The Christian Century

According to articles in the New Yorker and Business Week, churches are leading an urban renaissance. The media have celebrated the churches’ role in prompting economic development in distressed areas as well as the social services that churches offer to low-income residents.

The aids epidemic is so widespread in some countries that U.S. officials fear it could undermine economies, destabilize governments, threaten military establishments and create other regional problems. Here are a few indications of the magnitude of the problem—with a particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa, where the epidemic is worse that anywhere else in the world:

Aid to Africa: So Much to Do, So Little Done, by Carol Lancaster
Future Positive: International Co-operation in the 21st Century, by Michael Edwards

This year’s selection of the Nobel Peace Prize winner has thrown the spotlight on Christian-supported microfinance and banking institutions that make small loans to help poor people build a future.