America's God: From Jonathan Edwards to Abraham Lincoln [Paperback]

Mark A. Noll (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 21, 2005

Religious life in early America is often equated with the fire-and-brimstone Puritanism best embodied by the theology of Cotton Mather. Yet, by the nineteenth century, American theology had shifted dramatically away from the severe European traditions directly descended from the Protestant Reformation, of which Puritanism was in the United States the most influential. In its place arose a singularly American set of beliefs. In America's God, Mark Noll has written a biography of this new American ethos. In the 125 years preceding the outbreak of the Civil War, theology played an extraordinarily important role in American public and private life. Its evolution had a profound impact on America's self-definition. The changes taking place in American theology during this period were marked by heightened spiritual inwardness, a new confidence in individual reason, and an attentiveness to the economic and market realities of Western life. Vividly set in the social and political events of the age, America's God is replete with the figures who made up the early American intellectual landscape, from theologians such as Jonathan Edwards, Nathaniel W. Taylor, William Ellery Channing, and Charles Hodge and religiously inspired writers such as Harriet Beecher Stowe and Catherine Stowe to dominant political leaders of the day like Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln. The contributions of these thinkers combined with the religious revival of the 1740s, colonial warfare with France, the consuming struggle for independence, and the rise of evangelical Protestantism to form a common intellectual coinage based on a rising republicanism and commonsense principles. As this Christian republicanism affirmed itself, it imbued in dedicated Christians a conviction that the Bible supported their beliefs over those of all others. Tragically, this sense of religious purpose set the stage for the Civil War, as the conviction of Christians both North and South that God was on their side served to deepen a schism that would soon rend the young nation asunder. Mark Noll has given us the definitive history of Christian theology in America from the time of Jonathan Edwards to the presidency of Abraham Lincoln. It is a story of a flexible and creative theological energy that over time forged a guiding national ideology the legacies of which remain with us to this day.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This "social history of theology" in America, from the colonial era through the Civil War, promises to reshape the way we think about American religion, and, indeed, American history. Noll, who teaches history at evangelicalism's premier liberal arts college, Wheaton, charts the changes and developments in American theology, but he does not approach this potentially technical and narrow topic from the fusty perspective of old-fashioned intellectual history. Rather, he embeds theology in American society, showing how, inter alia, printing presses, legislatures and war shaped, and were shaped by, theology. His gauntlet-throwing argument is that American theology (by which he means primarily Protestant theology) is markedly different from European theology. A specifically American evangelicalism, he contends, was forged during the Revolution and early Republic. Noll's story ends with the Civil War, which he claims reveals a "theological tragedy": the contradictions and complications of this distinctly American religion were exposed when, in war, the American project proved wanting. Noll's hints of the "post-Protestant, even post-Christian" post-bellum America will leave readers hoping for a sequel. Although this magnum opus will be of interest primarily to scholars, it could certainly be appreciated by a larger audience. Noll's trademark clarity-both in analysis and in prose-is in evidence here; unlike many academics, he does not make the reader hunt and strain to find (and follow) his argument. Equally obvious is Noll's erudite mastery of everything from Puritan ecclesiology to Scottish moral philosophy. This is, finally, the magisterial work that has long been expected from one of our leading historians.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Noll (Christian thought, Wheaton Coll.) is a well-recognized historian and author of American religious history. Here, he closely examines pre-Civil War American religion, showing that it was a unique synthesis of republicanism, commonsense moral reasoning, and evangelical Christianity. The antebellum United States was a society uniquely preoccupied with biblical religion, but American religion also reflected the prevailing sentiments and political preoccupations of secular society. Noll brings to light some lesser-known theological thinkers while also reexamining the more famous figures of the time, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Thomas Jefferson, and Jonathan Edwards. Carefully documented and including an excellent bibliography, this insightful volume makes a useful contribution to the study of religion in America. It is not aimed at the general public but is unusually readable for such a scholarly book. Recommended for academic and large public libraries.
C. Robert Nixon, M.L.S., Lafayette, IN
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 640 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (April 21, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195182995
• ISBN-13: 978-0195182996
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 1.5 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #555,476 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 49 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Role of "Christian Republicanism" in American History December 30, 2002

By Robert Morris HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

What we have here is a remarkably comprehensive examination of the role formal religion played in the United States from the Colonial period through the Civil War. For various reasons, those who formulated the Constitution insisted on a separation of church and state as well as certain checks and balances within the federal government. What I found most interesting in Noll's book is his analysis of the transition from European Puritanism (after almost 200 years) to what could be called American Evangelism (emerging in the late-1790s) which not only allowed but indeed celebrated freedom of religion. Noll's primary subject is the evolution of American theology. He necessarily examines the historical context within which that process occurred. My only quarrel with him, probably more an honest difference of opinion than a complaint, is that he suggests -- or at least assumes -- a homogeneity in America's religious life which seems to be contradicted by what the separation of church and state made possible: religious heterogeneity protected by the Constitution and sustained by the checks and balances. Nonetheless, Noll succeeds brilliantly in explaining how and why religion was central to early-American history.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars cultural and political confluence with religious thinking January 3, 2004

