American Parishes

Introduction: What Is a Parish? Why Look at Catholic Parishes?
Gary J. Adler Jr., Tricia C. Bruce, and Brian Starks 1
Part I : Seeing Parishes Through a Sociological Lens
1. A Brief History of the Sociology of Parishes in the United States
Tricia C. Bruce 25
2. Studying Parishes: Lessons and New Directions from the Study of Congregations
Nancy T. Ammerman 47
Part II: Parish Trends
3. The Shifting Landscape of US Catholic Parishes, 1998-2012
Gary J. Adler Jr. 69
4. Stable Transformation: Catholic Parishioners in the United States
Mark M. Gray 95
Part III: Race, Class, and Diversity in Parish Life
5. Power in the Parish
Brett C. Hoover 111
6. Liturgy as Identity Work in Predominantly African American Parishes
Tia Noelle Pratt 132
7. A House Divided
Mary Jo Bane 153
Part IV: Young Catholics In (and Out) of Parishes
8. Parishes as Homes and Hubs
Kathleen Garces-Foley 173
9. Preparing to Say "I Do"
Courtney Ann Irby 196
Part V : The Practice and Future of a Sociology of Catholic Parishes
10. A Sociologist Looks at His Own Parish: A Conversation with John A. Coleman, SJ
John A. Coleman, SJ, with editors Gary J. Adler Jr., Tricia C. Bruce, and Brian Starks 217
Conclusion: Parishes as the Embedded Middle of American Catholicism
Gary J. Adler Jr., Tricia C. Bruce, and Brian Starks 231
Acknowledgments 247
List of Contributors 249
Index 253