Political Cohesion in Churches

Abstract

The political cohesiveness of religious groups varies widely. Some churches develop an almost complete identity with a political party or tendency while others exhibit a high degree of political pluralism. This paper explores some of the mechanisms that might account for the variability in political solidarity from one church to the next. On the basis of data from a survey of Protestant congregations, we find that cohesiveness around the norm of moral conservatism is associated with the same distinctive syndrome of traits that Dean Kelley has linked to church growth and vitality. "Strong" churches, defined by a combination of theology, social practices, and demographic characteristics, apparently possess the necessary resources to promote attitudinal conformity on some political issues.