“Almost Christian”
Fall, 2010
Pohick Episcopal Church
The Reverend Donald D. Binder, PhD
From 2002 –2008, researchers conducted a landmark study of U.S. adolescents and religion. Massive in scope, the National Study of Youth and Religion was designed to probe “the shape and influence of religion and spirituality in the lives of U.S. adolescents; to identify effective practices in the religious, moral and social formation of the lives of youth; to describe the extent to which youth participate in and benefit from the programs and opportunities that religious communities are offering to their youth; and to foster an informed national discussion about the influence of religion in youth’s lives to encourage sustained reflection about and rethinking of our cultural and institutional practices with regard to youth and religion.” With that study now completed and its results fully published, this course will explore its findings, as well as those of related studies, in order to attain a better understanding of how we as Christians can most effectively transmit the contents of our faith to the next generation.
Read Dr. Binder's Pohick Post Article on this Topic
Outline of Class Meetings
October 3 Overview: Scope of the Course and the Road Ahead
October 10 No Class. Reception for Pat Osisek
October 17 A First Look at the National Study of Youth and Religion (NSYR) notes
October 24 The NSYR and Spiritual Seekers, the Disengaged and
Religiously Devoted Teens notes
October 31 The NSYR and Moralistic Therapeutic Deism notes
November 7 The NSYR and Teens entering Adulthood notes
November 14 “Almost Christian”: Strategies for Teaching our Children notes
November 21 Cultural Influences: How does Society Impact our Children’s Integration of Faith? notes
November 28 Putting it All Together: Navigating the Pitfalls on the Journey Forward notes
Recommended Resources:
Soul Searching. Christian Smith with Melinda L. Denton. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. Contains the results of Wave 1 of the NSYR.
Souls in Transition. Christian Smith with Patricia Snell. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. Contains the results of Waves 2 and 3 of the NSYR.
National Study of Youth and Religion Website: http://www.youthandreligion.org. Contains survey documents, summary reports and other materials connected with the NSYR.
The Association of Religion Data Archives Website: http://www.thearda.com. Contains searchable data sets of the NSYR and other studies dealing with religion in the U.S.
Almost Christian. Kenda Creasy Dean. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010. Sociological and Theological analysis and reflection upon the NSYR.
After the Baby Boomers. Robert Wuthnow. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2007. Sociological analysis of societal influences on teens and young adults vis-a-vis religion.
A Field Guide to U.S. Congregations. Cynthia Woolever and Deborah Bruce. 2nd Ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Presents the results of many recent surveys of congregations.
All classes will be held in the Parish House Annex during the Sunday School Hour, 10:15–11:05 am.
