SOCIAL CAPITAL AS THE UNDERLYING MECHANISM LINKING RELIGION AND ECONOMIC OUTCOMES

BECKY Y. HSU

1. Introduction

Almost a century ago, Weber’s thesis on the Protestant ethic argued that values derived from religion have a profound impact upon economic processes. More recent work, however, also points to that fact that religion affects economic processes. For example, Greif’s (1993) influential work in the field of economics points to the social cohesion that enabled a group of medieval Jewish merchants to conduct business despite the absence of formal economic institutions. Although he does not go into detail about the role of religion in these transactions, Greif argues that shared identity, tradition, and history—all of which had much to do with the Maghribis as a distinct religious group—acted as a bond unifying the traders. Other familiar examples include the Old Order Amish and the Old Order Mennonites, religious groups that are well-known for group cohesion and norms of mutual aid which have economic consequences in terms of agricultural production and investment (Kollmorgen 1943).

The social processes mediating between religion and economics have not been examined much recently, but the vitality of religious activity (Sherkat & Ellison 1999) and worldwide policy implications of economic processes should prompt interest in those of either field. Interest in the effects of social ties on economic activity is reflected in the vast research on social capital being supported by policymaking institutions such as the World Bank’s hundreds of articles on the topic (Narayan & Pritchett 1997; Knack & Keefer 1997).

The purpose of this paper is to examine the linkages between religion, social ties, and economic activity, through examining three relevant cases: the first case, informal lending societies in Indonesia, explicates how values stemming from religious beliefs inform the desire to save money as well as the ability to prevent default. The strength of these social ties enabled the group, ultimately, to embark on remarkable entrepreneurial activities. The second case, a Buddhist charity

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organization based in Taiwan, focuses on the group cohesion created by a charismatic leadership. The members of the group give of their time and finances sacrificially, giving them the ability to raise millions of dollars and create organizational infrastructure to handle the building of hospitals and television stations. The third case, an American women’s prayer group with Pentecostal roots, illustrates the social mechanisms by which the sense of facing adversities together leads to establishing linked identities. These linked identities and common values are an important determinant of the members’ consumer spending patterns. The aim of the paper is to examine three theoretical fields of economic sociology that have perplexed sociologists and economists alike: determinants of consumer taste, how social capital works, and the importance of non-corporate leadership is in generating economic activity. Before describing the details of the three cases, the theoretical roots of linkages between religion and economic activity are traced.

2. Theory

Religion and Economic Behavior

Classical sociological works devote significant attention to social processes—including religious activities—that have economic outcomes. Max Weber’s analysis of the “spirit of capitalism” or the propensity to work systematically and diligently as an end in itself emphasizes the role of Puritan values originating in Calvinist theology (Weber [1904], 2002). The beliefs of these religious people, Weber argued, imbued them with anxiety concerning the uncertainty of salvation, and in response, they pursued material prosperity as a sign of God’s blessing and favor. Over time, theological motivations for work faded, but the underlying notion of wealth as a sign of competence and “proficiency in a vocational calling” (Weber [1904] 2002:18) persisted. In Weber’s exploration, Puritan conceptions of where one stood in relationship to God and the things one should place value on affected daily routines and habits profoundly.

Weber went on in a separate study on Protestant sects to show the types of social cohesion arising from social networks formed through common religious beliefs and activities ([1906] 2002). Membership to certain religious groups denoted good character and reliability because the congregation was deemed “responsible to the Lord for keeping unworthy and especially reprobated persons away from communion, for purity’s sake.” ([1906] 2002:140). Those without the requisite membership badges were avoided as business partners, and were not able to receive funeral insurance. Here, Weber alludes to

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the access that individuals had to the shared resources of the group by virtue of being a member.

Mechanisms that strengthen social ties

Many of the social practices often associated with religion have been observed to be useful in building group cohesion. In her study of utopian communities, Kanter (1972) observes that religious groups often have comprehensive value systems, extraordinarily charismatic leaders, sacrifice, deliberate opposition to the world, mutual criticism, and expressive ceremonies, all of which contribute to the commitment that a member feels toward the group. Many of these group-building social mechanisms found in religious environments also have economic consequences.

The analyses in this paper draw from the work of Portes and Sensenbrenner (1993), who describe four ways in which social mechanisms strengthen social ties: value introjection, reciprocity exchanges, bounded solidarity, and enforceable trust. While they discuss these mechanisms specifically in relation to social capital, I argue that these types of social ties lead to specific economic consequences that they may or may not include building social capital. The cases described in this paper show how social ties strengthened by the same mechanisms lead to outcomes as diverse as social capital, philanthropy, and spending patterns.

Value introjection and bounded solidarity are clearly observed in religious communities, as is enforceable trust. Reciprocity treated in this paper as a secondary mechanism. In the cases I describe, reciprocity exists only after the initial bonds and interactions based on religion and its effect on the other three types of mechanisms have occurred. The sociology of religion contains ample literature, summarized in Table I, illustrating the way religious groups have created solidarity through solidifying beliefs and values, fighting common adversities, and their ability to sanction and monitor members.

