U.S. Religious Interest Groups

This unique encyclopedia describes how a wide range of religious groups from an even wider spectrum of religious denominations has acted vigorously to influence public policy since the beginning of the republic. This advocacy by religious interests continues in the 1990s even more dramatically and professionally than in previous decades. This one-volume reference provides a historical sketch of religious activism through the years and then profiles 118 major organizations, describing their origins and development, organization and funding, program strategies, political activities, and publications. The encyclopedia is filled with practical directory-type information also. Appendices classify the groups by religious traditions, size, membership type of group, and policy interests. A full index makes the volume easily accessible to serve broad interdisciplinary audiences of students, teachers, experts, organization activists, and lay readers.

This encyclopedia is a unique and invaluable reference for students, academicians, organization personnel, journalists, activists, and lay leaders who want easy-to-access analytical information about 118 U.S. religious organizations today with data about past traditions and religious activism through the years on American public policy formation.

Library Journal

The authors have collected basic directory and organizational information on 120 national religious interest groups within the United States--quite an accomplishment, given the wide-ranging nature of these organizations. The volume begins with a well-written chapter on the history of U.S. religious interest groups, which is followed by the alphabetized directory entries. These entries include essential contact information plus the organization's origin and mission statement, its physical arrangement and funding, policy concerns and tactics, affiliation, and publications (if any). Within each entry, the authors quote the words of the organizations as frequently as possible--in order to let the group speak for itself. The volume concludes with seven appendixes that arrange the organizations into several different categories, followed by a small bibliographic essay and index. Offering information that is broader in scope and more detailed than more general works like the Encyclopedia of Associations (Gale, 1993), this book also serves as an excellent starting point for research. Essential for large political science and religious collections.-- David L. Laughlin, MLS, St. Louis

PAUL J. WEBER, University Distinguished Teaching Professor and Chair of the Political Science Department at the University of Louisville, is Director of the McConnell Center for Political Leadership.

W. LANDIS JONES is Professor of Political Science at the University of Louisville.