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Abortion continues to be a highly contentious issue in the United States, with few signs of abatement. The god of this paper is to specify how variable positions about abortion across religious traditions have led to differential shifts in attitudes among their members. Based on culturally relevant events, position papers, and other religious media, the guiding hypotheses propose that Evangelicals have become increasingly opposed to abortion for elective reasons; yet changes in attitudes regarding abortion for traumatic reasons are due primarily to cohort shifts. Data from the cumulative General Social Surveys (1972–2002) are used to test the hypotheses. The first hypothesis is supported: Opposition to elective abortions among Evangelicals has increased relative to other religious traditions. However, contrary to the second hypothesis, they have also become more opposed to abortion for traumatic reasons. This increasing opposition is most prominent among Evangelicals born in the last 40 years or so. Implications for understanding Evangelical distinctiveness and the cultural context of abortion attitudes are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does the ability of some brain dead bodies to maintain homeostasis with the help of artificial life support actually imply that those bodies are living human organisms? Or might it be possible that a brain dead body on life support is a mere collection of still-living cells, organs and tissues which can coordinate with one another, but which lack the genuine integration that is the hallmark of a unified human organism as a whole? To foster further study of these difficult and timely questions, a Symposium on the Definition of Death was held at The Catholic University of America in June 2014. The Symposium brought together scholars from a variety of disciplines-law, medicine, biology, philosophy and theology-who all share a commitment to the dead donor rule and to a biological definition of death, but who have differing opinions regarding the validity of neurological criteria for human death. The papers found in this special issue are among the fruits of this Symposium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The essay presents an examination into the sermons given in the weeks following the 1963 assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, discussing how Protestant ministers addressed issues of both national identity and Christian theology in response to the mourning of the nation. Subjects addressed include the portrayal of Kennedy as a martyr, the reaction of Dallas, Texas as the location of the assassination, and the combined themes of collective guilt and citizenship.

This paper discusses the role of religious speech in the public square and the common school. It argues for more openness to political theology than many liberals are willing to grant and for an educational strategy of engagement over one of avoidance. The paper argues that the exclusion of religious debate from the public square has dysfunctional consequences. It discusses Rawls's more recent views on public reason and claims that, while they are not altogether adequate, they are consistent with engagement. The outcome of these arguments is applied to three ‘hot button’ issues in US education: creationism, an issue of gay rights, and teaching the Bible in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A theory of religious activity based on principles of supply-side economics has generated considerable controversy in the sociology of religion. This theory posits that religious pluralism increases rates of religious activity by promoting competition between churches. This paper tests "supply-side theory" with data describing US Mormons. Results uncover patterns in Mormon church activity that refute the theory. The paper outlines several characteristics of Mormonism that explain its deviance from the theorized outcome, and suggests a scope condition for supply-side theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent U.S. military engagements in the Middle East have drawn public attention to the thorny issue of religion in the armed forces but the scholarship on religion in the military lags far behind these developments. Scholars have not developed a coherent research program around the challenges that religion faces in the armed forces or the religious issues that soldiers, commanders and military institutions grapple with on a daily basis. This papers seeks to initiate a scholarly conversations about the roles and effects of religion in the armed forces. I propose exploratory hypotheses that touch on some key themes that such a research program might cover, at three levels of analysis. At the institutional level, scholars should interrogate the relationship between religious norms and constitutional challenges in society and in the military. At the unit level, research should explore the impact that chaplains and group rituals have on unit morale. At the individual level, this research program should initiate a comprehensive investigation of the effects of individual religious practices on the mental health of soldiers and, in turn, the impact that