Sundays in America : a yearlong road trip in search of Christian faith / Suzanne Strempek Shea.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Shea, Suzanne Strempek.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Christianity--United States.

Christianity.

United States--Church history.

United States.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (325 p.)

Place of Publication:

Boston : Beacon Press, c2008.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

A spirited, spiritual pilgrimage to different Christian churches for a year of Sundays--from storefronts to mega-churches, from Massachusetts to Maui When Pope John Paul II died, Suzanne Strempek Shea, who had turned away from the Catholic Church of her childhood, recognized in his mourners a faith-filled passion that she wanted to recapture. She set out on a yearlong to visit a different church every Sunday for a year--a journey that would take her through the broad spectrum of contemporary Christianity lived in this country, from her New England home to the West Coast, the Deep South, the Midwest, and even to Hawaii. Beginning with a rousing Baptist Easter service in Harlem, including a sing-along at the Cowboy Church in Colorado's Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame and a multimedia experience at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church, the largest church in the country, Shea approaches each congregation with the curiosity of a newcomer and with respect for each unique expression of faith. Sundays in America weaves the threads of Christianity in America into a vibrant tapestry, an essential guide for those seeking a new house for their worship, as well as a colorful road trip for the armchair explorer. "Do you believe in miracles? You will after you read "Sundays in America." this book will lift you up. If you've stopped going to church on Sundays, it will lasso your lost faith. If you've never left, it will remind you of why you gather, why you pray, why you're part of the flock. Suzanne Strempek Shea writes with soul, straight from her heart; this book was just what I needed to read." --Luanne Rice "Sundays in America is unlike any other book you'll ever read. While born and raisedRoman Catholic, Suzanne Shea invites us to accompany her on a yearlong pilgrimage of weekly services in non-Catholic Christian churches. As I did so, I found myself taken on an extraordinarily delightful and insightful spiritual journey that helped me see the face of religion in America more clearly; love the diverse faces of believers and non-believers more dearly; and follow the Holy Spirit she found everywhere more nearly. Like all pilgrimages, this will one will enlighten you and change your life too; and, I might add, you will not find a pilgrim guide more fun to be with than Suzanne Shea." --Karol Jackowski, author of Forever and Ever, Amen: Becoming a Nun in the 1960s.

Contents:

Intro

INTRODUCTION

PART ONE: SPRING

NEW MOUNT ZION BAPTIST CHURCH

COLORADO SPRINGS COWBOY CHURCH

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH

ARCH STREET FRIENDS MEETING HOUSE

FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST

ST. SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH

CADET CHAPEL, UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY

TRINITY EVANGELICAL CHURCH

TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH BY-THE-SEA

SOUTH ROYALTON WARD MEETINGHOUSE

ST. SEBASTIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

PART TWO: SUMMER

MARANATHA BAPTIST CHURCH

PHILADELPHIA DELIVERANCE CHURCH OF CHRIST

CALVARY'S LIGHT CHURCH

UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF ENFIELD

UNITY

LAKEWOOD CHURCH

THE RIVERSIDE CHURCH

LAGNIAPPE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

MOFFETT ROAD ASSEMBLY OF GOD

MEETINGHOUSE OF THE UNITED SOCIETY OF BELIEVERS IN CHRIST'S SECOND APPEARING

SAINT JOHN WILL-I-AM COLTRANE AFRICAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

SADDLEBACK CHURCH

MARS HILL CHURCH

PART THREE: FALL

TRINITY UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST

GENESIS CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN

DANBURY-BETHEL SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH

FIRST SPIRITUAL TEMPLE

LIVING WATERS FOURSQUARE GOSPEL CHURCH

NORTH REFORMED CHURCH

METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY CHURCH

MASHPEE BAPTIST CHURCH

KOUNTZE MEMORIAL LUTHERAN CHURCH

BROWN MEMORIAL CHRISTIAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH

KING'S CHAPEL

PART FOUR: WINTER

CENTRAL MORAVIAN CHURCH

TIMES SQUARE CHURCH

THE PORTLAND NEW CHURCH

HOLY CROSS POLISH NATIONAL CATHOLIC CHURCH

KYKOTSMOVI MENNONITE CHURCH

KINGDOM HALL OF JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

NORTHAMPTON VINEYARD

CALVARY CHAPEL

HARVEST CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE

FULL GOSPEL TABERNACLE CHURCH

ALL SAINTS PARISH

ST. MARY'S CONVENT

REVOLUTION CHURCH

INTERFAITH CHAPEL

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

ISBN:

0-8070-9738-1

0-8070-9773-X

OCLC:

471131884