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Parish and Place tells the story of how the largest religion in the US is responding to unprecedented diversity in its membership through the use of "personal parishes," which serve not a given territory, but a defined purpose- a particular language or ethnicity, or a preference for the Latin Mass. Nearly all Catholic dioceses in the US have such parishes, but few know about them. Tricia Bruce offers the first sociological study of personal parishes, based
on an original national survey, ethnographic data gathered at 67 personal parishes in fifteen dioceses, and interviews with pastors, diocesan leaders, and bishops.
About the author
Tricia C. Bruce is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Maryville College whose books include Faithful Revolution and Polarization in the US Catholic Church. She received her PhD in Sociology from the University of California Santa Barbara, and has conducted research for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Summary
The Catholic Church stands at the forefront of an emergent majority-minority America. Parish and Place tells the story of how the largest religion in America is responding at the local level to unprecedented cultural, racial, linguistic, ideological, and political diversification among its membership. While the Catholic Church is traditionally organized geographically, this is not always the case. According to Church law, bishops may establish "personal parishes" to serve not a given territory, but a defined, niche purpose--to accommodate variance in "rite, language, or nationality" or "for some other reason." Nearly all of the United States' Catholic dioceses have such parishes, but few know about them. Tricia Bruce offers the first sociological study of personal parishes, based on an original national survey of U.S. Catholic dioceses, ethnographic data gathered through field observation at 67 personal parishes in fifteen dioceses, and interviews with pastors, diocesan leaders, and bishops. Bruce argues that while personal parish designations come from the top down, they are simultaneously shaped by bottom-up parishioner choices. Parish and Place demonstrates the interdependence of grassroots behavior and institutional authority in building local religious communities.
Additional text
[T]he work as a whole will be useful to both academic and professional readers...Recommended.
