The Churching Of America, 1776-2005: Winners And Losers In Our Religious Economy

Roger Finke

Rutgers University Press, 2005 - Religion - 347 pages

In this provocative book, Roger Finke and Rodney Stark challenge popular perceptions about American religion. They view the religious environment as a free market economy, where churches compete for souls. The story they tell is one of gains for upstart sects and losses for mainline denominations.

Although many Americans assume that religious participation has declined in America, Finke and Stark present a different picture. In 1776, fewer than 1 in 5 Americans were active in church affairs. Today, church membership includes about 6 out of 10 people.

But, as Finke and Stark show, not all denominations benefited. They explain how and why the early nineteenth-century churches began their descent, while two newcomer sects, the Baptists and the Methodists, gained ground. They also analyze why the Methodists then began a long, downward slide, why the Baptists continued to succeed, how the Catholic Church met the competition of ardent Protestant missionaries, and why the Catholic commitment has declined since Vatican II. The authors also explain why ecumenical movements always fail

In short, Americans are not abandoning religion; they have been moving away from established denominations. A "church-sect process" is always under way, Finke and Stark argue, as successful churches lose their organizational vigor and are replaced by less worldly groups.

Some observers assert that the rise in churching rates indicates increased participation, not increased belief. Finke and Stark challenge this as well. They find that those groups that have gained the greatest numbers have demanded that their followers accept traditional doctrines and otherworldliness. They argue that religious organizations can thrive only when they comfort souls and demand sacrifice. When theology becomes too logical, or too secular, it loses people.

 

 

What people are saying

Review: The Churching of America, 1776-1990: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy

User Review  - Stephen Cranney - Goodreads

Stark and Finke overturn so much conventional wisdom in this book it's hard to know where to start. Suffice it to say, required reading for anybody with an interest in religious history in the US or ...

Review: The Churching of America, 1776-1990: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy

User Review  - Sally - Goodreads

My son gave me an earlier (1992) edition of this book, which he had had as a textbook in a college class, and although I have no academic leanings and had never given much thought to religious history ...

Contents

• Page from 1926 Census of Religious Bodies Showing: 14
• The Colonial Era Revisited: 25
• Pilgrims Going to Church: 26
• Early Settlers on Their Way to Church and The Call: 34
• Henry Muhlenberg 17111787 Preaching in a Barn in 1742: 40
• George Whitefield 17141770: 48
• The Upstart Sects Win America 17761850: 55
• Lyman Beecher 17751863: 58
• Peter Cartwright 17851872: 65
• A Stately Seminary of the Colonial Mainline: 78
• A Methodist Circuit Rider: 85
• Charles Grandison Finney 17921875 and His Second Wife: 91
• Camp Meeting Layouts: 97
• Family Worship at a Plantation in South Carolina 04: 104
• The Coming of the Catholics 18501926 7: 117
• Methodists Transformed Baptists Triumphant: 156
• Why Unification Efforts Fail 97: 199
• Why Mainline Denominations Decline: 235

About the author

Roger Finke is Professor of Sociology and Religious Studies at the Pennsylvania State University and Director of the Association of Religion Data Archives (www.theARDA.com). He has published in numerous social science journals and has co-authored two award-winning books with Rodney Stark: Acts of Faith: Explaining the Human Side of Religion and The Churching of America, 1776 1990. He is the past president of the Association for the Study of Religion, Economics, and Culture; is a past chair of the American Sociological Association's Sociology of Religion Section; and has served as a member of multiple national and international councils, boards, and committees. He is the 2009 recipient of the Pennsylvania State University President's Award for integrating research, teaching, and service.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Churching Of America, 1776-2005: Winners And Losers In Our Religious Economy
• Author: Roger Finke
• Contributor: Rodney Stark
• Edition: 2, illustrated, reprint, revised
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press, 2005
• ISBN: 0813535530, 9780813535531
• Length: 347 pages
• Subjects: Religion / Christianity / History; Social Science / Sociology of Religion