We know that finding reliable resources for the topic you are interested in is not straight forward. So, we are sharing some of the books that we think are useful here. As you might expect, there is overlap between disciplines and ideas that will encourage you to stray across boundaries and adopt a more radical approach to your thinking. This is an open list, which will be updated over time. If you think something is missing, or you want to talk about something you have read, get in touch
Spaces of Hope Library
Temple, W., (1942, 1956 and 1976). Christianity and Social Order. London: Penguin.
Christianity and Social Order is the foremost publication by Archbishop William Temple (1881-1944). This book is a relatively thin volume. The original 1942 release ran to 90 pages. The later editions (1956 and 1976) included updated preface and foreword materials. Temple's work was public theology. It also spoke clearly to the role of citizens in shaping society, their motivations, and the interdisciplinary nature of the task at hand. Temple's work had a direct influence on the post world war two welfare state in Great Britain. It also offers the most succinct expression of Temple’s approach to leadership through his life. CSO as it is know within the Temple Tradition provides inspiration for interdisciplinary projects in the 21st Century, such as Spaces of Hope.
Christianity and Social Order is the foremost publication by Archbishop William Temple (1881-1944). This book is a relatively thin volume. The original 1942 release ran to 90 pages. The later editions (1956 and 1976) included updated preface and foreword materials. Temple's work was public theology. It also spoke clearly to the role of citizens in shaping society, their motivations, and the interdisciplinary nature of the task at hand. Temple's work had a direct influence on the post world war two welfare state in Great Britain. It also offers the most succinct expression of Temple’s approach to leadership through his life. CSO as it is know within the Temple Tradition provides inspiration for interdisciplinary projects in the 21st Century, such as Spaces of Hope.
Turner, V., (1969). Liminality and Communitas, in the Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure. Chicago: Aldine Publishing.
This text is a seminal in both anthropology and ethnography and informs discussions of change, rites of passage, experiences of uncertainty and what it means to be human. Building on the work of Arnold Van Gennep exploring Rites of Passage in indigenous communities which are understood as 'liminal', Turner conceives of liminality in broader terms, developing it as the antithesis of structure and order in society and as the experience of community or as Turner puts it, communitas.
This text is a seminal in both anthropology and ethnography and informs discussions of change, rites of passage, experiences of uncertainty and what it means to be human. Building on the work of Arnold Van Gennep exploring Rites of Passage in indigenous communities which are understood as 'liminal', Turner conceives of liminality in broader terms, developing it as the antithesis of structure and order in society and as the experience of community or as Turner puts it, communitas.
Rosling, H, Rosling, A., Rosling, O., (2018), Factfulness: Ten Reasons we are wrong about the world - and why things are better than you think. Sceptre.
What do you use to inform your view of life? Do the news headlines shape your sense of hope? Conversely are you suspicious of the MSM? Are you looking for data driven approaches which can guide your understanding of the world, not as a replacement for your worldviews, but as a contextual aid for them? This is the kind of resource that Hans Rosling pioneered and set out in Factfulness and it is the kind of work that the GapMinder Institute do today. This book is a great guild to how to look at the world differently, and to keep it the crises we face in context.
What do you use to inform your view of life? Do the news headlines shape your sense of hope? Conversely are you suspicious of the MSM? Are you looking for data driven approaches which can guide your understanding of the world, not as a replacement for your worldviews, but as a contextual aid for them? This is the kind of resource that Hans Rosling pioneered and set out in Factfulness and it is the kind of work that the GapMinder Institute do today. This book is a great guild to how to look at the world differently, and to keep it the crises we face in context.
Hardin, G., 1968 Tragedy of the Common, Science. New Series. Vol 162. pp1243-1248
Ostrom, E., (1999). ‘Coping with the Tragedy of the Commons’. Annual Review of Political Science, pp. 493 - 535.
Ostrom, E., (2010). ‘Beyond markets and states: Polycentric Governance of complex economic systems.’ American Economic Review, Volume 100, pp. 1-33.
You may well have heard of the Commons. You may well have heard of the parable 'The Tragedy of the Commons' popularised by Gerratt Hardin in 1968. These Commons conversations were foundational for the environmental movement. But anyone who has read Hardin's work will have found issues with the parable in practice. Well, Elinor Ostrom brought the principle of the tragedy of the Commons together with realism, relationships and systems thinking as part of her work in economics which earned her a Nobel Prize. These papers are milestones within Ostrom's work and it are worth a read.
Ostrom, E., (1999). ‘Coping with the Tragedy of the Commons’. Annual Review of Political Science, pp. 493 - 535.
