The Democratization of American ChristianityA provocative reassessment of religion and culture in the early days of the American republic "The so-called Second Great Awakening was the shaping epoch of American Protestantism, and this book is the most important study of it ever published."—James Turner, Journal of Interdisciplinary History
Winner of the John Hope Franklin Publication Prize, the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic book prize, and the Albert C. Outler Prize In this provocative reassessment of religion and culture in the early days of the American republic, Nathan O. Hatch argues that during this period American Christianity was democratized and common people became powerful actors on the religious scene. Hatch examines five distinct traditions or mass movements that emerged early in the nineteenth century—the Christian movement, Methodism, the Baptist movement, the black churches, and the Mormons—showing how all offered compelling visions of individual potential and collective aspiration to the unschooled and unsophisticated. |
From inside the book
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... history - 19th century . 2. Democracy - Religious aspects— Christianity - History of doctrines - 19th century . I. Title . BR525.H37 1989 277.3'081 - dc19 89-5439 CIP The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and ...
... History at Harvard University and the American Antiquarian Society. I am grateful for the support of these organizations, particularly since my original project, a study of Federalist ideology, quickly gave way to a different one. My ...
... History at Harvard University and the American Antiquarian Society . I am grateful for the support of these organizations , particularly since my original proj- ect , a study of Federalist ideology , quickly gave way to a different one ...
... history grows out of traditions that are intellectually respectable and institutionally cohesive . Yet American Protestantism has been skewed away from central ecclesiastical institutions and high culture ; it has been pushed and pulled ...
... history and tradition , and a call for reform using the rhetoric of the Revolution . The press swiftly became a sword of democracy , fueling ardent faith in the future of the American republic . At the same time , Americans who espoused ...
Contents
3 | |
17 | |
49 | |
67 | |
The Sovereign Audience | 125 |
The Right to Think for Oneself | 162 |
Upward Aspiration and Democratic Dissent | 193 |
The Recurring Populist | 210 |
A Sampling of Anticlerical | 227 |
Notes | 244 |
Index | 305 |
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The Democratization of American Christianity Nathan O. Hatch,Professor Nathan O Hatch Limited preview - 1989 |