A Secular Faith: Why Christianity Favors the Separation of Church and State [Hardcover]

D. G. Hart (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2006

Darryl Hart, the highly regarded historian of religion, contends that appeals to Christianity for social and political well-being fundamentally misconstrue the meaning of the Christian religion. His book weaves together historical narratives of American Protestantism's influence on the nation's politics, and commentary on recent writing about religion and public life, with expositions of Christian teaching. The tapestry that emerges is a compelling faith-based argument for keeping Christianity out of politics.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this fascinating, well-documented historical exploration of religious expression in American life, Hart (The University Gets Religion) argues that while religion has long had a voice in the public square, its current influence is extraordinary. Hart moves smoothly back and forth through American history as he traces the substance of debates over America's providential role, religion and public education, what it means to be a nation "under God" and the dream of a unified national faith. His discussion of the 19th-century rise of anti-Catholicism and the evolution of Roman Catholic attitudes toward involvement in American political life (as exemplified in the campaigns of Al Smith and JFK) is particularly engaging, as is his critique of the current enthusiasm for "compassionate conservatism." Evangelicals have not only lost the idea that churches had a singular spiritual role, but have also surrendered the notion, argues Hart, "that the churches' task is ultimately more important than the state's." One only wishes that he could have made a stronger argument for his central premise-that the claims and character of Christianity mean that believers living in a democratic state must balance, not confuse and conjoin, their dual sets of duties, both as pilgrims and citizens.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

"My argument is that the basic teachings of Christianity are virtually useless for resolving America's political disputes," says religious historian Hart, and he demonstrates how nine familiar American concepts anent church-state relations confound Protestant doctrine, in particular. As a conservative Protestant, he declines to speak for Catholicism, but at least one major common doctrine proves vital throughout. That is Augustine's distinction of the holy city of God from the secular city of man. Christians are perforce citizens of both, but their only specifically Christian obligation concerning secular citizenship is to ensure that the laws do not injure faith and its practices. Hart cites Jesus even more frequently than Augustine to distinguish constitutional freedom of religion from specifically Christian freedom, to show why nineteenth-century Catholic bishops correctly objected to Bible reading in the public schools, to discriminate the individualism basic to democracy from the corporate identity required by the church, and to expose "compassionate conservative" policies, such as Bush II's faith-based initiative, as non-Christian. Although demanding to read, Hart's argument is blazingly enlightening. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Ivan R. Dee (September 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566635764
• ISBN-13: 978-1566635769
• Product Dimensions: 1.1 x 6.2 x 8.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #172,728 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

D. G. Hart lives in Michigan with his wife, Ann, and their two cats, Isabelle and Cordelia, where he teaches history at Hillsdale College. Hart used to be an East-Coast snob (though he still roots for the Phillies) but while living in a small mid-western town he has learned that life exists outside the Northeast Corridor. He is currently completing a global history of Calvinism and plans to write books on H. L. Mencken and American religion, and on Roman Catholicism and American conservatism.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars An Interesting Approach May 2, 2007

By M. C. Andwood

Format:Hardcover

Original, thought-provoking and oftentimes controversial, Darryl Hart's book, A Secular Faith: Why Christianity Favors the Separation of Church and State, presents a new perspective of the proper boundaries of the Christian Church in the political arena of the United States of America. Hart ardently supports the strict separation of church and state and he presents this much-debated topic as a study of the negative effects of American politics on the Christian religion, rather than the negative influence of religion on politics. Offering a rebuttal to those conservative Christians who believe the secularization of American society heralds its downfall, Hart declares that this secularization is saving Christianity from being misemployed and trivialized by supporting political agendas.

Hart assumes that Christianity is an apolitical faith whose realm of authority only concerns the personal and private matters of salvation for Christians. Christianity has no role in political machinations and its public advocacy is not necessary for moral or good government. Reiterating the Augustinian conceptualization of the City of God and the City of Man, Hart argues that politics should focus on the material and physical world and the church should focus solely on the spiritual Kingdom that is to come. Christianity, he posits, relates only to the spiritual realm and therefore cannot inform the organization of society, such as the endorsement of a certain polity, or sanction government programs, such as social-welfare reform. Christians, he believes, are called to live perpetually hyphenated lives in which they constantly struggle with their identities and responsibilities as Christians and as citizens.... However, Hart makes a distinction between the individual social action that Jesus asks of his followers and official church support of political social justice programs that seemingly destroys the transcendent quality of Christianity.

The book contains nine chapters, each analyzing a facet of the relationship between church and state in American history. Hart provides thorough historical context, illustrates the various interpretations of each issue and proposes his argument in comparison to previous opinions. Hart discredits the supposition that the fundamental ideas of liberty and rights in American democracy were rooted in Christianity, specifically New England Puritanism and Calvinism. He maintains that Christian denominations had no political motives and that religious principles were not integral to the basis of American government though they had a definite influence on society. He denounces the revivalist movements for their blatant endorsement of democracy that crossed the line between the responsibilities of church and state. In his analysis of more recent examples, Hart discusses parochial education controversies and criticizes the compassionate conservative movement for tying Christian duty with political activism, thus replacing the church's higher spiritual duties with the more mundane and ultimately less important matters of the material world.

