Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America

by Michael O. Emerson

Religious disestablishment leads to pluralism, increased competition, and individual choice. These in turn are associated with specialization and niche marketing—that is, marketing specifically to a certain segment of the population. And these processes lead to something else, something of tremendous importance for understanding evangelicals and race relations. In the process of competing, of developing niches and assuring internal strength, congregations come to be made up of highly similar people. Individual congregations tend to be made up of people from similar geographic locations, similar socioeconomic statuses, similar ethnicities, and, perhaps first and foremost, predominately the same race. From the perspective of race relations, evangelicals, and religious groups in general are in a quandary. The processes that generate church growth, internal strength, and vitality in a religious marketplace also internally homogenize and externally divide people. Conversely, the processes intended to promote the inclusion of different peoples also tend to weaken the internal identity, strength, and vitality of volunteer organizations. Let us explore this further.