Places of Worship: Exploring Their History

by James P. Wind

Overview

Whether Christian churches, Jewish synagogues, Islamic mosques, Buddhist temples, or the gathering places for other faiths, buildings designed for worship are significant to both their own community of believers and their larger communities. Coming to understand the history of places of worship, therefore, is an essential element in understanding the historical fabric of these communities. Places of Worship offers the abundant insights of an experienced historian of American religion. Using illustrations from a wide diversity of congregations, Wind suggests ways in which answers may be sought. In two enlightening appendices, he also provides guidance to important published works on American religion and a directory of denominational archives and historical agencies. But perhaps his greatest contribution is to emphasize the necessity of viewing any religious community as a dynamic, evolving social organism. The author not only offers a comprehensive rationale for including political and secular influences from each era covered by the religious group's history, he also explains to the reader the most effective use of these resources. Because of its fresh perspective, this volume will prove invaluable to anyone exploring the history of American places of worship. Places of Worship is Volume 4 in The Nearby History Series.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780759117808
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	10/06/1995
Series:	American Association for State and Local History
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	1
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

James P. Wind is Director of the Alban Institute.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Editor's Introduction
Chapter 2 Illustrations
Chapter 3 Acknowledgment
Chapter 4 Preface
Chapter 5 First Impressions
Chapter 6 Creating a Landscape
Chapter 7 Indispensible Questions
Chapter 8 Building Blocks
Chapter 9 Drawing a Blueprint
Chapter 10 Weaving Plots Together
Chapter 11 Crafting a History
Chapter 12 Reaching Beyond Nearby History
Chapter 13 Appendix A
Chapter 14 Appendix B
Chapter 15 Index

What People are Saying About This

Martin E. Marty

Wind's book can help professional historians who have not written about congregations before and church members who have not written histories before.

Editorial Reviews

Wind's book can help professional historians who have not written about congregations before and church members who have not written histories before.

Martin E. Marty

Wind's book can help professional historians who have not written about congregations before and church members who have not written histories before.--Martin E. Marty

From the Publisher