 | Words upon the Word: An Ethnography of Evangelical Group Bible Study Subjects: Evangelicalism -- Michigan -- Lansing Region; Bible -- Study and teaching -- Michigan -- Lansing Region; Small groups -- Religious aspects -- Protestant churches; Church group work -- Protestant churches; Christian sociology -- Protestant churches; Evangelical Bible study groups are the most prolific type of small group in American society, with more than 30 million Protestants gathering every week for this distinct purpose, meeting in homes, churches, coffee shops, restaurants, and other public and private venues across the country. What happens in these groups? How do they help shape the contours of American Evangelical life? While more public forms of political activism have captured popular and scholarly imaginations, it is in group Bible study that Evangelicals reflect on the details of their faith. Here they become self-conscious religious subjects, sharing the intimate details of life, interrogating beliefs and practices, and articulating their version of Christian identity and culture. James Bielo is Associate Professor of Anthropology at Miami University. He is author of numerous books, including Materializing the Bible: Scripture, Sensation, Place (Bloomsbury, 2021); Ark Encounter: The Making of a Creationist Theme Park (NYU Press, 2018); Anthropology of Religion: The Basics (Routledge, 2015); Emerging Evangelicals: Faith, Modernity, and the Desire for Authenticity (NYU Press, 2011); and Words Upon the Word: An Ethnography of Evangelical Bible Study (NYU Press, 2009). |
