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Our 2004 program theme is The Causes and Consequences of Contemporary Moralities. My hope is that this choice of a topic will encourage us to reflect on the role of moral values in contemporary society. What are the causes and consequences of moral battles inside religious organizations? To what extent are such values influencing public policies? These and other related issues will make for an interesting meeting. Of course, the program will also include the full range of subjects usually discussed at the annual meeting of our association. What is most important is that you begin now to plan to join your colleagues in San Francisco, August 13-15. I also urge you to encourage graduate students to attend our meeting; there is some money available to help them with travel-related costs.

The Furfey Lecture will be given by Immanuel Wallerstein, who this year received the Career of Distinguished Scholarship Award from the ASA. As was printed in Footnotes, Professor Wallerstein "has been described as one of the most influential sociologists of his generation, due in large part to his development of a new paradigm for sociology, world-systems analysis." In addition, Robin Gill, of the University of Kent, the current chair of the BSA Sociology of Religion Study Group, will present a paper at our meeting on contemporary moral issues. Among his publications is Christian Ethics in Secular Worlds (2000). Professor Gill also edited The Cambridge Companion to Christian Ethics (2001).

Our association will offer four sessions jointly with the ASA, all of which have been designated as thematic sessions by the ASA. The topics are: Religious Discourse in Liberal Societies (organized by John H. Evans), Deepening Democracy through Faith-Based Citizen Activism (organized by Richard L. Wood), Conscience: Sociological Reconstruction and Deconstruction (organized by William H. Swatos, Jr.), and The Clash of Civilizations (organized by Jerry G. Pankhurst).

At least two books related to our theme will be the subject of regular sessions: Streets of Glory: Church and Community in a Black Urban Neighborhood, by Omar M. McRoberts, and Moral, Believing Animals,  by Christian Smith.

Of course, San Francisco itself is a reason to attend our annual meeting—a city of beautiful vistas, fine restaurants, and exciting cultural activities. Our hotel, the Ramada Plaza Hotel International, is a restored historic property within easy walking distance of the ASA sites.

To be a part of the 2004 program, as presenter or organizer or discussant, please contact the program chair, Fenggang Yang, at ASR2004@soc.purdue.edu

Joseph B. Tamney

Ball State University

Each year the ASR offers three grant/award programs, all of which require ASR membership either at the time of application or previously. The following list details the 2004 procedures, which supersede any previously published submission guidelines:

The McNamara Award in the amount of at least $500 is given annually to recognize an outstanding student paper in the sociology of religion, although the award committee is always free to withhold the award in the event that no papers of distinction are received. This year’s committee members are Lutz Kaelber, chair, David Sikkink, and Amanda van Eck Duymaer van Twist. Authors must be currently enrolled students who have not defended the Ph.D. when the paper is submitted. Submission for McNamara consideration is separate from program participation; students who wish their papers considered for the program must submit paper abstracts to the Program Chair following the guidelines of all standard paper submissions. Sociology of Religion has the right of first review of award-winning papers.

Submissions must be received by 15 June 2004 to be eligible for this year’s award. Submission should be in the form of articles with a maximum length of 40 single-sided pages inclusive of all material: text, titles, notes, tables, figures, etc. The title page should include an abstract of no more than 200 words. Text should not exceed 12,000 words, i.e., approximately 36 double-spaced pages of 12 point (or 10 cpi) type.

Submissions should be by one of the following methods: (a) IBM-formatted virus-free disk, with the text in WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, or plain ASCII; (b) Four (4) paper copies, typed double-spaced and single-sided. Responsibility for the timely submission of useable materials to the proper address rests entirely with the applicant. Send submissions to: Prof. Lutz Kaelber, Department of Sociology, University of Vermont, 31 S Prospect St., Burlington, VT 05405-0176. Questions: lkaelber@uvm.edu

A total of $10,000 is available to fund promising research in either of two areas, prioritized as follows: (1) women and religion, gender issues, and feminist perspectives on religion; (2) new religious movements. The allocation of the total amount is entirely at the committee’s discretion; historically, however, the money has been divided among several proposals. The competition is open to all categories of members at all levels of their careers, including those seeking funding for dissertation research, but funding for already completed research or the publication of research is excluded. This year’s committee is composed of Paula Nesbitt (chair), Julia Howell, and Ruth Wallace.

