Lower Denominational Control: Effects of Changing Church Forms

Authority & Power, Conservative & Evangelical Churches, Denominations, Mainline & Liberal Protestant Churches, Megachurches, Process Frame, Surveys

Mark Chaves’ 2011 book, American Religion: Contemporary Trends, outlines a number of ways in which denominations have less and less control over individual congregations: 1 in 5 religious congregations in the United States are now unaffiliated (Chaves 2011). Moreover, 1 in 5 people who attend church attend congregations that are unaffiliated. This is a change…

Whitebread Protestants – Social Food to Create Community

Commitment & Belonging, Culture Frame, Food, Mainline & Liberal Protestant Churches, Networks & Relationships, Participant Observation

Chapter 2 of Whitebread Protestants: Food and Religion in American Culture by Daniel Sack focuses on food as a central mode of community organizing within America’s churches. He argues that “Americans go to church for more than teaching and prayer. They go looking for community” (pp. 61-2). He argues that in our culture of competition, there…