Introducing American Religion

by Lippy; Charles H.

• ISBN13: 9780415448581
• ISBN10: 0415448581
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-08-25
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Introducing American Religionprovides a lively and concise overview of the historical development of religion in the USA. In four parts, Charles Lippy traces the history of American religion from Europe, Native American and African life, through to the age of independence, and on to the late twentieth century up to the present day. The narrative lays particular stress on the development of diversity and pluralism in American religious life. It explores the African American experience through slavery, Roman Catholic and Jewish immigration, political and economic factors, the impact of Latino culture, and the growth of Hinduism and Buddhism, as well as the concept of American civil religion. Introducing American Religionis ideal reading for students wishing to develop a broad understanding of American religious history. Illustrated throughout and featuring quotations from original sources, it includes text boxes, summary charts, study questions, a glossary and lists of further reading and weblinks to aid students with revision. The accompanying website for this book can be found at www/routledge.com/textbooks/9780415448598. Features of the website include a hyperlinked and annotated primary source bibliography (of primary sources named in the book and accompanying page numbers), a list of online audiovisual resources, test questions, a study skills section, PowerPoints on key chapters, additional images, tables and charts of statistics on American religion, links to online libraries and archives, a regularly updated blog.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations	p. viii
Acknowledgments	p. x
Preface	p. xii
Religious diversity in the age of colonial conquest	p. 1
Native American understanding of religion	p. 1
Key elements in African tribal religions	p. 6
Diversity within European Christianity	p. 9
European Christian misunderstanding of tribal religious expression	p. 12
Judaism and Islam in the age of colonial conquest	p. 13
European settlers increase religious diversity	p. 17
The Spanish and French bring Catholicism to North America	p. 17
Varieties of Protestantism in the first English colonies	p. 21
The religious mosaic of early New England	p. 25
The expanding religious culture of English colonial America	p. 30
The importance of the middle colonies	p. 30
William Penn's experiment in religious diversity	p. 32
Maryland and the Carolinas cradle more religious options	p. 35
The impact of the Evangelical surge and the Enlightenment	p. 37
Religion in an age of revolution	p. 45
Religious challenges in the late colonial period	p. 45
The impact of the American Revolution on religious life	p. 48
Legal moves in the era of independence	p. 52
The denominations and the explosion of diversity	p. 55
Native Americans and African Americans challenge religious life	p. 61
Early English colonists, Native Americans, and African slaves	p. 61
Evangelical missionary efforts among African Americans and Native Americans Revolution and revitalization	p. 68
Evangelical America	p. 75
Evangelicalism's harvest time: the frontier camp meeting	p. 75
Revivalism cements the evangelical style on American Protestantism	p. 79
Evangelical Protestants and the erosion of Calvinism	p. 81
The evangelical vision of a moral society	p. 85
Religious experimentation brings more diversity	p. 91
Recapturing original Christianity	p. 91
Bringing heaven to earth	p. 95
The adventist impulse	p. 98
Exploring new religious worlds	p. 102
Catholic and Jewish growth stretch diversity	p. 108
Catholics in the new American nation	p. 108
Immigration spurs rapid Catholic expansion	p. 110
Catholic doubts about America amid nativist backlash	p. 113
Jews find a home in America	p. 117
Ethnicity's impact on American religion	p. 120
The impact of Civil War and regionalism	p. 123
Debates about slavery spur regional religious consciousness	p. 123
The Civil War as a moral and religious event	p. 127
Regions impact in larger perspective	p. 130
Other facets of religion and region	p. 134
Immigrants, industries, and cities	p. 137
The United States becomes an urban, industrial nation	p. 137
Immigrants and in-migrants reshape traditions	p. 139
Diverse Protestant responses to an urbanizing nation	p. 146
Ethnicity, gender, and reform in urban America	p. 150
Other dimensions of urbanizing America	p. 154
American religions encounter world religions	p. 154
Gender issues add new dimensions to American religion	p. 159
New currents among Native American tribal religions	p. 164
Bible conferences and summer retreats offer relief from urban life	p. 167
Modernity brings more change	p. 172
New intellectual approaches challenge traditional thought	p. 173
Fundamentalism's impact on American Protestantism	p. 176
Other intellectual currents bring more variety in belief	p. 179
Pentecostal stirrings enrich religious life	p. 182
Reaction and retreat	p. 187
Prohibition as social reform and as a reaction to diversity	p. 188
Growing intolerance reflects fears of a pluralistic culture	p. 190
The vision of a reborn Klan	p. 193
Communications media move in new directions	p. 196
Quests for unity amid diversity	p. 201
Depression and another world war complicate religious life	p. 201
A righteous nation confronts "godless" communism	p. 205
Other efforts to promote common identity	p. 207
Cracks start to erode the veneer of unity	p. 211
The "new pluralism" of the later twentieth century	p. 217
New religious movements spark interest and fear	p. 218
The new immigration and growing religious pluralism	p. 220
The courts wrestle with pluralism	p. 226
Pluralisms impact on spirituality and worship	p. 228
The many faces of pluralism in postmodern America	p. 233
Postmodernism brings other dimensions of pluralism	p. 234
A resurgent evangelicalism brings more diversity	p. 236
Public issues reveal moral differences	p. 241
The many, changing faces of religious pluralism	p. 244
Glossary	p. 249
Resources	p. 257
Index	p. 259
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