美国宗教团体的社会资本

The Social Capital of American Religious Groups

宗教团体是美国社会资本的最大占有者。社会资本的特点是使用越多,增值越多。宗教组织把致力于社会服务和兴办慈善事业作为体现自身价值谋取回报的最佳方式,这是宗教团体对其社会资本的独特的使用方式。美国宗教组织的社会影响远远大于其他国家,除了法律对宗教自由与政教分离原则的保障之外,一个重要原因就在于有一个由教会与教徒之间广泛的横向联系构成的无处不在而又运转良好的社会网络。宗教组织依靠不断增殖的社会资本,站在满足个人与社会的基本需要、弥和社会矛盾的最前线,发挥着社会安全阀的作用。

Religious groups are the largest possessors of social capital in the United States. A major feature of social capital is that the more it is used, the higher the value will be. Religious groups consider social services and charity work the best form of realizing their value and seeking returns. This is a unique way of the religious groups in the use of their social capital. The social influence of American religious groups is much greater than that in other countries. This is not only due to the law ensuring the principle of religious freedom and separation of church and state, but also due to a smoothly functioning omnipresent social network, formed by a broad horizontal connection between the church and its followers. Religious groups, relying on the growing value of their social capital, stand on the frontline of satisfying the basic demands of individuals and the society and patching up social conflicts, thus playing the role of a social safety valve.