What does it mean when a Catholic priest explains the religious imperative for social justice work not through Scripture but through Habermas? Or when conservative Muslims join a conservative Protestant church and support its charitable programs because they appreciate the congregation’s progressive social values? Ultimately, what does it mean to be a compassionate person in a place like Russia, where international observers have more commonly focused on what they have perceived as a lack of compassion and concern for basic human needs and rights? Living Faithfully in an Unjust World looks at themes of intimacy, care, compassion, justice, and civic life as Russian citizens forge new modes of social welfare, examining how Russia’s religious communities have responded to the retreat of the Russian state from social welfare services by creating an alternative welfare and human rights system. Caldwell identifies and analyzes the particular ethics and practices of benevolence and compassion that are at play in the country today, the types of collaborative partnerships that are formed among diverse religious and non-religious institutions, the changing nature of religious/secular distinctions in Russian welfare practices, and how the transformation of care work from a state service provided by professional caretakers to a voluntary activity provided by strangers (including foreigners) is changing the experience of intimacy, compassion, and social justice.
