The College "Y" Student Religion in the Era of Secularization

In this groundbreaking history of the YMCA, David Setran details its critical role on American campuses, exploring how this popular organization worked to strengthen the Protestant piety of American collegians through Bible study, service, and prayer, as well as how the organization changed after World War I, alienating itself from churches, university administrators, and even the students themselves.

David P. Setran is Associate Professor of Christian Formation and Ministry at Wheaton College, Illinois.

Introduction * Origins: Creating "Pious Scholars" in the Secular University, 1870-1914 * "Go Ye Into All the World": The Development of a Student Service and Missionary Movement, 1870-1914 * "The Winds of Change": Religious Liberalism, World War I, and the Changing University Climate, 1914-1930 * "Making Radicals for Jesus": Re-Inventing the Intercollegiate YMCA, 1917-1935 * "A Play in Three Acts": The Decline of the Intercollegiate YMCA, 1925-1940 * Conclusion: The YMCA and the Secularization of Higher Education Introduction * Origins: Creating "Pious Scholars" in the Secular University, 1870-1914 * "Go Ye Into All the World": The Development of a Student Service and Missionary Movement, 1870-1914 * "The Winds of Change": Religious Liberalism, World War I, and the Changing University Climate, 1914-1930 * "Making Radicals for Jesus": Re-Inventing the Intercollegiate YMCA, 1917-1935 * "A Play in Three Acts": The Decline of the Intercollegiate YMCA, 1925-1940 * Conclusion: The YMCA and the Secularization of Higher Education