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Social Building Blocks of New Religious Movements: Organization and Leadership

E. Burke Rochford Jr.

in Teaching New Religious Movements

This chapter considers a number of questions and issues central to leadership and organization within new religions. Four key issues are explored: the social and historical context in which new ... More

This chapter considers a number of questions and issues central to leadership and organization within new religions. Four key issues are explored: the social and historical context in which new religions have emerged; the distinctiveness of new religious organizations and how they differ from other religious collectivities; the role and fate of charismatic leadership; and the factors that influence the success, failure, and overall development of new religious movements. Attention is given to new religions as oppositional cultures and how the emergence of family life has altered both their pattern of social organization and relationship to mainstream society. A series of class exercises and research-based projects are included to aid teachers and students.Less

Conclusion: The Elusive Dream

Korie L. Edwards

in The Elusive Dream: The Power of Race in Interracial Churches

The concluding chapter ends the book with a discussion on the implications of the book's findings for developing racially integrated religious organizations that truly epitomize Dr. Martin Luther ... More

The concluding chapter ends the book with a discussion on the implications of the book's findings for developing racially integrated religious organizations that truly epitomize Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream for a cooperative, egalitarian, multiracial religious community.Less

Continuity and Change in American Religion, 1972–2008

Mark Chaves and Shawna Anderson

in Social Trends in American Life: Findings from the General Social Survey since 1972

This chapter describes eight trends evident in the General Social Survey (GSS) between 1972 and 2008: (i) increased religious diversity; (ii) increased affiliation among Protestants with conservative ... More

This chapter describes eight trends evident in the General Social Survey (GSS) between 1972 and 2008: (i) increased religious diversity; (ii) increased affiliation among Protestants with conservative and evangelical denominations; (iii) softening involvement with congregations; (iv) reduced belief in an inerrant Bible; (v) reduced confidence in the leaders of religious organizations; (vi) reduced tolerance of certain kinds of religious involvement in the public sphere; (vii) a tighter connection between religious service attendance and political, social, and religious conservatism; and (viii) the somewhat higher levels of diffusely spiritual attitudes. Some trends are indicated by a single repeated GSS item while others represent interpretations of a set of similarly trending items.Less

The Legal Position of Religious Organizations

Norman Doe

in Law and Religion in Europe: A Comparative Introduction

This chapter explores religious freedom in the context of both the general freedom of association and the specific right in some States of religious association. It then examines the legal categories ... More

This chapter explores religious freedom in the context of both the general freedom of association and the specific right in some States of religious association. It then examines the legal categories of religious organization across the States of Europe, particularly those with legal personality — the terminology employed for their designation, their recognition, their regulation, and their public and private law status. It considers the conferral of legal personality on religious organizations by means of, variously, the enactment of legislation, the conclusion of covenants, and the registration of religious organizations. The chapter ends with a section on the exercise of legal personality, and the benefits which this brings. National laws on the legal position of religious organizations necessitate a high degree of cooperation between States and religion in this field but this area of law raises serious questions about equality of treatment between different religious traditions.Less

The Order of Christ Sophia and Traditional Protestant Churches

Scott L. Thumma

in Children of Jesus and Mary: The Order of Christ Sophia

This chapter compares the Order of Christ Sophia (OCS) and mainstream denominations via the Parish Profile Inventory developed by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research. Though it is clear that ... More

This chapter compares the Order of Christ Sophia (OCS) and mainstream denominations via the Parish Profile Inventory developed by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research. Though it is clear that the order is different, there are also many similarities with more mainstream religions. This comparison begins to hint at the challenges such movements face as they mature and attempt to establish lasting church-like organizational forms within a U.S. religious context, in which considerable changes are taking place and are having an effect on all types of religious organizations. The chapter suggests that these changes are beginning to make what has been described as a new religion look much more like a highly successful niche congregation, perhaps greater in religious intensity than most but similar in organization and group dynamics to many other Christian congregations.Less

The First Strife: The Crisis of the 1930s, War, and the Cease‐Fire of the 1960s

Vjekoslav Perica

in Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States

An account is given of the political history of the Yugoslav region from the 1930s to the 1960s, highlighting the role of the various religious and political organizations during the period. The ... More

