Adair T. Lummis

A research note: Real men and church participation

Although more women than men have attended religious services and other church events for some centuries across denominations, periodically a denomination views the relative absence of men in the pews as a new problem they must face. Data from a 2002 survey of 2,200 lay persons who are at least titular members of Episcopal congregations located in different regions of the USA are used to explore why men are not as involved in church life as some may want. Survey results indicate that the presence of women in ordained or in lay church leadership does not significantly diminish mens feelings of being appreciated by their congregations. Rather, both lay men and women feel more valued for their church participation if they are currently involved in a variety of parish activities and if they were elected to the church governing board. Younger men, however, feel more appreciated than older men even if they do relatively little in church, while womens age is unrelated to their sense of being valued for their participation. Survey comments and other analyses are used to explain these findings.

Clergy Women: An Uphill Calling

Perhaps the most significant event in twentieth-century American Protestant churches has been the entry of tens of thousands of women into the churchs ordained ministry. How are these womens experiences as ministers different from those of their male counterparts? What are their callings and careers like? What are their prospects for employment, income, and satisfaction? Based on a wealth of statistical data as well as in-depth personal interviews, this book offers the most authoritative information ever about the real experiences of clergy women (and men), along with anecdotes that show what the life of American clergy today is really like.

Islamic Values in the United States: A Comparative Study.

The religion of Islam is now an American phenomenon. Once thought to be primarily a way of life of the Arabs and a faith alien to the Judeo-Christian heritage of this country, it has grown to be one of the most prominent and rapidly-growing religious movements in America. This ethnography of immigrant Muslims considers five Northeastern communities in detail. Including numerous interviews with members of these communities, this investigation provides a highly personal look at what it means to be a believing, practising Muslim in America at a time when Islam is under the critical scrutiny of international news. The authors describe the institutions and leadership of American Islam, Muslim law, and its applications in the American context, examining the kinds of problems that beset Muslims trying to observe the elements of their faith in a potentially difficult environment. Family life and the roles and relationships of men and women are thoroughly detailed as well.