Humanitarian Action, Forced Displacement and Religion

Abstract

This contribution focuses on the role of religion in the context of humanitarian action by using forced displacement as an example. Discussing cases from Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, the aim of the chapter is to map and evaluate the existing research on humanitarian action and religion from the perspective of the study of religion. The chapter distinguishes between local, national and transnational actor-centred perspectives on the one side and structural approaches to the political and religious field on the other side. Thus, it identifies the ways how religion can frame humanitarian action and, vice versa, how humanitarian action can set the tone for the religiosity of people or organisations.