Mainline Christianity: The Past and Future of America’s Majority Faith

199 Pages·2012·1.295 MB·English

by  Jason S. Lantzer

Mainline Christianity
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Mainline
Christianity
The Past and Future of
America’s Majority Faith
Jason S. Lantzer
a
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
www.nyupress.org
© 2012 by New York University
All rights reserved
References to Internet websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing.
Neither the author nor New York University Press is responsible for URLs
that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Lantzer, Jason S.
 Mainline Christianity : the past and future of America’s majority faith / Jason S. Lantzer.
      p. cm.
 Includes bibliographical references (p.         ) and index.
ISBN 978-0-8147-5330-9 (cl : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8147-5331-6 (pb : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8147-5332-3 (ebook)
ISBN 978-0-8147-5333-0 (ebook)
 1.  United States — Church history.  I. Title.
 BR515.L36 2012
 277.3 — dc23
                                                           2011045381
New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper,
and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability.
We strive to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials
to the greatest extent possible in publishing our books.
Manufactured in the United States of America
c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
p 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction 1
1 The Genesis of the Mainline 7
2 Building the New Jerusalem: 27
The High Tide of the Seven Sisters
3 A Mighty Fortress in Decline 49
4 The Politics of Decline 65
5 In a State of Perpetual Decline 85
6 Unto the Ends of the Earth: 105
Global Christianity and Mainline Decline
7 The Emergence of a New Mainline 121
Notes 139
Index 183
About the Author 188
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Acknowledgments
This book began life as an email exchange in 2006. After posting a
reply to an online discussion forum about the use of terminology in describ-
ing various religious groups, I received an email from Jennifer Hammer of
New York University Press asking if I had ever considered expanding my
thoughts into something more. Intrigued by the idea, I sat out to do just
that, with the end result being a discussion of the concept of the Mainline in
American religious history. It was a process that, with some stops and starts,
took longer than I expected, but it is better than I could have imagined back
when the email was first composed. At the outset then, let me thank Jennifer
and the staff at NYU Press (including the various reviewers during the writ-
ing process) for their patience and support over the past several years.
That I should undertake such a journey into the heart of American Chris-
tianity really did not surprise me. I was raised in a home where faith was
a central part of life. From Sunday worship to Wednesday night activities
to reading Bible stories, church and religious observance was constant. And
so, I am thankful to my parents, Jack and Juanita Lantzer, for instilling and
nurturing faith in God in me at a young age, a faith that I have relied on ever
since. I am thankful for every moment spent in my various “home” congre-
gations over the years, which have nurtured that faith even more. My pastors,
teachers, and friends have also helped to shape the book as well. Likewise, I
am grateful for the opportunities, both as a worshiper, visitor, and a historian
I have had to visit a wide variety of congregations in eleven states across the
country during the course of this project.
While I may have had the background that brought me to study Ameri-
can religious history, I would not have been able to do so without the
support of the academic communities in which I am a part. This book
benefited from the financial support of the Southern Baptist Library and
Archives, and the Congregational Library, which allowed me to conduct
research among primary sources. My students, both past and present, are
also in order for thanks. I have taught American Religious History in a
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variety of formats over the years, and those students who made the jour-
ney with me deserve some recognition. My students at Butler University in
particular helped me to undertake a fundamental revamping of an earlier
draft, and I would like to single out Ali Sebald for her help in reading por-
tions of the eventual manuscript.
As some of the information that follows appeared in an earlier form in
previous published works, I am thankful for the opportunity to rethink and
recalibrate it so that I can share it anew. Portions of chapter 2 are drawn
from my book Prohibition is Here to Stay, published by the University of
Notre Dame Press. Parts of chapter 3 appeared in the Journal of Anglican
and Episcopal History. And portions of chapter 5 were first published by
the Journal of History and Computing. The ability to bring much of my pub-
lished body of work together within the new conceptualization of this book
is exciting for me as an author and a privilege made possible by profes-
sional generosity.
There are a host of other people, largely friends, family, and colleagues,
whom I should thank as well. Among them are Chad Parker and Scott
Enbrecht who looked at early drafts. Both provided important insights, from
very different perspectives, as did my old friends Jason VanHorn, PhD, and
Jayson Hartman, PA, who shared their accounts of short-term missionary
trips with me. Pat Harvey, of Indiana University-Purdue University India-
napolis (IUPUI) also offered comments as the project moved along. I am
very thankful to Clark Hodgson, who not only provided insight on some of
the court cases I discuss but also brought me into the world of Philadelphia
lawyers for two years. I remain indebted to Professor Robert Barrows of
IUPUI, who when I was working on my master’s degree, helped bring me
to the Polis Center, and to Professor James Madison of Indiana University,
who directed my PhD dissertation. Both are now friends and colleagues
as well as mentors. Likewise, Professor Stephen Stein helped nurture my
understanding of American religious history while I was in graduate school.
While I have already mentioned my parents, they deserve recognition along
with my in-laws, Bill and Susan Hebert and the Honorable James Heuer and
Kathy Heuer, for their efforts as grandparents (allowing me time to research
and write kids-free). And those children, Kate and Nick, are sources of
inspiration and distraction to their father. My first book was largely com-
pleted before either of them was born. This book, on the other hand, has
been with them their entire lives.
Finally, I wish to thank my wife, Erin. She is my constant, a source of
stability, consistency, and support in so many ways. When we were mar-
viii | Acknowledgments
ried, we selected for our scripture reading 1 Corinthians 13, and the words
contained in that chapter remain as true today as they were then: “And now
these three remain: Faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.” It
is to her, once again, that my work is dedicated, with all the love a husband
can give to his darling wife.
Acknowledgments | ix