RELIGIONS OF AMERICA

Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointing
Review: After buying this reference...I found that the book has a copywrite date of 1975. On the surface...this may not sound like such a big deal, but the author continually refers to dates in support of his subject matter, as if these dated events happened recently, but in all actuality...they happened over 25 years ago !!! I felt as a reader that I was reading ancient history...definitely not what I bought the book for.

Even if this book had been recently revised....I'd still not give it 5 stars. Section 1 of the book which deals with the various denominations and their attributes were far too short. Also....the author has omitted a number of American religions...and the ones he did include were not detailed enough. Each chapter dealing with a denomination is set up in a question / answer type senario. The author asks a question about the denomination and a guest "expert" answers the question. I for one did not like this approach. I found that the author did not always ask the same questions to all authors. How can one compare denominations if each expert gets different questions? Also, some of the questions asked by the author were of no relevence to me. Also....the experts on more than one occasion seem to skirt or gloss over answers...leaving the reader to make assumptions. Not Good. Bad Format for many reason too numerous to explain here. Do yourself a favor....get another book on the subject and leave this one alone.

J.B. Kruz
KruzKontrol

Rating:
Summary: Very good but date makes it questionable
Review: As another reviewer noted, the fact that this book is dated 1975 makes one wonder why the cover still says "A _New_ Guide and Almanac." However, in general, this book still seems to cover most of the major points. I found it very informative overall, with the answers to many practical religion questions, particularly comparisons of various Christian denominational views of the Trinity and other core issues. My one complaint is that this book only covers Christianity and some Judaism, again, I think the pub date has something to do with that.

Rating:
Summary: Good Source of Information, But Does Need an Update
Review: As with some other reviewers, I believe Rosten's book is an excellent source of information for the basic beliefs of various groups while the statistics derived are decidedly outdated.

While core beliefs of different topics (Jesus' divinity, Trinity, salvation, heaven and hell, etc.) have basically remained the same since the book was first published, various statistics (religious group population, church attendance, sex and race composition, youth, etc.) does need some serious updating.

In summary, an excellent book for understanding the basic beliefs of a group. Just get another title for getting updated information!

Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Great Springboard for Research
Review: I inherited this book with the rest of my mother's books. It's now one of my favorite books in my personal library, due to the range of information it contains. If you are just interested in learning about various beliefs and practices, or looking for a faith that might be close to your own, or simply curious about the spiritual beliefs of your friends or loved ones, this book is great.

It provides a pretty good overview of each religion, and more than enough information to let you know if you would like to pursue your studies about a particular faith.

Yes, it is old, but so are the religions it covers. Relgions change, but not so much that this book can't give you an accurate and valuable glimpse into the doctrines and values of these religions. I would, however, love to see this book be revised.

My only complaint is that it does not contain other religions of America, like Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism. Perhaps this is something that could be addressed if this book was revised.

I highly recommend this book. It's a great staple to have in your personal library.

Rating:
Summary: Helpful but lacking Up to Date Information
Review: I learned some basic facts but kept asking myself what today's statistics would be, and had these denominations changed their stance since the book was written. The book is constantly using figures and information from the 1970s. I now make it a point to look at the date a book was written before buying.

Rating:
Summary: A Good Resource
Review: If one recognizes right up front that the book was published in 1975 (and to my knowledge publishers don't change book titles with the passage of time - we still refer to the "new testament" as the "new" testament even though it's almost 2,000 years old) it is a useful resource for basic knowledge regarding many of America's religions and some related issues. While recognizing certain limitations exist due to its age, I thought the book provided a succinct and comprehensive look at a wide variety of religions and issues that are, not surprisingly, still relevant today. I would recommend this book for anyone seeking a "CliffsNotes" version of many of America's religions. I also liked the format of having people from each religion address each topic - it provided a good perspective on the topics without any author bias.

Rating:
Summary: This Book Is Way Outdated
Review: Overall, this is a good book; however, I found the information to be way outdated. It also left out a lot of religions in my opinion. The date of print on this book is 1975 so I do not get where they say the NEW? I found a much better book that was updated; however, this book does have some good historical information.

Rating:
Summary: excellent intoduction/overview to American religious thought
Review: While some have denigrated this work on the basis of what it doesn't contain, I commend it on the basis of what it DOES contain: an excellent introduction and overview of American religious belief. True, we'd like to see more religions represented, but one has to start somewhere if one wants an understanding of religious faith in America, and this is a good place to start. Perhaps an updated version will appear, addressing some of the faiths that have gained ascendancy in more recent years. The real beauty of this book lies in it's approach - rather than being one person's interpretation and explanation of various religious beliefs, a representative spokesman FROM each faith explains the beliefs of that faith, and answers frequently-asked-questions ala Barbara Walters style. The views presented then, are as each faith would like them presented - from the horse's mouth, as it were. This eliminates a lot of error due to bias which taints so many of the books published along these lines. I recommend this book to anyone interested in learning what DO other (mostly mainstream) religions believe? What does MY religion espouse?