In this revised and expanded edition of a WJK classic, outstanding contributors present overviews of the world's major religions as they are practiced in America.From Hinduism to Judaism, contributors provide basic, accessible information about each religion, discussing its history, its founders, and, in particular, its development in America. Throughout, attention is given to two questions: How does religion shape American life? and How does religion impact the political life of this country? Also included are outstanding chapters on how religion relates to women, politics, and society.Each chapter concludes with questions for discussion, essay topics for further study, and a section that examines the terminology of each religious tradition.New in this edition are chapters titled "World Religions Made in the U.S.A". and "The Latter-Day Saint (Mormon) Religion", as well as a glossary and numerous illustrations. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

In this indispensable reference tool for parents, students, and pastors alike, Larson analyzes dozens of world religions and spiritual movements from Islam to UFOs, New Age movements to witchcraft. This volume helps address tough questions from a biblical perspective.

Contains nearly 600 brief entries on the world's religious traditions.

The fourth edition of World Religions in America continues its lauded tradition of providing students with reliable and nuanced information about America's religious diversity, while also reflecting new developments and ideas. Each chapter was updated to reflect important changes and events, and current statistics and information. New features include a timeline of key events and people for each tradition, sidebars on major movements or controversies, personal stories from members of various faiths, a theme-based organization of subjects, more subheads, three new chapters exploring America's increasing religious diversity, and suggestions for further study.

How did the United States, founded as colonies with explicitly religious aspirations, come to be the first modern state whose commitment to the separation of church and state was reflected in its constitution? Frank Lambert explains why this happened, offering in the process a synthesis of American history from the first British arrivals through Thomas Jefferson's controversial presidency. Lambert recognizes that two sets of spiritual fathers defined the place of religion in early America: what Lambert calls the Planting Fathers, who brought Old World ideas and dreams of building a "City upon a Hill," and the Founding Fathers, who determined the constitutional arrangement of religion in the new republic. While the former proselytized the "one true faith," the latter emphasized religious freedom over religious purity. Lambert locates this shift in the mid-eighteenth century. In the wake of evangelical revival, immigration by new dissenters, and population expansion, there emerged a marketplace of religion characterized by sectarian competition, pluralism, and widened choice. During the American Revolution, dissenters found sympathetic lawmakers who favored separating church and state, and the free marketplace of religion gained legal status as the Founders began the daunting task of uniting thirteen disparate colonies. To avoid discord in an increasingly pluralistic and contentious society, the Founders left the religious arena free of government intervention save for the guarantee of free exercise for all. Religious people and groups were also free to seek political influence, ensuring that religion's place in America would always be a contested one, but never a state-regulated one. An engaging and highly readable account of early American history, this book shows how religious freedom came to be recognized not merely as toleration of dissent but as a natural right to be enjoyed by all Americans.

Combining text, video, graphics, music, and the voices of believers, this work maps a diverse culture of faith. It is resource that helps you find comprehensive multimedia summaries of the fundamental beliefs and practices of various faiths and the transformation of old traditions.

This book presents the American encounter with Asian religions through a wide range of documents -- written and visual from elite and popular culture -- dating from 1788 to the present. Coverage of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam predominate, through selectoins from other religions are included -- Daoism, Confusianism, Shinto, Sikhism. The entries are divided into four chronological periods. The first section traces the initial attempts to map the earliest contracts, up to 1840; the second section, from 1840 to 1924, presents the first real passages -- from east to west and west to east; the third, from 1924 to 1965, sketches a drifting period when immigration has stopped and Euro-American interest in Asian religions was minimal; and the final section, which takes us to the present, covers a time when the encounter intensifies greatly.

In this the third edition of Jacob Neusner's basic, accessible, and proven guide to the world's religions as they are practiced in America, new chapters explore the Church of Scientology, Nature Religions, and the Baha'i faith. In addition, the chapter on Islam in America has been expanded. Each chapter includes study questions, essay topics, and suggestions for further reading.

Covers the significant religious denominations and movements that have originated or flourished in North America, from the beginning of European settlement to the present day.