Shopping for Faith: American Religion in the New Millennium

Rating:
Summary: Exploring faith has many avenues
Review: Terrific book at identifying why our search for faith and spiritual life has taken so many different roads. Influenced by the world events, yet still desiring a faith to guide us and make sense of our spiritual side. This book will help people to explore options and understand why they may have had some different feelings about their spirit along the way. The CD that comes with the book helps keep the explorations fresh.

Rating:
Summary: Informative analysis of today's American religious scene
Review: This book, written in 1998, takes an objective look at the varieties of religious expression in America at the end of the 20th century and projects the observed trends into the new millennium. This is good information for anyone to have, whether one is a "seeker", a casual observer, or a devoted follower of a particular religion. It covers the "mix-and-match" religious experiences that are popular in some areas as well as the tradional religions who are embracing new methodology to impact today's society. The influence of religion in the social and political arenas is also addressed quite extensively. One subject the authors glossed over a little too quickly is the impact of televangelism and the effect it has on religious beliefs and practices. For good or for ill, televangelism has a much greater impact, at least in America's heartland, than the authors indicate. Otherwise, this book is very comprehensive and never ceases to be interesting.