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Rupen Das is Research Professor at Tyndale University College and Seminary in Toronto, Canada. He is also a consultant to the European Baptist Federation on enabling churches in Europe to respond to the refugee crisis. He has extensive field experience, having set up the relief response for the Baptists in Lebanon and Syria, and as a director with World Vision Canada and International. Prior to that he had been professor and program coordinator for Humber College’s International Project Management postgrad program in Toronto.
Humanitarianism in Highly Religious Contexts: Responding to Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
This essay discusses the potential value of and impediments to the provision of assistance to refugees by local religious institutions. It explores this issue by focusing on Lebanon, highlighting the important contribution of a small NGO, the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development (LSESD), in mentoring and training pastors and many of the key local church leadership in how to respond to the humanitarian needs of Syrian refugees.
