Elusive togetherness : church groups trying to bridge America's divisions / Paul Lichterman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lichterman, Paul.

Series:

Princeton studies in cultural sociology.

Princeton studies in cultural sociology

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Religion and social problems--United States.

Religion and social problems.

Social action--United States.

Social action.

Voluntarism--United States.

Voluntarism.

Associations, institutions, etc--United States.

Associations, institutions, etc.

Small groups--Religious aspects.

Small groups.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (348 p.)

Edition:

Course Book

Place of Publication:

Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, c2005.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Many scholars and citizens alike have counted on civic groups to create broad ties that bind society. Some hope that faith-based civic groups will spread their reach as government retreats. Yet few studies ask how, if at all, civic groups reach out to their wider community. Can religious groups--long central in civic America--create broad, empowering social ties in an unequal, diverse society? Over three years, Paul Lichterman studied nine liberal and conservative Protestant-based volunteering and advocacy projects in a mid-sized American city. He listened as these groups tried to create bridges with other community groups, social service agencies, and low-income people, just as the 1996 welfare reforms were taking effect. Counter to long-standing arguments, Lichterman discovered that powerful customs of interaction inside the groups often stunted external ties and even shaped religion's impact on the groups. Comparing groups, he found that successful bridges outward depend on group customs which invite reflective, critical discussion about a group's place amid surrounding groups and institutions. Combining insights from Alexis de Tocqueville, John Dewey, and Jane Addams with contemporary sociology, Elusive Togetherness addresses enduring questions about civic and religious life that elude the popular "social capital" concept. To create broad civic relationships, groups need more than the right religious values, political beliefs, or resources. They must learn new ways of being groups.

Contents:

In search of the social spiral

Studying the social spiral

Networkers and volunteers reaching out

Crying out : social critics

Christ-like care : social servants

A social spiral winds outward : partners

Doing things with religion in local civic life

Doing things together : lessons from religious community service groups

Theory and evidence in a study of religious community service groups.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [303]-323) and index.

ISBN:

9786613380036

9781283380034

128338003X

9781400842957

1400842956

OCLC:

769344470