The Reformation still shapes European society—and its most important post-war creation, the Europ... more The Reformation still shapes European society—and its most important post-war creation, the European Union. This chapter explores how Protestantism fractured Western Christendom, sacralized national identity, and invented the nation-state as an alternative Christian society. In the process, Protestants fostered a profound antipathy to the Catholic ‘other’ and a powerful affinity for national borders making it difficult to imagine joining a federal Europe. They were reluctant to enter the EU and awkward on arrival. Protestants never caught the vision of a united Europe, nor did the continentals grasp how Protestant national identities would resist any sacrifice of sovereignty. This clash of irreconcilable visions—one Catholic, one Protestant—became an obstacle to post-war efforts to unite Europe and has led to enduring differences in the behaviour of states, elites, churches, political parties, interest groups, and public opinion towards integration and European identity.
... If only Lorentzen had stuck to an analysis of the main themes surrounding the activities and ... more ... If only Lorentzen had stuck to an analysis of the main themes surrounding the activities and interactions of the lay women, women ... toward conventional politics and describes their efforts to develop a "politics of hope" built on human capacities for empathy, cooperation, and love. ...
Explanations for the wide gap between strong public support for school prayer and lack of support... more Explanations for the wide gap between strong public support for school prayer and lack of support in Congress have focused on the attributes of the public. Here another important explicand is investigated: the characteristics of political activists. We find that activist opinion more nearly matches congressional behavior on school prayer than does public opinion. While many of the same demographic and religious variables explain support for school prayer among activists and the public, ideology appears to be more important among activists. One of the most resilient political controversies of the past decade has been over prayer in the public schools. Set off by Supreme Court rulings in Engel v. Vitale (1962) and Abington School District v. Schempp (1963), this debate has elicited endless litigation and constant efforts to amend the Constitution, evade Supreme Court edicts, or circumvent the decisions through legislative action by Congress or the states. One reason for the persistent agitation is easy to discern: a majority of Americans favor religious exercises in public schools. Although various polls differ-in large part because of question wording (Feig and Wall, 1987)-they concur in finding impressive public support for school prayer, support which has declined only modestly over time. The 1974 General Social Survey found 67.9% favoring required reading of the Lord's Prayer or Bible verses, a figure which dipped to 59.7% in 1982 and 55.6% in 1985. In a more "voluntarist" vein, 72.1% of voters in the 1980 National Election Study favored allowing schools to start each day with prayer; four years later the figure remained at 71.5% (Elifson and Hadaway, 1985; Feig, 1986). In 1983 Gallup found 81% of the "aware" public favoring a constitutional amendment allowing JOHN C. GREEN is Associate Professor of Political Science and Acting Director of the Ray Bliss Institute for Applied Politics at the University of Akron. JAMES L. GUTH iS Professor of Political Science and Chairman of the University Faculty at Furman University. Public Opinion Quarterly Volume 53:41-57 ? 1989 by the American Association for Public Opinion Research Published by The University of Chicago Press / 0033-362X/88/0053-01/$2.50 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.152 on Sat, 26 Nov 2016 04:20:38 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 42 John C. Green and James L. Guth voluntary school prayer, with 48% backing the amendment "very strongly." Despite this massive support, all school prayer amendments have failed in Congress. Although the 1980 and 1984 GOP platforms endorsed school prayer and President Reagan put it on the "front burner" in 1983-84, the Republican Senate mustered only 56 of the needed 67 votes. The Democratic House of Representatives refused to bring the measure to the floor, although a similar appropriations rider failed to win even a majority, 194-215 (Congressional Quarterly, 1984: 8-9S, 88-89H). Both houses split along party and ideological lines: in the Senate 67% of the Republicans but only 42% of the Democrats voted for the amendment, while in the House the comparable figures were 79% and 29%. Similarly, if members are divided into equal thirds by Americans for Democratic Action ratings, the most conservative members favored the amendment by 89% (Senate) and 83% (House), the moderates gave 41% and 31% of their votes, and the most liberal third provided only 15% and 5% support. Far from responding to public attitudes, many legislators apparently ignore them. Why the strong resistance? Earlier studies have contended that the characteristics of school prayer advocates, not their numbers, have been the crucial weakness of the restorationist movement. Elifson and Hadaway (1985) argue that this majority may be "too silent" to be heard by Congress: proponents have lower