Religion and politics and their dynamic interactions are a visible reality
everywhere in the United States -- and they are the focus of this book. There
is the vigorous presence of the religious Christian conservative movement,
which has entered politics to address abortion, pornography, sex education,
prayer in public schools, and family breakdown. We see the growing
assertiveness of the Catholic Church, which allies itself with evangelicals on
abortion and educational choice and with liberal Protestants on defense and
social welfare issues. We observe the increasing politicization of the black
church and the presidential campaigns of one of its most prominent minis-
ters, the Reverend Jesse Jackson. We have seen the vigorous lobbying by lib-
eral religionists, Protestant and Catholic, who argued against U.S. military
initiatives in Central America and the Persian Gulf but supported interven-
tion in Haiti. We consider the prominent role of Jewish organizations in
American politics, especially regarding support for Israel, which sharply con-
trasts with the as yet fitful efforts of the growing Muslim population to gain
political influence. We watch the rising flood of cases in the courts, especial-
ly cases brought by religious and antireligious minorities. Everywhere one
looks religion and politics are engaged in American public life.

The aim of this book is to understand the politics of religion in the United
States and, as the book's subtitle suggests, to appreciate the strategic choices
that politicians and religious participants make in participating in that poli-
tics. We try to make sense of how religion and politics come together in the
voting booth, Congress and the state legislatures, the presidency, the courts,
the interest group system, and the larger culture of the United States. The
subject is large and complex, with fascinating and often contradictory cur-
rents. It is an important topic, since we believe one can understand Amer-
ican politics and society today only with an appreciation of the dynamics of
religious politics.

We have attempted to make this book accessible. Our goal is a readable
and informative textbook, not a scholarly tome. But one of our challenges in
doing so relates to the very nature of American religion -- its real and ever

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