Introduction

Lebanon is of both intrinsic and instrumental value in this book. It presents an interesting case for research because of the diversity of religious groups there and because of its weak state (Migdal, 1988). Lebanon has historically stood out among the remaining Arab nations of the region because of its liberal social and political systems, its dynamic laissez-faire economic sector, which has always been open to trade with the outside world, the relative freedom of its press and the high levels of education of its population. Lebanon has also hosted the wars of the Middle East, being vulnerable to international interference from both East and West. For all these reasons, observers have disagreed over the extent to which Lebanon is a microcosm of or an exception to the rest of the Middle East, and particularly the Arab states within it.

For the purposes of this book, which focuses on the role of religion in social policy, Lebanon provides the most active multi-faith civil society sector in the Middle East. In many ways, the history of social policy in Lebanon and its current configuration is representative of the more general experiences of its sister countries. Indeed, like the rest of the Arab states, there is a serious lack of statistical data on poverty and standards of living in Lebanon (UN-ESCWA, 2005). This partly reflects the neglect of Arab governments towards the study of social welfare. Hence, Lebanon forms the basis of an instructive case study for this book.

The purpose of this chapter is to paint a profile of Lebanon's political context and its welfare institutions in order to focus the discussion on religious welfare in the Middle East. Basic data on development and public social expenditure, which are provided in Appendix A, supplement this profile. First, I offer a description of Lebanon's religious demography and political economy. Then, I give a historical overview of social policy in Lebanon, the ideological and political forces that have led to the configuration of a partial and incomplete social security system today. Thus, the aim is to depict a nation-state where religious identity coupled with questions of social justice and human well-being have been at the crossroads of sporadic political strife throughout Lebanon's modern history.