Book Review: Design for the Real World

Design for the Real World: Human Ecology and Social Change by Victor Papanek (New York: Pantheon Books, 1971. 394 pp)

Born in Vienna, Austria in 1923, Victor Papanek immigrated to the United States to study design and architecture. He earned his B.A. at Cooper Union and his M.A. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Papanek taught design at many institutions worldwide and functioned as a strong advocate for socially and ecologically responsible design.

The Many Hues of Charity 

It’s very easy to become caught in the notion of charity equaling money. We see disasters on television and nothing seems easier than a monetary contribution from the friendly confines of our couch. Some, however, choose to dive deeper. They see a need in the community and they volunteer outside of work hours. Could we go farther? Is there a way to use your time on the clock to help those in need?

A divergent thinker, Papanek’s Design for the Real World peregrinates through a myriad of topics over the course of its 300+ pages. But in particular, I found his thoughts on work as charity intriguing.

The Meaning of Design 

Photo by Vector Hugo

For starters, let’s get on the same page regarding the meaning of design. Living in the midst of the Internet era, one might confuse design with web development—the act of creating a website. Yes, design can take the form of building a website. But it’s much bigger.

Others might consider design through the lens of logos and typography. While design plays a part in producing these items, it’s more holistic.

For Papenak,

“Design is composing an epic poem, executing a mural, painting a masterpiece, writing a concerto. But design is also cleaning and reorganizing a desk drawer, pulling an impacted tooth, baking an apple pie, choosing sides for a back-lot baseball game, and educating a child” (3).

In short, design is the act of creativity behind solving a problem.

The Problems of the Design Industry 

Design can be a lucrative industry. The world is rife with problem solving opportunities. As designers continue to use their skills to create new products and solve increasingly complex issues, Papenak’s Design for the Real World represents a careful caution about reckless design-for-profits.

Instead of designing products that last, designers create goods with designed obsolescence—one makes more money when customers continually repurchase the same items. Even more, most of the design industry caters to the highest classes. While 80% of the world struggles around the poverty line, designers work on the next product for the affluent.

Papanek mourns this development:

“Isn’t it too bad that so little design, so few products are really relevant to the needs of mankind” (51)?

Working Charitably

Papenak argues for a charitable principle in the design world. Much like the Old Testament tenet of “gleanings”, Papenak suggests designers devote a portion of their time lending creativity and problem solving abilities to social and ecological issues.

“Being designers, we don’t have to pay money in the form of kymmenykset or a tithe. Being designers, we can pay by giving 10 per cent of our crop of ideas and talents to the 75 per cent of mankind in need” (57).

Photo by Anna

The entire world needs to experience the gift of design. Imagine the result if business in general and design in particular devoted 10 percent of its time to helping those in need. Whether by developing free systems to help lift people out of poverty or designing products cheaply and efficiently to assist those in need so they can spend time more wisely, the donation of time and intellectual capital can realistically change the world.

Design for the Real World dives into many issues. But for me, the charitable giving of our time resonates. Our work is a gift. While some positions lend themselves better to financial charity or volunteer work, other jobs directly influence the way we live. It is well worth considering how we can be charitable with our work. Check out Design for the Real World.

Verdict: 3.5 out of 5

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Posted by: Donovan Richards

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Book Review: A Theology for the Social Gospel

A Theology for the Social Gospel by Walter Rauschenbusch (Mansifeld Centre: Martino Publishing, 2011; originally published in 1918. 290 pp)

Walter Rauschenbusch was the leading proponent of the Social Gospel Movement whose mission was to reform society to meet the social needs of the poor through the ministrations of the institutional church. PBS recently called him “one of the most influential American religious leaders of the last 100 years.”

The Nature of Sin and Salvation 

When attempting to manufacture a systematic theology, the nature of sin and salvation becomes integral components of the position. Slight changes in these core beliefs cause vast differences externally. Having previously labored toward the notion of “the social gospel,” Walter Rauschenbusch writes A Theology for the Social Gospel with the aims to fill in the gaps.

