ABSTRACT
This chapter turns to the role of political culture and civil society in fostering high levels of religious participation in politics in the United States, as well as the effect of religion on political culture itself. By political culture, we mean the widely shared values and attitudes people have about politics and government. Some of these values and attitudes have to do with the appropriate role of government, including how well public policy reflects such core ideals as freedom, equality, and justice. But political culture also encompasses citizens' dispositions toward public life, such as their levels of political interest and knowledge, their embrace of certain civic "virtues," and their perceptions of whether government cares about and responds to their concerns. The chapter focuses on how religion shapes the American political culture—and how that culture in turn shapes religion. It also considers the effects of the increasing number of Americans who are indifferent or hostile to organized religion.
