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http://atheism.about.com/od/bookreviews/fr/ReligAmWest_2.htm
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Religion in the Modern American West
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This pluralistic character encouraged the spread of religious individualism:
“The absence of any western religious mainstream would surely enhance the appeal of various new religions, for joining such a group would result in far less social disapproval. Perhaps this is one reason why various New Faiths and New Age movements have flourished in western environments.” — Ferenc Morton Szasz
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People who couldn’t readily fit in back East could find a home in the West, especially in California. Individualism was often manifested in people who started their own religious movements, like John Muir and his “nature spirituality,” a syncretic combination of Christianity and Native American beliefs. Individualism was also manifested in some denominations, like Pentecostalism, which emphasized the importance of personal religious experiences.
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Szasz covers three time periods: 1890s-1920s, 1920s-1960s, and the 1960s through the present. In each he discusses the important religious personalities, movements and ideas which spread through the public, demonstrating his own knowledge of regional and national history. He is descriptive rather than judgmental, providing fair coverage of controversial debates – for example those between religious liberals and religious conservatives.
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The American West has never been merely a geographical space. Instead, it has long played a nearly sacred role in the American imagination and sense of national identity. Because of the worldwide reach of American media, it even plays a role in the imaginations of others around the globe – very often, the American West becomes a symbol for America itself. But what role, if any, has religion played in the development and identity of the West?
Summary
Title: Religion in the Modern American West Author: Ferenc Morton Szasz Publisher: University of Arizona Press ISBN: 0816522456
Pro: • Glimpse of how religion in West differed from religion in North and South • Many examples of how social environment influence religious beliefs • Many examples of how religious beliefs shaped social environment
Con: • Some sections deserved more attention/detail
Description: • History of interaction between attitudes and religion in American West • Explores unique religious views and new religious sects • Discussion of social role played by churches in Western communities
Book Review
In fact, the role of religion has always been very large, but you wouldn’t know that by reading most histories of the region. The influence of religion has been sorely neglected by most studies and research. Judging by most available material, one might conclude that the West has been largely secular, but a recent book by Ferenc Morton Szasz may begin to rectify that situation.
Szasz’s book is concerned solely with the ways in which religion has developed in the West, especially in the ways in which it has differed from religious developments in the North and South. According to Szasz, although the region “participated in all national religious trends, westerners generally bent these trends along their own trajectories.” This, then, provides a fascinating window not only on life in the American West, but also on important, national developments in American religion generally.
A recurring theme in Szasz’s treatment is the social role played by churches. Even before the “Social Gospel” became a significant movement through the rest of the nation, churches in the West were regarded as a vital anchor for civilization and social development. During the early period of the West, there were virtually *no social institutions whatsoever, so the churches took on the role of building orphanages, hospitals and schools.
Religion in the Modern American West, by Ferenc Morton Szasz
The churches worked to establish some semblance of social order and peace. They provided social outlets like dances, picnics and rummage sales where people could meet, socialize, and develop community bonds without as many fears for outlaws and shootings. It was the churches, then, which provided social stability before civil law was able to serve that function.
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Curtis Narimatsu 