The Restructuring of American Religion

Wuthnow's central thesis is that American religion underwent a fundamental "restructuring" in the post-World War II period. Where people once identified primarily with their specific denomination, they now align more with broader ideological camps. A liberal Methodist might have more in common religiously and politically with a liberal Presbyterian or even a liberal Catholic than with a conservative Methodist.

The book traces this transformation to several key factors: the expansion of higher education, which exposed people to diverse ideas and weakened traditional authorities; the growth of special purpose religious organizations that operated across denominational boundaries; and broader cultural changes including the civil rights movement, feminism, and debates over social issues.

Wuthnow documents how this restructuring manifested in the emergence of the "religious right" and religious liberalism as distinct political and cultural forces. He shows how religious conservatives began cooperating across denominational lines on issues like abortion, school prayer, and traditional family values, while religious liberals similarly allied on social justice issues.

The book was influential in religious sociology for moving beyond simple liberal-conservative categories to examine the institutional and cultural mechanisms driving religious change. Wuthnow demonstrates how this restructuring affected everything from religious publishing to television ministries to political coalitions, fundamentally reshaping the American religious landscape in ways that continue to influence contemporary politics and culture.