03379nam a2200433Ia 4500001001300000003000600013005001700019006001900036007001500055008004100070040001300111020003500124020003200159035002100191035001800212043001200230050002500242082002500267049000900292100001800301245006800319260005700387300003300444504006600477520168900543533015702232650004302389651004302432650003202475650004402507651004202551655002902593710002102622776007602643856018502719910001202904994001202916999001702928ocn449915187OCoLC20200709055219.0m        d        cr cnu---unuuu091006s2004    maua    sb    001 0 eng d  aN$TcN$T  a9780674029446 (electronic bk.)  a0674029445 (electronic bk.)  a(OCoLC)449915187  a282062b(N$T)  an-us---14aBL2525b.C445 2004eb04a206/.5/097309049222  aN$TA1 aChaves, Mark.10aCongregations in Americah[electronic resource] /cMark Chaves.  aCambridge, Mass. :bHarvard University Press,c2004.  axi, 291 p. :bill. ;c22 cm.  aIncludes bibliographical references (p. [263]-287) and index.  aPublisher's description: 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.  aElectronic reproduction.bBoulder, Colo. :cNetLibrary,d2009.nAvailable via World Wide Web.nAccess may be limited to NetLibrary affiliated libraries. 0aReligious institutionszUnited States. 0aUnited StatesxReligiony20th century.17aGeloofsgemeenschappen.2gtt 6aInstitutions religieuseszÉtats-Unis. 6aÉtats-UnisxReligiony20e siècle. 7aElectronic books.2local2 aNetLibrary, Inc.1 cOriginalz0674012844z9780674012844w(DLC)  2003068817w(OCoLC)539266724 3Bibliographic record displayuhttp://www.netLibrary.com/urlapi.asp?action=summary&v=1&bookid=282062zAn electronic book accessible through the World Wide Web; click for information  acpp3165  a02bN$T  c49530d49530