[TABLE I]

First, shared values and beliefs have long been known to generate social cohesion. Significantly, common beliefs can play an important role in prompting individuals to prioritize spiritual goals (even if the result is, ironically, material prosperity), as Weber’s analysis of Puritan values argues ([1904] 2002). The process of socialization contributes to the solidification of beliefs within individuals, labeled as value

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introjection, and some of the practices and habits that arise from this include altruistic activities, such as giving alms to the poor and supporting one’s parents in their old age. Social cohesion arises whenever any group espouses common values, and since religious groups are especially focused on common values, it makes sense to say that religious groups should have a strong and distinctive type of cohesion.

Second, the situation of facing difficulties together as a community creates social solidarity not on the basis of values, but on the shared experience of hardship and fighting a common enemy. Bounded solidarity is the sharing of resources that happens in the face of shared difficulties, which is reflected, for example, in the widespread practice of women preparing meals and bringing them to other women who have just finished the ordeal of giving birth. Religion can often bring a new level of bounded solidarity to a group, whether the group is marginalized or not. Religious outlooks encourage believers to perceive a common effort against many things: immorality, the deterioration of religious symbols, temptation to break their value codes. Religious groups almost always define things that they are in favor of and things they are against; even in the most morally relative belief systems such as Unitarianism or the New Age movement, there are commonly perceived evils such as intolerance.

The literature shows that perceiving common adversities is often advantageous for the group as a whole. Conflict between groups had been identified by Georg Simmel (1971) as something that increases internal cohesion within groups. Christian Smith’s “subcultural identity theory” of religious strength argues that religious groups perceive common adversities in order to survive in pluralistic societies (1998). Smith explains that religious groups grow stronger through the tensions and conflicts between themselves and other groups because these fortify their own identities, commitment, unity, participation, and resources. When a group has no real conflicts, the perception of a threat can also function the same way. Smith surmises that religious groups that perceive no threats against them will likely become “complacent and routinized,” (1998 : 152) which explains why mainline and liberal Protestant churches have declined. The perception of threat, then, is an important force in creating solidarity within religious groups.

Religious groups may also create shared adversities in order to prevent “free riders” from benefiting at the expense of the group. Iannaccone’s (1994) work explains that some religious groups prescribe behavior that invites social isolation, and thereby common

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threats and adversities, in order to separate those who are fully committed to the group from those who are not. Iannaccone argues that religious groups keep their members from participating in competing activities by requiring that they look deviant or by making them believe that competing activities are unworthy of their time. Asking members to make themselves social deviants leads to shared experiences of hostility from the outside world. Unlike the cases where immigrants have externally imposed restrictions by virtue of being foreign, some religious groups create their own isolation through deviance, thus arriving at the same end: the benefit of group cohesion.

The social cohesion that can arise from a group’s ability to monitor and sanction the members within it is called named enforceable trust by Portes and Sensenbrenner; it is generated when members of a group are expected to comply with group norms because they understand that they face consequences if they do not. Consequences may include ridicule, scolding, being demoted in terms of group status, or even being expelled from the group. The ability to monitor and sanction members can reduce the risk of loan defaults or bad business deals.

In this paper, I show that the social ties between members of the same religious group are strengthened according to the mechanisms of value introjection, bounded solidarity, and enforceable trust: members share religious goals, group norms that facilitate sanctions, or the experience of fighting against evil together. Additionally, I will also show how reverence for a charismatic religious leader also strengthens social ties and enhances cooperation. These mechanisms lead to economic activity, but whereas some religious environments lead to social capital, others lead to philanthropy or even particular patterns of consumer spending. Below, I review relevant literature before describing cases that illustrate the following three types of economic activity: entrepreneurship, philanthropy, and consumer taste.

Social Capital and Religion

Within the social capital literature, the processes leading from religion to social capital have not been examined in detail. Putnam (2000) sees the general connection between religion and social capital, but does not pin down the particular processes and reasons why religious beliefs lead to social capital. Ammerman (1997) identifies the advantages that congregations have in producing social capital as legitimate bearers of heightened moral status, but neglects the social mechanisms by which social capital is produced.

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Social capital is a term that is used in many different fields, and definitions used are quite diverse. I build upon the current of social capital theory first defined by Bourdieu (1986), elaborated upon by Coleman (1988) and Portes (1998): social capital is access to the shared resources of a social network by virtue of membership in it. It is a term that describes the gain that an individual has because of membership in a social network, which includes access to information and financial resources.

Coleman’s work illuminates the nature of social capital, but as I argue, his arguments lead to the question of the basis of trust and reciprocation. Coleman describes a powerful social mechanism produced by the building up of mutual obligations and reciprocities. He explains the analogy to capital by employing the idea of credit slips: if A does something for B and expects B to reciprocate in the future, A holds a credit slip (1988:S102). When individuals in a community have many types of relationships with other individuals in the same community (as his example of a Catholic community does), the building up of credit slips between these individuals results in a very tightly knit social network in which individuals have access to resources by virtue of being members of the network. However, Coleman’s description does not address a crucial question: how is the initial credit slip generated in the first place? Why would people take the first step in sharing resources? As I will argue in this paper, religion can provide the basis for the initial credit slip to jump-start the reciprocity exchanges Coleman describes. Religion is able to strengthen social ties, providing the basis for a shared identity and common goals, and members of a religious group presume each other to be trustworthy.

