Catholic Institute for International Relations

The Sword of the Spirit was founded in 1940, in response to the rise of fascism. Although founded by lay Catholics and supported by Cardinal Hinsley the organisation was ecumenical from the start. Its focus was on a just social order. At that stage it looked primarily to Europe. In the 1950s, it widened its brief to inform people in church and society about the international agenda.

In 1965, The Sword of the Spirit was renamed the Catholic Institute for International Relations (CIIR) with an education section and an overseas volunteer programme. In 1966, the overseas volunteer programme became part of the UK government's British Volunteer Programme and was in the most part funded by the Government's Overseas Development Administration (ODA, later the Department for International Development, or DFID). At first, volunteer placements were linked to the church, but the overseas programme gradually took on more of a serious developmental perspective and was not limited to any particular religious affiliation. The programme worked closely with other sending agencies (through the British Volunteer Agencies Liaison Group).

Throughout its history, the organisation has sought to influence church and state, most notably to support liberation struggles, grassroots developments and to strengthen a moral voice against human rights abuses. In the 1970s, following the Second Vatican Council and the statement of the Catholic Church's commitment to the option for the poor, progressive elements in the Church came increasingly to support grassroots liberation movements. CIIR's then education department supported the progressive elements of the Church in various liberation and human rights struggles in Central America, southern Africa and Asia. CIIR published booklets on liberation theology and promoted progressive church speakers. The CIIR, in collaboration with others also undertook detailed policy analysis and innovative work on issues such as drugs, debt and trade.

Early in the 1990s, the overseas programme was renamed International Cooperation for Development (ICD). ICD continued to have ODA funding. Around this time ICD started having national staff in country offices - a vanguard move among development agencies, most of which were still run locally by expatriate staff. Throughout the 1990s, CIIR's education department (by this time renamed the international policy department) faced difficulties. Funding sources were drying up and there was a proliferation of agencies and academic institutions undertaking development policy work. The two approaches remained separate and distinct departments within CIIR until January 2000. After an internal process of reflection, CIIR brought the two departments together into one programme department, combining skill-share and advocacy. In 2006 CIIR changed its name to Progressio.