Interestingly, Rauschenbusch begins his endeavor under clearly inductive principles. Where many theologians begin with wide-sweeping, theoretical principles and work down toward specifics, Rauschenbusch begins with the assumption that:

“We have a social gospel. We need a systematic theology large enough to match it and vital enough to back it” (1).

Thus, the bedrock principles of theology must fit around the idea of a social gospel.

On Sin 

Next, Rauschenbusch defines the nature of sin. Rauschenbusch rejects the classic conceptions of sin which center on the notion of personal morality. Instead, he offers,

“Sin is essentially selfishness. That definition is more in harmony with the social gospel than with any individualistic type of religion. The sinful mind, then, is the unsocial and anti-social mind” (50).

As the basic tenets of the social gospel recommend, the notion of sin must transform from an individual perception to a collective perception. Sin is not defined by the “do’s and don’ts” of individual morality but the involvement of an individual in a larger group. Rauschenbusch later suggests that sin takes effect in social scenarios; without the opportunity to inflict injustice on another human being, sin lacks an ethical bite.

Sin and the Collective Body 

Having established a social setting under which sin finds meaning, Rauschenbusch expands the meaning of sin to include social groups. For his justification of the moral value in collective organizations, Rauschenbusch quotes Josiah Royce who stated,

“There are in the human world two profoundly different grades, or levels, of mental beings,—namely, the beings that we usually call human individuals, and the being that we call communities.—Any highly organized community is as truly a human being as you and I are individually human” (71). 

The collective actions of a community carry as much weight as the actions of an individual. If a human being is capable of sinful selfishness, an organization is as well. 

On Salvation 

Given the notion of both human and communal sinfulness, Rauschenbusch’s view of salvation carries a similar dualistic nature. On one side, Rauschenbusch affirms an individual salvation when he asserts,

“If sin is selfishness, salvation must be a change which turns a man from self to God and humanity” (97).

Even though he adds the caveat of turning toward humanity, Rauschenbusch aligns himself for the most part with classic views on salvation.

Yet Rauschenbusch takes an extra step, asserting that communities also carry the responsibility of salvation. He writes,

“The Salvation of the composite personalities, like that of individuals, consists in coming under the law of Christ” (111).

In ways similar to the legal standing of corporations as individual citizens, Rauschenbusch believes that the collective actions of an organization are a source for salvific consideration.

On the Church 

For Rauschenbusch, the entity that ties together his theology of sin and salvation is the church. Rauschenbusch argues:

“The Church is the social factor in salvation. It brings social forces to bear on evil. It offers Christ not only many human bodies and minds to serve as ministers of his salvation, but its own composite personality, with a collective memory stored with great hymns and Bible stories and deeds of heroism, with trained aesthetic and moral feelings, and with a collective will set on righteousness” (119).

Therefore, the connection between personal and collective sin and salvation lies with the church. It possesses the ability to speak into the life of an individual and against the injustice of a collective.

Questions on Sin and Grace 

Even though A Theology for the Social Gospel explores the importance of adding collective moral weight to the notions of sin and salvation, certain assertions from Rauschenbusch are questionable. First, he decries the classic notion of universal sin. He writes,

“Theologians have erred, it seems to me, by fitting their definitions to the most highly developed forms of sin and then spreading them over germinal and semi-sinful actions and conditions” (45).

Most Christian traditions consider sin to be sin no matter the depth or consequence. A white lie is as sinful as committing murder. Yet, Rauschenbusch clearly believes that sin is too widely defined. Certainly, we see Christians who take liberty to declare many “gray areas” as sinful.

Despite no clear “thou shalt not drink alcohol of any kind at any time,” many moralists consider such an action as sin. However, the attempt to define a “semi-sinful” state seems dangerous. On the whole, Rauschenbusch argues against a legalistic morality, but I worry he wanders too far in the other direction.

