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Full-Text Articles in Christianity
Latina/O Conversion And Miracle-Seeking At A Buddhist Temple, Stephen M. Cherry, Kemal Budak, Aida I. Ramos
Latina/O Conversion And Miracle-Seeking At A Buddhist Temple, Stephen M. Cherry, Kemal Budak, Aida I. Ramos
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
The growing diversification of the US Latino religious’ experiences calls for scholarly attention beyond Protestant or Catholic categories. This study begins to answer this call. Using interview data with 26 Latinos collected over 2 years of observation at the True Lama Meditation Center (TLMC) in Houston, Texas, we describe how Latinos who convert to Buddhism or actively attend the temple while also continuing to attend Christian services (both Catholic and Protestant) see themselves and understand their religious identities and practices. We then explore the reasons for their conversion or changes in religious identities and practices through various theoretical lens. Although …
The Rise Of Latino Protestants, Aida Isela Ramos
The Rise Of Latino Protestants, Aida Isela Ramos
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
Excerpt: "During one of my first visits to a church in San Antonio for the Latino Protestant Congregations Project, the pastor invited a church member to speak about his experience in a federal immigration detention center. An elderly gentleman rose from his seat with a Bible tucked under his arm. For the next hour, this man, a Salvadoran undocumented immigrant, told his story."
Latino Protestants And Their Political And Social Engagement (Chapter Six Of Latino Protestants In America: Growing And Diverse), Mark T. Mulder, Aida I. Ramos, Gerardo Marti
Latino Protestants And Their Political And Social Engagement (Chapter Six Of Latino Protestants In America: Growing And Diverse), Mark T. Mulder, Aida I. Ramos, Gerardo Marti
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
Excerpt: "On a rainy early spring morning in a modest brick Presbyterian church just outside the Fruitvale neighborhood of Oakland, California, sixtyfour worshippers gather. The entire worship is in Spanish. During the sermon, the pastor makes a passing reference to how few of the attenders now live in Oakland proper, that many have to drive farther than ever for church services. The implicit message: the leadership of the church realizes that gentrification of San Francisco has spilled over the Bay Bridge and now threatens the availability of affordable housing throughout Oakland. In response, the congregation has started programs that offer …
Perceiving The Cultural Sea That Is Our Home - Spiritual Formation And Western 21st Century Culture, Lisa Graham Mcminn
Perceiving The Cultural Sea That Is Our Home - Spiritual Formation And Western 21st Century Culture, Lisa Graham Mcminn
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
Spiritual formation occurs in the routines of daily living. We are formed by choices made at the grocery store, as we reach for our medicine cabinet, as we consider whether to drive ten minutes or walk thirty. Such seemingly insignificant choices reflect assumptions held about who we are, and how we are supposed to live in the world. Spiritual formation, like notions of civic duty, develops from within a cultural context. Cultural environments give us largely unquestioned taken-for- granted assumptions about how the world is and how we should live in it. This essay explores three of the many Western …
The Contexts Of Conversion Among U.S. Latinos, Aida I. Ramos, Robert D. Woodberry, Christopher G. Ellison
The Contexts Of Conversion Among U.S. Latinos, Aida I. Ramos, Robert D. Woodberry, Christopher G. Ellison
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
The growth of Protestantism among U.S. Latinos has been the focus of considerable discussion among researchers. Yet few studies investigate how Latino Protestants and Latino Catholics differ, or which types of Latinos convert from Catholicism to Protestantism. Our study tests various theories about why some Latinos convert including a modified version of the semi-involuntary thesis, the national origin hypothesis, and assimilation theory. We use data from a large national sample of U.S. Latinos and find some support for assimilation theory and less for the semi-involuntary thesis. However, context matters. If we divide Latinos into national origin groups, these groups strongly …
Religious Service Attendance And Volunteering: A Growth Curve Analysis, Young-Il Kim, Sung Joon Jang
Religious Service Attendance And Volunteering: A Growth Curve Analysis, Young-Il Kim, Sung Joon Jang
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
Despite methodological advances in studying the relationship between religious attendance and volunteering, its dynamic nature still needs to be elucidated. We apply growth curve modeling to examine whether trajectories of religious attendance and volunteering are related to each other over a 15-year period in a nationally representative sample from the Americans’ Changing Lives data (1986-2002). Multivariate results showed that the rates of change in religious attendance and volunteering were positively related, and excluding religious volunteering did not alter the finding. It was also found that the initial level of religious attendance was positively associated with the rate of increase in …
Sexual Identity Concerns For Christian Young Adults: Practical Considerations For Being A Supportive Presence And Compassionate Companion, Lisa Graham Mcminn
Sexual Identity Concerns For Christian Young Adults: Practical Considerations For Being A Supportive Presence And Compassionate Companion, Lisa Graham Mcminn
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
Most sexual identity development models disregard the importance of valuative frameworks and faith for young adults with same sex attraction. This article is a theoretical and pastoral attempt to outline practical considerations for Christian professors, staff, and laity who seek a new role, that of compassionate companion, or a supportive presence for Christian young adults with same sex attraction. Observations and recommendations are based on 11 years of teaching and mentoring college students, sexual identity development research, and a theological concept of our human will-to-relate.
Masculinity And Femininity: Origins And Implications (Chapter Two Of Growing Strong Daughters), Lisa Graham Mcminn
Masculinity And Femininity: Origins And Implications (Chapter Two Of Growing Strong Daughters), Lisa Graham Mcminn
Faculty Publications - Department of World Languages, Sociology & Cultural Studies
Excerpt: "God could have made one sex, but he chose to create two distinct image-bearing creatures. Articulating conclusions about how women and men bear God's image differently is difficult, perhaps because we believe we must first figure out which differences to attribute to environment and which are knitted into our beings at conception."