Edited by Stuart M. Matlins and Arthur J. Magida
The indispensable guidebook to help the
well-meaning guest when visiting other people’s religious
ceremonies—updated and revised. New Edition!
4th edition—Updated, Revised,
Expanded—
New Glossary of Popular Religious Symbols
“Finally, for those inclined to
undertake their own spiritual journeys … tells visitors
what to expect.”
—New
York Times
We North Americans live in a remarkably
diverse society, and it’s increasingly common to be
invited to a wedding, funeral, or other religious service of a
friend, relative, or coworker whose faith is different from our
own.
These can be awkward situations....
• What will happen?
What do I do? What do I wear? What do I say?
• What should I avoid
doing, wearing, saying?
• Is it okay to use a
video camera?
• How long will it
last?
• What are their basic
beliefs?
• Will there be a
reception?
• Will there be food?
• Should I bring a
gift?
• When is it okay to
leave?
These are just a few of the basic
questions answered in How to Be a
Perfect Stranger. This easy-to-read
guidebook, with an “Everything You Need to Know Before
You Go” checklist, helps the well-meaning guest to feel
comfortable, participate to the fullest extent possible and
avoid violating anyone’s religious principles—while
enriching their own spiritual understanding.
For people of all faiths, all backgrounds.
African American Methodist Churches
· Assemblies of God · Bahá’í
· Baptist · Buddhist · Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ) · Christian Science (Church of
Christ, Scientist) · Churches of Christ ·
Episcopalian and Anglican · Hindu · Islam
· Jehovah’s Witnesses · Jewish ·
Lutheran · Mennonite/Amish · Methodist ·
Mormon (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) ·
Native American/First Nations · Orthodox Churches
· Pentecostal Church of God · Presbyterian
· Quaker (Religious Society of Friends) ·
Reformed Church in America/Canada · Roman Catholic
· Seventh-day Adventist · Sikh · Unitarian
Universalist · United Church of Canada · United
Church of Christ
"The things Miss Manners forgot to
tell us about religion."
—Los
Angeles Times
"Enables the stranger to hold fast to
the integrity of their own tradition while stepping onto
someone else’s holy ground....Concise, informative, and
eminently practical."
—Rev.
Christopher Leighton, Executive
Director, Institute for Christian-Jewish Studies
"The central idea here is
excellent.... A perfect gift."
—Publishers
Weekly
"Highly recommended."
—Library
Journal
"[This] book couldn’t have come
at a better time....A welcome Stranger."
—Chicago
Sun-Times
"Highly recommended....We encourage
all people of faith to read it, refer to it often, and use it
as their guide when visiting other communities of
faith."
—Rev. Ken
Brookner Langston, Director of
Education, The Interfaith Alliance
"Enables strangers to be better
neighbors in a global community."
—Prof.
John L. Esposito, Director, Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding,
Georgetown University
"You’ll never again feel
uncomfortable attending services of a religion not your own,
after reading this wonderful book."
—Rabbi
Jack Bemporad, Director, Center for Christian-Jewish Understanding,
Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, Connecticut
