God Bless America, by Karen Stollznow

It goes without saying that the United States is a theologically diverse nation.  One result of the religious freedom we enjoy is the freedom to believe whatever wacky thing we want.  And some Americans believe some pretty wacky stuff.  Karen Stollznow, an Australian transplant to the U.S., has spent some time doing anthropological research on several examples of the wacky religions of our great nation.  Her book God Bless America: Strange and Unusual Religious Beliefs and Practices in the United States recounts her findings.

The groups she covers are, for the most part, tiny minority groups that are easy for most mainstream Americans to dismiss.  Few would disagree with her conclusion that polygamist, fundamentalist Mormons who force young teens to marry older men are despicable, or that there's something a little off with practitioners of voodoo, Scientologists, or New Agers.  She is particularly bothered by charlatanism, when said practitioners perpetuate a set of beliefs in order to make money off the true believers.

Her greatest ire is reserved for the groups or subgroups that harm others.  "Several of these religious groups are closed societies, allowing corruption to flourish.  Religious freedom becomes an excuse to commit crimes under guise of God. . . . [M]any religious beliefs and practices endanger the physical and psychological health of their followers."  Some of the groups she describes have abundant examples of such harm.

Each chapter gives a brief history or background of a particular religious group, raises some objections to their beliefs and/or practices, especially dwelling on harm inflicted or fraud perpetrated, and, in most cases, she describes her own experiences as a guest and observer at their religious services.  Her presentation is, for the most part, even-handed and objective, but it becomes clear that she is writing as a nonbeliever.  I don't think she ever comes out and says it, but I feel fairly certain she would self-identify as an atheist.

As an evangelical Christian who has attended Charismatic churches for over 20 years, I was struck by her negative portrayal of the Charismatic/Pentecostal movement.  It's not that what she writes is inaccurate or false.  My problem was the unbalanced focus on some unsavory elements in the movement.  Most Charismatics would share her disdain for fake faith healers and over-the-top prosperity gospel preachers (although these guys have way too many followers).  I would invite her to spend some time at some of the churches I have attended, where genuine prophetic words have been spoken to great effect, where people have been certifiably healed of various medical conditions, and where lives have been miraculously changed through an encounter with the Holy Spirit.  Stollznow's experiences and conclusions should serve as a stark reminder to all Christians of the need to present a consistent, biblical witness, and to see signs and wonders not as a sideshow or focus of our faith, but as loving expressions of the Holy Spirit's work in our lives.

Given that I had a more personal perspective on her chapter on Charismatics, it led me to reflect more deeply on the other chapters.  I wonder how much of her focus on the unsavory elements of the groups covered is deserved.  Very few Mormons are fundamentalist, polygamist pedophiles.  Very few Amish are reclusive, controlling, incestuous fiends.  Very few exorcists are insane, abusive murderers.  The bottom line is that whatever the belief system, some people are bad.  That applies to any group of people, whether a minority religion, a particular profession, fans of a particular football team, or whatever.  So even as Stollznow presents a thoughtful discussion of religious beliefs and practices, including her own first-hand experiences, it's possible that she was swayed by possibly atypical, anomalous negative examples.  (By the way, one group she defends a little is Satanists, whom she says have been unfairly persecuted by false claims of Satanic ritual abuse: "Satanists certainly have their faults, but they have been unfairly stigmatized and victimized for crimes they didn't commit.")

Despite a possible tendency to focus too much on the negative, the minority of minority religionists, Stollznow's book is a good-natured, naturally irreverent tour of some interesting byways of our religious landscape.  As a Christian, my prayer for her is that she will see this truth: belief in God and in the saving work of Jesus Christ is not intellectually irreconcilable with the natural order and the witness of history.  Further, the Christian life does not necessarily lead to wacky, irrational beliefs and practices.   More power to you, Dr. Stollznow, as you seek truth, and may you know that the giver of all truth is seeking you, too.



Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!