
Christianity in the United States has long been organized around congregations and denominations. However, a different type of organization operating outside of these traditional structures is claiming an increasingly important place in the religious market. The growth of Christian nonprofits, popularly called "parachurch" organizations, has been recognized by churchgoers and social scientists alike as an important development that is transforming the composition and dynamics of American Christianity. The size, resources, and activities of this population have made it the public face of American Christianity and altered the relationship between individuals, churches and denominations. Beyond the Congregation utilizes data on almost 2,000 of the largest and most influential Christian nonprofits in the United States to answer some of the key questions raised by these organizations. What explains the growth of Christian nonprofits? What activities are they pursuing? How are they funded and how do they use those funds? Beyond the Congregation provides a much needed examination of these issues that is accessible and informative for scholars, nonprofit executives, religious leaders and the general public.
This book investigates the structural growth, operational dynamics, and societal influence of Christian nonprofit organizations operating outside traditional congregational frameworks. Christopher P. Scheitle, a sociologist specializing in religious organizations, utilizes a comprehensive dataset of nearly 2,000 influential American Christian nonprofits to analyze their rise. He argues that these organizations, often termed 'parachurch' entities, have become the primary public face of American Christianity, fundamentally shifting how resources are allocated and how religious identity is expressed in the United States.
What You Will Find
Scope Limits
Experts identify this work as a foundational empirical study for understanding the shifting landscape of American religious institutionalism. Readers frequently note the clarity of the data presentation, making it accessible to both academic researchers and practitioners in the nonprofit sector.
Page Count:
216
Publication Date:
2010-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0190453575
ISBN-13:
9780190453572
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