Faith in Action

Faith in Action PDF Author: Richard L. Wood
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226905969
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
Over the past fifteen years, associations throughout the U.S. have organized citizens around issues of equality and social justice, often through local churches. But in contrast to President Bush's vision of faith-based activism, in which groups deliver social services to the needy, these associations do something greater. Drawing on institutions of faith, they reshape public policies that neglect the disadvantaged. To find out how this faith-based form of community organizing succeeds, Richard L. Wood spent several years working with two local groups in Oakland, California—the faith-based Pacific Institute for Community Organization and the race-based Center for Third World Organizing. Comparing their activist techniques and achievements, Wood argues that the alternative cultures and strategies of these two groups give them radically different access to community ties and social capital. Creative and insightful, Faith in Action shows how community activism and religious organizations can help build a more just and democratic future for all Americans.

Faith in Action

Faith in Action PDF Author: Richard L. Wood
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226905969
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
Over the past fifteen years, associations throughout the U.S. have organized citizens around issues of equality and social justice, often through local churches. But in contrast to President Bush's vision of faith-based activism, in which groups deliver social services to the needy, these associations do something greater. Drawing on institutions of faith, they reshape public policies that neglect the disadvantaged. To find out how this faith-based form of community organizing succeeds, Richard L. Wood spent several years working with two local groups in Oakland, California—the faith-based Pacific Institute for Community Organization and the race-based Center for Third World Organizing. Comparing their activist techniques and achievements, Wood argues that the alternative cultures and strategies of these two groups give them radically different access to community ties and social capital. Creative and insightful, Faith in Action shows how community activism and religious organizations can help build a more just and democratic future for all Americans.

Religion in America: A Very Short Introduction

Religion in America: A Very Short Introduction PDF Author: Timothy Beal
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190207507
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
It's hard to think of a single aspect of American culture, past or present, in which religion has not played a major role. The roles religion plays, moreover, become more bewilderingly complex and diverse every day. For all those who want--whether out of curiosity, necessity, or civic duty--a vivid picture and fuller understanding of the current reality of religion in America, this Very Short Introduction is the go-to book they need. Timothy Beal describes many aspects of religion in contemporary America that are typically ignored in other books on the subject, including religion in popular culture and counter-cultural groups; the growing phenomenon of "hybrid" religious identities, both individual and collective; the expanding numbers of new religious movements, or NRMs, in America; and interesting examples of "outsider religion," such as Paradise Gardens in Georgia and the People Love People House of God in Ohio. He also offers an engaging overview of the history of religion in America, from Native American traditions to the present day. Beal sees three major forces shaping the present and future of religion in America: first, unprecedented religious diversity, which will continue to grow in the decades to come; second, the information revolution and the emergence of a new network society; and third, the rise of consumer culture. Taken together, these forces offer the potential to create a new American pluralism that would enrich society in unimaginable ways, but they also threaten the great ideal of e pluribus unum. With visual aids that help readers navigate America's diverse religious landscape, this informative, thoughtful, and provocative book is a must-read in the emerging public conversation concerning religion in America. About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.

The Body of Faith

The Body of Faith PDF Author: Robert C. Fuller
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022602511X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 246

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Book Description
The postmodern view that human experience is constructed by language and culture has informed historical narratives for decades. Yet newly emerging information about the biological body now makes it possible to supplement traditional scholarly models with insights about the bodily sources of human thought and experience. The Body of Faith is the first account of American religious history to highlight the biological body. Robert C. Fuller brings a crucial new perspective to the study of American religion, showing that knowledge about the biological body deeply enriches how we explain dramatic episodes in American religious life. Fuller shows that the body’s genetically evolved systems—pain responses, sexual passion, and emotions like shame and fear—have persistently shaped the ways that Americans forge relationships with nature, to society, and to God. The first new work to appear in the Chicago History of American Religion series in decades, The Body of Faith offers a truly interdisciplinary framework for explaining the richness, diversity, and endless creativity of American religious life.

Faith in Freedom

Faith in Freedom PDF Author: Andrew R. Polk
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 150175923X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 268

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Book Description
In Faith in Freedom, Andrew R. Polk argues that the American civil religion so many have identified as indigenous to the founding ideology was, in fact, the result of a strategic campaign of religious propaganda. Far from being the natural result of the nation's religious underpinning or the later spiritual machinations of conservative Protestants, American civil religion and the resultant "Christian nationalism" of today were crafted by secular elites in the middle of the twentieth century. Polk's genealogy of the national motto, "In God We Trust," revises the very meaning of the contemporary American nation. Polk shows how Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S Truman, and Dwight D. Eisenhower, working with politicians, advertising executives, and military public relations experts, exploited denominational religious affiliations and beliefs in order to unite Americans during the Second World War and, then, the early Cold War. Armed opposition to the Soviet Union was coupled with militant support for free economic markets, local control of education and housing, and liberties of speech and worship. These preferences were cultivated by state actors so as to support a set of right-wing positions including anti-communism, the Jim Crow status quo, and limited taxation and regulation. Faith in Freedom is a pioneering work of American religious history. By assessing the ideas, policies, and actions of three US Presidents and their White House staff, Polk sheds light on the origins of the ideological, religious, and partisan divides that describe the American polity today.

