Gary Adler
@garyadler.bsky.social
Sociologist of culture, religion, civil society, and law. Love mixing the methods. @PSUsoccrim
Current project: religion-state relations and local government.
https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=xHfWZUgAAAAJ
*Views expressed are my own*
Current project: religion-state relations and local government.
https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=xHfWZUgAAAAJ
*Views expressed are my own*
Research + teaching + student = great partnership. Also why I love my job @pennstateuniv.bsky.social
Keep an eye on @ienesatac.bsky.social!
It was a fun weekend at @sssreligion.bsky.social
Keep an eye on @ienesatac.bsky.social!
It was a fun weekend at @sssreligion.bsky.social
Thrilled to share that our paper (w/ @garyadler.bsky.social) in Social Forces, “Religious Rebound, Political Backlash, and the Youngest Cohort: Understanding Religious Change in Turkey,” received the Distinguished Article Award from @sssreligion.bsky.social!
November 3, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Research + teaching + student = great partnership. Also why I love my job @pennstateuniv.bsky.social
Keep an eye on @ienesatac.bsky.social!
It was a fun weekend at @sssreligion.bsky.social
Keep an eye on @ienesatac.bsky.social!
It was a fun weekend at @sssreligion.bsky.social
Reposted by Gary Adler
Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino took the extraordinary step of formally excusing parishioners in his diocese from the obligation of attending mass weekly - because of the possibility immigration officers would seize people coming to or from church.
A Religious Rebellion Against Mass Deportation
American Christians are showing increasing discomfort with Trump’s signature policy.
www.thebulwark.com
July 10, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino took the extraordinary step of formally excusing parishioners in his diocese from the obligation of attending mass weekly - because of the possibility immigration officers would seize people coming to or from church.
Big news on the "Johnson Amendment" (!, ?)
A collapse of the wall between church and state? A new plank in the floor of religious liberty?
Observations from a sociologist of religion....
I.R.S. Says Churches Can Endorse Candidates From the Pulpit www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/u...
A collapse of the wall between church and state? A new plank in the floor of religious liberty?
Observations from a sociologist of religion....
I.R.S. Says Churches Can Endorse Candidates From the Pulpit www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/u...
I.R.S. Says Churches Can Endorse Candidates From the Pulpit
www.nytimes.com
July 8, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Big news on the "Johnson Amendment" (!, ?)
A collapse of the wall between church and state? A new plank in the floor of religious liberty?
Observations from a sociologist of religion....
I.R.S. Says Churches Can Endorse Candidates From the Pulpit www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/u...
A collapse of the wall between church and state? A new plank in the floor of religious liberty?
Observations from a sociologist of religion....
I.R.S. Says Churches Can Endorse Candidates From the Pulpit www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/u...
One cool trick to increasing trust in elections and government: make everyone a public official.
Okay, maybe not, but still our new paper shows that local officials trust elections more. Why? Partly because they have a lot of social trust.
dx.plos.org/10.1371/jour...
Okay, maybe not, but still our new paper shows that local officials trust elections more. Why? Partly because they have a lot of social trust.
dx.plos.org/10.1371/jour...
Confidence in elections among U.S. local officials: Effects of social trust, partisanship and political ambition
The U.S. public’s confidence in elections is intensively studied in the last decade but little is known about election confidence among locally elected officials, whose roles and community status may ...
dx.plos.org
June 30, 2025 at 11:43 AM
One cool trick to increasing trust in elections and government: make everyone a public official.
Okay, maybe not, but still our new paper shows that local officials trust elections more. Why? Partly because they have a lot of social trust.
dx.plos.org/10.1371/jour...
Okay, maybe not, but still our new paper shows that local officials trust elections more. Why? Partly because they have a lot of social trust.
dx.plos.org/10.1371/jour...
