Congregations in conflict. : Cultural models of local religious life.

Australiaxii, 267 p.; 23 cm

Congregations in conflict : cultural models of local religious life

Congregations in Conflict examines the nature of American congregations as institutions, looking in particular at how they deal with conflict within their ranks, to gain insight into religious culture, or the moral order of local religious life. In detailed and well documented case studies of conflict in twenty-three congregations Becker examines such factors as organizational processes, the extent and types of ties between church members, their shared understandings about mission and identity, and level of public commitment. From these factors, the author develops four models of local religious cultures, each of which emphasizes different aspects of the mission imperatives that broadly characterize American religion - to reproduce an historic faith, to provide a caring community of believers, and to witness. Becker finds vital 'public religion': congregations that provide caring and support for members, service to the local community, and important arenas for moral debate and public activism

Straining at the Tie That Binds: Congregational Conflict in the 1980s

Studies of intrachurch conflict have emphasized such variant explanations as liberal/conservative divisions, external pressures that exacerbate internal cleavages, clergy/laity differences, & demographic changes as the cause(s) of church conflict. Most of these studies rely on either survey data or single-case ethnographic data. Here, these studies are reviewed & critiqued, & it is recommended that comparative conflict events be analyzed to identify causes that operate in specific circumstances. Drawing on interviews with the top clergy of 15 (of a total of 20) churches & synagogues in a midwestern urban community, conflict events are analyzed. Results indicate that none of the perspectives found in the literature was predominant; instead, it is proposed that the new voluntarism thesis (see Roof, Wade Clark, & McKinney, William, American Mainline Religion: Its Changing Shape and Future, New York: Rutgers U Press, 1989) can enlighten understanding of intracongregational conflict

Social Networks and Civic Participation and Efficacy in Two Evangelical Protestant Churches

This research note examines the proposition that participation in church—particularly the social interaction that accompanies church participation—is an important source of social capital that promotes civic activity and efficacy. Employing survey data from over 600 attendees of two evangelical Protestant churches, we tested hypotheses linking churchgoers’ social networks to their levels of civic efficacy and participation. Three key findings emerged. First, the number of friends in church was positively associated with churchgoers’ civic efficacy, religious civic activity, and secular civic activity, while the number of friends outside of church was unrelated to these outcomes. Second, the association between in-church networks and secular civic activity was partially mediated by civic efficacy. Third, church attendance moderated the association between in-church friends and secular civic activities such that high attending churchgoers with few in-church friends were far less likely to participate in secular civic activities. Taken together, these findings illustrate the importance of in-church social networks for Evangelical Protestants’ civic participation and feelings of civic efficacy, in contrast to out of church social networks which had little overall impact on these factors