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Case Studies in the Nipponzan Myohoji Order and the Catholic Worker Movement "Spiritual, But Not Religious" Identities in U.S. Faith-Based Activism: Case Studies in the Nipponzan Myohoji Order and the Catholic Worker Movement Katharine Hester Cross Dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In Alliance for Social, Political, Ethical, and Cultural Thought (ASPECT) François Debrix, Committee Chair Brian Britt David L. Brunsma Zhange Ni 8 May 2018 Blacksburg, VA Keywords: Spirituality, American religious movements, engaged Buddhism, Catholic Worker CROSS "Spiritual, But Not Religious" Identities in U.S. Faith-Based Activism: Case Studies in the Nipponzan Myohoji Order and the Catholic Worker Movement Katharine H. Cross Abstract (Academic) Within the field of American religious studies, a growing area of scholarship has been that of “spirituality” as a category distinct from religion. Scholars have examined the sociological, cultural, and historical features that characterize Americans’ use of the concept of “spirituality.” Within this field, one subject of study is the growth in the number of individuals who identify themselves as “spiritual, but not religious.” This phrase is used to denote a rejection of organized or traditional religion and an interest in a variety of belief systems. Via ethnographic methods, this dissertation analyzes this self-styled identity in the context of two phenomena: the Protestant legacy in the United States, and “engaged spirituality,” in which individuals’ spirituality is integrally linked to engagement with social activism. The early Protestant history of the United States and the “Protestant ethic,” per Max Weber, have shaped how Americans define and perceive religion and how Protestant values persist as cultural norms. American “Spiritual but not religious” individuals who are also “engaged” reject organized religion and find activism necessary due to issues that originate in this Protestant legacy. Evidence for this can be found in cases in which these individuals participate in activism by collaborating with non-Protestant religious groups. In this dissertation, I present this finding through three case studies featuring two radical religious groups which are active in peace protests: Nipponzan Myohoji, a Japanese Buddhist monastic order, and the Catholic Worker, a lay movement that assists the poor and homeless. The case studies are: the 50th anniversary Selma to Montgomery Civil Rights March; Catholic Worker protests in Washington, DC, on the anniversaries of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear bombings; and events at the Buddhist Great Smoky Mountains Peace Pagoda. I argue that these individuals form these alliances because in working with a Catholic and/or Buddhist group, they find a venue for activism which both accommodates their spiritual motivations and includes a critique of the Protestant-based elements of American culture. CROSS "Spiritual, But Not Religious" Identities in U.S. Faith-Based Activism: Case Studies in the Nipponzan Myohoji Order and the Catholic Worker Movement Katharine H. Cross Abstract (Public) Beginning in the 1970s, the topic of spirituality as a distinct area of study has developed within the field of American religious studies. One subject within the study of spirituality is the growing number of individuals who identify themselves as “spiritual, but not religious.” This dissertation is an effort to further explore what roles these individuals play in American society. To accomplish this, this study addresses the relationship of “spiritual, but not religious” individuals to religion in the context of social activism. Through ethnographic methods of interviewing and participant-observation, this dissertation presents cases of spiritual but not religious individuals who identify activism as a key part of their spirituality. Specifically, these individuals participate in activism by collaborating with two radical religious groups which are active in peace protests: Nipponzan Myohoji, a Japanese Buddhist monastic order, and the Catholic Worker, a lay movement that assists the poor and homeless. Although “spiritual but not religious” individuals are defined by their rejection of organized religion, they choose to ally with these religious groups for the purpose of activism. I argue that these individuals form these alliances because the underlying social problems and elements of organized religion that they reject originate in the Protestant legacy in American culture. Therefore, in working with a Catholic and/or Buddhist group, these individuals find a venue for their spiritually-based activism that includes a critique of mainstream American culture. CROSS SPIRITUAL BUT NOT RELIGIOUS IDENTITIES Acknowledgements I would like to