Religious groups form collective values through teaching, doctrine, and liturgy, often explicitly placing value on sharing resources. Individuals who engage in religious activities such as prayer offer altruistic responses on surveys (Wuthnow 1991). Drawing on writings from the lives of religious figures such as Thomas Merton or Mother Teresa, individuals are encouraged in religious contexts to perform altruistic acts. As Wuthnow writes, “Among the people we talked to, spending time cultivating their relationship with God seemed more often to free them from material concerns and other self-interested pursuits so that they could focus on the needs of others.” (Wuthnow 1998 : 192)

Thus, the literature on religion supports the idea that religion provides the basis for the norm of giving first, or, in Coleman’s language, generating the first exchange slip. Additionally, common membership in the religious community generates the multiplex relationships and

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buildups of reciprocal exchanges; in networks like this, individuals have better access to resources by virtue of membership in the religious social network, or social capital. The following case will illustrate in more detail the relation between religious activity and social capital.

3. Three cases of religion creating social capital and economic consequences

Case 1. Faith in lending: Informal lending associations in Indonesia

Informal lending activities around the world have generated wide academic interest since the 1960s, when Clifford Geertz wrote one of the first studies of “roscas” (rotating savings and credit associations) in Indonesia. Unlike economic activities enforced by governments and other institutions, roscas are self-regulating; there is no external authority to prevent default on loans (Besley, Coate & Loury 1994; Anderson & Baland 2002). Many have looked at the phenomenon of roscas and the question of default from different theoretical perspectives: functionalist theory (Geertz 1962), resource-based perspective (Greene 1997), organizational theory (Biggart 2001) and social capital theory (Woolcock 1998). Religion, however, has not yet been examined in relation to roscas, despite its unique role in facilitating the informal economic structures.

Typically, a few previously acquainted individuals might agree to meet periodically (weekly or monthly). During the meetings, each individual contributes an equal amount of money into a collection, and one individual takes the total contributions home. At the next meeting, another individual (usually predetermined by lots or drawing straws) takes the pot home, and so the money rotates among the hands of the participants. These informal lending associations take different forms in the geographies from which they emerge: they spring up in both the poorest areas of the world as well as immigrant enclaves in countries like the United States and Great Britain. They rely on informal social controls that stem from strong social networks.

While some studies mention the role of values in explaining rosca cohesion, religion as an underlying reason for the strength of those values has seldom been examined. For example, kinship values based on ancestral places have been used to explain the cohesion of Chinese roscas (Biggart 2001; Light 1972). However, what is missing from this explanation is that the religious practice of ancestor worship is the real source of cohesion; strong beliefs about the importance of venerating ancestors through particular rituals provide the backbone for the social structure enabling rosca activity. The belief in the

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necessity of ancestor worship is what infuses the shared places of ancestry with the power to uphold social structures.

In studies of Indonesian roscas, religious motivations for forming an informal lending association are well documented. For example, a study of small businessmen and craftsmen, all part of a credit program in the Jakarta-Bogor area, revealed that 90 percent of the borrowers had participated in the saving program for the purposes of making the pilgrimage to Mecca, an expensive trip that normally is done only by the wealthy. Other types of lending groups gather together in order to save money for: social and religious ceremonies and festivals, rites of passage, and pilgrimages to Mecca. Raising funds for community developing such as building or renovating mosques, temples, churches, and community halls are also common (Bouman 1992).

Indonesian roscas have also been observed to grow out of weekly singing and prayer societies (Hospes 1995). These religious societies sometimes result in unexpected economic consequences. In 1977, four women of the same kinship group began holding a weekly prayer meeting on Sunday evenings. Every week, each member placed a contribution into a fund for religious purposes (including alms for the poor) into a box kept in the organizer’s home. Within a decade, the group had grown to thirty-seven members. At this point, the group decided to begin another fund, similar to the form of a rosca, in which collected funds were given to one member chosen by lot. The winner was to host the next meeting and pay for refreshments. A few months later, the group took another financial step in opening a cooperative store with the equivalent of $500US of capital, each member owning a share. A wholesaler became interested in the store and offered to supply consumer goods on credit. The enterprise flourished with about sixty regular customers, and since then, the store has twice issued a 200 percent stock dividend. Finally, the group decided in 1990 to take another step in financial sophistication by approaching the Bank Rakyat Indonesia for a deposit account for the purpose of benefiting from interest rates. They deposited their extraneous social-religious funds (a continuation of the original fund they began with coins kept in a box), as well as returns from the store (Hospes 1992). Religious motivations endured alongside the financial growth in the group that began as an informal gathering of a few women singing prayer songs once a week.