Ostrom, E., (2010). ‘Beyond markets and states: Polycentric Governance of complex economic systems.’ American Economic Review, Volume 100, pp. 1-33.
You may well have heard of the Commons. You may well have heard of the parable 'The Tragedy of the Commons' popularised by Gerratt Hardin in 1968. These Commons conversations were foundational for the environmental movement. But anyone who has read Hardin's work will have found issues with the parable in practice. Well, Elinor Ostrom brought the principle of the tragedy of the Commons together with realism, relationships and systems thinking as part of her work in economics which earned her a Nobel Prize. These papers are milestones within Ostrom's work and it are worth a read.
Massumi, B., (2015). Politics of Affect. Cambridge: Polity Press.
This volume opens up the concept of affect. It offers a dialogue based approach to exploring the concept and touches on both the philosophical roots within assemblage theory, and delves into related concepts such as freedom and hope. Massumi, whilst offering his own thoughts here, also played a role in translating the work of Deleuze and Guattari from the original French. With this in mind, Massumi's insights into affect theory are worth a look.
This volume opens up the concept of affect. It offers a dialogue based approach to exploring the concept and touches on both the philosophical roots within assemblage theory, and delves into related concepts such as freedom and hope. Massumi, whilst offering his own thoughts here, also played a role in translating the work of Deleuze and Guattari from the original French. With this in mind, Massumi's insights into affect theory are worth a look.
Latour, B., (2007). Reassembling the Social: An Introduction to Actor Network Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
This is a key text in new materialist thinking, from the French Sociologist Bruno Latour. Latour developed the concept of Act Network Theory, which maps and develops theory of the affective relationships between the human and non-human. ANT as it is known is a key stepping stone within the thought of Latour. Whilst Latour developed his thinking beyond ANT and offered critique of his own theory alongside other new materialist thinkers, Reassembling the Social is a worthwhile point of reference for people seeking to step into assemblage thinking and the associated applications.
This is a key text in new materialist thinking, from the French Sociologist Bruno Latour. Latour developed the concept of Act Network Theory, which maps and develops theory of the affective relationships between the human and non-human. ANT as it is known is a key stepping stone within the thought of Latour. Whilst Latour developed his thinking beyond ANT and offered critique of his own theory alongside other new materialist thinkers, Reassembling the Social is a worthwhile point of reference for people seeking to step into assemblage thinking and the associated applications.
Habermas, J., (2005). ‘Equal Treatment of Cultures and the limits of Post-modern Liberalism’. Journal of Political Philosophy, 13(1), pp. 1-28.
Habermas, J., (2008a). ‘Notes on Post-Secular Society’. New Perspectives Quarterly, 25(4), pp. 17-29.
Habermas, J., (2008b). ‘Religion in the Public Sphere: Cognitive Presuppositions for the 'Public Use of Reason' by Religious and Secular Citizens’. In: Between naturalism and Religion: Philosophical Essays. London: Routledge, pp. 114- 147
One of the key ideas within Spaces of Hope is that we should each, from our own belief base and worldview, be able to contribute fully to the debates about the kind of society we want how we might achieve that. People will be familiar with language of the secular which posits that these debates should take place in terms of publicly acceptable reason and language that is accessible to all. This is premised on the idea that religion is a purely private affair and any religious ideas offered into the public sphere should be translated into language none religious terms before being shared. This sense was offered a distinctive challenge in the early 2000s by secular theorist Juergen Habermas. He set out an argument that in fact Religious voices were spilling over into the public sphere and they should be heard and engaged with on equal terms with non-religious voices. This idea has gained traction in recent years.
Habermas, J., (2008a). ‘Notes on Post-Secular Society’. New Perspectives Quarterly, 25(4), pp. 17-29.
Habermas, J., (2008b). ‘Religion in the Public Sphere: Cognitive Presuppositions for the 'Public Use of Reason' by Religious and Secular Citizens’. In: Between naturalism and Religion: Philosophical Essays. London: Routledge, pp. 114- 147
One of the key ideas within Spaces of Hope is that we should each, from our own belief base and worldview, be able to contribute fully to the debates about the kind of society we want how we might achieve that. People will be familiar with language of the secular which posits that these debates should take place in terms of publicly acceptable reason and language that is accessible to all. This is premised on the idea that religion is a purely private affair and any religious ideas offered into the public sphere should be translated into language none religious terms before being shared. This sense was offered a distinctive challenge in the early 2000s by secular theorist Juergen Habermas. He set out an argument that in fact Religious voices were spilling over into the public sphere and they should be heard and engaged with on equal terms with non-religious voices. This idea has gained traction in recent years.
