134 - The New Christian Right

The New Christian Right
By Robert C. Liebman and Robert Wuthnow
New York, Aldine, 1983. 256 pp. $16.95.

The New Christian Right has been something we have been hearing about for the past ten years or more. Much press coverage was given to its rise and its leaders. Some ignored its presence; others feared its influence; while others welcomed it as a symbol for their opinions and the hope of this nation's survival. The movement has not gone away, as we know. The halls of Congress daily feel the pressure and the power of the New Christian Right as it seeks to effect legislation.

Liebman and Wuthnow have put together a book of essays on the New Christian Right that is unusual. Chapters were contributed from scholars in a number of different disciplines, including sociology, political science, and religious studies. The chapters are grouped into five sections which examine the organization of the New Christian Right and the broader set of circumstances which served as the movement's environment. Two introductory chapters present an overview of the New Christian Right. The following three sections explore the forms of its mobilization, the character of its constitutency, and the major tenets of its ideology. The final section evaluates the cultural environment in which the movement emerged. These essays speak about the character of social movements and the nature of American life and such concerns are valuable to scholars and general readers.

The book would be of special interest to sociologists, political scientists, and religious faculty interested in social movements, contemporary American religion, and religious movements. It will also have great appeal for clergy, seminarians, and policy makers seeking to understand contemporary trends and events.

Robert Lloyd Sullivan
First Presbyterian Church
Hightstown, N.J.