Beliefs formed an important basis for the social bond that existed between these women, so that members of this small social network were able to access the shared resources of the group. What happened within this Indonesian lending group is a perfect illustration

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of social capital. Many other roscas originating in religious activities have been documented. In India, many chit funds originated in the need to pay for one’s father’s shradha, a form of ancestor worship (Sethi 1995). In Japan, the tradition of the lending group called the kou began with Buddhist societies which had regular gatherings to discuss religious pursuits with priests and temple officials (Miyanaga 1995). I have personally observed active roscas in Korean-American church networks in Washington, D.C. Despite the existence of many religiously based informal lending associations, there is very little written on the religious aspects of the lending groups.

Case 2. The charismatic leadership of a Buddhist nun

The strong social effect of group identification with a charismatic leader has been a longstanding idea with roots in the work of Durkheim and Weber. In Elementary Forms of Religious Life, Durkheim identifies the close relationship between charismatic leaders and sacred objects ([1912]1995 : 160). A charismatic religious leader, then, holds a great amount of power in creating a collective identity for a group. In other words, a charismatic religious leader has the capability to create extremely strong social networks.

Max Weber also attributes enormous social power to charismatic authority in his discussion of authority in Economy and Society (1978). He describes a charismatic individual as one who is considered extraordinary on the basis of perceived exceptional, supernatural, or other means of access to the divine. Religious leaders are perceived as representatives of deities (the Pope, for example, is believed to be the Vicar of Christ on earth), and hold the kind of authority that motivates individuals to conform to norms. As Weber writes that charismatic leaders are able to bring about the “radical alteration” of attitudes and action (1978 : 245). Moreover, Weber emphasizes the special type of organized group under the authority of a charismatic authority, a “charismatic community,” as one that has particularly strong social bonds (1978 : 243).

While Durkheim and Weber show how much leaders influence the beliefs of the group, Zablocki (1980) describes charismatic leadership as a property of the social network itself. The ability for individuals to invest of themselves in a collectivity, he explains, is the same thing that makes it possible for a charismatic leader to arise. Leadership, he reasons, is a characteristic of the social ties in a group, and not just a variable. Religious leaders, those who are perceived to have special understanding or access to the divine, are particularly influential.

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The ability of Compassion Relief, a Buddhist charity based in Taiwan, to raise funds and gain loyal membership is extraordinary given the fact that the beliefs are rather orthodox and offered by many other Buddhist organizations. However, its financial record boasts a budget of $353 million with over four million members across 28 countries in 2002. The organization has its own university, television channel, and runs two 900-bed hospitals. The founder of the organization, a Buddhist nun called Zhengyan, seems to have a profound effect on the personal lives of its members, as evidenced by their testimonials and tear-streaked faces at meetings. The common identification between the members in their veneration for their charismatic leader that makes Compassion Relief uniquely able to carry out group-strengthening mechanisms: the promotion of common values, enforceable trust, and bounded solidarity.

Compassion Relief (Ciji, or Tzu Chi) began similarly to a rosca for religious purposes. It was started in 1966 by Zhengyan, five of her disciples, and thirty housewives. At the beginning, the organization’s monthly income was less than US $30, and this money went toward providing aid for the poor. The housewives each contributed about a US penny each day (NT $0.50), while Zhengyan and her disciples made handicrafts to support themselves. In her fieldwork on Compassion Relief, C. Julia Huang finds that the organization draws a phenomenal response from its members (2002). Members contribute both time and financial resources freely to the causes of the organization, and display strong emotional commitment during ceremonies and meetings. One focus of all the organization’s activities is to impart a new and shared identity among the members, and this has a considerable effect on the resources that are shared through this social network.

In line with Durkheim’s description of the special type of respect, akin to the treatment of sacred objects, that certain leaders receive ([1912] 2001) and Weber’s association of charisma with authority (1978), Zhengyan is indeed associated with the sacred: she is also known by the name “shangren” which means “far above people.” Buddhist teachings encourage feelings of repentance, but the lavish flow of tears among members is associated with Zhengyan herself, and her powerful presence is now available worldwide through the use of video. Followers get into long lines in order to prostrate themselves—in a manner usually reserved for Buddhist deities—for just a moment at Zhengyan’s feet (the correct form for this is precisely described and taught be leaders in the organization). Followers say that they cry whenever they see Zhengyan in person, and even, at times, at the

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mere thought of her. Zhengyan’s power to induce tears also facilitates something akin to Durkheim’s idea of collective effervescence.

Identity formation and value introjection happen simultaneously in Compassion Relief. Individuals are urged to remake their lives through charitable work and abandonment of vanity. The meetings emphasize testimonials, in which participants talk about their experiences (often volunteering at hospitals) over and over again, weeping as they speak about their realization of past inconsiderate behavior toward others. Identity forging is the most powerful force behind the movement, and it is that focus on identity that strengthens the values in the individuals and in the group.

