"I grew up as an actively involved member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Oregon, land of the religious “Nones.” In my circle of high school friends, almost none were church people of any stripe, with the exception of a cute girl I dated until her pastor delivered a scathing and apparently convincing sermon on the “evils of Mormonism” that irreparably divided us. As I learned at a tender age, sometimes religion unites, sometimes it divides.  "Yet I also learned that...

Dr. David Dollahite, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, reflects on his deep respect and "holy envy" for Mainline Protestant families in the United States. Many of these families repeatedly discussed their belief that "God is love." Loving God and neighbor are two core religious beliefs and values for them, which they often live out in inspiring and pragmatic ways. This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American...

"In this essay, I share a few experiences my family and I have enjoyed with our Jewish friends in their worship services and holy days in California and in New England. Although these stories are spread across my life, several experiences occurred during visits to synagogues as part of  research I conducted on families of various faiths (including 30 Jewish families) for the American Families of Faith project. I begin with my longest and closest relationship with a beloved Jewish person–Ann...

"In my 50 years as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have known and loved persons from a variety of faiths who have influenced my life for good. I have even confessed that during my youth in Oregon, thanks to a wealth of diverse friends, I may have learned more about being a “good Latter-day Saint boy” from those outside of my faith than from those inside my faith. "Each person we meet has something to teach us. Even occasionally mean-spirited treatment from...

"In this essay, I will share some experiences from attending religious services of various faiths and what we learned from those experiences. I focus on worship services and celebrations and what I enjoyed and appreciated most about sharing sacred moments of community with others across a range of world faiths and denominations. I express my appreciation and admiration for the wonderful people of God who welcomed me to their sacred services and thus their sacred ground." David Dollahite reads...

"In 1985, Krister Stendahl, then Lutheran Bishop of Stockholm, stepped to the microphone at a potentially volatile press conference in Stockholm, Sweden, and “offered support for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints building a temple there, against which there was growing opposition.” In that watershed moment, when many of his own countrymen and parishioners were angry at the prospect of an “American” church planting their temple on Swedish soil, the wise and gentle Stendahl stood...

"We are professors of family life at BYU and co-directors of the American Families of Faith project. In this article, consistent with articles on the other seven religious-ethnic communities, we share a few quotes drawn from those whom we interviewed. In this essay the quotes center on the eternal nature of life, marriage, and families from persons from our own faith, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka The Church of Jesus Christ, LDS, Mormon). "In this essay we turn to our...

"A few years before 9-11, a leading religion researcher, the late David Larson referred to religion as “the anti-tenure topic”—the fast track out of a respectable academic job. Despite that danger, we began our work in this area.  Overnight, however, fire began to rage and hate crimes against Muslims subsequently increased 1600% from pre-9/11 levels. Rarely, had modern America been further from “Peace, Love, and Understanding.” In the midst of polemics and emotion, careful and moderate...

"According to a 2018 Gallup Poll, about 40% of Americans self-identify as Evangelical or “born again” Christians. American Evangelical Christians generally report that one primary conviction of their faith is a strong belief in the Bible—the Protestant roots of sola scriptura, scriptura sola (“only scripture and scripture alone”). The other deep faith commitment is the striving for a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. In this article, we explore how these specific aspects of faith among...

Dr. Loren Marks, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, shares his deep respect and "holy envy" for Muslim families in the United States. Particularly, the combination of Ramadan and zakat inspires a hope for a better world. This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American Families of Faith project (http://AmericanFamiliesofFaith.byu.edu), Dr. David Dollahite and Dr. Loren Marks. This podcast is edited, syndicated, and...

"I(Dave) was raised in a Mainline Protestant Church, Holy Innocents Episcopal Church in Marin County, California. I served as an acolyte (altar boy) for three years (age 9-12) and assisted the Priest by carrying the large wooden and gold cross during the “processional” into the sanctuary at the beginning of the service and the “recessional” out of the church at the end of the service, lighting and extinguishing the candles, and in serving communion. Other than our priest overdoing the incense...

Dr. David Dollahite, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, shares his feelings of respect, appreciation, and "holy envy" for Evangelical Christian families in the United States. Many of the Evangelical participants interviewed spoke of their views on servant leadership within families and of their focus on the word of God found in the Bible. This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American Families of Faith project...