incomes, lower status jobs, and less education, while legislators have the opposite traits, which are associated with opposition to school prayer. In addition, school prayer may not be salient to many proponents, and thus they may not press the issue. Finally, Elifson and Hadaway suggest that religious leaders, an elite to which Congress may pay disproportionate attention on this issue, are themselves divided over school prayer. These explanations all have some validity, but they leave out other key elites, especially political activists. The partisan and ideological cleavages in Congress hint that legislators are responding not so much to the public as to their "primary constituents," those who provide crucial campaign support: volunteer workers, financial backers, and party and issue activists (Fenno, 1978:19). Indeed, many scholars hold that such activists provide the most effective linkage between the public and their representatives (Luttbeg, 1981). They play crucial roles in the two major paths of influence between legislators and their constituents: directly by means of electoral choice and indirectly through shared characteristics…
The Kingdom of God and the World of Man: The Problem of Religious Politics Cultural Aspects of th... more The Kingdom of God and the World of Man: The Problem of Religious Politics Cultural Aspects of the Modern World-System Globalization, the Active Self, and Religion: A Theory Sketch Globalism and Inclusion: Theoretical Remarks on the Non-Solidary Society Ultimate Values in Politics: Problems and Prospects for World Society Religious Transformation and Social Conditions: A Macrosociological Analysis Religious Politicization among Western European Mass Publics Protestantism and the Spirit of Democracy Losing Faith in the "Religion" of Secularization: Worldwide Relgious Resurgence and the Definition of Religion Bibliography Index
The Reformation still shapes European society—and its most important post-war creation, the Europ... more The Reformation still shapes European society—and its most important post-war creation, the European Union. This chapter explores how Protestantism fractured Western Christendom, sacralized national identity, and invented the nation-state as an alternative Christian society. In the process, Protestants fostered a profound antipathy to the Catholic ‘other’ and a powerful affinity for national borders making it difficult to imagine joining a federal Europe. They were reluctant to enter the EU and awkward on arrival. Protestants never caught the vision of a united Europe, nor did the continentals grasp how Protestant national identities would resist any sacrifice of sovereignty. This clash of irreconcilable visions—one Catholic, one Protestant—became an obstacle to post-war efforts to unite Europe and has led to enduring differences in the behaviour of states, elites, churches, political parties, interest groups, and public opinion towards integration and European identity.
... If only Lorentzen had stuck to an analysis of the main themes surrounding the activities and ... more ... If only Lorentzen had stuck to an analysis of the main themes surrounding the activities and interactions of the lay women, women ... toward conventional politics and describes their efforts to develop a "politics of hope" built on human capacities for empathy, cooperation, and love. ...
Explanations for the wide gap between strong public support for school prayer and lack of support... more Explanations for the wide gap between strong public support for school prayer and lack of support in Congress have focused on the attributes of the public. Here another important explicand is investigated: the characteristics of political activists. We find that activist opinion more nearly matches congressional behavior on school prayer than does public opinion. While many of the same demographic and religious variables explain support for school prayer among activists and the public, ideology appears to be more important among activists. One of the most resilient political controversies of the past decade has been over prayer in the public schools. Set off by Supreme Court rulings in Engel v. Vitale (1962) and Abington School District v. Schempp (1963), this debate has elicited endless litigation and constant efforts to amend the Constitution, evade Supreme Court edicts, or circumvent the decisions through legislative action by Congress or the states. One reason for the persistent agitation is easy to discern: a majority of Americans favor religious exercises in public schools. Although various polls differ-in large part because of question wording (Feig and Wall, 1987)-they concur in finding impressive public support for school prayer, support which has declined only modestly over time. The 1974 General Social Survey found 67.9% favoring required reading of the Lord's Prayer or Bible verses, a figure which dipped to 59.7% in 1982 and 55.6% in 1985. In a more "voluntarist" vein, 72.1% of voters in the 1980 National Election Study favored allowing schools to start each day with prayer; four years later the figure remained at 71.5% (Elifson and Hadaway, 1985; Feig, 1986). In 1983 Gallup found 81% of the "aware" public favoring a constitutional amendment allowing JOHN C. GREEN is Associate Professor of Political Science and Acting Director of the Ray Bliss Institute for Applied Politics at the University of Akron. JAMES L. GUTH iS Professor of Political Science and Chairman of the University Faculty at Furman University. Public Opinion Quarterly Volume 53:41-57 ? 