participation in combat has on soldiers' religiosity. These illustrative hypotheses are far from exhaustive and should be regarded as invitations for future exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on a large cache of letters to John and Frances Gunther after the death of their son as well as memoirs and fiction by bereaved parents, this essay challenges the assumptions of secularization that infuse histories of twentieth-century American medicine. Many parents who experienced the death of children during the postwar period relied heavily on religion to help make sense of the tragedies medicine could not prevent. Parental accounts included expression of belief in divine intervention and the power of prayer, gratitude for God's role in minimizing suffering, confidence in the existence of an afterlife, and acceptance of the will of God. Historians seeking to understand how parents and families understood both the delivery of medical care and the cultural authority of medical science must integrate an understanding of religious experiences and faith into their work. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Workplace decision-making is shaped by institutionally delimited and individually appropriated logics of action. Since 1997, when President Clinton issued a White House directive that protected religious expression in the workplace, religious rhetoric and symbolism have played a more significant role in the semiotic codes through which these logics are expressed. While a growing literature has attended to the interplay between the domains of faith and work, relatively little attention has been paid to the ways elite actors negotiate the sometimes competing demands of religious convictions and workplace responsibilities. In this paper, we examine how evangelicals in positions of public leadership account for the role of faith in workplace decision-making. On the basis of our analysis of interview transcripts of 360 national leaders, we construct a taxonomy of dispositions toward faith at work along two primary axes—the expression of faith in workplace decision-making and the reception of it in various situations or by particular reference groups. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Freshmen, a sample of nearly 3,924 students at 28 of the most selective college and universities in the United States, this paper tests hypotheses about religion, academic performance, and satisfaction at college. Two measures of religiosity—attending religious services every week or more and a 1 to 10 scale of observance of one's religious traditions and customs—increase the amount of hours students report spending on academic work and extracurricular activities, as well as reduce the hours students report going to parties. Even when controlling for time spent partying, studying and in extracurricular activities, regular attendance at religious services increases academic achievement. Finally, students who attend religious services weekly and those who are more observant of their religious traditions also report being more satisfied at college. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Why did some Americans volunteer to provide relief to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack victims, their families, or workers? This paper uses data from the 2002 Religion and Public Activism Survey, a nationally representative sample of adult Americans, which show that 10 percent of Americans volunteered to help victims of the terrorist attacks in some way to address this question. We argue that the act of volunteering in response to September 11 depended on levels of identification with victims of the tragedy. One of the strongest factors was personal identification with victims, which was built through personal networks such as knowing someone who was killed or in danger during the attacks, and through personal feelings of responsibility to help others in need. Identification was also constructed through involvement in social events such as community candlelight vigils that reflected on, framed, and reinforced the significance of the disaster in a communal setting. In addition, identification: with victims was built through a patriotic response to the tragedy, which, we argue, motivated Americans to defend the society with which they were emotionally identified and to see victims as part of the American family to which they were obligated to help in times of need. We argue that emotions matter for disaster relief but that sorrow rather than anger is important for generating identification with victims and thus volunteering for 9/11 relief efforts. These arguments are used to explain gender and political party differences in 9/11 volunteering. Finally, embeddedness in religious congregations promoted volunteering for 9/11 relief efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented which examines the conflict between U.S. foreign policy and American Catholicism between World War I and World War II. The formation of the National Catholic Welfare Council (NCWC) is discussed and its stance concerning U.S. relations with the Soviet Union is explored. The NCWC support of the restoration of the Catholic Church in Mexico is examined.

