The Civil Religious Dimension: Is It There?

Abstract

This study seeks the empirically elusive dimension of civil religion which has been suggested by Bellah and others. It is done against the backdrop of previously established orientations to church religion. Items designed for both civil and church religious dimensions are factor analyzed and obliquely rotated. In contrast to previously unsuccessful efforts with less direct techniques, civil religion clearly emerges as a distinct factor, separate from other types of religious commitment dimensions. While civil religion correlates positively with religious experience, belief, and behavior, it distinguishes itself from the church religious dimensions in a pair of positively related, higher order factors.