In addition, I see no mention of grace in Rauschenbusch’s theology. There is no note on the Ephesians passage that states, “For by grace we have been saved…” (Ephesians 2:8). For Rauschenbusch, salvation occurs during alignment with God and alignment with the Church body. Given his inductive approach to the social gospel, Rauschenbusch has no need for grace. But isn’t grace the first step and those alignments a response to the original offer of grace? Clearly, Rauschenbusch does not stress a Pauline view in his social gospel. But I am wary that without mentioning grace, Rauschenbusch ignores a portion of the gospel.

Conclusion 

In A Theology for the Social Gospel, Walter Rauschenbusch sets forth an attempt for a systematic theology that fulfills the social gospel from an inductive approach. Focusing on sin and salvation that includes both personal and collective pieces, Rauschenbusch believes that the social institution of the church acts as the fulcrum between the individual and society. Nevertheless, Rauschenbusch’s view of sin and his lack of interest in grace leaves question marks. The gospel offers social aims, and Walter Rauschenbusch’s theology endeavors to provide system around it. If you are interested theology and social justice, Walter Rauschenbusch’s A Theology for the Social Gospel is a must read. However, if you find unorthodox or non-conservative theological positions dangerous, I suggest you steer clear.

Verdict: 3 out of 5

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Posted by: Donovan Richards

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Book Review: Christianity and the Social Crisis in the 21st Century

Christianity and the Social Crisis in the 21st Century: The Classic That Woke Up the Church by Walter Rauschenbusch; edited by Paul Raushenbush (New York: HarperOne, 2008. 400 pp)

Walter Rauschenbusch was the leading proponent of the Social Gospel Movement whose mission was to reform society to meet the social needs of the poor through the ministrations of the institutional church. PBS recently called him “one of the most influential American religious leaders of the last 100 years.”

Paul Raushenbush, great-grandson of Walter Rauschenbusch, was associate dean or religious life and the chapel at Princeton University and current religion editor at the Huffington Post. He has served as an associate minister at the Riverside Church in New York City and has been involved in ministry to street youth in Seattle and Sӑo Paulo, Brazil.

An Allegory of the 19th Century 

Walter Rauschenbusch begins the fifth chapter of Christianity and the Social Crisis with a poetic allegory of the 19th Century. Upon the end of that century, Rauschenbusch imagines the 19th century descending into “the vaulted chamber of the Past”, where previous centuries congregate to discuss the perils and pieties of their respective eras. With unprecedented material success accumulated in the wake of the Industrial Revolution, the 19th Century metaphorically pats its own back. Interjecting, the 1st Century enquires whether or not the 19th Century has solved the problem of hunger. Hearing this question, the 19th Century lowers its head realizing that another hundred years have passed without any progress on the core issues of human suffering.

By this metaphor, Rauschenbusch pursues the notion of a social gospel. Christianity and the Social Crisis in the 21st Century is an updated edition of Rauschenbusch’s original publication titled, Christianity and the Social Crisis which graced best-seller lists 100 years ago. Inventively, Walter’s grandson, Paul has included responses at the end of each chapter from influential theologians.

The Social Aspect of the Gospel 

In Christianity and the Social Crisis, Walter Rauschenbusch begins with a reappraisal of the gospel. Since Christianity had for centuries emphasized the personal salvation of human beings, Rauschenbusch reassesses this principle citing the gospels.

While he refuses to completely ignore the future salvific aims of Jesus, Rauschenbusch asserts that Jesus carried revolutionary social aims. He writes,

“Whoever uncouples the religious and the social life has not understood Jesus. Whoever sets any bounds for the reconstructive power of the religious life over the social relations and institutions of men, to that extent denies the faith of the Master” (42).

Historically speaking, the aims of Jesus were social in nature. When he spoke of the Kingdom of God, he did not mean a heavenly future exclusively; Jesus also situated the Kingdom of God in the present, an attainable society toward which disciples must work.

