The Founding Fathers and the Debate over Religion in Revolutionary America
A History in Documents
ISBN13: 9780195326505ISBN10: 0195326504
Paperback,
206 pages
Also available:
Hardback
Oct 2011,
In Stock
Price:
$19.95 (01)Description
Whether America was founded as a Christian nation or as a secular republic is one of the most fiercely debated questions in American history. Historians Matthew Harris and Thomas Kidd offer an authoritative examination of the essential documents needed to understand this debate. The texts included in this volume - writings and speeches from both well-known and obscure early American thinkers - show that religion played a prominent yet fractious role in the era of the American Revolution.In their personal beliefs, the Founders ranged from profound skeptics like Thomas Paine to traditional Christians like Patrick Henry. Nevertheless, most of the Founding Fathers rallied around certain crucial religious principles, including the idea that people were "created" equal, the belief that religious freedom required the disestablishment of state-backed denominations, the necessity of virtue in a republic, and the role of Providence in guiding the affairs of nations. Harris and Kidd show that through the struggles of war and the framing of the Constitution, Americans sought to reconcile their dedication to religious vitality with their commitment to religious freedom.
Features
- An authoritative collection of the most important documents related to religion and the founding of the United States
- Offers access to essential texts that will help readers make sense of a highly controversial topic
- Gives a broad range of perspectives from the era of the Revolution
Reviews
"Matthew L. Harris and Thomas S. Kidd have assembled a fine collection of primary documents that will serve as a useful guide for scholars, teachers, and students interested in the Christian America debate."---John Fea, author of Was America Founded as a Christian Nation?: A Historical Introduction
About the Author(s)
Matthew L. Harris is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Graduate Program in History at Colorado State University-Pueblo.
Thomas S. Kidd is Associate Professor of History at Baylor University and Senior Fellow at the Institute for Studies of Religion. He is the author of God of Liberty: A Religious History of the American Revolution (2010) and other books.