Reposted by Gary Adler
Read the piece to learn about how:
· USCCB fracturing over advocacy is a big deal, signaling just how much Trump/GOP's policies have pushed bishops
· It's a slow-burn result of Francis-aligned clerics finding a voice outside the USCCB
· It all adds to widespread religious opposition to Trump
· USCCB fracturing over advocacy is a big deal, signaling just how much Trump/GOP's policies have pushed bishops
· It's a slow-burn result of Francis-aligned clerics finding a voice outside the USCCB
· It all adds to widespread religious opposition to Trump
NEW from @alejacorazonhm.bsky.social and myself: In an unusual public display of disagreement within the U.S. Catholic bishops conference, prelates signed dueling letters Thursday criticizing the GOP budget bill.
Religious criticism of the bill continues to grow. religionnews.com/2025/06/27/i...
Religious criticism of the bill continues to grow. religionnews.com/2025/06/27/i...
In rare move, Catholic leaders issue dueling letters criticizing GOP budget bill
(RNS) — The US Conference of Catholic Bishops took a firm but mixed approach to the bill, while other Catholic leaders signed an interfaith letter asking senators to oppose the bill.
religionnews.com
June 27, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Read the piece to learn about how:
· USCCB fracturing over advocacy is a big deal, signaling just how much Trump/GOP's policies have pushed bishops
· It's a slow-burn result of Francis-aligned clerics finding a voice outside the USCCB
· It all adds to widespread religious opposition to Trump
· USCCB fracturing over advocacy is a big deal, signaling just how much Trump/GOP's policies have pushed bishops
· It's a slow-burn result of Francis-aligned clerics finding a voice outside the USCCB
· It all adds to widespread religious opposition to Trump
Deep dive into Pope Leo's immigrant roots and racial identity. The type of story that is being purposefully erased in the US today.
Pope Leo XIV’s link to Haiti is part of a broader American story of race, citizenship and migration theconversation.com/pope-leo-xiv...
Pope Leo XIV’s link to Haiti is part of a broader American story of race, citizenship and migration theconversation.com/pope-leo-xiv...
Pope Leo XIV’s link to Haiti is part of a broader American story of race, citizenship and migration
Repelled by American racism, thousands of free people of color bounced between New Orleans and Haiti in the 19th century.
theconversation.com
May 14, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Deep dive into Pope Leo's immigrant roots and racial identity. The type of story that is being purposefully erased in the US today.
Pope Leo XIV’s link to Haiti is part of a broader American story of race, citizenship and migration theconversation.com/pope-leo-xiv...
Pope Leo XIV’s link to Haiti is part of a broader American story of race, citizenship and migration theconversation.com/pope-leo-xiv...
Want to know why being the name Leo 14 is such a big deal?
Look was Leo 13 was up to....
www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
Look was Leo 13 was up to....
www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
Rerum
Novarum (May 15, 1891) | LEO XIII
Encyclical Rerum Novarum of Leo XIII, 15 May 1891
www.vatican.va
May 8, 2025 at 9:15 PM
Want to know why being the name Leo 14 is such a big deal?
Look was Leo 13 was up to....
www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
Look was Leo 13 was up to....
www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
Reposted by Gary Adler
ICE agents are lawless, sociopathic shitbirds. Treat every one you encounter accordingly.
Please highlight this story.
ICE stormed into the wrong house, trashed the place, and made women/girls stand outside in the rain in their underwear. ICE also stole phones, laptops, and cash savings from the family, who moved to OKC two weeks ago.
kfor.com/news/local/w...
ICE stormed into the wrong house, trashed the place, and made women/girls stand outside in the rain in their underwear. ICE also stole phones, laptops, and cash savings from the family, who moved to OKC two weeks ago.
kfor.com/news/local/w...
'We're citizens!': Oklahoma City family traumatized after ICE raids home, but they weren't suspects
A woman says her family’s fresh start in Oklahoma turned into a nightmare after federal immigration agents raided their home, taking their phones, laptops, and life savings – even though they were …
kfor.com
April 29, 2025 at 3:11 PM
ICE agents are lawless, sociopathic shitbirds. Treat every one you encounter accordingly.
