Faith in the Halls of Power: How Evangelicals Joined the American Elite (Hardcover)

by D. Michael Lindsay (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Lindsay, a sociologist at Rice University who has previously worked with pollster George Gallup Jr., looks at the rise of evangelical Christian influence in the spheres of power of American public life: political, intellectual, cultural and economic. Based on interviews with 360 leaders from these spheres, including two former presidents, as well as a command of what everybody else has heretofore written, Lindsay demonstrates how over the past two decades evangelicals have moved into positions of great influence. From a sociological point of view, their path to power is easy to discern through networks of relationships or institutions that have seeded larger political and economic institutions. This growing network has produced new leaders whose ideas and actions are motivated by their Christianity. The interviews allow Lindsay to cite numerous examples that make his point persuasively. He is a sympathetic observer who understands that evangelicalism is as reformist as any other movement that has ascended to power in America. Yet he also understands that evangelicalism has made accommodation to the larger public life it seeks to reform, a tension he calls elastic orthodoxy. This important work should be required reading for anyone who wants to opine publicly on what American evangelicals are really up to. (Oct.)
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Review

"Evangelicals, as D. Michael Lindsay demonstrates with impressive research and inexhaustible energy in Faith in the Halls of Power, have made great strides in entering mainstream institutions like academia, government, the media and business...Lindsay accurately reflects the evangelical subculture he describes...He works hard, incredibly hard, to get across his points that evangelicals are present in all our prominent institutions and that we should get to know them better."--The New York Times Book Review
"This important work should be required reading for anyone who wants to opine publicly on what American evangelicals are really up to."--Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
"Fascinating"--John Schmalzbauer, Wall Street Journal
"An impressive and admirably fair-minded book: anybody who wants to understand the nexus between God and power in modern America should start here."--The Economist
"It's the rare scholarly book that could appeal to a nonacademic audience. Like the powerful people it covers, the book refuses to accept a narrow identity. It aims to make waves in the larger world."-Lisa Gray, Houston Chronicle
"A remarkably balanced look at what Lindsay describes as 'the most discussed but least understood group in America today.' Combining academic rigor with flowing prose, Lindsay presents the fruits of over 10 years of research on elite evangelicals, including unprecedented interviews with 360 of them, among them two former presidents. Lindsay lets these leading evangelicals speak for themselves, but he also points out their inconsistencies and omissions...Those looking to understand the current generation, however, would do well to read D. Michael Lindsay, for he captures the complexities of evangelical life in a book that no one interested in the current state of American life can ignore."--The Weekly Standard
"Mr. Lindsay refreshingly bypasses the usual media impulse to treat evangelical leaders, their institutions and followers as exotic outcroppings of the American power elite. Adopting instead a clearly sympathetic view of the exercise of religious ideas in the public sphere, Mr. Lindsay is able to elicit not only the now-familiar story of the evangelical elite's post-Reagan era prominence, but also the less-appreciated story of how those same leaders' dalliance with worldly power is reshaping contemporary Protestant piety."--New York Observer
"This well-written history of the rise of evangelicals in American society provides a scholarly account of the motives and methods of how this new religious movement has reached the peaks of power in politics, academia, business, media, and philanthropy. The book is thorough and full of facts, outlining what makes a person evangelical and how evangelicals have acquired so much influence...delivers a clear picture of how evangelicals have become a dominant force in the United States...for people wanting an understanding of how evangelicals have acquired so much power, money, and influence in the past 30 years, this is the ultimate insider's book."--Sojourners Magazine
"If your schedule and normal reading load means you can only read one book on contemporary American evangelicalism per year, THIS is the one you need to grab."--Evangelical Studies Bulletin
"Faith in the Halls of Power is the most sophisticated and comprehensive study of Evangelical leadership and power in America."--Commonweal magazine
"This definitive work addresses the whos, whys, whats, and implications of the evangelical movement's increasing impact on the realm of politics and the marketplace...Highly recommended."--Library Journal
"A well-written, thoroughly researched, nuanced, and elegant account of the rise of evangelicals. It is an important volume that merits the attention of academics and nonacademics alike."--Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion
"People of faith have an enormous impact on our society. Michael Lindsay's brilliant book has the story everyone else has missed. You must read this book."--Senator Bill Frist, M.D. (R-TN)
"Jesus tells his followers to 'be in the world but not of the world.' This has created tension for the faithful from the first century Church until today. D. Michael Lindsay takes the reader where faith meets politics and culture. This book explores how modern evangelicals struggle to apply the principles of Christ to an ever-changing society. Faith in the Halls of Power provides crucial insights into how evangelicals are influencing and being influenced by our world."--Senator Mark Pryor (D-AR)
"For more than three decades evangelical Christians have been self-consciously assuming positions of leadership across virtually all sectors of American society. Michael Lindsay's fact-filled book, based on his unique collection of personal interviews, presents a striking self-portrait of this new elite and how they reached power."--Robert D. Putnam, Professor of Public Policy, Harvard University, and author of Bowling Alone
"Quick, which of these fellows exercises more influence upon American life: Michael Moore or Rick Warren? If your answer is Michael Moore, you should read this book. It's an engaging account of how evangelical leaders like Rick Warren and many, many others have swept into the halls of power--from the White House and corporate boardrooms to the Academy and Hollywood. Through interviews with more than 350 evangelicals in leadership positions, Michael Lindsay provides a fresh, valuable portrait of a powerful force in modern America."--David Gergen, Advisor to Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton
"Michael Lindsay got it right. As someone of faith who has been in the public eye for many years, I can say that he tells the story of faith-based leadership with all its perils and possibilities accurately and with deep insight." --Ken Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager an