To scrutinize the history of religion in America is to observe a complex interplay of sociological factors inclusive of status, value, belief, and power. Since religious practice is often perceived against a grid of subjective interest or biased condemnation, it is difficult to formulate a balanced appraisal of its variant expressions. The goal of rendering a fair appraisal of diverse religious practice is furthered complicated when the aim is to analyze why individuals switch from one distinctive faith to another. For the purposes of this study, the social phenomenon of switching one's denominational loyalty will be analyzed against a backdrop of cycles of religious fervor observable in American history (Finke 87). Studies which have analyzed the formation, evolution and disintegration of religious sects will be highlighted as an inroad to the examination of variant religions' vitality and charismatic leverage.
Sociologists have noted the observable reality that piety and religious fervor seems to coincide with hardship. It appears that in periods of pervasive economic hardship, more individuals experience a crisis of faith and turn towards God. Yet contemporary theologians suggest that an intensified experience of anguish does not account for that hefty percentage of individuals who turn to religion as a means of searching for meaning in their lives (Marty, 1986, 2). Spirituality, historically and existentially, connects itself to the quest and is imbued with adventure, the exploration of the inner soul. Religious experience exceeds the category of rationalism and rather than being contained within the dictums of a scientific culture reaches past it attempting to identify the origin and causes of an inner emptiness. This experience of inner emptiness accounts for a large number of individuals who initiate denominational switching in their lives (Hoge 30).
To study American religion is to be struck by its crossro...