The Failure of the Church 

Given this position, Rauschenbusch decries the classic self-serving and individualistic tendencies of the Church. Instead of focusing on social justice, the church looked inward. Rauschenbusch warns,

“The Church was able to offer the most enticing eternal rewards to those who gave to her. Thus she discouraged the giving of aid from man to man and encouraged the concentration of giving on herself. To some extent this systematized charity, and an ever larger percentage of the gifts never reached the poor” (152).

In other words, by linking eternal rewards to service of the church and by lining the church coffers with money instead of giving alms to the poor, the Church neglects the social aims of Jesus and replaces them with a hollow theology of personal salvation and increasing monetary power. Clearly, Rauschenbusch possesses a low view of the Church institution.

The Social Crisis 

Walter Rauschenbusch

Without the church acting in accordance with the marginalized of society to pursue social reconstruction, the economic reality of the early 1900s is harsh, to put it nicely. With capitalists holding monopolies on private property, the majority of Americans carry the work of their hands as their only economic bargaining chip.

Throughout Christianity and the Social Crisis, Rauschenbusch illustrates many depressing scenarios for the economically powerless. Speaking in terms of which I am acutely aware, he notes,

“I can conceive of nothing so crushing to all proper pride as for a workingman to be out of work for weeks, offering his work and his body and soul at one place after the other, and to be told again and again that nobody has any use for such a man as he” (195).

Such words resonate in our current setting with many recent college graduates encountering the worst job market in decades.

The Church, the State, and the Social Utopia 

With these harsh realities in mind, Rauschenbusch believes that an alignment of the church with social reconstruction offers opportunities to unlock a social utopia. A man of pristine optimism, Rauschenbusch suggests,

“Theology must become Christocentric; political economy must become anthropocentric. Man is Christianized when he puts God before self; political economy will be Christianized when it put man before wealth. Socialistic political economy does that” (301).

This view, later defined in Christian-communistic terms, suggests that the Church acts as a partner with other social institutions. Together, all can work toward the social utopia where people do not suffer from want or need.

What about Communal Evil? 

Nevertheless, Rauschenbusch’s belief in the goodness of humanity blinds him to the possibility of communal badness. In a response to the final chapter of Christianity and the Social Crisis, Jim Wallis argues,

“It is fair to say that [Rauschenbusch] not only failed to anticipate any of [Communism’s sordid] history but also generally missed communism’s potential for collective evil. His almost utopian dreams for the future, at the height of the progressive era and at the beginning of the century, reveal a naïveté about human nature and sin that was characteristic of the time” (344).

Although many Evangelicals find Rauschenbusch’s Christology to teeter dangerously on the edge of heresy, I am not too concerned with Rauschenbusch’s views on the divine nature of Jesus. From a perspective at the dawn of a new century, the glaring mistake in Rauschenbusch’s ideology is his optimism. Given the opportunity to operate society from collective principles, the communist methodology to date has failed precisely because of humanity’s capability for collective evil.

The Crisis Continues 

Walter Rauschenbusch recognizes the failure of the 19th century. Even though many hailed the wealth accumulated in that century, Rauschenbusch knows that further work must be done to accomplish the social aims of the gospel. With beautiful prose and timeless arguments (for the most part), Rauschenbusch recognizes the importance of social aims in Christianity. Christianity and the Social Crisis in the 21st Century is a must read for all Christians and could even inform the opinions of those who do not hold Christian beliefs.

Verdict: 4.5 out of 5

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Posted by: Donovan Richards

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Book Review: The Hole in Our Gospel

The Hole in Our Gospel: What Does God Expect of Us? the Answer That Changed My Life and Might Just Change the World by Richard Stearns (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2009. 352 pp)

Richard Stearns is the president of World Vision (US) and former chief executive officer of Lenox Corporation, a luxury tableware company. He attended Cornell University as an undergraduate and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania for his MBA. The Hole in Our Gospel won the 2010 Christian Book of the Year.

The World versus the Pulpit

A few years ago, my theological convictions about the world shifted. Born and raised in a conservative evangelical church, I found the things I observed in the world to differ from the things I heard from the pulpit.

