Hidden Voluntary Social Work: A Nationally Representative Survey of Muslim Congregations in Sweden Klas Borell and Arne Gerdner Klas Borell serves as professor of Sociology at Mid-Sweden University, O ¨ stersund, Sweden, and has been a visiting professor in Lebanon and the USA. Besides carrying out research on religion and social work, Borell’s research focuses on family and ageing, social policy and social exclusion. Arne Gerdner is currently professor of Social Work at the School of Health Science, Jo ¨nko ¨ping University, and Mid-Sweden University, O ¨ stersund, Sweden. Besides carrying out research on religion and social work, Gerdner’s research focuses on the care and treatment of alcohol and drug addictions. Correspondence to Dr Professor Klas Borell, Mid-Sweden University, SE-831 25 O ¨ stersund, Sweden. E-mail: klas.borell@miun.se Abstract This study is based on a nationwide survey of local Muslim congregations (n ¼ 105) and focuses on the patterns and function of voluntary social work carried out by the congre- gations. Muslim congregations in Sweden are not only religious meeting places, but also social meeting places and centres for the organisation of a broad range of social welfare services: outreach activities, support to newly arrived immigrants and activities for chil- dren and young people. The work is carried out on a voluntary basis at the intersection between the congregation and the community. Muslim voluntary social work appears to be most intensive in smaller municipalities with a large amount of unemployment. The dominant discourse on Islam in Europe has claimed that Muslim social work is part of an attempt to create self-sufficient enclaves that impede the integration of Muslim immi- grants into the wider society. Claims of this type seem, however, to be largely unfounded. The Swedish Muslim congregations that carry out the most voluntary social work are those most interested in co-operation with other organisations and with authorities of different types and those that have the most positive experiences of the wider society. Keywords: Muslim congregations, Voluntary social Work, Islam, Integration Accepted: January 2011 # The Author 2011. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The British Association of Social Workers. All rights reserved. British Journal of Social Work (2011) 41, 968–979 doi:10.1093/bjsw/bcr002 Advance Access publication January 24, 2011 at Mittuniversitetet on August 2, 2011 bjsw.oxfordjournals.org Downloaded from