Understanding the Rise of Born-Again Catholics in the United States: The Role of Educational Attainment
Having a born-again experience has historically been a marker of sectarian or evangelical Protestantism. Yet the percentage of American Catholics reporting a born-again experience has nearly doubled in the past few decades - from 14% in 2004 to 27% in 2016 - a much faster increase than that of e...
| Published in: | Review of religious research |
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| Authors: | ; |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Springer
[2018]
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| In: |
Review of religious research
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
USA
/ Catholic
/ Rebirth
/ Spiritual experience
/ Evangelical movement
|
| IxTheo Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy CB Christian life; spirituality KBQ North America KDB Roman Catholic Church KDG Free church |
| Further subjects: | B
Evangelical
B Catholicism B Trends B Born-again |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | Having a born-again experience has historically been a marker of sectarian or evangelical Protestantism. Yet the percentage of American Catholics reporting a born-again experience has nearly doubled in the past few decades - from 14% in 2004 to 27% in 2016 - a much faster increase than that of evangelicals or any other religious group. How do we explain the disproportionate rise of born-again Catholics? Drawing on data from the 2004-2016 waves of the General Social Survey, this research note tests four potential mechanisms: (1) evangelicals converting to Catholicism; (2) born-again Catholics immigrating to the US; (3) evangelical-to-Catholic diffusion due to growing conservative-political alliances; and (4) having a born-again experience (both an indicator of sectarian religious piety and loose affiliation with more standard Catholic self-perceptions) is becoming more common among Catholics with less formal education. After testing alternative explanations, we show that reporting a born-again experience has increased almost solely among Catholics without a college degree. This suggests that the born-again experience is increasing primarily among those Catholics who tend to be more marginalized within society at large (potentially making sectarian religious experiences like being born-again more attractive) and less versed in more mainstream identity-markers of their own religious tradition. |
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| ISSN: | 2211-4866 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Review of religious research
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s13644-018-0351-8 |