An account is given of the political history of the Yugoslav region from the 1930s to the 1960s, highlighting the role of the various religious and political organizations during the period. The different sections of the chapter cover the 1930s; civil war and the communist revolution (1941–50); exile politics and warring myths post‐1945 (the end of World War II); the years of renewal and peaceful coexistence after the Tito–Stalin split in 1948, and the interfaith dialog at that time; Church–State relations in the 1960s; and the erosion of religion and growth of Church buildings post‐1945 (and to beyond the 1960s).Less

The Property and Finances of Religion

Norman Doe

in Law and Religion in Europe: A Comparative Introduction

A study of national laws in Europe on the property and finances of religion reveals the high degree of cooperation between States and religion in this field. This chapter examines the property of ... More

A study of national laws in Europe on the property and finances of religion reveals the high degree of cooperation between States and religion in this field. This chapter examines the property of religious organizations — the right to acquire, administer, and dispose of property (including partnership between States and religion in preserving the religious heritage of Europe); the protection of sacred places and objects in criminal law (including relics, clerical vesture and human remains and memorials to the dead). It then addresses State financial support for religion, including the church tax systems in some States, allocations from tax liability, direct subsidies for religious objects (such as places of worship, remuneration for ministers of religion, and religious charities), compensation for the confiscation of religious property, and tax exemptions and concessions for religious organizations.Less

Citizens, Groups, and the State

Jonathan Laurence

in The Emancipation of Europe's Muslims: The State's Role in Minority Integration

This chapter places European governments' relationships with contemporary Muslim communities into historical and theoretical context, by reviewing earlier encounters with new categories of citizens ... More

This chapter places European governments' relationships with contemporary Muslim communities into historical and theoretical context, by reviewing earlier encounters with new categories of citizens and state-building challenges. For the past two centuries, the religion bureaus of interior ministries across Europe have asserted state authority by structuring and mediating the activities of religious organizations. Against the view that the accommodation of religious communities is the equivalent of “capitulation,” this chapter shows that formal recognition has been the method through which the modern state has historically asserted its authority over new citizen groups. The view that Islam is inherently incompatible with, or otherwise presents an unprecedented challenge to, state authority in western democracies is critically examined.Less

Religion as Hallmark of Nationhood

Vjekoslav Perica

in Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States

The first part of the chapter gives a brief account of the bloody fratricidal war fought in Croatia and Bosnia‐Herzegovina in 1991–5, which resulted from ethnic nationalistic revolutions aimed at ... More

The first part of the chapter gives a brief account of the bloody fratricidal war fought in Croatia and Bosnia‐Herzegovina in 1991–5, which resulted from ethnic nationalistic revolutions aimed at destroying the multiethnic federation of Yugoslavia founded by the communists, and establishing independent homogeneous states. Further wars would continue in 1998 (between the Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo) and in 2001 (between Albanians and Macedonians in Macedonia). The main part of the chapter discusses religion and nationalism in these successor states – Islam and Muslim nationalism in Bosnia‐Herzegovina, Catholicism (the Madonna of Medjugorje) and Croatian nationalism in Bosnia‐Herzegovina and Croatia, and the Orthodox Church in Serbia (and Kosovo), Macedonia, and Montenegro. The remaining two sections of the chapter discuss saint making in Croatia in the late 1990s, and the role of religious organizations in the international peace process.Less

The Special Character of Organized Religion

Richard A. Schoenherr

David Yamane (ed.)

in Goodbye Father: The Celibate Male Priesthood and the Future of the Catholic Church

The chapter begins by trying to show that sacramentalism and sacerdotalism (the necessity for an ordained priesthood) are the primary and essential elements of the Catholic ministry because they ... More

The chapter begins by trying to show that sacramentalism and sacerdotalism (the necessity for an ordained priesthood) are the primary and essential elements of the Catholic ministry because they represent structural forms whereby Roman Catholicism adapts to the transrational, spiritual elements of human development. It then explains that the explicit recognition of a transcendent domain and development of structures that take it into account are what makes religious organizations different. They are also different in an additional way in that organized religion relies on two kinds of power: relative power (as in other types of organization), of which the social form is hierarchy, and corresponds to sacerdotalism; and absolute power, of which the social form is hierophany, and corresponds to sacramentalism. In the Roman Catholic tradition, the routinization of hierophany and its integration with hierarchy result in sacramental sacerdotalism. The chapter concludes with a descriptive analysis of the routinized hierarchical form of priesthood that characterizes contemporary Catholicism.Less