From Tom Cruise's wedding to South Park's scathing cartoon parody, the Church of Scientology has emerged as one of the wealthiest, most powerful but also most controversial new religious movements of the last fifty years. Remarkably, however, it has rarely been subjected to serious, critical study by historians of religions, in large part because of the intense secrecy that has surrounded the movement from its origins. This paper examines the role of secrecy in the early Church of Scientology, placing it in the historical and cultural context in which it emerged: Cold War America of the 1950s and 60s. Far from a strange aberration, Scientology in fact embodies many of the obsessive concerns with secrecy, information-control, and surveillance that ran throughout Cold War America. Indeed, with its policies of ‘security checks’ and ‘fair game,’ Scientology developed an apparatus of secrecy and surveillance that rivaled and in fact mirrored that of the FBI. As such, Scientology raises profound questions for the study of religion today, particularly in a post-9/11 context, where the questions of religious privacy and government surveillance have re-emerged in ways that eerily echo the height of the Cold War. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Is there a difference between the social capital developed in faith-based and secular poverty-to-work programs? Comparative field research investigating five faith-based and secular poverty-to-work programs in southeastern America finds that values expressed by a secular non-profit organization and two faith-based programs correspond with more activities that develop social capital than the programs run by a for-profit organization and a reinvented government agency. In all the programs this social capital is both 'bridging,' by crossing barriers of race, gender, and class, and 'bonding' by tying participants and staff into at least a temporary supportive community. The programs see that this social capital is effective in supporting low-income persons through the transition to full-time employment. In addition, the faith-based programs seek to extend the social capital by developing long-term ties between clients and local religious congregations. This paper also specifies how social capital is developed in these programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current models of change in immigrant churches posit that ethnic congregations become more acculturated in response to inter-generational conflicts. As second and third generation church members attempt to meet their own unique social needs, ethnic churches are forced to revise their goals and structures in order to ensure the survival of their organization. Recent studies, however, cast doubt on whether generational changes are the only catalyst of evolution in ethnic churches. This paper develops an alternative explanation by arguing that religious culture can also exert pressure for change. it does so by showing how a strong emphasis on inter-ethnic evangelism lead to the adoption of English-language services in a Ghanaian Pentecostal church in Chicago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses pragmatism, religion and John Foster Dulles's embrace of Christian internationalism in the 1930s. It looks at Dulles's engagement with Christian ecumenism and the way that it affected his thinking. It argues that the key to Dulles's engagement with religion is to draw out his engagement with the methods and ideals of American pragmatism. It explores Dulles's attempts to tackle the problem of peace, and the impact of the idea that people could affect government actions on Dulles.

Identifying psychosocial strengths that support physical health can lead to better pathways to prevention and intervention. Relying on the resilience portfolio model as a conceptual framework, this study explores strengths in three domains (regulation, meaning making, and interpersonal) to identify promising protective factors to support physical health-related quality of life (P-HRQOL), controlling for prior exposure to adversity, age, and gender. This study uses data from four resilience portfolio model studies collected in the southern United States, combined to increase the number of people who identified as American Indian/Alaska Native. The sample included 147 people (M age = 28.5 years; SD = 16.26), of which 57 percent are female. The surveys collected data on adversities (polyvictimization, other adversities, county poverty), psychosocial strengths (psychological endurance, sense of purpose, religious meaning making, compassion, and community support), and P-HRQOL. The full model accounted for 24 percent of the variance in P-HRQOL, with strengths explaining more than twice as much variance as adversities (13 percent versus 6 percent). A sense of purpose showed the most promise for supporting P-HRQOL. Regarding implications, authors recommend exploring a wider range of protective factors that might improve resilience in Native communities. Several evidence-based pathways to meaning making, such as narrative and mindfulness, may improve health outcomes for Native people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay examines the book collecting habits and annotation practices of Thomas Connary, an Irish immigrant farmer who lived in New Hampshire in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Connary led a pious life that revolved around the use, annotation and sharing of religious books: his extant annotated books provide a revealing glimpse into the book collecting habits of that elusive category of ‘the common reader’, and into how non-elite readers imagined book utilities and the iconic status of religious books. The first part provides an overview of the many ways in which Thomas Connary interacts with his books. Here a profile is established of a somewhat eccentric reader-cum-annotator who gives us insight into the range of opportunities provided by the material book for recording and communicating readerly intensity and religious fervour. In the second part the focus is on the broader, shared cultural setting in which books are seen as precious testimonies of personal faith, and come to function as tools of social interaction in both domestic and public spheres. Underlying Connary's many and varied interactions with books is a belief that physical objects can materialize belief, and that working in them can be a devout exercise instrumental in human salvation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines the notion of Christendom and its influence on United States foreign policy during the Cold War. Much of Christian thought during this time period centered around Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr. Niebuhr, along with Francis Pickens Miller, John Coleman Bennett, and Henry Pitney Van Dusen, placed American nationalism and exceptionalism in a religious context. They advocated a liberal notion of responsibility that justified interference in other nations. Collectively their ideas became known as Christian Realism.

