Inspired to Serve: Today's Faith Activists

"'Never underestimate the good you can do,' Rabbi Steve Foster tells
his Denver congregation in Mark H. Massé's Inspired to Serve, and it is the book's
message, as well." -- Melissa Fay Greene, author of Praying for Sheetrock,The
Temple Bombing, and Last Man Out

"Anyone who wants to know
more about how diverse religious organizations perform civic good works should read
this excellent account." -- John J. DiIulio, Jr., University of
Pennsylvania

"Powerful, real-life stories of people of faith
serving and empowering the poor." -- Ronald J. Sider, President, Evangelicals
for Social Action

Curious about what had happened to the social
activism of the 1960s, and in response to the recent interest in "faith-based
initiatives," Mark H. Massé set out to identify people who had continued their
social activism in the context of a religious commitment to work in aid of the poor
and the disenfranchised. The profiled activists include clergy, lay workers, and
others, representing a mix of faiths, social issues, and geographic regions. They
include a Jesuit priest working in a poor neighborhood in Portland, a Muslim
"messenger of good news" to an Islamic community in Texas, an Irish
American nun working with migrants and others in central Florida, a black
Episcopalian minister on Chicago's Southside, and a "Dharma activist" in
California. What sets these and other activists apart is the depth and breadth of
their service, vision, and sacrifice. Many risk their reputations and careers, their
health, even their lives in pursuit of social change. Massé discovers that these
individuals share an unbending belief in the power, potential, and rewards of
service to others, as they try to balance their secular and spiritual lives in the
face of challenging work.