The Cambridge Companion To American Catholicism

Provides a concise yet comprehensive guide to understanding the complexity and diversity of the American Catholic experience.

This Companion will assist the reader in apprehending a coherent and synthetic interpretation of the teaching of Vatican II.

Ignatius of Loyola (1491–1556) obtained papal approval in 1540 for a new international religious order called the Society of Jesus. Until the mid-1700s the 'Jesuits' were active in many parts of Europe and far beyond. Gaining both friends and enemies in response to their work as teachers, scholars, writers, preachers, missionaries and spiritual directors, the Jesuits were formally suppressed by Pope Clement XIV in 1773 and restored by Pope Pius VII in 1814. The Society of Jesus then grew until the 1960s; it has more recently experienced declining membership in Europe and North America, but expansion in other parts of the world. This Companion examines the religious and cultural significance of the Jesuits. The first four sections treat the period prior to the Suppression, while section five examines the Suppression and some of the challenges and opportunities of the restored Society of Jesus up to the present.

This volume brings together the latest scholarship on the principal issues treated at the Council of Trent, including how the Roman Catholic Church formulated its teaching on topics such as the relationship between Scritpure and Tradition, original sin, justification, the sacraments, sacred images, sacred music, and the training of the clergy.

Informative and provocative, this book introduces readers to debates in the contemporary study of religion and suggests future research possibilities.

Offers historical, philosophical, legal, and political insights into the First Amendment, religious liberty, and church-state relations.

A wide-ranging yet accessible investigation into the importance of religion in Shakespeare's works, from a team of eminent international scholars.

Does religion cause terrorism? This volume presents a range of theories and case studies that address this important issue.