Reposted by Gary Adler
Dugan, the judge recently arrested by the FBI on allegations of helping an undocumented immigrant avoid ICE arrest, is also a former executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. www.jsonline.com/story/news/c...
What to know about Hannah Dugan, the Milwaukee judge at center of ICE arrest investigation
Dugan spent a large swath of her career working for the poor, first with legal aid organizations and then as executive director of Catholic Charities.
www.jsonline.com
April 25, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Dugan, the judge recently arrested by the FBI on allegations of helping an undocumented immigrant avoid ICE arrest, is also a former executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. www.jsonline.com/story/news/c...
Rest in peace, Pope Francis, master of symbolism...
-First "Francis" pope: rebuilder of the Church
-First words as Pope: "I am a sinner..."
-Eschewed papal apartment for Vatican's "guest house"
-Favorite metaphor: The church as field hospital
-First "Francis" pope: rebuilder of the Church
-First words as Pope: "I am a sinner..."
-Eschewed papal apartment for Vatican's "guest house"
-Favorite metaphor: The church as field hospital
April 21, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Rest in peace, Pope Francis, master of symbolism...
-First "Francis" pope: rebuilder of the Church
-First words as Pope: "I am a sinner..."
-Eschewed papal apartment for Vatican's "guest house"
-Favorite metaphor: The church as field hospital
-First "Francis" pope: rebuilder of the Church
-First words as Pope: "I am a sinner..."
-Eschewed papal apartment for Vatican's "guest house"
-Favorite metaphor: The church as field hospital
An incredible final message from Pope Francis: "to run like Mary Magdalene and the disciples"
"We must take action, set out to look for him: look for him in life, look for him in the faces of our brothers and sisters, look for him in everyday business, look for him everywhere except in the tomb."
"We must take action, set out to look for him: look for him in life, look for him in the faces of our brothers and sisters, look for him in everyday business, look for him everywhere except in the tomb."
April 21, 2025 at 1:36 PM
An incredible final message from Pope Francis: "to run like Mary Magdalene and the disciples"
"We must take action, set out to look for him: look for him in life, look for him in the faces of our brothers and sisters, look for him in everyday business, look for him everywhere except in the tomb."
"We must take action, set out to look for him: look for him in life, look for him in the faces of our brothers and sisters, look for him in everyday business, look for him everywhere except in the tomb."
@pennstateuniv.bsky.social is cordially invited to stick up for PSU students whose degrees and research are being destroyed
www.presidentsalliance.org/press/eighty...
www.presidentsalliance.org/press/eighty...
Eighty-Six Institutions and Associations Lead the Presidents’ Alliance’s Filing of Amicus Brief Challenging Visa Revocations and Detentions - Presidents' Alliance
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 10, 2025 CONTACT: [email protected] Eighty-Six Institutions and Associations Lead the Presidents’ Alliance’s Filing of Amicus Brief Challenging Visa Revocations...
www.presidentsalliance.org
April 16, 2025 at 3:02 PM
@pennstateuniv.bsky.social is cordially invited to stick up for PSU students whose degrees and research are being destroyed
www.presidentsalliance.org/press/eighty...
www.presidentsalliance.org/press/eighty...
BIG 10's Rutgers and Michigan State working against "ideological deportation" in legal filing. Let's go @pennstateuniv.bsky.social
kudos to the other R1s on here as well, rutgers is just the one I have an immediate connection to as a proud native of the great state of new jersey
perhaps easier for the liberal arts schools that don't receive federal funding, but rutgers is an R1. good for them.
April 10, 2025 at 3:11 PM
BIG 10's Rutgers and Michigan State working against "ideological deportation" in legal filing. Let's go @pennstateuniv.bsky.social
Empathy in the news a bit.
Time to plug my book about the ups and downs of producing, especially for migrants.
www.amazon.com/Empathy-Beyo...
Time to plug my book about the ups and downs of producing, especially for migrants.
www.amazon.com/Empathy-Beyo...