The article reports on the controversy surrounding a question proposed for the 1960 United States census and the two year debate over it. In 1956 the Bureau of the Census brought up the ideas of whether or not the 1960 survey would record the religion of respondents, the first time history that the census had sought such information. In the United States of the 1950s religion was a powerful social signifier, almost as important to social standing as race. In proposing to classify Americans by religion, the Census Bureau aroused the ire of American Jews, while the proposal had the strong support of the Catholic Church. For American Catholics their numbers would indicate that their religion had been absorbed into the social fabric of the United States. America Jews, with memories of the Holocaust still fresh, felt that codifying their numbers and their socio-economic status would lead to a resurgence of the anti-Semitism experienced in the 1930s and 1940s. Protestant sects had long dominated the American mainstream and were largely indifferent to the matter. Ultimately, the question was not on the 1960 census nor on any that followed.

Explores how religion served as a vessel for one particular crucial to racial segregation in the South of the U.S., the language of miscegenation. Effort of religion to explain segregation from a theological point of view; Arguments used by religion to explain that God allegedly supports segregation; Underestimation by historians on the role of religion in the U.S. in supporting segregation as well as in dismantling it.

Previous research demonstrates the role of religious beliefs, practices, and people in a wide variety of social movement struggles. In most cases, religious resource mobilization seems to occur in a relatively straightforward, uncomplicated manner and with positive outcomes for the movement in question. Little attention has been paid to the challenges that exist to mobilizing religious resources and building coalitions with religious supporters. This essay examines the problematic nature of religious resource mobilization as part of union strategies to win a strike/lockout against Detroit's two newspapers, the News and the Free Press, between 1995-2000. Intensive interviews with strikers, union spokespersons, and religious activists, illustrate how religious resources contributed to union strength during the strike. However, these contributions were limited by the internal dynamics in the relationship between the unions and religious supporters as well as by the power disparities between these local coalitions and the multinational corporations they struggled against. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research suggests exclusionary mechanisms fostering negative socioeconomic outcomes for African immigrants. This study explored predictors of social exclusion among immigrants from African countries living in the United States. The authors examined four dimensions of social exclusion that entail social–cultural and structural–economic exclusion. Authors used structural equation modeling to analyze cross-sectional survey data from first- and second-generation African immigrants across the United States (N = 409). Findings highlighted the negative effects of discrimination on all four dimensions of social exclusion. In addition, higher levels of education were associated with higher levels of social–cultural exclusion, whereas higher levels of income were protective from social and structural–economic exclusion. Authors also found health status, religion, race, and immigrant generation to have significant effects on social exclusion. Study findings have important implications for social workers seeking to identify and prevent exclusionary mechanisms and practices affecting African immigrants in the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the current religious mood in the tinned States and reflects upon its manifestations in the mid-1990s. It is argued that the religious mood has shifted -- away from the cognitive and fixed beliefs and toward the experiential arid expressive. It is further argued that given this change it is difficult to assess the current religious situation, especially given sociology-of-religion's reliance upon institutional categories and empirical indicators. Religious capital, like social capital, is not easily gauged without attention to new forms of community allowing individuals opportunity to express themselves as whole persons. A plea is made for a sociology of religion more attuned to body, mind, and self and thus to the dynamic and experiential qualities of religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this last decade of the twentieth century, taxpayers and politicians seem united in their disdain for the system of "public welfare" in the United States. At the same time, the idea of "private charity" is held in high regard; some observers argue that public welfare should he dismantled and replaced with private charity. A simple question leads this paper: How are the moralities of "private charity" discursively formed? Here I examine how the moralities of charity and its clients are produced through the texts of the New York Times "Neediest Cases" charity appeals from 1912 through 1992. I read these campaigns as producing multiple moralities: Charity is formed as a sacred morality of religion, an all but sacred morality of democratic community, an economic morality of individualistic capitalism, and a human morality of compassion. I argue that this multiplicity of moralities gives the idea of charity its political and rhetorical power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Religious institutions are identified as important in maintaining a mastery-over-nature orientation in Western culture. This orientation has presumably influenced environmental attitudes in a negative manner. Despite widespread discussion, little empirical research has been undertaken to examine these relationships. This paper identifies three alternative approaches to examining the link between religious identification and commitment, mastery-over-nature orientation, and concern for environmental problems: (1) White' s model, (2) a denominational diversity model, and (3) a "no difference" model. These approaches are examined empirically using data front a mail survey of Washington State