Since his opinions counter the social teachings of numerous Protestant denominations as well as the social doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, Hart admits that his ideas are more suggestions than assertions. Therefore, he does not defend the theological basis for his suggestions, since other Christian denominations base their counter-arguments on different doctrine. Though unorthodox, Hart's new perspective is strong enough to contend with the previously established views of church and state and worth serious consideration. Read more ›

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Desperately needed; wonderfully clear August 11, 2007

By Anne Rice

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

We need this book right now. The arguments in America of 2007 over church and state are approaching delirium. We need Hart's well informed, well documented and decisive approach to the question. This is one of the best books I've seen on the issue, and one that is especially meaningful for Christians. Also recommended: the works of the great historian Mark Noll. --- [e-mail]

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars A faulty premise leads to faulty analysis and an errant conclusion May 7, 2012

By R. Setliff

Format:Hardcover

~A Secular Faith: Why Christianity Favors the Separation of Church and State~ argues for a separation of church and state so strict it would make Thomas Jefferson blush. "My argument is that the basic teachings of Christianity are virtually useless for resolving America's political disputes," stresses Daryl Hart. Here's the premise. The ends that he contends for of a thoroughly secular state might be amenable to secularists, agnostics, and atheists. But one must consider his thesis is arguing why Christianity, and by implication the Holy Bible, lends credence to a "secular faith" as Hart dubs it. Here's where he fails egregiously

There is an article, entitled "The Kingdom Misunderstood: Learning to Perceive the Kingdom Correctly" by Charles Dunahoo that cuts apart the logic of Hart's argument on biblical grounds. This article is available online at Christian Education and Publications (CEP). Mindful of the all-sufficiency of Scriptures, a notion that twentieth-century Christian divine Francis Schaeffer contended for, there is ample reason to believe that the Scriptures give us a basis for informing an ideal political philosophy. Christians have a cultural mandate to influence the civil society in which they live, as well as proclaim the Gospel, evangelize and make disciples of men. To abandon the public square to secularists inevitably leads Christians to being governed by their moral inferiors. Historically western states have helped sustain moral norms (most of which we take for granted) in harmony with the teachings of the Bible, though their efforts ultimately depend on the efficacy of ecclesial structures. This Christian influence on the law is part of providence's common grace for believers and unbelievers alike.

It would be hyperbole, but useful polemic to say D.G.... Hart like John MacArthur, embraces a borderline manichean dualism and practical quasi-gnosticism. Hart, in his insistence upon a radically secular state, as if it has a mandate from Christianity, produces an argument that is glib, pragmatic, and lacks a persuasive quality. When you realize his epistemology (i.e., methodology for the dissemination of knowledge) is constrained by the underlying premise of his book, he logically must revert to the authority of the Scriptures to argue for a "Secular Faith." But what he produces are pragmatic arguments that do not find an adequate basis in Christian teaching. External to the authority of the scriptures, Christian tradition from the patristics to the Reformation to modernity do not favor the thesis of a "Secular Faith" at all.

Hart, like most evangelical and confessional Christians, understandably eschews Constantinianism - the symbiotic union of church and state - in Byzantium. However, one cannot help but to see the thrust of Hart's argument being more pragmatic and reactionary in nature than rooted in a scriptural imperative. He overlooks Neo-Calvinist arguments like Abraham Kuyper and the notion of sphere sovereignty, which takes a middle ground position, and arguably a more proper perspective on church-state relations from a Christian standpoint.

This book builds somewhat on the premises and conclusions of Hart's other works, namely The Lost Soul of American Protestantism (American Intellectual Culture) and From Billy Graham to Sarah Palin: Evangelicals and the Betrayal of American Conservatism. Note that why I am critical of Hart's thesis here, I have reviewed the other titles more sympathetically. In fact, I think his other books are well-reasoned and merit attention. Read more ›

7 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Can Christianity be used for political and social ends? November 5, 2006

By Midwest Book Review

Format:Hardcover

A SECULAR FAITH: WHY CHRISTIANITY FAVORS THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE outlines the foundations of a long-standing argument - and the divide between religious and secular America, which has been particularly pointed over the last few decades. Can Christianity be used for political and social ends? A SECULAR FAITH questions this approach and provides documentation of political and religious rivalries over the years.

Diane C. Donovan

California Bookwatch

6 of 25 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Preaching to the choir? January 9, 2007

By Raymond E. Conroy

Format:Hardcover

I am a Secular Humanist who is alarmed by the idea that government policy should be dictated by religious belief. The author's thesis is that religious persons should be concerned as well. I thought that the book was well written, but I doubt that it will convince those who want to remove the Bill of Rights from our courts so as to make room for the Ten Commandments.

Darryl Hart points out that this nation was not, in fact, established on a theological foundation. Furthermore, dynamiting the dam between church and state is an unpredictable affair, fraught with the potential for unintended consequences. It might do as much harm to

Will this persuade those who want to reduce abortion and the use of birth control? Who think that homosexuality is a lifestyle choice? Who believe that the Universe is 6,000 years old? I suspect not.