Discusses the rejection of popular racist beliefs of the nineteenth century by the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in its missionary interactions with American Indians. Identifies the ethnocentrism at that time as distinct from racism and suggests reasons for the commonality of the former and the rejection of the latter. (AEM)

Spiritual living demands growth, and spiritual development has many parallels with human development. Ministers who are knowledgeable of the various stages are best prepared to assist and optimize spiritual growth. The primary benefit of nurturing believers through developmental stages is assured spiritual health and maturity in the context of a…

Traces 19th-century efforts of the American Methodist Episcopal Church to establish missions and employ Black missionary bishops in Liberia. Points out that the abolition of slavery in the United States contributed to a shift in the Methodist Church's position on recruiting Blacks in the mission movement in Africa. (Author/MJL)

Addresses the impact of religious affiliation on intercourse risk and contraception use among adolescent women during the 1980s when church-based groups were increasingly involved in debates over reproductive and family issues. Results show that adolescent nonmarital intercourse and birth rates were rising suggesting that religious organizations,…

Today deep theological differences threaten to divide Protestant denominations. In turn, these differences often mute church education and block mission. This article seeks to offer glimpses for addressing that theological controversy. It is an exercise in historical retrieval examining a generative period in the history of Christian religious…

This article examines the network of women's colleges which emerged in Ireland in the latter half of the nineteenth century in response to women's exclusion from the realm of the university and their desire to participate in higher education. These colleges, run largely along denominational lines, were situated in the major cities with the…

This paper examines the perceived influence of parents and family and the construction of national and religious identification amongst adolescents theoretically sampled from along the border between the Irish Republic and the Northern Ireland. Two hundred and sixty-one young people wrote essays on the meaning of their national identity and the…

This study addresses eight models for "doing" ecclesial adolescent ministry in the United States from both a Catholic and ecumenical perspective. The article offers youth ministers in the field with creative insights to further enhance their ministry with adolescents. The eight models represent an inclusive theological and pastoral…

From the colonial period to the present, no form of integration (defined as the opening of institutions and communal spaces to members of different groups) has produced more conflict than the integration of American schools. Struggles to open other locations within the social landscape--such as railroad cars, buses, restaurant counters, and water…

Seamus Hodgkinson was raised in Northern Ireland during "The Troubles," a time of religious unrest and violence. Thousands of lives were lost as hatred between Catholic and Protestant groups escalated into intense battles. In 1957, Hodgkinson left Northern Ireland to accept a teaching position at the newly formed Doane Stuart School in…

This study draws together two research traditions: John Greer's pioneering research among pupils in Protestant and Catholic schools in Northern Ireland and Leslie J. Francis's research concerning teenage religion and values in England and Wales. A sample of 1,585 13- to 15-year-old male pupils attending Catholic schools (n = 712) and Protestant…

Author reported on a community in Northern Ireland where religion is no longer a dirty word. (Editor/RK)

This study examined stress, strain, and coping mechanisms in women religious leaders. Subjects were nuns (N=51), Reform women rabbis (N=45), Episcopal women priests (N=32), United Methodist clergywomen (N=45) and Presbyterian clergywomen (N=45), matched for age and years on the job and pulpit assignments. All subjects were given the Osipow and…

Relates the racist character of the Protestant church to the processes of acculturation and secularized forms of self identity, and outlines some implications for local churches' social action programs. (Author/SF)

Using survey data from a nationally representative sample, this article explores how marriage timing varies across major religious denominations. Survival analysis indicates that net of statistical controls, Catholics, moderate Protestants, conservative Protestants, and Mormons marry significantly earlier than their unaffiliated counterparts. This…