For class this week we finished up our jigsaw readings and my final one was by Ebaugh named “Reproducing Ethnicity”. The article discussed ways that immigrants can still find homes in America through their congregations, even though they are no longer in their homeland. Many ethnic congregations fuse important cultural events with their religion. For example, they wear outfits to church from their homeland, or design congregations similar to the ones found back at home. I thought it was very intriguing that people tried to copy places of worship so closely and replicate it back in the United States. It is a great way to help people feel more at home and find people with similar values in a place that is so unfamiliar to them. It also effects religion by creating different sub types of large religions such as Buddhism and Catholicism. This expands and creates different versions of religion for many types of people. By immigrant congregations accepting their ethnically diverse holidays, it helps promote and support different ethnicity’s cultures and reaffirms their place in the United States. Ethnic congregations also allow people to feel attached to their homeland by talking about things that are currently happening there and throwing events where they can meet new people who are of the same ethnicity. I think this article reaffirms McGuire’s chapter in “Religion of the Modern World”. Although these people might say they are Catholic or Buddhist on a survey, one cannot automatically assume they know all of their beliefs or worship practices. This is because so many people have varying ways of reaffirming their beliefs and different ways of practicing their religion.