with contributions from Jennifer Becknell, Gordon Lubold, Canon Robert Williams
ONCE A MONTH,
members of Oakland Avenue Presbyterian Church [in Rock Hill, South Carolina] gather for a Sunday evening worship amid an atmosphere more akin to a concert than a traditional church service.
A NEW BOOK based on interviews from the PBS program Religion & Ethics News Weekly finds a spiritual hunger beneath the secular veneer of modern culture, with many searching for something beyond the material world.
with contributions from Frank Newport, Stephen Brown, Michelle Cazzulino
RESEARCHERS HAVE SPENT
a good deal of time over the years investigating American churchgoing behavior, developing theories that range from the sociological benefit of religious ritual in promoting group solidarity to the practical benefits derived from participation in community social gatherings.
with contributions from Sentinel Staff, Wayne Woolley
REACTIONS TO
the Virginia Tech shootings have ranged from stunned shock to outrage, with people pondering how they can find comfort and healing, and chart a safe course for going forward.
with contributions from Mary Frances Schjonberg, Chris Whipple
A PLAN TO RECRUIT
and incorporate newcomers, clarity of mission and ministry, contemporary worship, involvement of children in worship, geographic location, a website, and the absence of conflict are key factors in why some comgregations in America are growing, according to the latest national survey of US faith communities.