A defining quality of the church I attended during my youth as well as the evangelical church as a whole is the ability to focus seemingly on salvation exclusively. One is supposed to first worry about his or her own salvation, then immediately begin converting everyone else.

This emphasis on securing a place in the afterlife resulted in the neglect of obligations in the current life. Of course, if pressed, anyone attending the church would assuredly affirm missions, charitable giving, and assisting the poor as a good thing. But, the fear of liberal theology and social justice led them to an individualistic ethos. Put simply, one must do good things for others but should not expect to hear any communal decrees on the issue.

The Preferential Option for the Poor

The more I read the gospels, the more I found a Jesus not mentioned during the Sundays of my youth. While Jesus certainly discussed the Kingdom of God in future terms, he also continuously urged his disciples to understand the Kingdom of God in the here and now. Stated differently, Jesus focused an inordinate amount of his little time on earth serving the poor.

Right at the crossroads of this debate between the Kingdom of God in the present and the Kingdom of God in the future resides The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns.

The president of World Vision – one of the largest relief and development organization in the world – Stearns gives testimony of his journey from influential CEO to the leader of an NGO seeking to make a difference in the lives of the poor around the world.

The Hole in Our Gospel

Having seen poverty firsthand, Stearns uses strong language in order to shake the American church out of its stupor.

“[God] is sick of churches and people who just ‘go through the motions.’ And he is weary of seeing a shiny veneer of faith but no depth of commitment. That is the hole in our gospel, and until we fill it, ours is an empty religion, one that God despises” (184-185).

Similar to my own observations about the American church, Stearns recognizes the schism between those that believe in meeting the needs of the poor and those who find it necessary to convert the world to Christianity. 

Discussing the source of the split in the 1920s, Stearns writes,

“And so began a kind of war between faith and works. It continues to be played out today. The ‘works’ proponents downplayed the importance of soul-winning and instead emphasized the works of caring for the poor and fighting injustice wherever it is found. The ‘faith-only’ proponents, on the other hand, considered this view worldly. They focused solely on efforts to get the world to accept God’s redeeming grace – a salvation by faith alone” (201).

In my mind, this split is a false dichotomy. In the gospels, Jesus speaks both about the present and the future. 

Similarly, Christians ought not to focus on merely the here or merely the not yet, it is their imperative to hold them in unison, to be concerned both with the immediate needs of humanity but also their spiritual state.

A Bunch of Rich People Doing Nothing

For this reason, The Hole in Our Gospel must be mandatory reading for those in the American church. In a clear and convicting fashion, Stearns outlines the grim statistics:

“It is important to put the American Church in perspective. Simply stated, it is the wealthiest community of Christians in the history of Christendom. How wealthy? The total income of American churchgoers is $5.2 trillion. (That’s more than five thousand billion dollars.) It would take just a little over 1 percent of the income of American Christians to lift the poorest one billion people in the world out of extreme poverty. Said another way, American Christians, who make up about 5 percent of the Church worldwide, control about half of global Christian wealth; a lack of money is not our problem” (216).

One of many examples, this quote functions as a wakeup call. If Christians are to follow Scripture, they must rethink charitable giving.

One Dollar per Year

Luckily, Stearns mixes these shocking statistics with statements of hope:

“The lack of clean water causes millions of needless child deaths each year. Yet the cost to bring clean water to one person costs only one dollar per year! When you realize that a gift as small as a dollar can save a life, it is hard to argue that you’re not wealthy enough to make a difference” (267).

Can you part with one dollar per year? If all Christians could rethink the gospel and accept the present and the future ramifications, could we end poverty? Stearns believes we can even if it is much more difficult than his previous statement paints the issue. All it takes is mending The Hole in Our Gospel.

Read this book.