residents. The results indicate support for the view that Judeo-Christians are generally more committed to the mastery-over-nature orientation than non-Judeo-Christians, but that this commitment varies considerably among denominations. Furthermore, commitment to the mastery-over-nature orientation is instumental in shaping concern for environmental problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Findings by Campbell et al. in The Quality of American Life suggesting that religious people tend to be somewhat less satisfied with their lives than the nonreligious are reexamined in this paper. Using the same data source and variables it is shown that their interpretation is in error, and that to the contrary, religion functions more as a resource than as compensation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Research has shown that stereotype threat can impair older adults' memory in Western cultures. We tested whether this also occurs for older adults from the East Asian Chinese culture. We also tested whether an intervention that highlighted Confucian principles would protect Chinese older adults from stereotype threat's detrimental effects. Method Culturally-Chinese older adults residing in the United States completed a memory test either under age-based stereotype threat about cognitive decline or not. Prior to this, some participants were also reminded of Confucian traditions of filial piety and were assured these values had been transmitted to the younger generation. Results Stereotype threat impaired Chinese older adults' memory performance. However, our intervention was effective in eliminating this deficit. When the Chinese participants were reminded of the Confucian principle of filial piety they did not exhibit stereotype threat effects. Discussion Confirming that younger adults have an obligation to respect their elders can eliminate the social-evaluative pressure of stereotype threat for Chinese older adults. These findings are noteworthy since population aging is happening at an unprecedented pace in East Asia. Although our results suggest that stereotype threat can adversely affect older adults' cognitive performance in these societies, we also identify a culturally-based intervention to alleviate this impairment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Social isolation among older adults is an important but under-recognized risk for poor health outcomes. Methods are needed to identify subgroups of older adults at risk for social isolation. Methods We constructed a typology of social isolation using data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) and estimated the prevalence and correlates of social isolation among community-dwelling older adults. The typology was formed from four domains: living arrangement, core discussion network size, religious attendance, and social participation. Results In 2011, 24% of self-responding, community-dwelling older adults (65+ years), approximately 7.7 million people, were characterized as socially isolated, including 1.3 million (4%) who were characterized as severely socially isolated. Multinomial multivariable logistic regression indicated that being unmarried, male, having low education, and low income were all independently associated with social isolation. Black and Hispanic older adults had lower odds of social isolation compared with white older adults, after adjusting for covariates. Discussion Social isolation is an important and potentially modifiable risk that affects a significant proportion of the older adult population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research suggests that, for white Americans, conflating national and religious group identities is strongly associated with racism, xenophobia, and Islamophobia, prompting some to argue that claims about Christianity being central to American identity are essentially about reinforcing white supremacy. Prior work has not considered, however, whether such beliefs may influence the racial views of nonwhite Americans differently from white Americans. Drawing on a representative sample of black and white Americans from the 2014 General Social Survey, and focusing on explanations for racial inequality as the outcome, we show that, contrary to white Americans, black Americans who view being a Christian as essential to being an American are actually more likely to attribute black–white inequality to structural issues and less to blacks' individual shortcomings. Our findings suggest that, for black Americans, connecting being American to being Christian does not necessarily bolster white supremacy, but may instead evoke and sustain ideals of racial justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the relationship between eight dimensions of spirituality (and religion) and people with four different types of disability status: hearing, vision, physical mobility, and emotional or mental disabilities. The overarching aim was to identify specific spiritual–religious profiles within each disability population relative to the general population. To conduct this cross-sectional examination, the authors used nationally representative data from the General Social Survey in the United States. The results reveal unique spiritual and religious profiles across the four types of disability status examined, although people with emotional or mental disabilities may have the most distinct profile. Compared with their counterparts among the general public, people with hearing, physical, and emotional disabilities were more likely to report praying several times a day; people with all four types of disability were more likely to report having a turning point when they became less committed to religion. Understanding which spiritual and religious dimensions are disproportionately more likely to exist among a given population with a particular disability helps practitioners provide more effective services to members of that group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the significance of political mobilization among ecumenical Protestants during World War II and the importance placed on human rights and civil rights, particularly the role of the organization the Federal Council of Churches (FCC) and the FCC's involvement in the establishment of the United Nations (UN) following the war. It also discusses the World Order Movement.