Leaders of the organization strengthen the members’ common identity by promoting identical behavior by use of rules about behavior and appearance, which depends on monitoring and sanctioning techniques. Rules about eating, for example, are clearly stated on the Compassion Relief website:

When you start eating, take the first mouthful from the left side of the plate and say, "I will abstain from all evil." Take the second mouthful from the middle and say, "I will cultivate all goodness." Take the third mouthful from the right side and say, "I vow to redeem all living beings from their suffering."

Other types of rules about entering Buddhist temples, and the correct procedure on bowing also exist. These rules specify which persons may touch certain objects, and what physical motions an individual should act out.

Rules about behavior are imposed during youth corps meetings. Leaders provide lessons in etiquette in areas such as table manners, salutations, and prostrations. Members are exhorted to “walk like a breeze, stand like a pine tree, sit like a bell” (Weller & Huang 2002:28). Rules about the length of hair and nails, how to make a bed, how to hang clothes to dry, and posture were reinforced in the program when names of individuals whose appearance was not in accordance with group rules were read aloud by the leader, and voluntary changes invited. Girls tied their long hair into braids using Compassion Relief blue ribbons, and boys cut their hair.

Besides shared veneration for Zhengyan, values, and behavior, member identity is also based on having two common enemies: suffering in the world and immorality in the self. To address the first

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enemy, individuals share vivid experiences in realizing that there is misery, poverty, hunger, illness, and suffering in the world. Suffering is an enemy that infiltrates many areas of society, and members are resolved to fight against any suffering they see. Second, members struggle together against personal immorality. The enemies they fight against are vices such as vanity, smoking, drinking, and lack of compassion. These vices are common in their environment, which makes fighting them all the more difficult. The difficulties of the struggle increases the solidarity that members feel with one another, and the testimonials and meetings where weeping abound add to the sense of struggle as they are themselves a type of vivid experience that members share.

The relationship between the types of values espoused by the organization and its financial power is an interesting one, and, like in Weber’s thesis on the Puritans, the beliefs have consequences that are unintended by the believers. Like the Puritans, Compassion Relief members are asked to eschew worldly fashions and values. Instead of wanting to exhibit wealth and beauty, they are asked to be modest, live frugally and focus on bringing the Pure Land to this world. This translates into giving to the organization itself, despite the fact that contributions are not directly asked of members.

Although the present analysis focuses on the role of having new identities in the loyalty of the members to the group, it does not discount the capacity of fundraising techniques as a major reason for the organization’s success in coaxing donors to give substantial amounts. The group employs adept use of public relations as well as the same types of fundraising practices used by major American foundations such as displaying the names of generous donors on plaques. The case of Compassion Relief demonstrates the power that charismatic leadership, bounded solidarity, and enforceable trust can have on economic activities.

Case 3. Consumer taste, religious identities, and social ties among prayer warriors at Aglow

Recent currents in economic sociology have been pushing toward the examination of economic interests. “If there ever is to be a unified social science of economics,” Swedberg writes, “the concept of interest—together with the idea of social interaction—is likely to be its foundation.” (2003 : 5) He identifies explanations of consumption as a “structural hole” in economic sociology. Of course, it has been known for a long time that what people choose to buy and what they do not choose to buy on the micro level has major impacts on the macro

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level. Swedberg makes two points here: first, interests are socially defined, and second, social relations are necessary to realize one’s interests. Swedberg points out that interests have been addressed theoretically by many in the past, including Polanyi, Schumpeter, Hume, Smith, Marx and Weber.

In a famous passage, Weber wrote: “Not ideas, but material and ideal interests, directly govern men’s conduct. Yet very frequently, the ‘world images’ that have been created by ‘ideas’ have, like switchmen, determined the tracks along which action has been pushed by the dynamic of interest.” ([1915] 1946:280). Interests provide the power, while ideas determine where the interests will determine the destination that the train of social history will rumble toward. Weber is writing, on the one hand, about the interests that drive human action, and, on the other hand, the religious ideas developed in social contexts that determine the direction the actions will take. In relation to Puritans, the interests were religious (a desire to be among the saved), and the ideas came from the views laid out in Calvinist theology. Clearly, in Weber’s estimation, religion is a fitting place to look for interests and motivations in economic life.

While Weber focused on the direct impact that the theology made on the Puritans, elsewhere he wrote of the impact that religious organizations made on economic life ([1906] 2002). In the case I describe below, religious belief and the desire for a new identity is the driver of action (the interest), while the nature of the social ties in this particular religious group lead to ideas (switchmen) about how to carry out the religious interests, which in turn leading to specific types of consumer spending.

To illuminate how religion and social ties combine to affect consumer spending, I shall examine Aglow, a prayer organization for women with Pentecostal roots which is one part of the larger evangelical small-group movement in the United States. Although Aglow is not intended to be a representative of other evangelical groups (it is, in fact, quite unique), it exhibits some of the small-group processes present in other groups, such as the creation of a new identity and the sense of shared struggle. The perception of common enemies strengthens bonds between the women in these groups, reinforcing the values of the group. These values, in turn, influence the purchasing patterns of the members and contribute to the shape of American consumer markets.