Verdict: 4 out of 5
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Donovan Richards is a University of Washington undergraduate alumnus from 2008, graduating with a BA in Philosophy. He is also a graduate of the inaugural Seattle Pacific University School of Theology graduate program class of 2009 as an MA student in Business and Theology. He is a huge fan of music, books, and movies. You can reach him via email at lemurfarmer@gmail.com


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Book Review: Ecological Intelligence

Ecological Intelligence: How Knowing the Hidden Impacts of What We Buy Can Change Everything, by Daniel Goleman (New York: Broadway Books, 2009. 288 pp)

As a psychologist, Daniel Goleman writes and lectures to students and working professionals on brain and behavioral sciences. Born in California in 1946, Goleman split his time as an undergraduate between Amherst College and the University of California at Berkeley, receiving a B.A. from Amherst in anthropology. Through a scholarship from the Ford Foundation, Goleman attended the clinical psychology program at Harvard and pursued doctoral research on meditation as an intervention in stress arousal. Goleman’s post-doctoral grant from the Social Science Research Council later became his first book, The Meditative Mind. Taking a job with Psychology Today, Goleman became interested in full-time writing, publishing articles with The New York Times and writing books, including the widely popular Emotional Intelligence. Goleman lives with his wife in Massachusetts.

90%

Money, the most awkward subject in church. Some pastors decide to forgo any mention of it for fear of molding the sermon into a money grab; others discuss money constantly, reminding their parishioners of tithing as a duty to God. In both instances, the debate resides around the tithe, typically understood as a charitable contribution of 10% of all income.

But what about the other 90%?

Setting aside debates about whether a tithe ought to be the standard or a minimum, Christians all too often utilize the remaining funds in the marketplace without much thought about the biological, ecological, and social ramifications of their purchases.

Naturally, many Christian leaders would shy away from exerting control over a congregation’s finances. But I am not proposing that a pastor give his or her flock a list of what to buy. Instead, I believe it is important that Christians be reminded that what they purchase counts. Each item in the shopping cart represents a vote for that product.

Whether or not we want to admit it, Christians buy products from some pretty nasty companies. Luckily, though, many virtuous companies do exist — companies that are selling good products for health, society, and the globe that have been produced in humane ways. If Christians consider purchasing in this manner, it is possible that they can add further change to the world in addition to charitable donations.

Hidden Impacts

With these ideas in mind, Daniel Goleman’s book Ecological Intelligence discusses the importance of knowing the effects concerning the things we buy. If you realized that buying the cheaper pair of shoes not only meant that you continue to promote child slavery but also that you are wearing a product that leaks toxic chemicals into the air, wouldn’t you think twice about purchasing the product?

Of course, Ecological Intelligence focuses primarily on the environmental side effects of the things we buy. Yet Goleman also expands his spotlight to uncover the hidden impacts on health, the environment, and society as a whole.

Radical Transparency

Goleman suggests that consumers demand radical transparency in the market place. As it stands, a disconnect lies between consumer and producer. We don’t know exactly where food, clothing, and toys come from. With subsidies imparted through big-business lobbying, the open market is not actually open. Thus, business finds means by which to hide certain health, environmental, and societal costs.

Source: Roadside Pictures

Radical transparency, on the other hand, suggests that business lifts the veil off its operations and supply chain. Under this scenario, a consumer is capable of rationally deciding the best product, based on open information. Goleman adds,

For companies, radical transparency can create a vibrant new competitive playing ground, one where doing the right thing also means doing better (82).

The current cultural climate around the globe offers a ripe scenario for this sort of transparency. More specifically, social networking allows almost instantaneous communication between extensive populations. If a business ethically falters in this environment, word will spread quickly. Moreover, websites such as www.goodguide.com supply customers with a smart-phone application, providing power in the hands of consumers to obtain a better sense of companies and products.

It seems to me that most Christians would seek to do good in the world when presented an opportunity to do so. Ecological Intelligence offers practical ways in which people can navigate the health, environmental, and societal factors of purchasing products. The Christian Church is a beacon for the poor and disinherited. Many Christians give generously to charity and mission organizations. But we can do so much more! Our groceries, clothing suppliers, and houses give us further opportunities to choose the best products for our own health, the environment, and society.