KINGSTON, R.I. – October 5 –  Evelyn Sterne’s book “The House of David: Salvation, Scandal, and Survival in a Modern American Commune,” recently received the Timothy Miller Outstanding Book Award from the Communal Studies Association. Previously, Sterne received a Library of Michigan Notable Book of the Year award for the book, and the 2025 Outstanding Article Award from the Communal Studies Association for her related 2024 article, “Immorality and Immortality? Salvation and Scandal at Michigan’s House of David.”

“After working for years in the trenches in the archives, then actually writing the book, to  receive these accolades  is incredibly gratifying,” says Sterne. “Receiving this award at the Communal Studies Association conference last weekend was also a great opportunity to talk about the book with people who work in the same field. I also loved giving a series of talks in Michigan in conjunction with the Notable Books award, and I hope to give more locally.”

“The House of David,” published in September 2025, examines who joined this Christian Israelite community in early 20th-century Benton Harbor, Michigan, and why. It also shows what their choices reveal about the strategies that immigrants and native-born Americans embraced at a time of disorienting economic, social, and cultural change.

“The House of David didn’t fit most people’s conception of what a religion should look like. In the early decades, people did meet regularly for songs and sermons. Still, they didn’t have formal worship services, rituals, or sacraments,” said Sterne. “It was an unusual faith that merged religion with popular culture. By expanding the definition of what a religion could be, it speaks to larger questions about the definition of religion and the boundaries of religious freedom in the United States.”

Some of Sterne’s students can expect to dive into the unique commune in her history department courses like American Communal Studies and the capstone course on Religious Freedom in America. In teaching about the House of David, Sterne examines controversies and problems the commune encountered, including resistance from outsiders who refused to acknowledge it as a real religion.

“We’re really looking at what religion is, and who gets to define it,” said Sterne.

While the “House of David” continues to make an impact in academic circles, Sterne’s research does not stop there. Her current book project examines religion during the Great Depression. Last fall, Sterne spent a semester on sabbatical working in Boston archives to research how religion helped people to survive the worst economic crisis in American history, and how faith leaders influenced public conversations about unemployment, the New Deal, and social insurance during the economic crisis.

“The House of David” was published by Oxford University Press.