From School Library Journal
Grade 10 Up-An alphabetical listing of people, places, court cases, books, terms, events, and issues. The signed entries are written by academics as well as people working for such institutions as the Center for Public Justice, the Center for Policy Analysis on Palestine, and the National Women's Christian Temperance Union. The writing is clear, objective, and to the point. Entries average half a page in length and include discussions of "conscientious objection," "prayer in public schools," William Penn, the Ku Klux Klan, Roe v. Wade, religion and the vote in various elections, and more. While there is plenty of information available on these topics, these articles offer a starting point for student research. Many entries include cross-references and further-reading suggestions of journal articles, periodical references, books, doctoral dissertations, and Web sites. The black-and-white photographs interspersed throughout are often dark and/or grainy; the black-and-white reproductions are of higher quality. There are also a few charts. A secondary purchase for most libraries.
Maureen Connelly, John C. Hart Memorial Library, Shrub Oak, NYCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
This encyclopedia brings together "in one place 'the facts' about the people, groups, jurisprudence, forces, and phenomena that together tell the story of the interaction between religion and politics in America." A team of 135 scholars wrote the more than 600 entries, which focus on several themes, among them the roles played by religious organizations and beliefs in shaping American politics; religion and the Constitution; and the intersections between religion, political theory, and public policy.
The A-Z entries include discussions of the Abolitionist movement, Anti-Defamation League, Christian social ethics, Focus on the Family, Gay and lesbian marriage, and Raid on Waco, among other topics. Numerous men and women who had influence on the world of religion and politics, such as Ralph Abernathy, Mary Baker Eddy, Cotton Mather, and several U.S. presidents, are included. There are also entries for court cases that left their mark on the religious and political landscape of the U.S. Other entries cover different religious traditions, including Christian Science, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism. Length ranges from approximately half of a page to two pages. Many entries conclude with a list of further readings.
This work offers general information for the beginning researcher and could be used as a springboard to further research. It joins two similar-sounding but older titles. Encyclopedia of Religion in American Politics (Oryx, 1998) covers many of the same topics in its 700 short entries and also provides some supporting material, such as a collection of speeches and documents and a time line. Encyclopedia of Politics and Religion (Congressional Quarterly, 1999) offers a global perspective. Academic and larger public libraries that don't already have a resource on the relationship between politics and religion in the U.S., or that need to expand or update their holdings, might do well to include this newer volume in their collection. RBB
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved