Indianapolis Clergy: Private Ministries, Public Figures

Abstract

As religious and community leaders, clergy have joined the political battles over slavery, Prohibition, civil rights, the anti-war movement, and abortion. Recently, The Polis Center sponsored a telephone survey to explore the role clergy play in shaping community life in Indianapolis, and the extent of their involvement in neighborhood and city affairs. City residents were sampled to compare their views of clergy with how the clergy viewed themselves. In general, we found that Indianapolis clergy see themselves as having more influence in civic affairs than residents perceive them as having.