Includes bibliographical references (pages 191-206) and index.

As modern secular and political ideologies continue to wane, communities of traditional faith are flourishing now more than ever. In Christianity, this resurgence shows itself in widespread efforts to reclaim the classic spiritual practices: the close study of scripture, daily prayer, regular observance in a worshiping community, doctrinal integrity, and moral accountability. This rebirth is characterized by a return to orthodoxy that is gathering across denominational lines, rejecting the old partisan battle-lines of the past. This emerging and vibrant new orthodoxy is evident across the spectrum of Christian communities Evangelical, Mainline, Orthodox, and Catholic and is paralleled in Jewish communities as well. It is grounded in an acceptance of the historical consensus of scriptural interpretation, tempered by the openness to diversity contained in tradition itself, and enlivened by the freedom that comes from centered belief and practice. Its harbingers are neither the jaded power brokers and policy wonks of the old liberal Ecumenical establishment, nor their isolationist counterparts on the politically active fundamentalist right, but instead are lay believers emboldened by the rediscovery of ancient and relevant truths.

SACFinal081324