Religion, Ethnicity, and Nationhood

Vjekoslav Perica

in Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States

Introduces the book by discussing the symbolic destruction of churches, monasteries and other monuments and sacred places of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church in Croatia and ... More

Introduces the book by discussing the symbolic destruction of churches, monasteries and other monuments and sacred places of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church in Croatia and Bosnia‐Herzegovina, and the Yugoslav Muslim Religious Organization (Islamic community), and also in Albania that occurred during the various wars in the Yugoslav region in the 1990s. It then discusses myth in relation to the nation‐state. The last and main part of the chapter gives accounts of the four mainstream Yugoslav religious institutions (the Serbian Orthodox Church, Croatian Catholicism, the Muslim Religious Organization (Islamic community), and the Church and Nation of Macedonia), and also discusses the religious minority groups of the region (there are around 40, of which 14 are listed), and interfaith relations.Less

Bridging the Sacred and the Profane in Humanitarian Life

Andrea Paras and Janice Gross Stein

in Sacred Aid: Faith and Humanitarianism

This chapter addresses two arguments on the basic differences between “secular” and “religious” organizations. It first studies the creation of the layered and complicated meanings of the sacred in ... More

This chapter addresses two arguments on the basic differences between “secular” and “religious” organizations. It first studies the creation of the layered and complicated meanings of the sacred in the life of modern humanitarian organizations. It then studies two religious and two secular organizations and how they express and give meaning to the sacred. The chapter also discusses the consequences of the creation of the sacred, which is common to both secular and religious organizations, and shows how these organizations connect with the “profane” and with the world.Less

Habits of Faith: The Social Role of Small-Town Congregations

Robert Wuthnow

in Small-Town America: Finding Community, Shaping the Future

This chapter examines the social role of religious congregations in small towns. Although religious participation is somewhat higher in small towns than in larger communities, the differences are ... More

This chapter examines the social role of religious congregations in small towns. Although religious participation is somewhat higher in small towns than in larger communities, the differences are relatively small. The perception among residents that religion is important has more to do with the presence of religious buildings, along with the public activities of religious organizations, than with statistical measures of belief and practice. Religious organizations also serve significantly as carriers of collective narratives about caring behavior in the community, and they increasingly provide links between small towns and the wider world through mission trips as well as humanitarian and relief efforts. In small communities with declining populations, religious organizations are adapting in creative ways to meet the needs and interests of their constituents. The clustering of congregations, shared pastorates, mergers, and closing of churches are among the solutions that are being attempted.Less

Toward a Theory of Social Change in Organized Religion

Richard A. Schoenherr

David Yamane (ed.)

in Goodbye Father: The Celibate Male Priesthood and the Future of the Catholic Church

The foundations of a theoretical model of social change in organized religion are laid down, drawing from classic and contemporary analyses of conflict and change in organizations, since in many ways ... More

The foundations of a theoretical model of social change in organized religion are laid down, drawing from classic and contemporary analyses of conflict and change in organizations, since in many ways religious organizations are just like any other. The writings of Max Weber provide the basis for the arguments advanced, and important recent developments are included from Michael Hannan and John Freeman's population ecology approach to organizational change and from Charles Perrow's qualified power model of organizations. The application of these models to religious organizations and to the Catholic Church in particular is referred to throughout.Less

Latino Clergy and Churches in Faith-Based Political and Social Action in the United States

Gastón Espinosa

in Latino Religions and Civic Activism in the United States

Conventional wisdom holds that except on rare occasions, Latino religious leaders, churches, and religious organizations have not been proactive in political and social action and in some cases have ... More

