Table of Contents

One: Who Are American Catholics? Two: A Brief History of Catholics in America: Colonial Times to 1900 Three: A Brief History of Catholics in America: 1900 to the Second Vatican Council Four: The Post-Vatican II Church in America Five: Teachings and Beliefs: Part I Six: Teaching and Beliefs: Part II Seven: The Organization of the Church Eight: The Church and Popular Culture Nine: Challenges Ten: The Future Appendix One: Selected Profiles of American Catholics Appendix Two: Time Line

Promotional Information

Emphasizing the post-Vatican II era, Chester Gillis offers a cogent survey of U.S. Catholic history, and explores the various roles and missions of the church in such issues as education, health care, and charity. Throughout the book, he examines the persistent tension between the faith's traditional authority in Rome and its incarnation in America, which is influenced by a thoroughly modern, dynamic, and secular culture.

About the Author

Chester Gillis is associate professor of Theology and Catholic Studies at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. He is the author of A Question of Final Belief and Pluralism: A New Paradigm for Theology.

Reviews

Gillis writes as an authentic insider, focusing on American Catholic identity and community and addressing an audience that specifically includes non-Catholics who are searching for what it is that distinguishes Catholics from their American culture. -- D.W. Ferm Choice This sturdy, well presented and well written portrait of Catholicism in the USA fills a serious gap in the marketplace. Centering on Catholic identity and community, Gillis performs an unenviable task well, of providing a useful introductory account of the largest religious group in the USA. Journal of Contemporary Religion This new series... portrays the diversity and complexity of religious life in America. Library Journal Gillis, the lead-off batter in the new Columbia Contemporary Religion series, has made a solid hit into left center field with this clear, engaging and reliable introduction to U.S. Catholicism...If the rest of the books in this series meet the standard set by Gillis, they will be an invaluable resource for interfaith understanding and harmony in this religious smorgasbord of a country. -- Jon Nilson Christian Century Gillis's inviting prose and discerning insights make this a fine introduction to American Catholicism. Publishers Weekly