Democracy Conference Schedule

Meidan Koresh (Bar-Ilan University)
“Democratic Stability Without Consensus: Religion, Power, and Modus Vivendi in Israel”

This study asks how democracies accommodate religious fundamentalism under conditions of ideological rigidity. It hypothesizes that consociationalism fails where mutual recognition collapses, while Modus Vivendi better explains stability. Using Israel’s conscription, Sabbath, and education conflicts as a most-difficult case, focusing on ultra-Orthodox–state relations, findings show: (1) a de facto Modus Vivendi governs these conflicts; (2) religious fundamentalism catalyzes the breakdown of consensus and the emergence of coercive, non-consensual Modus Vivendi.
Keywords: Modus Vivendi; Consociationalism; Religious Fundamentalism; Democratic Accommodation; Ideological Rigidity
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Tracy Kuperus (Calvin University) & Virginia Beard (Hope College)
“Democratic Accountability: The Role of Parachurch Civil Society Organizations in Kenya"

Civil society organizations (CSOs) play a crucial role in fostering democratic resilience. But do Kenyan parachurch CSOs (PCSOs) hold the government accountable? We investigate the mainly positive vertical, horizontal and diagonal accountability roles of the leading PCSOs in Kenya: the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK), the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) and the Evangelical Alliance of Kenya (EAK).
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Diane Ziegler (Fuller Theological Seminary)
"Retelling the Story: Reclaiming Theological Language and Its Importance for Democracy"

This paper argues for the reclamation of theological language in our modern moment for the formation and empowerment of citizens in order to nurture and support a more just democracy. The call to language reclamation and models of equipping Christians, as found in the work of John de Gruchy, Elaine Graham, and K. H. Miskotte will be considered.
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DISCUSSANT
Dan Young (Northwestern College-IA)