Group solidarity arises based on the sense of a common struggle as well as shared values. When members of a group also share the development of a new identity, the shared values and the social

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bonds become even stronger, influencing everything in a person’s life, including purchasing decisions. Aglow provides a case in which these social processes are, perhaps, particularly and dramatically apparent. The organization was started in 1967 by four women who met together regularly to pray outside of church. By 2003, it had become an international organization made of about 3,500 local groups in 151 countries. Aglow describes itself as a “network of caring women” and its international framework is based on monthly meetings where women from the same community pray together. Values dictate how individuals spend money, and these are more easily transmitted when groups are cohesive; at Aglow, group cohesion grows out of the shared identity of struggling against common enemies.

Prayer meetings at Aglow are discrete events fixed at a point in time, but the notions that accompany prayer combine to provide women with tools to reinvent their identities. Like the wider evangelical circles, Aglow emphasizes having a new, common identity as beloved by God. When individuals share this life-changing transformation of identity, bonds between them are strong. The change in identity is tied to the common adversities that they face, and the fact that the women share a sense of facing them together. At the monthly meetings, tears are shed copiously as women share their painful experiences with each other and cry out together for divine deliverance from problems such as sexual abuse, shame, personal difficulties, marital strife, disease, alcohol and drug abuse, death of loved ones and emotional illnesses. Moreover, at the same time, the women identify destructive elements in the wider culture such as materialism and greed, apathy and self-indulgence, and violence. To fight these bad elements, Griffith describes how the women deliberately construct an “enclave of opposition,” perceiving themselves as warriors of God in the battle against evil. In doing so, the women are, like immigrants in a new land, facing adversities together, as a collective whole, with strengthened bonds that lead to access to resources by virtue of being in a network.

Aglow women have been observed to verbally struggle against problems such as shame and overeating. Shame is one of the most often addressed enemies in the Aglow organization. In the Support Group Leader’s Guide published by Aglow in 1993, shame is defined as “the emotion a person feels when he is vulnerable involuntarily…A person who feels ashamed is inhibited in her ability to love God and to develop healthy relationships” (Griffith 1997 : 113). Because shame acts as a hindrance to the life-goals of the women—developing genuine, intimate relationships with God and with other people—it is perceived as a serious enemy. Fighting shame through empowers the

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women: instead of being helpless, the women view themselves as prayer warriors who play an important role in bringing an end to individual and collective shame.

Overeating has also been treated as a spiritual enemy within Aglow. A phenomenon also seen in the wider American evangelical circles, losing weight is seen as a victory in one of the spiritual gifts in the Bible, self-control. Overeating and being overweight is seen as a form of sin, as Aglow’s 1975 Bible study, God’s Answer to Overeating: A Study of Scriptural Attitudes, relates how overeating dishonors God because the individual is attempting to satisfy spiritual hunger by physical means (Griffith 1997 : 143). This perspective on body weight stems from the value placed on outward beauty, which in turn comes from larger society as well as the notion that inner healing is reflecting in one’s radiant outward appearance. As Weber argued of the Puritans, when one’s inner spiritual state is difficult to discern, anxiety may surface as individuals attempt to conform their outer presentation to the image of one who is enjoying spiritual rewards. Finally, having a slim body is associated with being a good witness for God by reflecting the spiritual fruit of self-control and God’s loving grace: one book declares “Your body will slim down and that will prove to others you have been keeping God’s Word.” (Griffith 1997 : 145)

The shared experience of seeking spiritual rebirth and fighting common enemies joins the women in Aglow together in a bond of sisterhood that has two economic consequences. First, Aglow relies on the donations of members to operate, and leaders have developed a variety of fund-raising techniques to address this need. In 1993, conference revenues, publication sales, membership dues, and other income added to total revenue of $2,689,662. The ideology of the organization directs the women towards certain types of expenditures, in both direct and indirect forms. Direct consequences of the values upheld in the organization lead predictably to donations and purchases of items at events and conferences: books, posters, coffee mugs, bumper stickers, and various trinkets. Meals prepared, conference spaces rented, and sundry other forms of economic exchange are produced. Offering baskets passed around at meetings in which emotions are heightened and tears are flowing provide opportunities for donations as the women respond to exhortations to give.

Second, indirect consequences stem from the values placed on beauty and outward appearance. Aglow leaders are wear expensive clothes and are impeccably coifed. There is a tension between the values upheld in Aglow, and the expenditures of the women reflect

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this. In response to the importance placed on looking good, Aglow women feel a pull to shop. An Aglow leader at the 1994 national conference reproached the women, citing the events of the previous year’s conference in Phoenix: a man selling watches for $10 each netted $120,000 from Aglow women alone (Griffith 1997 : 166). Moreover, the malls near the conference cite wrote to Aglow to thank them for breaking all previous shopping records that weekend.

