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47th out of 64 books
—
12 voters
A New Religious America: How a "Christian Country" Has Become the World's Most Religiously Diverse Nation
by
Diana L. Eck
Why Understanding America's Religious Landscape Is the Most Important Challenge Facing Us TodayThe 1990s saw the U.S. Navy commission its first Muslim chaplain and open its first mosque.There are presently more than three hundred temples in Los Angeles, home to the greatest variety of Buddhists in the world.There are more American Muslims than there are American Episcopali...more
Paperback, 432 pages
Published
May 28th 2002
by HarperOne
(first published June 1st 2001)
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1. What did you find moving, notable and/or surprising about the information or point(s) of view introduced in this book?
Shocked that there has been no post-9/11 update. The information regarding attacks on Muslims and western perceptions of Islam is quite outdated. Also, the fact that so much of the information was anecdotal made it harder to find it useful.
2. There are many provocative ideas in this book. Name one and explain why it captured your attention.
The fact that there is often strong o...more
May 16, 2009
Laura
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
school board members, city council & planning board members
The topic was interesting and eye opening. "We the people" now includes Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs, Muslims, and Hindus and it's important to be open to understanding their religions in order for our country to maintain the freedom of religion with which it was founded. That said, it took me a long time to get through this book. The Pluralism Project sounds really cool (college students tracking the growth of "non-traditional" religions in their hometowns during the summer) but I sometimes felt lik...more
Don't read this book ever. I had to read this book for a class for school and i hated it. The author is so stuck in her sugar coated world that i'm surprised she didn't get diabetes writing this book. It was biased against the Christian faiths and over emphasized others for being a book about "religious pluralism". Plus the author was unable to even realize that many religious do not allow for a pluralism in the way she talks and emphasizes. This is because many has religious tenants or taboos a...more
I think I have a huge woman-crush on Diana Eck. Sure she's 65, but the woman still looks good PLUS she is smart to boot. Enter this book.
For my final undergraduate semester I figured I'd take a religion class (religion fascinates me like car wrecks fascinate most of you), but I have to admit: most literature on the subject is boorriinngg.
I mean, c'mon guys. Religion is the driving force for so much war, death, love, and charity, how did you manage to make it so dull? I found myself buried in tex...more
For my final undergraduate semester I figured I'd take a religion class (religion fascinates me like car wrecks fascinate most of you), but I have to admit: most literature on the subject is boorriinngg.
I mean, c'mon guys. Religion is the driving force for so much war, death, love, and charity, how did you manage to make it so dull? I found myself buried in tex...more
A tour through America’s new immigrant religions where the old country meets the new. Not really a good book although it calls for a pluralism that is hard to argue with.
The Christian Right would have you think that America is a "Christian" country, when in fact there are substantial numbers of Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists practicing their faith in this country. They are Americans just like you and I, although America may not be their country of orgin. These people have made it a point to introduce themselves to their neighbors and to the other churches/temples/mosques in their communities and could be an example to many Christians about what religous tolerance...more
I read this book as part of an American Religions class in college. Diana gave cites how immigrant religions have made a home in America. I found it interesting and insightful as to how the different religions have changed from their birth to fit with American culture.
This was a text for the class "Understanding Religious Traditions in Multicultural America." Confusing, verbose with too many examples and without direction, the entire class recommended our professor to never use it again. (We were her guinea pigs.) Fortunately she agreed with us, but it meant we couldn't sell back our books to the bookstore since it wasn't in demand the next year. However sore that is, to lose money over a horrible book, I'm glad others at my college won't be tortured by it.
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Good stories and themes but it has a tendency of listing examples (a Buddhist temple in Kansas, a Muslim mosque in Oregon...) that makes me not want to give it 5 stars. Other than that, it's a great book.
I read this in the context of a museum education class, in order to think about how museums might reach out to new audiences and how to use collections to teach about new immigrants and their cultural traditions. Although I think this book can be a little repetitive at times (she often resorts to recounting every instance of whatever her topic is), it is overall a useful primer. Reading it has produced in me a real sense of urgency to teach the value(s) of pluralism, not just tolerance. Eck form...more
I had to read this book for a world religions class in college, I would have never read it otherwise. I rate it low but mention it on this site because if someone is looking to really see how the various main religions are present and coping within the United States, then this is a good book. It's not the easiest read, but it is very interesting. By now it's information is a little dated but nonetheless a solid read.
This was one of the more interesting books I read in college. OK, one of the few books I was assigned in college that I actually finished. But it combines religion with American history, two subjects I like to learn about.
Shows that non-Christian religions are finding a home in America, often without people in the religious mainstream being aware of it; promotes tolerance and respect of others.
unrealistically optimistic essentialist bullshit. worth the read to incite anger and check reality against what idiot harvard professors are writing. nice lady.
May 14, 2013
Laura Grow-nyberg
marked it as to-read
May 02, 2013
Caitlin
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Mar 28, 2013
Nan Nelson
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Feb 25, 2013
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Headbanggss
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Feb 16, 2013
Blake Jones
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Feb 13, 2013
Kelly
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Feb 04, 2013
Ross
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