Making Space to Breathe

Faith-based non-government organisations are responsible for a considerable amount of international development aid, yet there is little research on the relationship between faith and development. In 2004 the Anglican Board of Mission embarked on an organisational learning process to explore the influence of the development sector on their own sphere of activities. Notions of intentionality, accountability and legitimacy emerged as significant foundations for the agency's work. Its multiple accountabilities - to government, to its Anglican constituency, and to overseas church partners - offer a framework through which the agency can continually assess its organisational integrity and fidelity to its value base. Articulating intentionality of purpose and a clear theological understanding of mission and development are crucial if the agency is to maintain its legitimacy. "Making space to breathe" became a metaphor to describe the task of creating both a reflective space which opens possibilities for transformed praxis, and a liminal space between the evangelical and development activities of the agency in which a unifying philosophical ground can be discovered.