In many ways, Aglow’s activities and the way that it influences economic factors reflect to some extent the wider evangelical culture: many of the small-group dynamics present in Aglow meetings—particularly the elements of renewed identity and common enemies—are also a feature of the larger evangelical movement. About 86% of evangelical Christians participate in church activities outside of Sunday worship services, and an important component of these activities is the small group that meets for prayer or Bible study (Smith 1998 : 34-35). Across in the United States, individuals are struggling against personal crises within the context of small groups the help of their small groups, and are exposed to social mechanisms based on the shared sense of struggle (Wuthnow 1994:283). Although the activities of Aglow are certainly not representative of all the other small groups, some of the small group dynamics that strengthen social ties are present. Economic consequences of evangelicalism have been substantive: in a stagnant general book market, evangelical books are $1.77 billion out of total $11 billion consumer book sales (New York Times, June 8, 2002), and Christian retailing industry grew to about $4.2 billion in 2003 (Orlando Sentinel, July 23, 2003).

Examining the dynamics of Aglow provides part of the explanation for why the market for evangelical products has exploded in the past two decades. In Aglow, the women have a religious interest in building a new identity, but it is the social network that constantly reinforces the idea that looking good is an outward reflection of the new identity, and a communication to other people about the life changes they have had. Thus, referring back to Weber, we see how the interests (religious desires for a new identity), combined with the ideational switchmen (the social relationships that bring about views of looking good and eating right), lead to specific types of consumer spending.

4. Conclusion

The three cases examined in this paper show three different influences of religion on economic consequences through creating particular types of social ties, or, in other words, mechanisms of social capital creation. The informal lending associations in Indonesia discussed

17

were motivated by religious purposes. As a result, social capital was created, giving individuals access to resources shared by the network, and the result of the lending—the formation of a corporation—was unforeseen even by its members. The reverence that members felt for the charismatic leader of the Buddhist organization, Compassion Relief, led to the untying of personal purse strings and the giving of time. And finally, the renewal of identity and the ability to face shared difficulties together in Aglow strengthened religious values and played a part in directing decision-making about purchases. The three cases are summarized in Table II.

[TABLE II]

The most important implication is that research on economic interests should not neglect religion as a place to turn for explanations. The case of Aglow shows how values influence purchasing choices. Similarly, the example of the Muslim prayer groups turning into informal lending groups shows how religion shapes motivations to save and spend money. Wuthnow (1996) finds a taboo against talking about money in the United States in regular social contexts inadvertently allows advertisers to define what things are good to buy, and what limits on spending to make. Wuthnow finds that most people do not have budgets and are not rationally calculating their purchases (1996 : 183). Instead, purchasing things have acquired “ritual significance” because advertisers portray them in particular lights (1996 : 185). In this formulation, consumer taste very much has to do with values and significance, but more research needs to be done on where these interests and tastes originate from and lead to. If spending money is a ritual, it embodies some of the things that individuals believe strongly in; thus, religion is a likely place where one will find explanations for economic interests and consumer tastes.

An implication for the study of social capital is that charismatic leadership embodied in religious figures can have a major impact on economic activity, even when the leadership quite removed from the state. There is ample literature supporting the argument that charismatic leaders are able to create unique social bonds between members of a group, facilitating access to shared resources, but leadership has not been considered as a factor in the creation of social capital. The case of the Taiwanese nun who amassed an extremely dedicated following and formed the global organization with a budget of $353 million illustrates the importance of charismatic leadership in creating social capital. In the United States, studies have found that, perhaps the most socially important examples of religious leadership in poor areas are those in black churches, which have

18

created the social bonds allowing for much-needed social support. In Boston, Massachusetts, the judicial system enlists the help of charismatic black ministers to facilitate fighting crime in a legitimate way; the fact that the community regards ministers as individuals who answer to a higher power gives them the moral authority to strengthen community cohesion (Berrien, McRoberts & Winship 2000). Similarly, a study based in New Haven, Connecticut, shows an important role taken by religious leaders in the black community in finding social services for parishioners in need (Chang et al. 1998). Studies of social capital in the United States should begin to take leadership, including, but not limited to, religious leadership, into account when explaining the creation of the social ties that lead to social capital.

An implication for work in policy is that economic development programs should regard religion as an important part of a landscape to understand. Decades ago, Geertz pointed out, in his comparison of two Indonesian towns, that economic development must be understood in the context of religion, culture, and history (1963). Efforts to harness social capital production for the purposes of economic development have proliferated since then, as evidenced by the World Bank’s roster of programs designed to increase social capital, but the programs still do not include and account for the role of religion in economic development. While religion can act powerfully as both a push toward and pull away from economic development, identifying the role of religion in the production of social capital in any region where development programs are initiated will most certainly help, and not harm, the efforts.

Development programs might find, for example, that individuals who apply for micro-loans will only want to work with those that they trust, and this may include only kin or people from his or her church. For example, Jamaican fruit canners harvesting a regional fruit called ackee must trust their ackee pickers because premature picking makes the fruit poisonous. Ackee canners rely on a network restricted to kin and members of the same church (Portes, Dore & Landolt 1997:245). Although it is not analyzed in any detail, this evidence points to something that makes people choose to trust those from the same church in the face of large potential business risks. Knowing this, development programs in the ackee-growing areas will need to work with the bonds that already exist between church members in order to get any results.