Empathy Beyond US Borders: The Challenges of Transnational Civic Engagement (Cambridge Studies in Social Theory, Religion and Politics)
Empathy Beyond US Borders: The Challenges of Transnational Civic Engagement (Cambridge Studies in Social Theory, Religion and Politics) [Adler Jr, Gary J.] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Empathy Beyond US Borders: The Challenges of Transnational Civic Engagement (Cambridge Studies in Social Theory, Religion and Politics)
www.amazon.com
March 5, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Empathy in the news a bit.
Time to plug my book about the ups and downs of producing, especially for migrants.
www.amazon.com/Empathy-Beyo...
Time to plug my book about the ups and downs of producing, especially for migrants.
www.amazon.com/Empathy-Beyo...
Postponed until fallish 2025...
my talk about how local Catholic elected officials in the US. oppose Christian nationalism and support religious pluralism.
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
my talk about how local Catholic elected officials in the US. oppose Christian nationalism and support religious pluralism.
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
Lectures in Catholic Experience presents Dr. Gary J. Adler Jr. | St. Jerome's University
Information on St. Jerome's University Lecture's in Catholic Experience event.
uwaterloo.ca
February 27, 2025 at 4:53 PM
Postponed until fallish 2025...
my talk about how local Catholic elected officials in the US. oppose Christian nationalism and support religious pluralism.
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
my talk about how local Catholic elected officials in the US. oppose Christian nationalism and support religious pluralism.
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
Prayers for @pontifexes.bsky.social
February 22, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Prayers for @pontifexes.bsky.social
Reposted by Gary Adler
📢 Calling all religion scholars! 📢Please consider this my personal invitation to submit a paper or organize a session at the upcoming @sssreligion.bsky.social Annual Meeting in Minneapolis this October! Reach out to me or @evanstewart.bsky.social with questions or ideas!
February 11, 2025 at 3:50 PM
📢 Calling all religion scholars! 📢Please consider this my personal invitation to submit a paper or organize a session at the upcoming @sssreligion.bsky.social Annual Meeting in Minneapolis this October! Reach out to me or @evanstewart.bsky.social with questions or ideas!
Dang, Pope scooping me. Not m(any) integralist natural law Catholics among local officials in the US.
I'll share the goods when visiting with @camacgregor.bsky.social at
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
I'll share the goods when visiting with @camacgregor.bsky.social at
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
February 11, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Dang, Pope scooping me. Not m(any) integralist natural law Catholics among local officials in the US.
I'll share the goods when visiting with @camacgregor.bsky.social at
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
I'll share the goods when visiting with @camacgregor.bsky.social at
uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
Contra the "integralist" and anti-democratic spate of Catholic theoretical arguments, I'll give a ground-level view of what Catholic officials really think about pluralism and church-state separation. (Hint: they support both.)
SSSR member/Penn State professor Gary J. Adler Jr. will speak on "how Catholicism influences everyday governance," Thursday, Feb 27th, 2025, 7:30 PM (EST) in Waterloo, ON @uofwaterloo.bsky.social.
➡️ In person & livestream.
#Religion #Sociology #SociologyOfReligion uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
➡️ In person & livestream.
#Religion #Sociology #SociologyOfReligion uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/e...
February 4, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Contra the "integralist" and anti-democratic spate of Catholic theoretical arguments, I'll give a ground-level view of what Catholic officials really think about pluralism and church-state separation. (Hint: they support both.)
Reposted by Gary Adler
I see some suggestions, in the reporting regarding the OMB impoundment order, that a mere delay in spending appropriated funds is legal. But that's not really true. The delay OMB has ordered specifically contradicts the Impoundment Control Act. A thread.
January 28, 2025 at 12:48 PM
I see some suggestions, in the reporting regarding the OMB impoundment order, that a mere delay in spending appropriated funds is legal. But that's not really true. The delay OMB has ordered specifically contradicts the Impoundment Control Act. A thread.
I just called (the same) House member's office as @djvanness.bsky.social to let them know that my federal grant funding helps undergrads and grads go to PSU, pay for housing, eat, etc.
