"church") can credibly intervene in nature on their behalf. We present a model in which nature sets the pattern of rainfall … over time and the church chooses when optimally to pray in order to persuade people that it has caused the rain. We present … evidence from prayers for rain in Murcia, Spain that the church follows such an optimal policy and that its prayers therefore …

The Catholic Church has been making saints for centuries, typically in a two-stage process featuring beatification and … naming of blessed persons seems to reflect a response by the Catholic Church to competition from Protestantism or …

When the mortality rate is high, repeated interaction alone may not sustain cooperation, and religion may play an … populations and the church promoted the doctrine of purgatory, guilds that bundled together religious and occupational activities … conclusion has implications for the study of institutions, economics, and religion throughout history and in the developing world …

variety of datasets to show that when a state repeals its blue laws religious attendance falls, and that church donations and …