Finally, the conclusions of this paper need to be qualified. This paper has argued that strong social ties stemming from religion can lead to three different types of economic consequences: social capital,

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philanthropy, and consumer behavior. However, although this paper examines cases in which strengthened social ties lead to social capital, this is not necessarily always so. Strengthened social ties do not necessarily lead to social capital, nor do they lead necessarily to economic development. Those who have written about the dark side of social capital (Portes 1998; Portes & Sensenbrenner 1993) have approached this issue in pointing out that there are also cases in which strong social ties stifle rather than promote economic development.

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MIYANAGA, K. (1995) “Economic Kou (Roscas) in Japan: A Review”, in: ARDENER, S. & BURMAN, S. (eds) Money-Go-Rounds: The Importance of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations for Women, Washington D.C., Berg Publishers, 149 : 162. NARAYAN, D. & PRITCHETT, L. (1999) “Cents and Sociability: Household Income and Social Capital in Rural Tanzania”, in: Economic Development and Cultural Change vol. 47, n° 4, 871 : 893. PORTES, A. & SENSENBRENNER, J. (1993) “Embeddedness and Immigration: Notes on the Social Determinants of Economic Action”, in: American Journal of Sociology vol. 98, n° 6, 1320 : 1350. PORTES, A., DORE Y CABRAL, C. & LANDOLT, P. (1997) The Urban Caribbean: Transition to the New Global Economy, Baltimore, MD, Johns Hopkins University PORTES, A. (1998) “Social Capital: Its Origins and Application in Modern Sociology”, in: Annual Review of Sociology, vol. 24, 1 : 24. PUTNAM, R. D. (2000) Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, New York, Simon & Schuster. SCHOFER, E. & FOURCADE-GRINCHAS, M. (2001) “The Structural Contexts of Civic Engagement: Voluntary Association-Membership in Comparative Perspective”, in: American Sociological Review vol. 66, n° 6, 806 : 828. SETHI, R. M. (1995) “Women's Roscas in Contemporary Indian Society”, in: ARDENER, S. & BURMAN, S. (eds), (1995), Money-Go-Rounds: The Importance of Rotating Credit Associations for Women, Washington D.C., Berg Publishers, 163 : 178. SHERKAT, D. E. & ELLISON, C. G. (1999) “Recent Developments and Current Controversies in the Sociology of Religion”, in: Annual Review of Sociology, vol. 25, 363 : 394. SIMMEL, G. (1971) On Individuality and Social Forms: Selected Writings, Chicago, University of Chicago Press. SMITH, C. (1998) American Evangelicalism: Embattled and Thriving, Chicago, University of Chicago Press. SWEDBERG, R. (2003) Principles of Economic Sociology, Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press. TURNER, J. (1987) Rediscovering the Social Group: A Self-Categorization Theory, New York, B. Blackwell. WALD, K., OWEN, D. & HILL, S. (1990) “Political Cohesion in Churches”, in: Journal of Politics, vol. 52, n° 1, 197 : 215. WEBER, M. ([1904]2002) The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Los Angeles, Roxbury Publishing Company. WEBER, M. ([1906]2002) “Protestant Sects and the Spirit of Capitalism”, in: WEBER, M. (2002) The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Los Angeles, Roxbury Publishing Company, 127 : 148.

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TABLE I. Examples in Literature on Religion of Group Characteristics

Leading to Social Capitalª

Group Characteristic Examples in Literature on Religion Value introjection

• Values solidified through doctrine, teaching, norms (Wuthnow 1991; Wuthnow 1998)

Bounded solidarity

• Fight against immorality, temptation, fear of the unknown, fear of death (Berger 1967)

• Perception of marginality to survive in religiously pluralistic societies (Smith 1998)

• Requirements of deviant behavior (Iannaccone 1994)

• Social identification (Wald, Owen & Hill 1990) Enforceable trust

• Monitoring and sanctioning required for restricting membership (Weber [1906] 2002)

• Significance and urgency (Kelley 1977) Charismatic leadership

• Charismatic leaders and power of the sacred to create collective identity (Durkheim [1912]1995)

• Charismatic authority (seen often in religious leaders) generates a strong, communistic, community (Weber 1978 : 243)

ªSources of social capital as identified by Portes & Sensenbrenner (1993).

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TABLE II. Summary of Cases, Religious Activities, Social Network, Group Characteristics, and Economic Outcomesª

Cases Religious activities Social network

Social capital in group Economic outcomes

Informal lending groups in Indonesia

• Muslim prayer and singing group

• Friends • Kin

• Value introjection

• Credit • Business

opportunities

Compassion Relief

• Acts of charity

• Veneration of leader Zhengyan

• Hierarchy • Charismat

ic head

• Value introjection

• Bounded solidarity

• Enforceable trust

• Charismatic leadership

• 2 hospitals • television

station • $353 million

budget

Aglow • Prayer • Personal

sharing

• Small groups within hierarchy

• Value introjection

• Bounded solidarity

• Conferences • Publishing

house • Consumer

spending patterns

ªGroup characteristics are the sources of social capital identified by Portes & Sensenbrenner (1993).