01: The new book Church, Identity and Change (Eerdmans, $36), edited by David Roozen and James R. Nieman, focuses on the changing nature of American denominations, suggesting that most church bodies, whether mainline or evangelical, are facing serious challenges in ministering to their memberships. The book is unique in examining denominations both from a structural-sociological and a theological […]

01: Amidst the flood of articles on Pope Benedict XVI and the future shape of his papacy, some stand out for their in-depth coverage. The New Yorker (May 16) magazine published a lengthy article by Paul Boyer going into the complex background of Vatican II and showing how Benedict’s thought has been shaped by the battle between liberals and […]

01: The May issue of Harper’s magazine devotes several articles to the Christian right, portraying the movement in clearly alarmist tones. Lewis Lapham’s ediorial is written in the style of the secularist jeremiads issued  by H.L. Mencken, as he expresses astonishment that the “problem of religious belief” and “superstition” have returned, this time in the form of  “dominionists.” […]

01: A Mormon and Evangelical in Conversation is the name of an unusual dialogue touring the U.S. Longtime friends Robert Millet, a prominent Latter-day Saint author and educator, and Greg Johnson, a Baptist pastor, seek to demonstrate how Mormons and evangelicals can converse and build bridges through staging public dialogues and conversations in churches, colleges, and Mormon […]

01: Muslim Networks: From Hajj to Hip Hop (University of North Carolina Press, $21.50) edited by Miriam Cooke and Bruce B. Lawrence, examines how Islam is flourishing under the process of globalization. The book’s editors argue that  Muslims have both historically and in contemporary times formed networks with each other on a transnational basis, often conflicting with […]

01: Sacred and Secular: Religion and Politics Wordwide (Cambridge University Press, $24.99) by political scientists Pippa Norris and Ronald Inglehart, represents a major attempt to chart the rate of  secularization on a global level. Relying on the World Values Survey, the European  Values Survey, longitudinal data, and a large collection of sociological literature, the authors break new […]

01:  Refleks is a scholarly journal seeking to build bridges between the Pentecostal-charismatic renewal movements and the outside world. The semi-annual journal is based in Norway but covers Pentecostalism and neo-Pentecostalism– including their predecessors, i.e., the Holiness Movement and similar traditions—from around the world. The journal consists of scholarly articles, brief biographical portraits and book reviews […]

01: The pioneering holistic health magazine Body & Soul, formerly called New Age, looks back on major issues and topics covered in its pages for its 30th anniversary and, in the process, provides a useful, if brief, glossary on New Age/alternative spirituality. The special section in the issue provides historical sketches and definitions for everything from the […]

01: The fall issue of Theology, News & Notes, a publication of Fuller Theological Seminary reveals the rethinking taking place on the methods and goals of evangelism among American evangelicals. Most of the articles claim that the older methods of preaching and decision-based evangelizing — pressing for a once-for-all acceptance of Christ–are being replaced by strategies […]

01: Alta Mira Press, in association with the Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life, has recently issued Mountain West: Sacred Landscapes In Transition ($19.95), as part of its series on religion by region. The book, edited by Jan Shipps and Mark Silk, reveals how the American West is actually three sub-regions in its […]