Lost Lutherans

Perspectives on American Religious Decline

Chris Suehr

• Publisher: Lexington Books
• Year: 2024
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781978780255
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Church

Lost Lutherans: Perspectives on American Religious Decline offers a straightforward look at change in American religion. Chris Suehr presents the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) as an example of religious change in a way that is welcoming to interested readers and fulfilling to social scientists. By amplifying real voices, this book presents the social science, but also explores the stories behind its statistics—the people who have left, their reasons, their beliefs, and their quests. Lost Lutherans is a useful resource on specific areas of American religion—from the history of the Mainline to the voices of modern people who have left it. This book examines the gradual changes in society, culture, and institutions that have led to this religious transformation.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• Chapter 1: Introducing Lutheranism and the American Mainline
• Chapter 2: Remarks on the Fate of All Religion
• Chapter 3: The End of the Silver Age
• Chapter 4: Age of Decline: A Changing World
• Chapter 5: Age of Decline: Mainline Transformations
• Chapter 6: Enter: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
• Chapter 7: Measuring Change in the ELCA
• Chapter 8: Finding Lost Voices
• Chapter 9: Naming Lost Voices
• Chapter 10: Understanding Lost Voices
• Chapter 11: Diagnosing Decline
• Chapter 12: Prognosis and Treatments
• Appendix
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author