Religion in America Since 1945 - Hardcover

Allitt, Patrick

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0231121547 ISBN 13: 9780231121545

Publisher: Columbia University Press, 2003

Synopsis

Moving far beyond the realm of traditional "church history," Patrick Allitt here offers a vigorous and erudite survey of the broad canvas of American religion since World War II. Identifying the major trends and telling moments within major denominations and also in less formal religious movements, he asks how these religious groups have shaped, and been shaped by, some of the most important and divisive issues and events of the last half century: the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, feminism and the sexual revolution, abortion rights, the antinuclear and environmentalist movements, and many others.

Allitt argues that the boundaries between religious and political discourse have become increasingly blurred in the last fifty years. Having been divided along denominational lines in the early postwar period, religious Americans had come by the 1980s to be divided along political lines instead, as they grappled with the challenges of modernity and secularism. Partly because of this politicization, and partly because of the growing influence of Asian, Latino, and other ethnic groups, the United States is anomalous among the Western industrialized nations, as church membership and religious affiliation generally increased during this period. Religion in America Since 1945 is a masterful analysis of this dynamism and diversity and an ideal starting point for any exploration of the contemporary religious scene.

About this title

Book Description

Identifying the major trends and telling moments within both major denominations and other less formal religious movements, Allitt asks how these religious groups have shaped, and been shaped by, some of the most important and divisive political issues and events of the last half century, including the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, feminism and the sexual revolution, abortion rights, and the antinuclear and environmentalist movements.

About the Author

Patrick Allitt is professor of history at Emory University. He is the author of Catholic Intellectuals and Conservative Politics in America, 1950-1985, Catholic Converts: British and American Intellectuals Turn to Rome, and the editor of Major Problems in American Religious History.

About this edition

• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0231121547
• ISBN 13: 9780231121545
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384