Conventional wisdom holds that except on rare occasions, Latino religious leaders, churches, and religious organizations have not been proactive in political and social action and in some cases have tacitly approved of the oppressive conditions under which Latinos have had to live and work. However, this chapter challenges that wisdom. There has been a de facto tradition of Latino political and social action over the past 150 years, especially in the Southwestern United States. Drawing on the findings from the Hispanic Churches in American Public Life national and leadership surveys in 2000 and 2001, it shows that Latino religious leaders, churches, and religious organizations are much more active in political, civic, and social action than hitherto believed. This is one reason for such widespread support from the general Latino population and civic leaders. Not only do four out of ten Latino congregations help in voter registration, but 62% of Latinos nationwide and over 70% of Latino civic leaders indicated that they want religious leaders to become more involved in educational, social, and political issues.Less

Born Again at Stonewall

Heather R. White

in Reforming Sodom: Protestants and the Rise of Gay Rights

The chapter explores the emergence of gay-welcoming religious organizations during the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. The central momentum for this growth, and the most well-known of the ... More

The chapter explores the emergence of gay-welcoming religious organizations during the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. The central momentum for this growth, and the most well-known of the grassroots movement of “gay churches,” was the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) in Los Angeles. The chapter traces the history of this religious organizing and situates it within a historiography of early 1970s gay activism that almost entirely overlooks religion. It looks at the Stonewall riots of 1969 as the remembered symbol of movement birth that was cultivated and commemorated by diverse movement participants. Religious practitioners were among the most enthusiastic purveyors of the Stonewall narrative, and their participation in the commemorative practices helped to hoist a movement myth to popular prominence.Less

The Autonomy and Ministers of Religious Organizations

Norman Doe

in Law and Religion in Europe: A Comparative Introduction

This chapter examines the principle of autonomy — its nature and rationale — the prohibition against State intervention in the internal affairs of religious organizations, and the limits of religious ... More

This chapter examines the principle of autonomy — its nature and rationale — the prohibition against State intervention in the internal affairs of religious organizations, and the limits of religious autonomy. It then goes on to examine the institutional autonomy of religious organizations in terms of their legislative, administrative, and judicial competence. It explores the status of religious law under State law (and the degree to which religious groups are free to administer this freely), administrative and ministerial autonomy (including the appointment of ministers of religion, their civil law status, and functions), and the functions of religious judicial and quasi-judicial bodies (particularly in the field of ministerial discipline). The chapter ends with a section on autonomy and confidentiality (with particular reference to religious secrets and confession). One theme explored is the difficulty of identifying what constitutes the internal affairs of a religious organization for the purpose of defining its autonomy.Less

The Transpersonal Paradigm

Richard A. Schoenherr

David Yamane (ed.)

in Goodbye Father: The Celibate Male Priesthood and the Future of the Catholic Church

The previous chapter discussed the Catholic Church as if it were like any other modern organization, but institutionalized religion is different from all other types of organization in important ... More

The previous chapter discussed the Catholic Church as if it were like any other modern organization, but institutionalized religion is different from all other types of organization in important ways. The aim of this chapter is to examine how to take account of this difference. It begins by observing that most organization theories focus exclusively on mundane rational behavior, and that given their philosophical and epistemological assumptions, such theories are inadequate for explaining social change in religious organizations. The second half of the chapter examines the place of religion in social life and describes a newly emerging theoretical paradigm (labeled as transpersonal) that incorporates the spiritual domain in a model of social change. This new paradigm allows examination of the stages of social development and the unique character of religious organizations.Less

Religious Organizations Under the European Convention Regime

Ioana Cismas

in Religious Actors and International Law

Religious organizations are non-state actors. Any attempt to examine their rights and obligations is confronted by challenges relating to subjectivity. The chapter relies on the capacity approach to ... More

Religious organizations are non-state actors. Any attempt to examine their rights and obligations is confronted by challenges relating to subjectivity. The chapter relies on the capacity approach to ‘extract’ the panoply of rights which religious organizations have claimed under the European Convention on Human Rights, and to demonstrate the similarities in this respect with non-religious legal entities. Detailed assessment of article 9 jurisprudence discloses why religious organizations were initially refused the right to freedom of religion under the Convention, and why currently they are the exclusive holders of this right among legal entities. The chapter discards this exclusivity by showing that religious organizations enjoy a derivative right from the freedom of individuals to collectively manifest religious beliefs. The analysis examines positive state obligations in the context of church autonomy, and reveals the existence and scope of human rights responsibilities of religious organizations themselves, including towards employees and adherents.Less