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Publication Type honors thesis
School or College College of Social & Behavioral Science
Department Political Science
Thesis Supervisor John G. Francis
Honors Advisor/Mentor Peter J. Diamond
Creator Coffill, Victoria Ann
Title Shifting divisions and coalitions in the American religious landscape
Date 1994-06
Year graduated 1994
Description Many authors have recently noted that the American culture is no longer divided along denominational lines as it has been historically. These authors have shown that Evangelical Christians, Orthodox Jews and conservative Catholics have discovered their common interests while liberal Protestants, liberal Catholics, Reform Jews and Secularists have discovered theirs. Some authors have called this evolution from a culture divided by denomination to a culture divided by conservative and liberal political views a process of secularization of the American society. Yet the American religious voice is very much alive today and has not undergone a process of secularization but a realignment of the traditional coalitions. Through an analysis of friend-of-the-court briefs filed in Supreme Court religion cases from 1982-1993, this paper will attempt to show that 1) in Establishment Clause cases conservative religious groups of all faiths form coalitions while the liberal religious groups of those same faiths form opposing coalitions and 2) in Free Exercise Clause cases the conservative and liberal of all faiths form one large, diverse coalition to battle government intervention in religious affairs. Although these coalitions can be very strong and predictable, they are not certain. This is because the commitment of religious organizations to these coalitions is not based on loyalty to the liberal or conservative faction but instead to the self interest of the particular organization. Therefore, the formation of these coalitions is dependant upon the specific issue and the circumstances surrounding that issue. Although the makeup of these coalitions cannot be predicted with certainty, this analysis does show that denominational lines no longer divide American society in political issues.
Type Text
Publisher University of Utah
Subject Freedom of religion - United States - Cases; United States - Religion - 1960-
Language eng
Rights Management (c) Victoria Ann Coffill
Format Medium application/pdf
ARK ark:/87278/s6rr5x8k
Setname ir_htca
ID 1301249
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6rr5x8k

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Title Page 44
Setname ir_htca
ID 1301293
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6rr5x8k/1301293