Projects

The Henry Institute is a center for widely ranging scholarly projects. Find more information about some of our most recent work below.

For more work that the Henry Institute has been involved in prior to these resources, please contact our office: henry@calvin.edu.

How can populism and internationalism co-exist within the evangelical religious tradition?

How can we help returning citizens face chronic problems with fragmented information about the range of resources available upon release from prison?

Many faith-based groups are finding certain religious-based practices under threat ... is there a "Christian" response?

What should the role of governments and of Christians be in growing concerns about water around the world?

Former Henry Institute Senior Research Fellow Steve Monsma (1936–2017) reflected on how the role of Christianity in political science has changed over the years—and how that role can and should develop in the future.

How do changes in American religious and social environment, as well as philosophical and structural changes in society impact the clergy and their role within public life?

Faithful discipleship entails responsible citizenship and Christian formation. How can we help to meet that formative challenge?

Chinese Protestants live with a politically oppressive but economically liberal regime ... how should churches adapt?

China's Protestantism

Surviving the State, Remaking the Church: China's Unofficial Protestantism, 1978-2012

Chinese society has undergone tremendous social transformation since 1978. This book project examines how Chinese Protestants in unofficial churches live with the reality of a politically suppressive but economically liberal regime and how their churches adapt to changing religious regulations. Jin and Li Ma use a socio-historical perspective on modern Chinese Protestantism, melding both narrative and analytical approaches to religious experience. They focus on several time periods:

modes of survival and re-organization among Protestant Christians during the communist persecution (1966-1976)
the growth of secretive “house churches” (1978-1989)
the post-Tiananmen wave of conversions
the impact of the re-entry of foreign missionaries since the 1990s
the emerging urban churches since the 2000s
a “faith-going-public” phase since the mid-2000s

Their work is based on a three-year ethnographic study of over thirty church groups in several Chinese cities between 2010 and 2013. The authors collected about eighty in-depth life history interviews with urban Protestant believers from diverse occupations and age demographics. Through these oral histories, which include details about the respondent’s family history, conversion experiences, church involvement and civic engagement histories, they trace the organizational, political and theological changes within the growth of Protestantism over several decades.

The book has several themes that unite the discussions and analyses of various chapters:

the way changes in China’s political context have constantly shaped believers’ consciousness, perceptions and behaviors
the increasing presence of Protestant groups in urban China despite the government’s efforts to suppress their existence or to muffle their voices
the increasing diversity of believers among Chinese Protestants and the remaking of theological, organizational and social boundaries within this religious group

Research partners

Li Ma, Henry Institute Senior Research Fellow
Jin Li, graduate student, Calvin Theological Seminary

Explore Further

Joel Carpenter and Kevin R. den Dulk, Christianity in Chinese Public Life: Religion, Society, and the Rule of Law

Henry Director Kevin den Dulk reflects on religious freedom in China
(CPJ Capital Commentary, 5/2012)

Is there a role for Christian organizations in fostering good citizenship in Africa? Two trends in Africa raise this question.

The first is stalled progress in democratization across the continent. While multiparty democracy and freedom in Africa rose in the early to mid-1990s, many new democracies face corruption, power centralization, weak rule of law, and diminishing accountability and transparency. Leaders limit public speech or manipulate media, while civil society remains cowered or co-opted. What's more, these problems at least partially reflect the underdevelopment of citizenship in Africa. Surveys repeatedly show that citizens throughout Africa are disaffected and disengaged from public life.

The second trend is the rapidly rising number of African Christian believers. By 2025, over 50% of Africans will be Christian; the explosive growth reflects demographic change, as well as a sense of community provided by churches (particularly in the isolating urban environment), and the high level of spirituality in Africa. Additionally, Christian organizations have become more vocal in national politics. Churches increasingly challenge governments on human rights, poverty, and corruption issues.

“Christian engagement in the world should model 'faithful discipleship and responsible citizenship.' Activist churches and citizens can be the expectation, not an aberration.
---Professor Nico Koopman, University of Stellenbosch

But it seems this political engagement has only scratched the surface, with a focus on national-level politics, engaging national-level church bureaucracies or pastors of mega-churches around broad political topics. What does this engagement mean for the citizenship of millions at the grassroots level—in urban slums or isolated rural villages? How has national-level engagement by Christian organizations pushed the development of the ethos or culture of citizenship?