By R. M. Williams

Format:Hardcover

I came to the book at a result of reading _Jonathan Edwards: A life_ by Marsden. M.Noll like G.Marsden has made my short list of i-must-read-them authors. This is perhaps my 5th book by him i've run across and looked at during my year's study of the issues in the creation-evolution-design(CED) debate. It is, to me, a rather important book for it puts together several issues i have been thinking about but had not related, in particular slavery and evolution being, in the conservative Christian community, similiar issues revolving around the interpretation of Scripture, i intend to follow up this idea. Furthermore, the very systematic way he goes about building a case for the influences of republican ideals on Reformed theology interests me as a very concrete example of the way the cultural matrix determines religious thought. Noll doesn't use the term "American captivity of the Christian Church" but the critical ideas are presented to make such a case.

It's a rather long (450pages) book, with a complex structure and at times detailed arguments, so i find myself wondering to whom to recommend it. Because of it's historical nature and subject material, simply reading the chapters that most interest you is not as good an option as it would be in reading a collection of essays. So if you simply want to get a taste of the book i would read the first 20 or so pages which are the introduction to both the book, how Noll approaches his subject and what he intends to show with this scholarly research. I found chapters 18 and 19 the most interesting: chapter 18 "The 'Bible Alone' and a Reformed, Literal Hermeneutic", and
chapter 19 "The Bible and Slavery", i have several long quotes from these chapters on my extended review at: [...]
.... I think if someone is adequately motivated that the book is accessible to anyone with an interest in history but if your knowledge of the time period or of the theologies discussed is inadequate you will wonder what the fuss is all about, perhaps many secular people will wonder that in any case.

The theme of the book is not hard to summarize. It is that forces of the political life of the US, in particular, republicanism, Whiggery, the demand for equality, had a very important influence on the evolution of each American Christian theology. So too did several cultural influences in the philosophic sphere: common sense moral reasoning via the Scottish enlightenment, an anti-authoritarianism that reached out to all authorities-kings, priests, intellectuals, elites, these too influenced the evolving theology. But the influence was not just a one-way street, but rather in the search for converts the churches became a dominant influence in the culture, not just themselves but the myriad voluntary organizations they gave rise to. So by the Civil War we have a voluntary church, disestablished where those in Europe were not, filled with republicans, certain that their common sense will rightly interpret the Bible, and their morality derived thusly will support a glorious city-on-the-hill that they envisioned for the US. But the devil is in the details, and this is where the book gets really interesting. How do these forces relate? How does theology evolve, why and who is doing what thinking and writing? All done with a scholarly professor's mind, tying together the years of research with a joy and exuberance that is catching. Thanks M. Noll for another most excellent read....... Read more ›

39 of 46 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Sophisticated But Flawed Argument for Reformed Theology February 8, 2005

By Nicholas Miller

Format:Hardcover

Noll argues that American Protestantism developed a unique religious perspective due to the combining of three historical idea forces: 1) the theology of the Protestant Reformation, 2) the philosophy of republicanism that arose from and was animated by the American revolution, and 3) the thought of the Scottish common-sense Enlightenment.

Protestantism's ability or willingness to speak the language of these three strands of thought made it the religion of choice and influence in the early republic, as its apologetic and evangelistic discourse echoed contemporary political assumptions and commitments.

But, Noll argues, there was a down-side to this success. The theology of Protestantism was itself changed by the use of this republican and common-sense language. These changes led to a literalistic, individualistic Biblical hermeneutic that made American Protestantism unable to speak definitively on the issue of slavery. North and South used the American Protestant hermeneutic to come to radically different conclusions on the morality of slavery.

This intractability ended in the civil war, which was not just a political crisis, but a theological one as well. The failure of the American Protestant synthesis to resolve the great moral issue of slavery, Noll argues, caused it to lose its social force, and opened the way for the modern era.

Noll's argument is almost overwhelming. He lays an exhaustive groundwork of 18th century religious/philosophical/political thought, moves into early 19th century theological evolution of Calvinism and Methodism, and then builds to a civil-war-era climax of heated, yet impotent, theological dispute. Each section is so rich and deep that challenging Noll on his intermediate conclusions is a daunting task.... Yet, Noll's ultimate conclusion is so breathtaking in its implications for non-Calvinist theologies, that a closer look is warranted. A few key observations can be made.

Noll has a tendency to so broadly define his key terms that their essential meaning becomes vague, obscure and highly malleable. The most obvious example of this is his use of the word "republicanism," which Noll uses to cover concepts such as virtu (common good), anti-aristocracy, rule of law, proper use of power, separation of powers, representative government, and most largely, the belief in the reciprocity of personal morality and social-well being. (55-57).

