Sociologists, such as Robert Putnam and Ram Cnann, have demonstrated that religious participation is in its most pronounced decline among the lower classes. Church attendance is strongly correlated with higher levels of education and income, with the working class and the poorest families being less likely to take part in a religious community. Faith and practice are a reflection of human beliefs, but they are also an indicator of economic realities, including the gap between affluent and disadvantaged neighborhoods. Bartkowski's recently published study highlighted a notable limitation. Unfortunately, our data set doesn't include information on denominational affiliation, so we can't say if children from Catholic, Protestant, Mormon, Muslim, or other denominational backgrounds are especially likely to achieve the delicate balance between psychological and social development and academic excellence.
He said that the rise of many different religious groups in San Antonio can be attributed, in most cases, to the city's industries attracting immigrants from many parts of the world. The findings suggest that parents' religiosity is a mixed blessing that produces significant advances in psychological and social development among third graders and, at the same time, undermines academic achievement, particularly in mathematics and science. A higher proportion of low-income San Antonio residents (13%) live at least one mile from a supermarket compared to 12% in Texas and 7% nationwide. But if you stay in San Antonio for a period of time, it will soon become clear that faith has been the cultural and social center of this city since its inception. Ann Helmke, the religious liaison for the city of San Antonio, said that faith is deeply embedded in the city's DNA.
Blasi said that San Antonio's universities and military bases also played a role in attracting new cultural and religious groups to the city, which is why there are groups of Philippine and Korean churches near the military bases. In 1899, the First Christian Church was a ministry of the Central Christian Church, a larger Anglo-Saxon church in San Antonio. Rather than leaving it up to young people, groups of clergymen from different religious traditions in San Antonio organized their own sit-ins at the Majestic Theater and elsewhere, helping the city to integrate more peacefully in the 1960s. Helmke believes that this type of cooperative interfaith activism for justice and social causes began to define the religious communities of San Antonio from that moment on. Almost 300 years have passed since the cathedral of San Fernando was erected in the center of San Antonio in the middle of the 18th century. Today, hundreds of years later, San Antonio has become a tourist destination for many reasons but one of its main attractions is still its historic places of worship.
The University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community participation, and public service. Many other religions are represented in San Antonio's diverse places of worship including thriving Sikh and Mennonite communities, a distinctive Quaker meeting center designed by a leading architectural firm, several Greek Orthodox churches, Bahá'í and Unitarian Universalist congregations and many evangelical Christian and Catholic churches. Less than 30% of households in the San Antonio-New Braunfels Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) live in areas that are considered affordable when considering total housing costs plus transportation. The recent economic recovery has resulted in significant investment in new and existing housing throughout San Antonio as well as remodeling or expansion of several transformational development sites. The main active area for drilling is located along I-37 between San Antonio and Corpus Christi which has made San Antonio an important center for business services goods and housing needed to support drilling activities in Eagle Ford. San Antonio is home to many different religious communities who face unique challenges due to their socioeconomic status. Low-income families are less likely to participate in religious activities due to their lack of resources while those living near military bases may be exposed to different faiths due to immigration patterns.
Additionally, parents' religiosity can have both positive and negative effects on their children's academic performance. Despite these challenges however faith remains deeply embedded within San Antonio's culture with interfaith activism playing an important role in promoting justice and social causes.