A proposal of not more than five double-spaced pages should outline the rationale and plan of the research. A detailed budget and vita should be attached. Simultaneous submissions to other grant competitions are permissible only if the applicant is explicit about which budgetary aspects the Fichter grant will cover that do not overlap with other submissions. Send four copies of the application packet to Paula at Department of Sociology, University of California, 410 Barrows Hall #1980, Berkeley, CA 94720-0659. Submissions must be postmarked by 1 March 2004; awards will be announced 1 May 2004, at which time the moneys will also begin to be available. Questions? Phone Paula at 510-652-0888 or e-mail pnesbitt@uclink.berkeley.edu

Gallagher grants to assist with travel to attend the ASR annual meeting are offered annually by the Council to graduate students and non-US/Canadian scholars whose papers are accepted for inclusion on the program. Note that these are assistance grants, and participation cannot be made contingent upon their receipt. A total of $3,000 is available for the 2004 meeting. Grants have never exceeded $1,000 for foreign colleagues or $300 for domestic graduate students. Application must be made to the Program Chair (Fenggang Yang), and final grants are determined by an ad hoc committee composed of the Program Chair, President, and Executive Officer. Persons in need of travel assistance should indicate their circumstances at the time they submit their program proposal or abstract. This should take the form of a letter in which the applicant indicates a specific dollar request, states the reason for the request, and provides reasonable evidence that funds to cover the balance of the trip are in hand.

The Religious Research Association will make $12,000 available in the spring of 2002 through its Constant H. Jacquet Research Awards program. One-year-advance RRA membership is normally expected of applicants, but students may join at the time they apply for a grant. An official RRA grant application form is required. Preference is given to applied (client-centered) research, but basic research proposals are also considered, and the majority of actual awards are normally in this category. Individual awards are usually limited to $3,000. The Committee especially welcomes proposals from scholars who are in the early stages of their careers, as well as from students. Contact: Edward C. Lehman, Jr., 352 Campbell Road, Brockport, NY 14420; edlehman@frontiernet.net. Also check the RRA Web site: http://rra.hartsem.edu  Applications must be received by 1 April 2004.

The Society for the Scientific Study of Religion will make several thousand dollars available in research grants, a minimum of one-fourth of which is available to junior scholars. Membership in SSSR for one year prior to application is required. Individual awards will not exceed $2,000. Contact: Nancy T. Ammerman, Boston School of Theology, 745 Commonwealth, Boston, MA 02215; nta@bu.edu. Applications must be submitted prior to 1 March 2004.

The Mormon Social Science Association is sponsoring a competition for student papers employing social scientific perspectives in the analysis of Mormon social life and culture. The three top paper authors will receive a $300 travel offset to attend the 2004 SSSR meeting in Kansas City. There will be an additional $100 award to the first-place winner. An abstract of 250 words is due 31 December 2003. The final paper must be postmarked 1 March 2004. See the MSSA Web site: www.genesoc.com/mssa

Some of you will be receiving dues notices with this newsletter. Regardless of whether or not you have dues now owing, please consider a tax-deductible, year-end contribution to assist with one of the ASR’s designated funds—Fichter, Furfey, and McNamara. Although the ASR is still financially very secure in terms of our principal, this year has hardly been a good one for returns on investments (which is the major reason the amounts for Gallagher and Fichter grants have been reduced from last year). Contributions can be included with your dues, or if your dues are already paid, room has also conveniently been made on the reverse of the green directory information sheet. Please be attentive both to paying your dues on time and to keeping your directory information up to date. Each year ASR spends the better part of $1,000 collecting late dues and paying for postal service address corrections.