Religion, social capital, and “The day that changed the world”

In this article, I examine a variety of Canadian and international events (including the events of September 11, 2001) in an attempt to elucidate the links between religion and social capital. I focus on the kind of “bonding” social capital related to exclusive and “fundamentalist” forms of modern religiosity. I also address the issue of how policy-makers and other community leaders might respond more effectively to the problematic and complex forms religion sometimes takes in Canadian and international society. I show that there is an intimate relationship between religious violence-that is, bonding capital gone wrong—and the relatively new Canadian tradition of ignoring, marginalizing, and misrepresenting religion.