Abstract
Many recent single-volume publications on American religion have attempted to incorporate into their coverage the reality of a more religiously pluralistic society. While they vary in scope and quality, they are all hindered by their limited size. It is perhaps not possible to adequately cover, in one book, the diverse religions in America and also provide representational coverage for the longstanding Christian majority. Building on both the almost century-old reputation of the Cambridge History series as well as its extensive reach and definitive status, The Cambridge History of Religions in America (CHRA) is uniquely suited to succeed where other publications fall short. With three volumes totalling more than 1.2 million words, and with coverage extending from pre-Columbian times to the present day, the CHRA will be both pluralistic and representational. Its contents will more than sufficiently cover Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism, as well as Native American religions and important nontraditional Christian denominations than if coverage was determined solely by the corresponding percentage of practitioners among the American population. At the same time, because of its size, the CHRA will also be able to devote ample space to the mainline Christian denominations and modes of thought, understanding, and practice that have so deeply affected American identity. Just as importantly, it will also be able to synthesize some of the best leading new work on religion from various disciplines in the humanities and social sciences to complement the long-standing historical perspectives of the Cambridge History series.