The Catholic Myth: The Behavior and Beliefs of American Catholics

By Andrew M. Greeley

Book Overview

For the past three decades, Andrew Greeley, priest, sociologist, and bestselling author, has researched the behavior and beliefs of American Catholics. In The Catholic Myth author Andrew Greeley... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0684191849
• ISBN13: 9780684191843
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 322 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 5.5" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

The real and progressive face of American Catholicism

Greeley plays a fascinating combination of roles - both serious sociologist and priest. With his finger on the pulse of society he conducts a well informed, highly civilized dialogue between North American society and his church. The myths he exposes concern the real identity of Catholics - who they really are, how their values are actually changing, how commonly they are a force for higher education, deeper thinking, and a more compassionate social policy. Greeley's trust in lay people as equals of the clergy before God leads him to see the Christian value in women's rising influence. With candid admiration of women he notes, "for those who picture God as present in the world, there is an instinct that God is equally disclosed by women for men and by men for women". (p. 241)

Every Catholic should read this - especially the ordained...

This is a truly wonderful book. It IS dense and it is worth every moment spent reading it. You cannot help but find yourself represented somewhere amongst all the respondents surveyed. I have reread it several times over the years and it continues to reassure me and verify my experiences in the Church. I have often been mystified by the presumptions others make about Catholics and Catholicism because the presumptions do not fit my experience at all - and I did not consider my experience or beliefs atypical. The book makes clear the widespread presumptions do not fit with the experiences of entire generations of Catholics in recent history! I would like very much to see a reprint of this book with updated data (or a follow up book). Many of Fr. Greeley's predictions about the Church as it enters the new millenia have no doubt come to pass and I, for one, would like a look at the numbers. It is a great pity Church leaders are not more interested in and responsive to this research. If they were, the Church today would undoubtedly be an even more robust and inclusive home base for Catholics today. This book is also a great treat for fans of the author's novels, which he was inspired to write by some of the findings reported here. This somewhat academic work points up just how deft he is at weaving both harsh and beautiful realities - confirmed by the data, of course - into highly entertaining parables that are themselves unforgettable experiences of grace.

Worth slogging through...

Some readers might find this book a bit of a challenge in terms of Greeley's analysis of his years of sociological data, but stick with it... out of the swirling mist of numbers emerges a fascinating study of modern religion in America.Greeley's sociological sleight-of-hand manages to address (and smash) many myths about the Catholic church. If you think belief is declining in young Catholics... if you believe they are leaving the Church in record numbers... if you think they shed their Catholic consciousness (what Greeley calls their "Catholic imagination") the second they quit Sunday school ... well, you're in for a few surprises.So buckle up and stick with this book... it's a wild (and inspiring) ride!

The Catholic conscience protects our Bill of Rights

What is the Catholic conscience? How formed? Answers are provided by the random surveys of the population of English speaking countries in which by priest sociologist Andrew Greeley took part. He calls his 1990 book The Catholic Myth. The myth is that Catholics are working class bigots. Actually, they are no longer working class, but, Hispanics included, have half again as many college graduates as Protestants, blacks excluded. The General Social Survey of 1985 and 1987 asked about religious vision and social conscience. Greeley's GRACE scale measured religious vision: Choose your image of God. Is God more a friend to you or more a king? More spouse or master? More lover or judge? More mother or father? Social conscience was surveyed by asking, How much are you in favor of equal rights for women, minorities, gays? Do you favor or reject the death sentence? Government help for the poor? Civil liberties? Open housing? Was the GRACE scale related to social conscience? Yes, very strongly even when the influence of gender, age and region was taken out. Only education had more influence on supporting the freedoms stemming from the Bill of Rights. Corroboration: Those high on GRACE were significantly less likely to vote for Ronald Reagan both times by 8 and 12%). Catholics Vote Against Leader's Decisions With Their Giving I will not hide my anger at the [cowardice, corruption and dishonesty] of the hierarchy, priests and scholars of the American Catholic Church.. . . Catholics have not deserted their Church . . . but their loyalty is not due to most of those who occupy the three leadership positions. The Protestant answers to the survey seem to say the world is a cold and sinful place where man struggles against man. Catholics seem to say the world is a warm community. Happiness is right now not only in the hereafter. To us, the Catholic answers to the survey say, the world is a community of potential friends. All men are in actual truth equal and worthy. God loves all men as a mother loves every child. The reason we are angry is because we imagine God as a friend, but our leaders are like stern ministers sent by a king to rule us. Legislation without representation in parish, bishop's palace, and Curia is our chief complaint. Yet loyalty is still strong. Only 1% are planning to leave! The lack of priests and nuns is not due to the vow of celibacy. In Greeley's opinion celibacy is a strength. It confers virtue even holiness making priests credible teachers of morals, a safe friend and counselor. The reason there are so few is their low self esteem. Leaders do so little to support them that job satisfaction is no higher than blue collar workers. Priests have stopped recruiting for the priesthood. A Comforting Prejudice Slain by Brutal Fact Catholic leaders command; few obey. Catholics are in favor of equality for gays. On gay marriage 24% say yes compared to 12% of Protestants. As many use artificial contraception as the rest of Americans. They hav