He later adds to this mélange of meaning by distinguishing between civic-humanism republicanism, which was concerned with the public good and order, and liberal republicanism, which emphasized individual self-determination and, according to Noll, economic rights. (210-211). Noll himself acknowledges that "republicanism" was a "multivalent, plastic and often extraordinarily imprecise term." (447) Yet he frequently cites historical writers and speakers in support of his "republicanism" thesis, without attempting to determine which particular meaning of republicanism the historical thinker had in mind.

Noll is also guilty of this in dealing with the "common-sense" Enlightenment. Every reference to human reason, intuition, insight or other source of knowledge other than scripture becomes an example of common sense philosophy, whether the reference is before or after Hutcheson and Reid. The great flexibility of terms is significant, as it gives Noll enormous latitude in his argument to sweep in or out thinkers, ideas and theologies, depending on how they relate to his main thesis.

Perhaps the single most important argument against Noll's larger thesis is Methodism. Pre-revolutionary Methodism had the literalistic, individualistic hermeneutic, along with the "reasonable" view of God, sinners and salvation that Calvinism only moved towards as it was tempered by post-revolution republicanism and common-sense philosophy. (333-334).

To his credit, Noll himself acknowledges the "sting" of the Methodist argument, agreeing that Methodism contained the elements of "American Protestantism" before it actually came to America. (334, 340-41).

But acknowledging the sting is one thing; removing it is another. Noll does not do this, nor really try to. Methodism does seem to raise an unanswered challenge to the charge that it was the "corruptions" of republicanism and common-sense thought that caused Protestant America to turn literalistic, individualistic, and arminian, and to be unable to cope with slavery. Methodism was all these things without republican and common-sense reasoning, and it was, at least initially, forcefully anti-slavery.

Thus, an alternate interpretation to Noll's is that: Biblical protestant Christianity contained the seeds of individuality, freedom and common-sense echoed in republicanism and common-sense thinking, that the intractable nature of the slavery dispute had to do with flawed constitutional rather than theological compromises, and that Southern religious' views were shaped more by the commercial impulses of their founding than by faithfulness to a Biblically-derived hermeneutic. This view is supported, at least in part, by Noll's tracing of the process of theological development: the insights of general revelation (general human experience) interact with, clarify, and even modify, understandings of special revelation (Biblical interpretation), and vice versa.

But further discussion of this would lengthen an already over-long review. Suffice it to say that the majority of American Christian's today would claim allegiance not to Edward's God, or Lincoln's God, or Noll's God-but to the Bible's God, as they read about and understand Him in the Bible for themselves. Which is not a bad legacy for a "permanently damaged" theology. (445).

Noll's comprehensive, even magisterial work, is clearly going to be required reading for everyone on both sides of almost any discussion of religion in the early republic. Read more ›

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Good survey of Christian Theological Development in the USA July 18, 2006

By Dr. Marc Axelrod VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

Mark Noll wrote this book with the goal of describing how Christian theology gradually became more comfortable using the catchwords and ideas of the American political scene (liberty, freedom, virtue, rights, common sense, reason). Noll shows that even though Calvinist and Arminian and Wesleyan thought may not have radically changed because of American republicanism, the way they were packaged and presented were.

In this book, we begin with the traditional Reformed ideas of Jonathan Edwards. We see how Calvinists in America were quick to side with the colonies in the years leading up to the Revolutionary War. We see how even George Whitefield was somewhat sympathetic toward the colonial cause, though he tended to shy away from preaching politics.

We read of John Wesley's opposition to the American form of government, as he reveals that he has not met one republican who was a good Christian.

We see how Thomas Paine's writings were very influential in promoting reason and common sense, and how this influenced preachers of the faith, such as Timothy Dwight, the new President of Yale, who rumor has it spend six months in 1795 challenging his students to a debate on whether or not the Bible was the Word of God.

We see how Charles Finney incorporated populist American jargon into his revival sermons. We also see his ardent opposition to the American slavery system.

Speaking of slavery, the last 100 pages of the book deals with how people of differings theological persuasions dealt with this divisive issue. Noll seems sorry to report that the pro slavery people did a better job of supporting their view from scripture than the abolitionists did....

Noll also seems ready to blame the Reformed Literal Method of interpreting scripture for influencing people to support the institution of slavery.

There is also an interesting discussion about the theological reflections of Abraham Lincoln. Noll notes that the 16th President of the United States was no evangelical and that he wasn't an active member of any organized church.

In fact, Noll contends that none of the notable founding fathers of the United States were evangelicals.

I recommend this book to history students and those who are interested in the history of Christianity in America. This book is a nice complement to Noll's earlier "History of Christianity in the US and Canada."

But the reason why I give this book 4 stars instead of five is that most of the time, it makes for tedious reading. The sections on the development of Holiness theology after Asbury was engaging, and the section about slavery held my attention as well.

But the bulk of the book is tough, academic reading. You may want to read instead Noll's more accessible book "The Rise of Evangelicalism."

Rev. Marc Axelrod Read more ›