Why did Americans vote for Donald Trump in the 2016 Presidential election? Social scientists have proposed a variety of explanations, including economic dissatisfaction, sexism, racism, Islamophobia, and xenophobia. The current study establishes that, independent of these influences, voting for Trump was, at least for many Americans, a symbolic defense of the United States' perceived Christian heritage. Data from a national probability sample of Americans surveyed soon after the 2016 election shows that greater adherence to Christian nationalist ideology was a robust predictor of voting for Trump, even after controlling for economic dissatisfaction, sexism, anti-black prejudice, anti-Muslim refugee attitudes, and anti-immigrant sentiment, as well as measures of religion, sociodemographics, and political identity more generally. These findings indicate that Christian nationalist ideology--although correlated with a variety of class-based, sexist, racist, and ethnocentric views--is not synonymous with, reducible to, or strictly epiphenomenal of such views. Rather, Christian nationalism operates as a unique and independent ideology that can influence political actions by calling forth a defense of mythological narratives about America's distinctively Christian heritage and future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to see whether feelings of death anxiety are lower among older than among younger people. In addition, an effort is made to see whether religious hope explains this relationship. It is proposed that the inverse relationship between a religiously oriented sense of hope and death anxiety increases across successively older age-groups. In contrast, it is hypothesized that the relationship between a generalized sense of hope and death anxiety will not vary across successively older age-groups. Method: Data on religious hope, a general sense of hope, and death anxiety were obtained from a recent nationwide survey of people aged 18 and older (N = 2,783). Results: The findings suggest that, compared with older adults, feelings of death anxiety are higher among younger and middle-aged people. The results further reveal that a religious sense of hope, but not a general sense of hope, reduces feelings of death anxiety across successively older age-groups. Discussion: These findings suggest that a previously unexamined dimension of religion (i.e., religious hope) may help people cope with feelings of death anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sociologists since Durkheim have known there is nothing essential about the category "religion," so why does the category persist? If we can begin to understand why it is still necessary in the twenty-first century for critical theorists to remind us that "religion" is without a vital differentiating element, then perhaps we might begin to imagine more, rather than less, expansive epistemological frameworks. Even as sensitive scholarship works to deconstruct the Enlightened secular typologies that gloss historical inequities, it often misses the cross-cultural patterns of signification that have shaped post-tribal hierarchies for millennia. Critically expanding Robert Bellah's earlier arguments surrounding American Civil Religion, I argue for the role of the immaterial imagination in the establishment of trans-local, supra-kin communities—both nationalist and religious. Drawing on Philo of Alexandria, Isocrates, and Rousseau, I contend that an expansive theory of otherworldliness is necessary to understand the "modern" world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article reimagines the history of parenting as a subject for the study of religion. Through a schematic description of parenting in the United States, I observe the expanded responsibilities and increased social expectations for parents in the formation of child identity. Focusing on the concept of parental authority, I argue that the relationship of authority between parent and child is an important document of religious history in a secular age, and encourage future scholars to explore parenting habits, prescriptions, and admonitions as an archive for religious studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose of the Study: Research has linked several aspects of religion --including service attendance, prayer, meditation, religious coping strategies, congregational support systems, and relations with God, among others--with positive mental health outcomes among older U.S. adults. This study examines a neglected dimension of religious life: listening to religious music. Design and Methods: Two waves of nationally representative data on older U.S. adults were analyzed (n = 1,024). Results: Findings suggest that the frequency of listening to religious music is associated with a decrease in death anxiety and increases in life satisfaction, self-esteem, and a sense of control across the 2 waves of data. In addition, the frequency of listening to gospel music (a specific type of religious music) is associated with a decrease in death anxiety and an increase in a sense of control. These associations are similar for blacks and whites, women and men, and low- and high-socioeconomic status individuals. Implications: Religion is an important socioemotional resource that has been linked with desirable mental health outcomes among older U.S. adults. This study shows that listening to religious music may promote psychological well-being in later life. Given that religious music is available to most individuals--even those with health problems or physical limitations that might preclude participation in more formal aspects of religious life--it might be a valuable resource for promoting mental health later in the life course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the impact of the Pennsylvania court cases Commonwealth v. Armstrong and Commonwealth v. Sigman in attempting to define the boundaries of parental authority and religious freedom of minors, and the significance of the religious movement the Second Great Awakening upon society and the law. It examines the work of Eighth Judicial District judge Ellis Lewis in the Armstrong case and his ruling regarding physician William Armstrong's objection to his daughter's baptism, and the work of Third Judicial District judge John Banks in the Sigman case.

