

Rebecca Shah on Religion & the Enterprising Poor in India