Correlates of exercise adherence in an African American church community

This study identified correlates of attendance to a community-based exercise program in an African American church congregation. After medical clearance, 48 participants completed measures of social support, health-related quality of life, depression, exercise self-efficacy, and exercise motivation and then participated in an exercise program for 6 months (attendance rate = 27%). Age, a sense of affiliation as a motivator to exercise, and weekly caloric expenditure derived from yard work were positively associated with program attendance, and full- or part-time employment was negatively associated with attendance. The authors concluded that exercise adherence is a complicated phenomenon that is influenced by a variety of environmental, personal, and social factors. Social factors, in particular, may be important in promoting adherence to an exercise program in African Americans.     

Spirituality in the Counselor Education Curriculum: A National Survey of Student Perceptions

Interns (N= 335) from 36 programs accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs completed a survey about their preparation to integrate the 9 Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Issues in Counseling (ASERVIC) Spiritual Competencies into their counseling practice. Most respondents felt prepared to integrate all but 1 of ASERVIC's competencies. Spiritual topics of wellness, meaning, hope, and faith were addressed most frequently in course work and were associated with feeling prepared to integrate 8 of the competencies. Classroom discussion, experiential activities, and reading were the modalities most useful for learning about spirituality.     

Counselor Preparation and the Association for Spiritual,Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling Competencies: An Exploratory Study

A national study of American Counseling Association members (N = 230) examined perceptions of the importance of the 14 Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling (ASERVIC) Spiritual Competencies and perceived ability to practice those competencies. Learning pathways to achieve knowledge of the ASERVIC Competencies were explored. Participants viewed the competencies as important but felt less able to consistently practice them. Prior exposure to the content of the competencies through spiritual topics covered in graduate school was positively correlated to perceived ability to practice the competencies. Recommendations were made for strengthening teaching of spirituality in counselor education.     

Book reviews

Religion and Gender Ursula King, ed., 1995 Oxford, UK & Cambridge, USA: Blackwell 324 pp., £13.99/US$21.95 (pb); £40.00/US$54.95 (hb) ISBN 0–631–19377–4 (pb); 0–631–19376–7 (hb)

Zur Erleuchtung unterwegs. Neo‐Sannyasin in Deutschland und ihre Religion Joachim Süss, 1994 Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag 321 pp., DM 48.00 ISBN 3–496–02531‐X

The Odyssey of a New Religion: The Holy Order of MANS from New Age to Orthodoxy Phillip Charles Lucas, 1995 Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press; Ballmoor, Buckingham: Open University Press 312 pp., £35.00 (hb) ISBN 0–253–33612–0

The Church, Medicine and the New Age James Watt, ed., 1995 London: The Churches’ Council for Health and Healing 148 pp., £9.95 ISBN 9–780950–699028

Visions of Creation Eileen Conn & James Stewart, 1995 Alresford: Godfield Press 160 pp., £9.99 ISBN 1–899434–60–7

Ultimate Vision: Reflections on the Religions We Choose Martin Forward, ed., 1995 Oxford: Oneworld Publications £9.95, 288 pp. ISBN 1–85168–100–0

True to this Earth: Global Challenges and Transforming Faith Alan Race & Roger Williamson, 1995 Oxford: Oneworld Publications 204pp., UK £9.95 US$ 14.95 Can. $ 19.99 (pb) ISBN 1–85168–099–3

The Universe Within: An Exploration of the Human Spirit Anjam Khursheed, 1995 Oxford: Oneworld Publications 192 pp., £7.95, US$ 11.95 ISBN 1–85168–075–6

Ecology & Liberation: A New Paradigm Leonardo Boff, 1995 Maryknoll: Orbis Books 187 pp., US$ 14.95 ISBN 0–88344–978–1

Promised Land: Base Christian Communities and the Struggle for the Amazon Madeleine Cousineau Adriance, 1995 Albany: State University of New York 202 pp., US$ 19.95 ISBN 0–7914–2650–5 (pb)

The Sense of God: Sociological, Psychological and Anthropological Approaches to the Origin of the Sense of God John Bowker, 1995 Oxford: Oneworld 237 pp. (including index), £9.95 (pb) ISBN 1–85168–093–4

Le Dieu Distribué: une anthropologie compareé des monothéismes Jean Lambert, 1995 Paris: Les Editions du Cerf 405 pp., FF 240 ISBN 2–204–04950–6

The Rise and Fall of Catholic Religious Orders: A Social Movement Perspective Patricia Wittberg, 1994 New York: The State University of New York Press xii + 423 pp., £54.50 (hb), £18.25 (pb) ISBN 0–7914–2229–1 (hb); ISBN 0–7914–2230–5 (pb)

Beyond Death: Theological and Philosophical Reflections on Life after Death Dan Cohn‐Sherbok & Christopher Lewis, eds., 1995 Basingstoke: Macmillan 219 pp., £14.99 ISBN 0–333–63074–2

Mahdism in West Africa. The Ijebu Mahdiyya Movement Peter B. Clarke, 1995 London: Luzoc Oriental 225 pp., £30.00 ISBN 1–898942–06–4

African American Islam Aminah Beverly McCloud, 1995 New York: Routledge viii + 213 pp., £37.30 (hb); £12.99 (pb) ISBN 0–415–90785–3 (hb)

Religious Freedom and the Position of Islam in Western Europe: Opportunities and Obstacles in the Acquisition of Equal Rights (with an Extensive Bibliography) W. A. R. Shadid & P. S. van Koningsveld, 1995 Kampen: Kok Pharos Publishing House 229 pp., Dfl. 64,90 ISBN 90–393–0065–4

Religious Liberty: Principles for Judicial Interpretation of the Religious Clauses Jesse H. Choper, 1995 Chicago: University of Chicago Press xiii +198 pp., £19.95 ISBN 0–226–10445102

Schools of Reconciliation: Issues in Joint Roman Catholic‐Anglican Education Priscilla Chadwick, 1994 London: Cassell 229 pp., £35.00 (hb); £14.99 (pb) ISBN 0–304–33142–2