The article discusses division and debate within the Unitarian church concerning the use of the pulpit to support the abolition of slavery in the U.S. during the mid-19th century. It examines the views of Unitarian theologian William Ellery Channing, the role of ministers in social change and the importance of revivalism, and the concept of the separation of church and state. It also contrasts Southern Unitarians such as minister Theodore Clapp with other Unitarian ministers whom some thought violated the concept of the duty of noninterference with matters such as slavery.

This article investigates the relationship between two well-documented patterns in charitable giving: the positive relationship between religion and generosity and the growth in the numbers of, and donations to, international aid organizations. I discuss three modes by which religion shapes Americans' preferences on international aid: values, social norms, and exposure to need. Using a 2005 national survey of church members, I find that (1) altruistic values, congregational social ties, and exposure to international needs through one's congregation all are associated with giving to international causes; (2) individuals with more frequent attendance, those with more social ties in the congregation, and evangelicals and black Protestants are significantly more likely to prefer church over government aid; and (3) aid organizations affiliated with a religious tradition enjoy an "in-group" advantage in support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the ways in which ideology regarding Israel divides liberals and conservatives in America, and it mentions U.S.-Israeli relations, as well as information about the American government's policy towards the Middle East. The views of international relations theorists John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt are mentioned, along with U.S. national interests and the influence of an "Israel lobby" which includes wealthy Jews and the right-wing American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). The attitudes of Americans and Israelis are examined, as well as American diplomacy and public opinion polls in the U.S.

A number of case studies and legal briefs describe very troubling incidents faced by secondary school students because of their minority religious group affiliation. The purpose of the study described in this article was to understand the lived experiences of minority religious youths who attend public schools in an area of the United States where the majority of students are affiliated with one dominant religious tradition. Semistructured focus groups were conducted with 50 adolescents (in grades 6 to 12) affiliated with religious minority groups (11 students were Jewish, 11 Muslim, 18 Catholic, and 10 Universalist Unitarian). Analysis was conducted using grounded theory methodology, and a method of constant comparative analysis was applied. The data yielded four major themes: (1) minority status, (2) precursors, (3) teacher and adult roles, and (4) perception of peer intent. Several of the incidents described by the participants were congruent with the definition of hate crime or bullying; other experiences were representative of the concept of microaggression. One of the most unanticipated findings from this study was participants' reports of teachers as perpetrators in several incidents. Findings from this study point to the need for the implementation of strategies designed to increase religious tolerance in our increasingly diverse public schools. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

An essay is presented which discusses the Puritan president of Harvard College in Cambridge, Massachusetts Henry Dunster's opposition to the practice of infant baptism within New England's Puritan movement during the mid 17th century. An overview of the leaders of the Puritan movement's efforts to convince Dunster accept infant baptism is provided.