Religion in America

Religion in America PDF Author: Winthrop Still Hudson
Publisher: New York : Scribner
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 488

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Book Description


This Dangerous Book

This Dangerous Book PDF Author: Steve Green
Publisher: Zondervan
ISBN: 0310351480
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
From Steve and Jackie Green, founders and curators of the Museum of the Bible--a fascinating exploration of the history, authenticity, and power of the Bible, the book that has changed people and nations throughout the centuries. It is the top selling book in history. It brings social upheaval, international arguments, and political controversy. It has been used to justify both love and war. And for generations, it has found its way into the hearts of millions, offering comfort, direction, and life-changing truths. How could one book have such power? In This Dangerous Book, Steve and Jackie Green explore the incredible history and impact of the Bible. As the founders and visionaries of the Museum of the Bible in Washington D.C., the Greens have a unique perspective on the Bible's journey--from its ancient beginnings, to its effect on the moral fiber of nations, to its transformative influence in individual hearts. The Greens share the challenges they have faced in acquiring biblical artifacts from around the world and why generations--in every time period and in every geographical location--have risked their lives to preserve this precious book. Exploring ancient tablets, medieval commentaries, and modern translations, This Dangerous Book offers fascinating insight into the miracles and martyrdoms that have led to the Scriptures we read today. The Greens explore how cutting-edge technology gives new insight into the authenticity of the Bible, including the work of fifty scholars who recently uncovered hidden details about thirteen unpublished Dead Sea Scroll fragments. This Dangerous Book also looks at the link between the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, what we can learn from how the Bible was passed down to us, and why God's Word is foundational to America's past and crucial for its future. The Bible is a world-changer and a heart-changer. Whether you have read the Bible for years or are simply curious about its influence, This Dangerous Book could change your heart as well.

This Beautiful Book

This Beautiful Book PDF Author: Steve Green
Publisher: HarperChristian + ORM
ISBN: 0310356113
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
In This Beautiful Book, Steve Green - founder of The Museum of the Bible - highlights life-changing themes woven through the mosaic of the Bible's various stories, reveals a new way to engage Scripture as a whole, and inspires deep appreciation for the Bible's connection to your life. The most popular and culture-shaping text in the world, the Bible is still the least understood book of all time. The Bible's collection of history, poetry, genealogy lists, and mystifying prophecies often prove puzzling to readers. And when this text is read in pieces, we're left with only a half-impression of the vibrant mosaic. This Beautiful Book highlights the thematic threads woven throughout the ancient writings and shows us a new way to engage with Scripture as a whole. Through insights gained from firsthand experiences in leading and developing the first world class Bible museum, Green invites readers to step back from the individual stories of the Bible and consider the Bible as a whole. He reveals the completeness, connection, and transformative power of Scripture. Along with stunning retellings of biblical stories, Green helps readers see the story within the story, and draws the careful connections that help us appreciate the richness of the Bible story as a single story. Each page will spark or embolden your faith in a God who speaks to us across the centuries. A truly captivating experience, this book will instill in you a deep appreciation for Scripture and its profound connection to your own life story.

Religion and Politics in America

Religion and Politics in America PDF Author: Robert Booth Fowler
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429972792
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 602

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Book Description
this book focuses on religion and politics and the dynamic interactions between them. It helps to understand the politics of religion in the United States and to appreciate the strategic choices that politicians and religious participants make when they participate in politics.

Religion in America

Religion in America PDF Author: Harold Rabinowitz
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781402783203
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 991

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Book Description
Illustrated, comprehensive, and illuminating, this thoroughly up-to-date work takes the country's religious pulse, covering all of America's most significant organizations and denominations. Readers will find an introduction to the basic tenets and structure of 30 faiths, reviewed by a respected authority on each religion, as well as maps, surveys, and other demographic breakdowns by religious figures and scholars with respect to contemporary American society, culture, and politics. Essays discuss broader, more overarching aspects of worship in the United States. In addition to serving as an encyclopedic reference, the book tackles head-on the most current issues and controversies in American worship.

Mormon Faith in America

Mormon Faith in America PDF Author: Maxine Hanks
Publisher: Infobase Publishing
ISBN: 1438102569
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 129

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Book Description
After an introduction about basic beliefs and two chapters that briefly recount the church's history, three chapters discuss Mormons in American culture, society, and politics.