OK, I am psyched to play the thing now. I have a crew collected, I think. They are hardcore work people all of them, but **the organized type**.
Dogs in the Vineyard is a roleplaying game set in “pre-statehood Utah”, and is centered on the Faith.
A Western with only preachers, and the Faithful.
On Lumpley Games’ homepage you can see Resources for the game, which are very nicely done. Tasteful, yet not overdone.
The game has a mechanism, which feels new/old to me. I sat poring over a printout of the rules this weekend, and it was tough going, learning the intricacies of this very simple system. It was like reading about a simple game like poker or checkers, and finding it all complicated. To grok this thing in the bone-marrow, you need to play it, with friends, and with a story. That way things come more natural.
I’m looking forward to the report of your Dogs session! I think you are correct in thinking that it won’t all make sense completely until you actually sit down and play it.