1989 by the American Association for Public Opinion Research Published by The University of Chicago Press / 0033-362X/88/0053-01/$2.50 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.152 on Sat, 26 Nov 2016 04:20:38 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 42 John C. Green and James L. Guth voluntary school prayer, with 48% backing the amendment "very strongly." Despite this massive support, all school prayer amendments have failed in Congress. Although the 1980 and 1984 GOP platforms endorsed school prayer and President Reagan put it on the "front burner" in 1983-84, the Republican Senate mustered only 56 of the needed 67 votes. The Democratic House of Representatives refused to bring the measure to the floor, although a similar appropriations rider failed to win even a majority, 194-215 (Congressional Quarterly, 1984: 8-9S, 88-89H). Both houses split along party and ideological lines: in the Senate 67% of the Republicans but only 42% of the Democrats voted for the amendment, while in the House the comparable figures were 79% and 29%. Similarly, if members are divided into equal thirds by Americans for Democratic Action ratings, the most conservative members favored the amendment by 89% (Senate) and 83% (House), the moderates gave 41% and 31% of their votes, and the most liberal third provided only 15% and 5% support. Far from responding to public attitudes, many legislators apparently ignore them. Why the strong resistance? Earlier studies have contended that the characteristics of school prayer advocates, not their numbers, have been the crucial weakness of the restorationist movement. Elifson and Hadaway (1985) argue that this majority may be "too silent" to be heard by Congress: proponents have lower incomes, lower status jobs, and less education, while legislators have the opposite traits, which are associated with opposition to school prayer. In addition, school prayer may not be salient to many proponents, and thus they may not press the issue. Finally, Elifson and Hadaway suggest that religious leaders, an elite to which Congress may pay disproportionate attention on this issue, are themselves divided over school prayer. These explanations all have some validity, but they leave out other key elites, especially political activists. The partisan and ideological cleavages in Congress hint that legislators are responding not so much to the public as to their "primary constituents," those who provide crucial campaign support: volunteer workers, financial backers, and party and issue activists (Fenno, 1978:19). Indeed, many scholars hold that such activists provide the most effective linkage between the public and their representatives (Luttbeg, 1981). They play crucial roles in the two major paths of influence between legislators and their constituents: directly by means of electoral choice and indirectly through shared characteristics…
The Kingdom of God and the World of Man: The Problem of Religious Politics Cultural Aspects of th... more The Kingdom of God and the World of Man: The Problem of Religious Politics Cultural Aspects of the Modern World-System Globalization, the Active Self, and Religion: A Theory Sketch Globalism and Inclusion: Theoretical Remarks on the Non-Solidary Society Ultimate Values in Politics: Problems and Prospects for World Society Religious Transformation and Social Conditions: A Macrosociological Analysis Religious Politicization among Western European Mass Publics Protestantism and the Spirit of Democracy Losing Faith in the "Religion" of Secularization: Worldwide Relgious Resurgence and the Definition of Religion Bibliography Index
Religion and American Politics. Domestic and International Contexts, 2024
The book presents a broad international and interdisciplinary perspective on the role of religion... more The book presents a broad international and interdisciplinary perspective on the role of religion in American politics (both domestic and international). It is a result of cooperation between Jagiellonian University scholars and an international group of academics, including renowned American specialists, who study the intersection between religion and American politics. Coming not only from the USA, but also from Israel, Spain, Hungary, Poland and the Palestinian territories, the authors provide a unique international perspective on how the USA deals with issues on the intersection of religion and politics and how it is perceived around the world. The contributors are: Elad Ben David, Emily R. Gill, James L. Guth, Jajuan S. Johnson, Lyman A. Kellstedt, Sebastian Kubas, Michael McLaughlin, Husam Mohamad, Paulina Napierała, Brent F. Nelsen, Karoly Pinter, Cristobal Serran-Pagan y Fuentes, and Jerold Waltman.
God at the Grass Roots: The Christian Right in the 1994 Elections, 1995
In the only book-length examination of the Christian Right's impact on the historic 1994 election... more In the only book-length examination of the Christian Right's impact on the historic 1994 elections, leading scholars of religion and politics, and national and state elections catalog the movement's strengths and weaknesses in a variety of situations, as well as its prospects for 1996 and beyond.
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Papers by James L . Guth