Article Abstracts
June 2006, Vol. 47 Issue 4

All Creatures Great and Small: Megachurches in Context
Mark Chaves
University of Arizona

Why have very large Protestant churches proliferated in recent decades? I address this question by shifting attention from megachurches themselves to the overall size distribution of American Protestant churches, examining how and why that distribution has changed over time. This examination reveals a remarkably consistent pattern. In every denomination on which we have data, people are increasingly concentrated in the very largest churches, and this is true for small and large denominations, for conservative and liberal denominations, for growing and declining denominations. This trend began rather abruptly in the 1970s, with no sign of tapering off. Usual explanations of megachurch proliferation do not readily account for the concentration trend. I offer a new explanation: rising costs since the 1970s have made life increasingly difficult for smaller churches, and these difficulties have helped to push people into very large churches.

Dimensions of Individual Religiosity and Charity:
Cross-National Effect Differences in European Countries?

Jan Reitsma
Peer Scheepers
Manfred te Grotenhuis
Radboud University Nijmegen

The relation between religiosity and donations to charity has frequently been subject of research. We analysed effects of dimensions of individual religiosity (Glock and Stark 1966) on people’s intention to donate to the poorest countries. We tested for cross-national effect differences in representative samples of seven European countries. Results turned out to be relatively robust across countries. We found that church attendance, dogmatic conviction and a consequential religious attitude affect intentional donations positively. The religiosity of one’s network does have an additional effect. Partner’s church attendance is positively related to willingness to donate. However, people with mainly friends with the same religious opinions are less willing to donate.

 

Determinants of Religious Giving in an Eastern-Culture Economy: Empirical Evidence from Taiwan

Wen-Chun Chang
National Taipei University

Using the data of Taiwan Social Change Survey, this study examines the determinants of religious giving for an Eastern-culture country with people mostly adhering to folk beliefs, Buddhism, and Taoism. After estimating a Tobit model with simultaneous equations of religious giving and attendance, the results indicate that there is a positive relationship between giving and attendance. Furthermore, the price elasticity of religious giving is statistically significant and elastic for individuals adhering to Eastern religions, but not for individuals affiliated with Christianity. However, unlike the findings from previous studies, one’s income level appears to have only a slight influence on religious giving or attendance for individuals adhering to Eastern religions or Christianity in Taiwan. The findings of this study are supportive for the economic argument to increase people’s religiosity through tax deductions for religious giving.

The Influence of Evangelicalism on Government Funding of Faith-Based Social Service Organizations

Helen Rose Ebaugh
Janet Saltzman Chafetz
Paula F. Pipes
University of Houston

Charitable Choice and President Bush’s Faith-Based and Community Initiative assume, among other things, that conservative/evangelical religious bodies do a better job of providing social services than many secular agencies and therefore should be entitled to government funding The question remains of whether evangelical bodies want government aid and will apply for it. We develop two measures of evangelical influence and three scales of religious policies and practices toward clients, staff, and the wider community, using data from a national sample of 656 faith-based social service coalitions. Evangelical influence measures are positively related to the religiosity scales. All five measures are negatively related to attitudes towards government funding, actively seeking it and actually obtaining funds. Ironically, more religiously conservative coalitions are significantly less likely to want government funding.

 

Under the Radar: AIDS Ministry in the Bible Belt

Jerome R. Koch
Texas Tech University

Robert E. Beckley
West Texas A & M University

This is a case study involving a religious congregation affiliated with the Churches of Christ (Campbellite Tradition). A key component of their ministry is a program entitled Outreach. In addition to providing food, clothing, shelter, substance abuse education, and counseling through the church, Outreach also includes direct intervention and education to those who are HIV+ or who are suffering from AIDS. This facet of the program includes providing bleach kits for disinfecting needles as well as facilitating condom distribution. The present paper provides a qualitative report of this congregation’s work. We have interviewed the congregation’s Evangelist/Director and other church leaders; we have reviewed the church’s promotional and teaching materials; we have also included several references to sermon transcripts from which we derive a synthesis of this congregation’s sense of it’s mission. We are able to show that, despite its ties to a fundamentalist denomination and its strong adherence to a morally conservative ideology, all of the components of Outreach are consistent with the congregation’s central values, and, paradoxically, work to enhance their material and social interests in the community.

 

Service and Faith: The Impact on Christian Faith of
Community Ministry Participation

Beryl Hhgen
Jennifer Ubels Renkema
Calvin College

Terry A. Wolfer
University of South Carolina

Increased attention currently is focused on the role of faith communities (congregations) in addressing community problems and persons in need. This attention raises questions about the relationship of faith and voluntary community ministry, specifically what effects community ministry has on faith development. Data from two survey instruments explores the relationship between faith and community ministry. A Congregational Survey measures faith and includes a newly constructed faith measurement scale, the Practices of Christian Faith Scale. The survey was administered to a sample of congregational members (n=7,403) from 35 congregations, nearly half of whom report participating in community ministry. A Volunteer Survey inquires of respondents who participate in community ministry (n=946) how their community ministry activity effects their faith and the means in which their congregation supports the relationship between community ministry and faith. Findings offer both conceptual and programmatic mechanisms related to strengthening the relationship of faith and community ministry.