This book tells the story of the negotiations between China, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries about the East and South China Sea disputes. Tapping into formerly classified and newly available primary sources, the book meticulously tracks these negotiations and their sudden U-turns. It is a story about the promises and perils of cooperation – as much about pragmatic, gradual and surprisingly resilient approaches to conflict resolution and ocean governance as it is about the expansion of states’ bargaining power through institutions. The book hinges on the question of when and why disputing parties reach agreement on joint oil and gas development, fisheries and codes of conduct, and when and why negotiations end in impasse. It is the first comprehensive and theoretically informed study of decades-long dispute settlement efforts in a central region of the Indo-Pacific where the expansion of China challenges the law of the sea and regional security.

Why does a denomination prohibiting women clergy support parishes run by women? Why does a denomination opt to ordain women when there are few women seeking to join that clergy? And why have some denominations ordained women so much earlier than others? In a revealing examination of the complex relationship among religion, social forces, and organizational structure, Ordaining Women draws examples and data from over 100 Christian denominations to explore the meaning of institutional rules about women's ordination.

Combining historical and sociological perspectives, Mark Chaves deftly shows that formal institutional rules about ordination often diverge from the actual roles of women and are best understood as symbolic gestures in favor of--or in opposition to--gender equality. Ordaining Women concludes that external pressures from the women's movement and ecumenical pressure expressed through interdenominational organizations such as the National Council of Churches influence ordination practices. At the same time, internal factors such as having a source of religious authority that is considered superior to modern principles of equal rights also explain why some denominations ordain women much earlier than others.

Surprisingly, "the Bible forbids it" does not account for policies even among fundamentalists and other biblical inerrantists. Chaves' historical and comparative approach offers a revealing analysis of how the internal denominational debates have changed over time, becoming more frequent, more politicized, and more contentious. The skillful delineation of forces affecting debates and policies about women's ordination makes this book an important contribution to our understanding of religious organizations and of gender equality.