The U.S. military makes chaplaincies an integral part of its effort to maintain global, “full-spectrum dominance.” The purpose of this article is to analyze the military's design and use of its chaplaincies. I take a textual rather than ethnographic approach. I examine not the subjective views of individual chaplains, but the military's institutional literature and public statements by its chaplains. I argue that the military constructs mission-specific meanings for religion by combining, arranging, and re-framing choices made elsewhere, by other branches of government and various civilian religious communities. The Pentagon optimizes religious diversity for military priorities, puts into uniform and sociologically re-certifies religious leaders, re-conceives pastoral tasks as mission-helps, subsumes religious practices to martial discourse, and calibrates moral sensibilities. Through these publicly authorized acts, the U.S. military wields religion as a multiplier of military force, for the security of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Considerable research has examined the relationship between religion and mental health. This study adds to the literature in this area by addressing two main questions: (1) Is the frequency of prayer associated with symptoms of anxiety-related disorders among US adults? (2) Is this association conditional on the nature of individuals' attachment to God? We examine these questions using data from the 2010 Baylor Religion Survey (N = 1,511). Results reveal no meaningful associations between the frequency of prayer and anxiety symptoms. In contrast, anxious attachment to God is positively correlated with psychiatric symptoms, while secure attachment to God bears a modest inverse association with these outcomes (when anxious attachment is excluded from the model). Results also show that prayer is inversely associated with symptoms of anxiety-related disorders among individuals who have a secure attachment to God, but positively associated with these outcomes among those who have a more insecure or avoidant attachment to God. Several study limitations and promising directions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses Quaker political thinker and colonial leader William Penn's views as a form of liberal civil religion enacted in the Pennsylvania colony. Topics include Penn's views on liberty of conscience for individuals, his notion that government should promote virtue by upholding religious freedom, and the egalitarian tendencies of Quakerism.

The article presents discussion of the emergence of cultural conflict within Russian society since 1990 between liberal social movements and conservative branches of the Russian Orthodox Church. The topics of creationism in education, charges of blasphemy in artistic expression, and the social and political acceptance of homosexuality are particularly addressed as subjects of contention. Comparisons and contrasts are also given between the U.S. culture wars of the 1960s and 1970s and the contemporary Russian context.

Religion, it has been noted, speaks the language of violence as often as of peace. This article explores the pronounced role of military language and a martial outlook in one particularly intriguing and unlikely branch of Judaism, the Satmar Hasidic movement. Widely known for its posture of theological quietism, Satmar Hasidism, under the leadership of founding rabbi Joel Teitelbaum (1887–1979), has frequently engaged in combative struggle against its foes, especially Zionism. This article highlights this martial impulse by examining three episodes in which the Teitelbaum family and Satmar Hasidim were engaged in conflict, exemplified by the publication of a series of books under the title “Commanded War.” Ranging over a century, these episodes reveal the way in which the pervasive language of war emerged out of a sense of the grave perils posed by modernity. They also illustrate how the martial language of Satmar turns over time from a focus on external enemies to a focus on internal rivals. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The purpose of this article is to discuss how a community agency based in Washtenaw County, the Washtenaw Interfaith Coalition for Immigration Bights (WICIR), emerged in response to increasing punitive immigration practices and human rights abuses toward the Latino community. The article discusses how WICIR is engaged in advocacy, community education on immigration issues, and political action toward a more humane immigration reform. Detailed examples of human rights abuses and the WICIR activities described in response to the abuses serve as illustrations of social work advocacy, education, and policy formulation that affect the general public, policymakers, and law enforcement officials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attention to same-sex marriage has increased in the past decade. This study examines the perceptions of same-sex marriage among social work faculty. Faculty play a critical role in preparing future social workers for competent, ethical practice-including advocacy for social policies inclusive of sexual minorities. The present study investigates endorsement of same-sex marriage among teaching faculty in U.S. and English-speaking Canadian MSW programs. Twelve factors were found to be significant in the bivariate analyses; however, only four retained significance in the multivariate analysis. Specifically, the multivariate analysis found "other race" and religiosity to be negatively associated with support for same- sex marriage, whereas acceptance of same-sex relationships and understanding gender-based oppression as the root cause of domestic and sexual violence were positively associated with same-sex marriage support. The results highlight the importance of social attitudes concerning same-sex relationships and gender-based oppression for endorsement of same-sex marriage. Implications for social work education and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]