"We sometimes are asked why we have such appreciation for our Jewish friends and their faith. It is a long story but it starts with the fact that Dave’s godmother is Jewish. When, as an infant, Dave was to be baptized in the Episcopal Church, Dave’s mother, Elizabeth, insisted that his godmother be her best friend Ann Scinski. This was despite the fact that Father Ewald, the priest who baptized Dave, insisted that only a baptized and confirmed Christian could be a godparent. Elizabeth’s love...

Dr. Loren Marks, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, reflects on his deep respect and "holy envy" for Black Christian families in the United States. Many of these families shared a profoundly deep and living faith in a God that hears and sustains them during poignant challenges. This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American Families of Faith project (http://AmericanFamiliesofFaith.byu.edu), Dr. David Dollahite and...

Dr. David Dollahite, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, shares his thoughts on the familial power of sacred rituals among Jewish families. Through many wonderful experiences of participating in Shabbat observance with Jewish families, he has developed a deep sense of "holy envy."  This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American Families of Faith project (http://AmericanFamiliesofFaith.byu.edu), Dr. David Dollahite...

" . . . we know little about the deeper meanings and processes involved regarding why some Black marriages thrive. Next, we offer a few brief insights gleaned from a recent study entitled, “Weathering the Storm: The Shelter of Faith for Black American Christian Families.” By “giving the mic” to the couples themselves, we are able to uncover some of the underlying reasons for why and how religion reportedly influences many strong Black marriages and families."   Loren Marks reads the article,...

"We find ourselves feeling respect and holy envy for the extensive and explicit efforts of the Catholic and Orthodox Christian faiths as they strive to replace guilt with hope, bitterness with forgiveness, divisiveness with unity, and animosity with atonement."   David Dollahite reads the article, "Catholic and Orthodox Christian Families: Confession and Forgiveness" which was originally published in Public Square Magazine on August 4, 2021.

Dr. David Dollahite, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, reflects on his sense of "holy envy" for Catholic and Orthodox Christian families in the United States. A simple, regular, patterned approach to asking and granting forgiveness smooths relationships within many of these families. This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American Families of Faith project (http://AmericanFamiliesofFaith.byu.edu), Dr. David...

"Each of the different religious-ethnic communities in the American Families of Faith research project features valued additions via differences in perspective and lived experience. This may be especially true with our Asian American Christian families. When one realizes that in 1989, nearly half of the individuals we interviewed were still living in China during the tragic massacre of the June Fourth Incident at Tiananmen Square, we are reminded of the precious nature of religious and...

"In this [audio article], we discuss the “inner logic” of religion(s). That is, how religious thinking and acting is important to understand on their own terms and not simply as merely psychological or sociological in nature. Unfortunately, across the social sciences, a typical approach to the study of religion and religions is to reduce religion to sociology or to psychology by imposing sociological or psychological perspectives onto religion."   David Dollahite reads the article, "The Inner...

"A sad irony of life in contemporary America is that large numbers of people who devote a great deal of time, effort, and money to get into fictional alternate worlds, while at the same time, most Americans seem unable or unwilling to devote much effort to better understanding the religious worlds of their fellow citizens. Thus, many Americans spend hundreds of hours watching and reading about fictional worlds, yet know very little about the religious worlds of their neighbors, coworkers,...

"Although religious intolerance and marginalization still exist today, research suggests that perhaps one of the most marginalized groups is those who report no religion. Through interviews with 31 nonreligious couples, we investigated what nonreligious parents want religious people to understand about them and their families.   ". . . we identified three themes related to what our participants wanted religious people to know: (1) we are good people, good parents, and not that different...

"The balance between parents’ profound desires for children to remain faithful and their simultaneous desire to honor their children’s agency showed up over and over in our own American Families of Faith project. As we’ve probed deeper into parents’ wishes to have their children remain in their religion, we discovered different ways parents navigated this significant wrestle."   Laura McKeighen reads the article, "Will My Kids Keep the Faith? Parents’ Hopes and Children’s Choices" which was...

Dr. Loren Marks, co-director of the American Families of Faith project, reflects on his "holy envy" for Asian Christian families in the United States. Their courage to embrace change in a new land, sincerely follow their beliefs, and serve through pragmatic collectivism are a few of the strengths to be admired among the Asian Christian community. This podcast features conversations about faith and family life between the co-directors of the American Families of Faith project...