Author: General Council of the Congregational and Christian Churches of the United States
Publisher:
Published: 1879
Total Pages: 310
ISBN-13:
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Author: American Congregational Union
Publisher: Kessinger Publishing
Published: 2009-04
Total Pages: 396
ISBN-13: 9781104411305
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.
Author: Anonymous
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
Published: 2022-10-23
Total Pages: 394
ISBN-13: 3375123213
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Reprint of the original, first published in 1859.
Author: Mark Chaves
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Published: 2009-07-01
Total Pages: 304
ISBN-13: 0674029445
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →More Americans belong to religious congregations than to any other kind of voluntary association. What these vast numbers amount to--what people are doing in the over 300,000 churches, synagogues, mosques, and temples in the United States--is a question that resonates through every quarter of American society, particularly in these times of "faith-based initiatives," "moral majorities," and militant fundamentalism. And it is a question answered in depth and in detail in Congregations in America. Drawing on the 1998 National Congregations Study--the first systematic study of its kind--as well as a broad range of quantitative, qualitative, and historical evidence, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the most significant form of collective religious expression in American society: local congregations. Among its more surprising findings, Congregations in America reveals that, despite the media focus on the political and social activities of religious groups, the arts are actually far more central to the workings of congregations. Here we see how, far from emphasizing the pursuit of charity or justice through social services or politics, congregations mainly traffic in ritual, knowledge, and beauty through the cultural activities of worship, religious education, and the arts. Along with clarifying--and debunking--arguments on both sides of the debate over faith-based initiatives, the information presented here comprises a unique and invaluable resource, answering previously unanswerable questions about the size, nature, make-up, finances, activities, and proclivities of these organizations at the very center of American life.