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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... experience that people rushed to biblical prophecy for help in understanding the troubled times that were upon them.9 Amidst such acute uncertainty , many humble Christians in America began to redeem a dual legacy . They yoked strenuous ...
... experience had as much to commend it to the public as that of the most learned . This book grows out of the wealth and diversity of these sources and the popular ideologies they poignantly convey . Populist Leaders and Democratic ...
... experienced a measure of democratic ferment , this book has an explicit Protestant focus in order to trace the rise of a full - fledged populist clergy . 24 In the same vein , I focus on common developments rather than those ...
... experience in the Kentucky Revival at the turn of the century , Richard McNemar , a Methodist - turned - Presbyterian - turned- Christian - turned - Shaker , captured his generation's fervor : As full of zeal and pure desire As e're a ...
... experience . 1s Rice warned that such a spirit of ignorance and vanity " has led others to think them- selves called of God to preach the gospel , and to go on , relying on their inward call , and neglecting almost every ministerial ...
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 |
Other editions - View all
The Democratization of American Christianity Nathan O. Hatch,Professor Nathan O Hatch Limited preview - 1989 |