thank my dissertation committee for their insight and unwavering support: Dr. Brian Britt, Dr. Dave Brunsma, Dr. Nicole Ni, and my chair, Dr. Francois Debrix. I persevered through my Ph.D. because of the constant encouragement, love, and humor of the occupants of Lane 214, past, present, and honorary: Sascha Engel, Francine Rossone, Jamie Sanchez, Ezgi Seref, Faith Skiles, Chris Skiles, and Amiel Bernal. I am so fortunate to have you all in my life. Lastly, this dissertation would not have been possible without those who participated in my fieldwork. To everyone from the Great Smoky Mountains Peace Pagoda and the Catholic Worker who walked, worked, and shared their lives with me: you have changed my life with your passion, wisdom, and kindness. Na Mu Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo and gassho san pai. CROSS iv SPIRITUAL BUT NOT RELIGIOUS IDENTITIES Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Chapter 2: History of Nipponzan Myohoji and the Catholic Worker 36 Chapter 3: The 50th Anniversary Selma-to-Montgomery March 85 Chapter 4: The Catholic Worker Hiroshima and Nagasaki Vigils 142 Chapter 5: The Great Smoky Mountains Peace Pagoda 193 Chapter 6: Conclusion 244 Works Cited 256 Appendix A: IRB-Approved Consent Form and Interview Questions 263 Appendix B: Citations of Participant-Observation 266 CROSS v SPIRITUAL BUT NOT RELIGIOUS IDENTITIES Chapter 1: Introduction Over the past fifty years, a profound shift has taken place in the religious landscape of the United States, as increasing numbers of people have come to identify as "spiritual" rather than as a member of a formal or organized religion. Simultaneously, attendance at formal places of worship has dropped precipitously, seemingly reflecting a growing dissatisfaction with organized religion among Americans. (Fuller, 2001; Roof, 1999; Stanczak, 2006) As a result, scholars of religion in the United States have increasingly studied spirituality, both as a phenomenon in and of itself, and also as a medium for the expression of social and political attitudes. One continued area of study interrogates the configuration of spirituality, religion, and secularism in the United States, both as theoretical subjects and as lived practices. This dissertation seeks to contribute to research on the dynamic tension between organized religion, secularism, and spirituality by exploring the relationship of ‘spiritual’ individuals with two radical religious groups: The Catholic Worker movement, and the Japanese Buddhist order Nipponzan Myohoji. Both groups practice social justice activism. This dissertation further examines the role of the "spiritual but not religious" individuals who participate in activism with these two groups and the Protestant "haunting" of United States society that tacitly motivates these groups’ and these individuals’ modes of activism. The use of the term spiritual as an identificatory category has grown to the extent that its implications in United States society continue to motivate social, political, ethnographic, and genealogical study. One debate within this domain of research is over the ways and the extent to which spiritual individuals value community, particularly when community is tied to social justice activism. Robert Bellah (2012), incorporating the research of Robert Putnam (2000), Robert Wuthnow (1998, 2006, 2015), and Wade Roof (1999), argues that what is at stake CROSS 1 SPIRITUAL BUT NOT RELIGIOUS IDENTITIES regarding religion, spirituality, and community in the United States is nothing less than the future of American civil society. He points out that even self-avowed religious individuals frequently dismiss the necessity of congregational religious practice, or what has been termed the "unchurching" of American religion. (Fuller, 2001) Bellah (2002) states, "Just when we are in many ways moving to an ever-greater validation of the sacredness of the individual person, our capacity to imagine a social fabric that would hold individuals together is vanishing” (p. 20). Even within established religion, the importance of a deeply connected community of believers with shared values and with practices affirming those values is waning. Robert Wuthnow (2006) argues, “Religion among native-born Americans is often a means of retreating from civic responsibilities. It is so highly personal and so deeply private that it fails to generate the frank give-and-take in the public arena that is probably necessary to enrich the culture” (p. 7). I argue that American Protestantism is, in one sense, deeply public, but I also assert that, sometimes in spite of and sometimes because of this public nature, organized religion in the United States does not provide a conducive environment for cultivating meaningful community, dialogue, and
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