Gary J. ADLER Jr., Tricia C. BRUCE, and Brian STARK, editors. American Parishes. Remaking Local Catholicism. 263 pp. New York: Fordham University Press, 2019. Reviewed by Pierre HEGY, Emeritus, Adelphi University, Garden City 11530.

This is an edited volume which has the advantage of offering a variety of perspectives. It is introduced by a short reflection about the scope of the sociology of parishes and ends with a discussion about the practice and future of the field.

The introduction asks the question, what is a parish? It is a mediating structure between individual Catholics and the global institution of Catholicism. We learn in passing that too often parish studies "tilt toward an atheoretical description of trends of parish life" (5). Will this also be the case of the studies in this book? Mediating structures, e.g. hospitals, schools, or local businesses, can further be described as communities or local institutions.

There are two chapters describing parishes as institutions. Gary Adler describes "The Shifting Landscape of US Catholic Parishes 1998-2012" from data from the National Congregations Study. Some of the major changes are that parishioners in 2012 were older and more Hispanic, more conservative and less charismatic, more involved in politics, with clearer boundaries restricting women, gays and lesbians. The second chapter on parishes as institutions describes the "Stable Transformation" of American Catholicism which for a long time counted as a quarter of the US population. Mark Gray turns to the findings of Joseph Fichter in his 1954 study. While Gallup claimed that 75 percent of Catholics attended Mass weekly Fichter found evidence for no more than 62 percent. Turning to 2014 data we learn that about 25 percent of Catholics no longer identify as Catholics, while about 24 percent attend Mass weekly. Analyzing the General Social Survey data of 2014, Gray shows that between 1973 and 2015 the number of core Catholics decreased, while peripheral and formers Catholics increased.  Some theoretical reflections (e.g. on secularization) could give meaning to these statistics.

There are three chapters on processes within parishes as local communities.  Brett Hoover analyzes "Power in the Parish," more specifically in places where several minorities, e.g. Latinos and Anglos, share the same space. One peaceful conflict resolution is "passing one another by"(119) when the various groups use the worship place at different times with little contact between them. This situation is inevitable when there is a language barrier. Brett Hoover describes three parishes: one in which there is mutual avoidance, one in which an African American majority tends to reject the Spanish-speaking minority, and an affluent church where there is integration. One possible solution is to have a pastor who acts as "orchestra leader." Tia Noelle Pratt looks at "Liturgy as Identity Work in Predominantly African American Parishes." She describes three liturgical styles: the traditionalist with minimum emphasis on black culture, the spirited style where the pastor and the music are more engaged in the black tradition, and the gospel style which integrates more fully the black culture. In the third chapter on parish communities Mary Jo Bane documents the inequalities between wealthy white and the Latino parishes, and she makes suggestions for improvement.

There are also two chapters on special issues in parish life, namely youth ministries in parish and diocesan organizations by Kathleen Garces-Folley.  She documents the engagement and disengagement of young adults in two dioceses in the Washington, DC, area. Finally there is a study of marriage preparation by Courtney Ann Irby. She documents the changes from the time of the Christian Family moment when priests played a major role in marriage preparation to the contemporary situation when lay couples provide most of the information in dialogue form. She notes the influence of the therapeutic culture and self-realization away from the goal of "Christianization of the family" that prevailed in the 1950s.

The most interesting chapter for this reviewer is the interview of John Coleman, SJ.  Being both a sociologist and the assistant pastor of a large parish he brings sociology to work. His parish uses sociological tools like surveys for long-range planning and  improvement.  Two things are important for him in parish life: community (his parish "works intentionally to generate community" through meetings in homes, lunches, and picnics), and worship (90 percent of the parishioners come from outside the parish territory because of the liturgies, music and homilies.) As noted in Tricia Bruce's history of the sociology of parishes in the US, the early sociology of parishes was solution-oriented: "Parishes had problems; sociologists could name them" and offer solutions (26).  This is what pastors like John Coleman appreciate, but more is expected from sociologists.

'The last chapter is a reflection on the field. The editors propose "an embedded field approach" which would integrate "community, geography, and authority" (232).  Centralized authority and local geography can hardly be ignored in Catholic parishes. What are left out are worship and the global context. Parish embeddedness in worship and spirituality is not presented in this book. The global context of the therapeutic culture is mentioned about marriage; racism about black liturgies; and American social inequality about wealthy white vs. Latino parishes. The global context of parishes today is secularization, consumerism, utilitarian individualism,  religious privatization (Sheilaism), evangelical republicanism, gay marriages, political polarization to the point of impeachment, populism vs. cultural elitism, and sex scandals. Ideally the church is to Christianize the world, but increasingly the world is secularizing the church, and in this global context parishes are not islands.       

This book is an important step forward in comparison to the 2017 Catholic Parishes which is mainly a book about parish statistics. Statistics are important but more is expected and the new generation of sociologists will hopefully deliver it.