Sense of the Faithful: How American Catholics Live Their Faith PDF
Preview Sense of the Faithful: How American Catholics Live Their Faith
Sense of the Faithful This page intentionally left blank Sense of the Faithful How American Catholics Live Their Faith jerome p. baggett 1 2009 3 Oxford University Press, Inc., publishes works that further Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offi ces in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Copyright © 2009 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Published by Oxford University Press, Inc. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 www.oup.com Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Baggett, Jerome P., 1963– Sense of the faithful : how American Catholics live their faith / Jerome P. Baggett. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-19-532695-6 1. Catholic Church—United States. 2. Catholics—United States. 3. Catholics—Religious life. I. Title. BX1406.3.B34 2009 282'.73090511—dc22 2008015623 1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper For John A. Coleman, S.J., with much esteem and appreciation This page intentionally left blank Contents Part I Getting Situated: The View from Afar 1. Context: Past Changes and the Present Conversation, 3 2. Framework: A “Cultured” Look at American Catholicism, 33 Part II Leaning Closer: Examining the Brushstrokes 3. Self: Rooting and Uprooting, 59 4. Institution: Dilemmas of Authenticity and Authority, 89 5. Community: Narratives for Belonging, 125 6. Civil Society: Private and Public Good, 169 Part III Stepping Back: Thinking about the Big Picture 7. Paradox: Tradition in a Posttraditional Society, 205 Appendices, 241 Notes, 247 Index, 273 This page intentionally left blank Preface his book, to use a familiar expression, is truly a “conversation piece.” The idea of writing it fi rst occurred to me as a result of many con- Tversations with people, especially my students and colleagues at the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, regarding present-day American Catholicism. These exchanges made me realize just how little we actually know about the people in the pews, particularly how they, while thoroughly modern, continue to fi nd a great deal of meaning in their two-millennia-old religious tradition. To be sure, whatever this book might add to our knowledge about such concerns is also the product of much conversation. As I describe more fully toward the end of the fi rst chapter, it is based primarily on extensive interviews with nearly three hun- dred active members of six Catholic parishes scattered throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. These have afforded me a ground-level view of American Catholicism. Rather than “offi cial” pronouncements from church leaders, the focus of this book is on the decidedly “nonoffi cial” viewpoints expressed by the rank and fi le. Relying less on what are often very helpful, broad-based surveys, I plumb depths of meaning that are accessible only through more prolonged discussion. And, in resistance to simplistic and all-too-ubiquitous punditries about the American laity, my purpose has been to engage laypeople in dialogue in order to take stock of what they actually say for themselves. This in itself is a worthwhile undertaking. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have recorded here will stimulate still more conversation. When I refl ect on the remark- able candor and seriousness that parishioners brought to these interviews, I cannot help but think they model the very sort of open conversation about faith, doubt, and religious community that is too often lacking in the current discourse on such
The list of books you might like
