Book contents
- The Cambridge Companion to American Catholicism
- Cambridge Companions to Religion
- The Cambridge Companion to American Catholicism
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Introduction
- Part I Historical Overview
- Part II Catholic Life and Culture
- 4 Catholic Worship
- 5 Catholic Intellectual Life
- 6 Catholic Education
- 7 Social Welfare and Social Reform
- 8 Women Religious
- 9 Catholics and Politics
- 10 Arts and Culture
- 11 Anti-Catholicism in the United States
- 12 Gender and Sexuality
- 13 American Catholics in a Global Context
- Part III The Many Faces of Catholicism
- Part IV Conclusion
- Index
- Series page
- References
13 - American Catholics in a Global Context
from Part II - Catholic Life and Culture
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 May 2021
- The Cambridge Companion to American Catholicism
- Cambridge Companions to Religion
- The Cambridge Companion to American Catholicism
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Introduction
- Part I Historical Overview
- Part II Catholic Life and Culture
- 4 Catholic Worship
- 5 Catholic Intellectual Life
- 6 Catholic Education
- 7 Social Welfare and Social Reform
- 8 Women Religious
- 9 Catholics and Politics
- 10 Arts and Culture
- 11 Anti-Catholicism in the United States
- 12 Gender and Sexuality
- 13 American Catholics in a Global Context
- Part III The Many Faces of Catholicism
- Part IV Conclusion
- Index
- Series page
- References
Summary
The multidimensional nature of American Catholicism requires attention to mission and evangelization as one lens through which to understand the global dynamics of the American Catholic experience. Evangelization and mission were more nuanced than simply “converting” or “civilizing” people. Mission encounters in diverse local contexts transformed those on both sides of the relationship. This chapter will explore briefly three themes: mission to America (“transplanting,” or handing on the faith); the growth of an evangelization/mission impetus within the United States; and the effect of mission engagement from the United States. These mission encounters involved much more than simply learning a catechism. Missionaries effected social change, religious development, and humanitarian responses to injustice in many countries, even while at times carrying on practices that sometimes had a negative effect on the people they came to serve.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Companion to American Catholicism , pp. 231 - 246Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021