Deleuze, G., (2014 [1968]). Difference and Repetition. London: Bloomsbury.
Deleuze, G. & Guattari, F., (2016 [1988]). A Thousand Plateaus. London: Bloomsbury.
The work that Deleuze did and the work he did with partner Felix Guattari can be understood as post-structuralist and offer distinctive roots for a school of thought called new materialism. At the heart of their work is the question "How might we live?" This is a central question for all of us I am sure. The philosophical roots of our lives may be clear to us. They may not. There are different ways of approaching this of course. The work of Gilles Deleuze has appealed to the development of Spaces of Hope as it is open to key foundational concepts for our age: difference and creative potential and the fact that differences co-constitute our different identities, stories and experiences, and as such: different ontologies, or ways of being, or worldviews that we hold, can affect one another and can both speak to our desires and to the process of becoming transformed and made new.
Deleuze, G. & Guattari, F., (2016 [1988]). A Thousand Plateaus. London: Bloomsbury.
The work that Deleuze did and the work he did with partner Felix Guattari can be understood as post-structuralist and offer distinctive roots for a school of thought called new materialism. At the heart of their work is the question "How might we live?" This is a central question for all of us I am sure. The philosophical roots of our lives may be clear to us. They may not. There are different ways of approaching this of course. The work of Gilles Deleuze has appealed to the development of Spaces of Hope as it is open to key foundational concepts for our age: difference and creative potential and the fact that differences co-constitute our different identities, stories and experiences, and as such: different ontologies, or ways of being, or worldviews that we hold, can affect one another and can both speak to our desires and to the process of becoming transformed and made new.
Caputo. J.D., (2020) In search of Radical Theology: Expositions, Explorations, Exhortations. Fordham University Press, New York
John Caputo is a Catholic philosopher. His recent work on Radical Theology opens up fundamental challenge to conceptions of God in society today. Caputo challenges the framing of God that is offered by faith based organisations as they stand, and suggests that 'that' God is dead. Instead Caputo offers a deep challenge to return to the roots of understandings of God and to the theology that informs our perspectives on God in the world. As a result the discipline of Radical Theology and those who acknowledge Caputo's leadership role in this, is of interest to Spaces of Hope. There is a huge amount that religion and belief in God can do to contribute to and indeed transform society in the 21st Century, but the challenge that is recognised win Radical Theology is that the institutions that hold the religion that has been present since the Reformation are in need of radical reform. This book is a good place to begin.
John Caputo is a Catholic philosopher. His recent work on Radical Theology opens up fundamental challenge to conceptions of God in society today. Caputo challenges the framing of God that is offered by faith based organisations as they stand, and suggests that 'that' God is dead. Instead Caputo offers a deep challenge to return to the roots of understandings of God and to the theology that informs our perspectives on God in the world. As a result the discipline of Radical Theology and those who acknowledge Caputo's leadership role in this, is of interest to Spaces of Hope. There is a huge amount that religion and belief in God can do to contribute to and indeed transform society in the 21st Century, but the challenge that is recognised win Radical Theology is that the institutions that hold the religion that has been present since the Reformation are in need of radical reform. This book is a good place to begin.
Barber-Rowell, M., (ed) (2024) Finding Radical Hope in an Election Year? Reflection from a Roundtable at Liverpool Hope University. William Temple Foundation Press. https://williamtemplefoundation.org.uk/temple-books/
This volume opens up a conversation about a new concept called Radical Hope. The conversation took place in April 2024. The concept was coined by Chair of the William Temple Foundation Prof Simon Lee in 2023 and is being developed by people associated with the William Temple Foundation. The foremost articulation of Radical Hope can be found in the ebook edited by and including a chapter by our Founder, Matthew. The ebook considers the question of what Radical Hope might be from an interdisciplinary perspective; theology, politics, education, social policy, sociology, ecology and environmentalism, anthropology, philosophy and community development. This ebook is free and it speaks to an emerging agenda which you would be welcome to join in with - if it is of interest, get it touch!
This volume opens up a conversation about a new concept called Radical Hope. The conversation took place in April 2024. The concept was coined by Chair of the William Temple Foundation Prof Simon Lee in 2023 and is being developed by people associated with the William Temple Foundation. The foremost articulation of Radical Hope can be found in the ebook edited by and including a chapter by our Founder, Matthew. The ebook considers the question of what Radical Hope might be from an interdisciplinary perspective; theology, politics, education, social policy, sociology, ecology and environmentalism, anthropology, philosophy and community development. This ebook is free and it speaks to an emerging agenda which you would be welcome to join in with - if it is of interest, get it touch!
