The New Faithful: Why Young Adults Are Embracing Christian Orthodoxy

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 332 pages
• Published by: Loyola Press April 2004
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0829420428
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0829420425
• Book Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Weighs: 1.1 pounds

From Publishers Weekly
Carroll's title promises to answer a question that is not new; the decline of liberal Christianity and the rise of the evangelical movement has been a source of scholarly and journalistic fascination for more than twenty years. Carroll, though, gives an up-to-the-minute account of this phenomenon. She spent a year beginning in 2001 and ending in 2002 conducting research and interviews around the U.S., and, unlike most treatments of the new American passion for orthodoxy, hers focuses on the Catholic and Orthodox Churches as well as evangelical Protestantism. This emphasis on orthodoxy and ancient, liturgical tradition among young members is both novel and timely. While evangelical Protestant mega-churches were the big story 15 years ago, record-breaking conversion rates in conservative Catholic and Orthodox churches are today's headline. Carroll quotes many young people who yearn for both conservative interpretations of the Bible and the mystery and symbolism of liturgy. Especially popular among young orthodox Catholics is the pre-Vatican II practice of Eucharistic adoration, which involves reverencing a consecrated communion wafer. In her introduction, Carroll makes brief mention of her identification with the young, conservative Catholics she features, and this identification shows in analysis that often bleeds into advocacy. She does occasionally quote critics of the trend toward orthodoxy, but she never fully explores these dimensions. However, this is a book that generously and comprehensively looks at a group that is often misunderstood and caricatured.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal
With the help of a Phillips Journalism Fellowship, St. Louis Post-Dispatch journalist Carroll traveled the country to interview young adults to ascertain how religion fits into their lives. Most of her interviewees were Catholics or evangelical Protestants, along with some Orthodox Christians. Carroll found a turn to the Right in the religious lives of her peers, born between 1965 and 1983; not everyone in this age group is religiously oriented, but those who are have more often than not turned to traditional beliefs and morality. Among Catholic priests, for example, the youngest are as traditional as the oldest, with the baby boomers falling in between. It is not unusual for married couples in this age group to embrace natural family planning as opposed to artificial birth control and for singles to reject premarital sex. These young adults are seeking authoritative guidelines and meaningful commitments. Carroll's journalistic skills are evident in this very readable volume about a tendency toward traditionalism that she predicts will spread. Highly recommended.
John Moryl, Yeshiva Univ. Lib., New York
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Reader Reviews
This review is from: The New Faithful: Why Young Adults Are Embracing Christian Orthodoxy (Hardcover) I would have loved to write an entirely positive review for this book. I certainly respect the author and believe her thesis. There are many positives to the work put into the book, as well as to the publication of the book itself. However, I found the book to be a largely anecdotal effort. While certainly meeting (modern) journalistic standards, I remain unconvinced that America is really seeing a significant trend of permanent orthodoxy among the Gen X'ers (among whom I am counted). I want to believe Carroll, and much of her argument agrees with my own experience. Still, it reminds me of a Neil Peart quote: "My precious sense of rightness is sometimes so naive, that that which I imagine is that which I believe." I didn't find the book to be a particularly engaging read. The content seems repetitious and the same points are made in identical manners in several different places in the book. We are reintroduced to the same sources in different contexts. I certainly can't say that the book was not well written, but it seemed disjointed. In any case, the author has much more experience with a diverse population than I do, and her argument is very encouraging. Hope springs eternal, and I'll join her in praying that the tide has turned against secularism.