In August 2014, “Citizen Mobilization in Africa: A Role for Christian Organizations?” brought together six scholars who study religion and politics, six practitioners who engage in citizen mobilization, and two keynote speakers who address related themes in their work at a workshop in Stellenbosch, South Africa. The Calvin Center for Christian Scholarship, the Paul B. Henry Institute, and the Beyers Naude Centre funded the event.

The workshop engaged scholarship on democratization, theologies of public engagement, and social movements. Participants grappled with pressing questions:

Do Christian organizations in Africa foster citizenship? If so, what form do their activities take? If not, why don’t they?
How do Christians in Africa understand their rights and responsibilities as citizens?
What might be long-term positive and negative consequences of Christian involvement in African citizenship mobilization?

Whether you are a scholar who studies religion and politics, or practitioner interested in deepening citizen mobilization efforts within a faith-based organization, you will find much insight from this exploration in South Africa. Join the conversation - and the journey - through the links below in Explore Further.

The Inaugural Workshop

The workshop included:

Excursions to the Social Justice Coalition, the JL Zwane Centre, and the Treatment Action Campaign
Discussion of ‘best practices’ for citizen mobilization among faith-based organizations, including listening to a community, discerning its assets, and engaging in a social audit of a specific issue that forms the basis of an action campaign
Scholarly presentations on faith and citizenship in Africa, including research on public opinion cross-nationally and on mobilization campaigns in specific countries

Contacts

Tracy Kuperus

Amy Patterson

What effect do school choice policies have on private schools and on a robust education market in the U.S.?

During the fall of 2017, the Henry Institute sponsored a series of debates considering viewpoints from the left and right on contemporary Constitutional issues.

Is DACA Constitutional? Constitutional Structures and the Limits of Presidential Authority
September 18, 2017

The debate considered the constitutionality of President Obama’s original DACA order and the rationale of the administrative order, as well as the constitutionality of the range of options President Trump has at his disposal to respond on the issue.

Featuring: William Fredericks (Calvin University Republicans), Doug Koopman (Calvin Political Science Department), Renee Maring (Calvin University Democrats), and Micah Watson (Calvin Political Science Department)

Watch the debate here

Political Polarization: Is the Constitution to Blame?
October 18, 2017

There is no doubt that there are deep division in U.S. political culture today. But what is the source of that division? Do we simply have differing opinions, or do political structures established by the Constitution foster -- or at least fail to mediate -- this polarization?

Featuring: Kevin den Dulk (Henry Institute Executive Director and Calvin Political Science Department), Kennedy Genzink (Calvin University Republicans), Mikael Pelz (Calvin Political Science Department), and Matt Seafield (Calvin University Democrats)

Watch the debate here

The Constitution and Free Speech: Is It Worth the Cost?
November 7, 2017

The American political tradition has always valued free speech, but we have also wrestled with the boundaries. Does free speech include hate speech? And who gets to decide where the boundaries are set? What does the Constitution say about this matter?

Featuring: Jesse Brink (Calvin University Democrats), Doug Koopman (Calvin Political Science Department), Nick Kuyers (Calvin University Republicans), and Micah Watson (Calvin Political Science Department)

" 'The Conscience of the State': Religion's Role as an Independent Check on Government" (2018 lecture)

Religion and Politics in America: Faith, Culture, and Strategic Choices (2018)

Isolation and the Prospects for Democracy” (2018 article)

“Are Principles Enough? Virtues in Public Policy” (2018 article)

“Educating the Political Disciple” (2018 article)

"Awaiting the King; The Politics of Hope in an Age of Fear" (2017 lecture)

"Before the End of Time: Religion and Politics in This Messy, Broken Age" (2017 lecture)

“Liberal Democracy Has ‘Trust Issues’ ” (2017 article)

Challenges for the Next President Series--Faithful Fact Checking (2016)

Strengthening Civic Engagement in Christian Schools (2019 grant announcement)

“Citizens Aren’t Just Born. They’re Formed” (2019 article)

“Educating the Good Citizen” (2013 article)