God Needs No Passport - Read Jim Fulner

Hardcover, 270 pages

Published 2007 by W.W. Norton & Co..

ISBN:: 978-1-59558-169-3

While many Americans expect that immigrants will trade in one membership card for another, God Needs No Passport argues that many keep one foot in their countries of origin by participating in religious institutions—made possible by technology and the ease of travel—that are a powerful but little-known force in today's world.

Sociologist Peggy Levitt's account argues that immigrants are changing the face of religious diversity in the United States, help to make American religion just as global as U.S. corporations. In a book with stunning implications for today's immigration debates—in which commentators routinely refer to a "clash of civilizations"—Levitt shows that the realities of religion and migration are subtly challenging the very definition of what it means to be an American.

While many Americans expect that immigrants will trade in one membership card for another, God Needs No Passport argues that many keep one foot in their countries of origin by participating in religious institutions—made possible by technology and the ease of travel—that are a powerful but little-known force in today's world.

Sociologist Peggy Levitt's account argues that immigrants are changing the face of religious diversity in the United States, help to make American religion just as global as U.S. corporations. In a book with stunning implications for today's immigration debates—in which commentators routinely refer to a "clash of civilizations"—Levitt shows that the realities of religion and migration are subtly challenging the very definition of what it means to be an American.

2 editions

Jim Fulner reviewed God Needs No Passport by Peggy Levitt

Transnationalism is A.O.K.

3 stars

God Needs No Passport wasn't quite what I was expecting. I would say this book is more about transnationalism in general than the American religious landscape. Levitt uses Boston, MA as a case study for all of the United States and interviews over 200 people from four different immigrant communities India (Hindu), Pakistan (Muslim), Ireland (Catholic), & Brazil (Christian, primarily Pentecostal). She also goes through a number of native-born Americans and their position on religion, particularly of new arrivals, ranging from the evangelical anti-religious, to the as long as they are the right kind of religion, to everyone is part of our melting pot. Similarly, she finds several different groups of believers among her immigrant interviewees, the most disturbing of which I found to be the "golden rulers" who have "studied all the religions" and found them all to teach basically the same thing. Thankfully Levitt does point out that …

God Needs No Passport wasn't quite what I was expecting. I would say this book is more about transnationalism in general than the American religious landscape. Levitt uses Boston, MA as a case study for all of the United States and interviews over 200 people from four different immigrant communities India (Hindu), Pakistan (Muslim), Ireland (Catholic), & Brazil (Christian, primarily Pentecostal). She also goes through a number of native-born Americans and their position on religion, particularly of new arrivals, ranging from the evangelical anti-religious, to the as long as they are the right kind of religion, to everyone is part of our melting pot. Similarly, she finds several different groups of believers among her immigrant interviewees, the most disturbing of which I found to be the "golden rulers" who have "studied all the religions" and found them all to teach basically the same thing. Thankfully Levitt does point out that these folks haven't actually studied any religion, but since none of them seem to specifically say to be mean to everyone, then they are all teaching to be nice to everyone. All of these different people with all of their similar names made it kind of hard for me to keep track. For a while I kept flipping back to the beginning to check who was who but eventually, I gave up and decided it wasn't that important. This book was written in 2007 and has very much a post-9/11-feel with an uncomfortable amount of emphasis on international terrorism and some people's attempts at blaming religion for such. All-in-all it kept me longing for more, so the pages kept turning, but I never quit got filled.

Jim Fulner

rated it

July 7

Subjects

United states, religion
Immigrants, united states
Emigration and immigration
Immigrants -- Religious life -- United States.
United States -- Religion -- 1960-
Emigration and immigration -- Religious aspects.
Transnationalism