Strong emphasis on faith in our theory of change and view of development

Petter Jakobsson, our theological advisor, talks about the update of our theory of change and developmental view and what we hope it will lead to.

SMC Faith in Development’s theory of change and development view is a policy that describes the core of our work for a better world. It is used as a common basis for cooperation with our member organisations and in the ongoing work of the head office. It is also an important starting point for dialogue with Sida and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Here Petter Jakobsson, our theological advisor, talks about the work to update this policy and what conversations we hope it can lead to.

Illustration: Jenny Wallmark

Our theory of change and view of development explains why we work the way we do and what drives us. It also highlights how we distinguish ourselves from other development actors through the special knowledge we have about faith and religion in particular.

Bilingualism between faith and human rights

One such added value is the SMC’s ability to bridge between the world of faith and the world of development assistance with a focus on sustainable development and human rights. We call it bilingualism. Some of our member organisations emphasize faith and Christian identity more strongly while others speak more about human rights as the driving force for their work. Therefore, it has been a genuine challenge to be theologically pointed – not too much and not too little – when we have worked with these texts.

Mission – a common mission

The word mission, meaning mission, is a key word. Within the SMC’s network, we will need to talk a lot about how we define mission in the coming years. It’s not just about the part of the work of our member organisations that emphasizes testimony, church building , and evangelism. For we believe that all of our member organisations participate in God’s mission. It is also part of God’s mission when people create the conditions for dignified living, when we support people’s struggle for their rights, when we fight for the rights of children and women, because these are things that God has commissioned us to do, because we believe that it is God’s will.

Someone might call it a watering down of the concept of mission. But on the contrary, we see it as a way of inviting the language of faith into everything we do.

Civil society – a prerequisite for sustainable development

The focus of our theory of change is on how SMC can strengthen civil society. With thirty member organisations, we ourselves are a platform for civil society. We believe that a rich and dynamic civil society creates the best conditions for the good processes we want to see in a society: democracy, accountability, development and freedom. It is to this that we can convey resources, both in the form of money and learning. Our theory of change describes how we can support processes of awareness-raising, mobilisation, action and reflection that in turn contribute to sustainable societies and dignity for our fellow human beings.

Faith as inspiration and power source

When we updated the policy, we wanted to clarify the importance of faith as an inspiration and source of power. We believe that the Christian faith, and other beliefs, can strengthen leadership, community, development and hope in the work for a better world. We believe that our bilingualism can help increase religious literacy among those we partner with.

SMC’s theory of change and view of development is not a “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” with answers to all questions, including that of the meaning of life. But they are a starting point for conversations about the knots that we often encounter in our work. We look forward to continued conversations in our network, for example about:

• Theology and human rights – what will it be like in practice and when there is a conflict between these two systems of thought?
• How can we understand civil society’s relationship with those in power?
• How do we view the individual versus the collective as an actor for change?
• What do the words Kingdom of God, Prophetic Voice, and Holistic Mission mean?
• How do we best strengthen the community that exists in the diversity of the Swedish Mission Council’s network of member organizations?