Communities of Dissent A History of Alternative Religions in America

Through their role in the development of the First Amendment and theirexercise of the freedoms it grants, alternative religious groups have had aprofound influence on American history. As Stephen J. Stein points out in thisvivid overview, the history of alternative religion--from colonial Puritans tolate-20th-century Branch Davidians--runs parallel to that of dissent in America.Committed to fairness of representation, Stein describes the evolution andstructure of alternative religious movements from both sides: the critics andthe religious dissenters themselves. He investigates obscure groups such as the19th-century Vermont Pilgrims, who wore bearskins and refused to bathe or cuttheir hair, alongside better-known alternative believers, including colonialAmerica's largest outsider faith, the Quakers; 17th- and 18th-centuryMennonites, Amish, and Shakers; and the Christian Scientists, Jehovah'sWitnesses, Black Muslims, and Scientologists of today. The book also covers themilestones in the history of alternative American religions, from the infamousSalem witch trials and mass suicide/murder at Jonestown to the positive ways inwhich these religions have affected racial relations and the empowerment ofwomen.Religion in American Life explores the evolution, character, and dynamics oforganized religion in America from 1500 to the present day. Written bydistinguished religious historians, these books weave together the varyingstories that compose the religious fabric of the United States, from Puritanismto alternative religious practices. Primary source material coupled withhandsome illustrations and lucid text make these books essential in anyexploration of America's diverse nature. Each book includes a chronology,suggestions for further reading, and index.

Stephen J. Stein is a professor of religious studies at Indiana University. His books include Jonathan Edwards's Writings: Text, Context, Interpretation, The Shaker Experience in America: A History of the United Society of Believers, and The Encyclopedia of Apocalypticism: Apocalypticism in the Modern Period and the Contemporary Age (editor).