The staffer responded, "Yeah, we've been getting A LOT of phone calls this morning about this."
More calls pls
The staffer responded, "Yeah, we've been getting A LOT of phone calls this morning about this."
More calls pls
I just called my (Republican) House member's office. Even their staffer was completely taken aback. Everyone call your Representative and ask them what they plan to do to protect their Constitutional authority and defend their constituents. Hot tip: call their district offices too, not just DC.
This is clearly illegal; Congress has the power of the purse and the laws of the United States - including funding programs - are binding on all Americans, not simply the ones who were in office when those laws were passed. But.. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
January 28, 2025 at 2:55 PM
I just called (the same) House member's office as @djvanness.bsky.social to let them know that my federal grant funding helps undergrads and grads go to PSU, pay for housing, eat, etc.
The staffer responded, "Yeah, we've been getting A LOT of phone calls this morning about this."
More calls pls
The staffer responded, "Yeah, we've been getting A LOT of phone calls this morning about this."
More calls pls
Pretty good evidence that the best way to understand the Catholic Church in the U.S. is not by watching/listening to those with the loudest, most traditionalist megaphone.
www.nytimes.com/2025/01/06/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/01/06/u...
Pope Names Robert McElroy, an Ally on Immigration, as Cardinal in Washington
The appointment of Robert W. McElroy is a signal of the pope’s priorities, two weeks before Donald J. Trump’s term begins.
www.nytimes.com
January 6, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Pretty good evidence that the best way to understand the Catholic Church in the U.S. is not by watching/listening to those with the loudest, most traditionalist megaphone.
www.nytimes.com/2025/01/06/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/01/06/u...
Lots of new folks finding the bluesky.
In that spirit, I've deactivated my account on the other place.
In that spirit, I've deactivated my account on the other place.
November 11, 2024 at 2:44 PM
Lots of new folks finding the bluesky.
In that spirit, I've deactivated my account on the other place.
In that spirit, I've deactivated my account on the other place.
Reposted by Gary Adler
I’m thrilled to share that my first academic publication is out @sfjournal.bsky.social In this paper, with @garyadler.bsky.social, we analyze religious identity and behavior over time to analyze the secularization question in Turkey. 1/n
academic.oup.com/sf/advance-a...
academic.oup.com/sf/advance-a...
Religious rebound, political backlash, and the youngest cohort: understanding religious change in Turkey
Abstract. We distinguish two streams of theory that dominate explanations of religious change: cohort-based cumulative decline theory, which emphasizes sma
academic.oup.com
July 19, 2024 at 8:29 PM
I’m thrilled to share that my first academic publication is out @sfjournal.bsky.social In this paper, with @garyadler.bsky.social, we analyze religious identity and behavior over time to analyze the secularization question in Turkey. 1/n
academic.oup.com/sf/advance-a...
academic.oup.com/sf/advance-a...
Reposted by Gary Adler
Sociologists tackle religious freedom.
Take a quick tour of the latest sociological research on religious freedom, its meanings, its uses, and its future.
I'll be sharing insights from my research with @jonathancoley.bsky.social @mayrl.bsky.social, rebecca sager, and eric plutzer.
Take a quick tour of the latest sociological research on religious freedom, its meanings, its uses, and its future.
I'll be sharing insights from my research with @jonathancoley.bsky.social @mayrl.bsky.social, rebecca sager, and eric plutzer.
March 12, 2024 at 2:52 PM
Sociologists tackle religious freedom.
Take a quick tour of the latest sociological research on religious freedom, its meanings, its uses, and its future.
I'll be sharing insights from my research with @jonathancoley.bsky.social @mayrl.bsky.social, rebecca sager, and eric plutzer.
Take a quick tour of the latest sociological research on religious freedom, its meanings, its uses, and its future.
I'll be sharing insights from my research with @jonathancoley.bsky.social @mayrl.bsky.social, rebecca sager, and eric plutzer.