ABSTRACT
The term “solidarity” evokes a fraternal ethos which resonates well in Christian minds. However, it was first articulated in modern times as a secular response to the negative social consequences of the industrial revolution. In that context, “solidarity” came to designate both the fact of human interdependence and the ethical requirements derived from it, an ambivalence which has always haunted the concept. Similarly, the practice of solidarity has always oscillated between institutional and relational considerations. Both tensions are present in the history of this concept and explain the different ways it has been worked out within socialism, solidarism, and Christianity. While both socialism and solidarism came to frame solidarity mostly in political and sociological terms, Christianity has mainly approached it from a theological and practical perspective. This chapter explores the substantive contributions of all these perspectives to the discussion of solidarity and concludes with a consideration of the aforementioned tension.
