When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself
With more than 300,000 copies in print, When Helping Hurts is a paradigm-forming contemporary classic on the subject of poverty alleviation.
Poverty is much more than simply a lack of material resources, and it takes much more than donations and handouts to solve it. When Helping Hurts shows how some alleviation efforts, failing to consider the complexities of poverty, have actually (and unintentionally) done more harm than good.
But it looks ahead. It encourages us to see the dignity in everyone, to empower the materially poor, and to know that we are all uniquely needy—and that God in the gospel is reconciling all things to himself.
Focusing on both North American and Majority World contexts, When Helping Hurts provides proven strategies for effective poverty alleviation, catalyzing the idea that sustainable change comes not from the outside in, but from the inside out.
From the Back Cover
Good Intentions Are Not Enough
Unleashing and equipping people to effectively help the poor requires repentance and the realization of our own brokenness. When Helping Hurts articulates a biblically based framework concerning the root causes of poverty and its alleviation.
A path forward is found, not through providing resources to the poor, but by walking with them in humble relationships.
Whether you’re involved in short-term missions or the long-term empowerment of the poor, this book helps teach you three key areas:
· Foundational ConceptsWho are the poor?
· PrinciplesShould we do relief, rehabilitation, or development?
· StrategiesHow can we help people effectively here and abroad?
Preface
Opening Excercise
Introduction
Part 1: Foundational Concepts for Helping Without
Hurting
Chapter 1: Why Did Jesus Come to Earth?
Chapter 2: What's the Problem?
Chapter 3: Are We There Yet?
Part 2: General Principles for Helping Without Hurting
Chapter 4: Not All Poverty Is Created Equal
Chapter 5: Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor, and Their
Assets
Chapter 6: McDevelopment: Over 2.5 Billion People NOT
Served
Part 3: Practical Strategies for Helping Without
Hurting
Chapter 7: Doing Short-Term Missions Without Doing Long-Term
Harm
Chapter 8: Yes, In Your Backyard
Chapter 9: And to the Ends of the Earth
Chapter 10: What's Next?
Concluding Remarks
I can honestly report that When Helping Hurts is the
single best book I've seen on this topic. Although this book will
make many readers uncomfortable, it quickly offers hope in the form
of understandable, feasible new strategies that better grasp the
dignity and promise of the materially poor. It deserves a #1 spot
on the reading list of every Christian who wants to follow Jesus in
a genuine, mutually transforming love of neighbor.
-Amy L.
Sherman, PhD, senior fellow and director, Sagamore Institute Center
on Faith in Communities, author, Restorers of Hope
What an opportunity evangelicals have to make a difference in
our world through the church. Corbett and Fikkert build on the
growing momentum of holistic witness that's sweeping our country
and globe and are eminently qualified and positioned to take
motivated kingdom citizens on a Christ-centered and comprehensive
journey that will pay huge dividends for impoverished people and
for Christians in our broken world.
-Dr. Ronald J. Sider,
president, Evangelicals for Social Action, author, Rich
Christians in an Age of Hunger
How can a local church make a difference, and how do individual
Christians meaningfully reflect Christ's grace, when the
disparities of wealth and power in our world are so great? When
Helping Hurts explores biblical principles in terms of real-life
situations to offer real help and grace-filled answers for such
questions.
-Bryan Chappell, president, Covenant
Theological Seminary
When Helping Hurts wonderfully combines heavy-duty thinking with
practical tools. I appreciate their zeal to root all strategies in
the institution God has ordained to bring about His goals. No donor
should invest another dollar in any kind of relief effort before
digesting the last page of this important book.
-Joel
Belz, founder and writer, World Magazine
Churches in North Americawill find this a helpful way to educate
congregations and then motivate them to action, both globally and
in their neighborhoods.
-Bryant Myers, PhD, professor of
International Development, School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller
Theological Seminary
A clarion call to rethink how we apply the gospel to a broken
world. This book will transform our good intentions into genuine,
lasting change.
-Stephen J. Baumann, senior vice
president, World Relief
Product Details
- Title : When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself
- Authors:
- Corbett, Steve
- Fikkert, Brian
- Perkins, John
- Platt, David
- Publisher: Moody Publishers
- Publication Date: 2014
- ISBN: 9780802487629
Steve Corbett is the Community Development Specialist for the Chalmers Center at Covenant College and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics and Community Development at Covenant College.
Brian Fikkert is the Founder and Executive Director of the Chalmers Center at Covenant College, as well as a Professor of Economics and Community Development at Covenant College.