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Gary Scott Smith

Duty and Destiny: The Life and Faith of Winston Churchill (Library of Religious Biography (LRB)) Hardcover – January 19, 2021

by Gary Scott Smith (Author)

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A nuanced portrait of a great historical figure considered everything from a “God-haunted man” to a “stalwart nonbeliever”

What did faith mean to Winston Churchill?

Churchill was far from transparent about his religious beliefs and never regularly attended church services as an adult, even considering himself “not a pillar of the church but a buttress,” in the sense that he supported it “from the outside.” But Gary Scott Smith assembles pieces of Churchill’s life and words to convey the profound sense of duty and destiny, partly inspired by his religious convictions, that undergirded his outlook. Reflecting on becoming prime minister in 1940, he wrote, “It felt as if I were walking with destiny, and that all my past life had been but a preparation for this hour and for this trial.” In a similarly grand fashion, he described opposing the Nazis—and later the Soviets—as a struggle between light and darkness, driven by the duty to preserve “humane, enlightened, Christian society.”

Though Churchill harbored intellectual doubts about Christianity throughout his life, he nevertheless valued it greatly and drew on its resources, especially in the crucible of war. In Duty and Destiny, Smith unpacks Churchill’s paradoxical religious views and carefully analyzes the complexities of his legacy. This thorough examination of Churchill’s religious life provides a new narrative structure to make sense of one of the most important figures of the twentieth century.

Print length

255 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Eerdmans
Publication date

January 19, 2021
Dimensions

6 x 1 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

0802877001
ISBN-13

978-0802877000
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Winston Churchill ‘was not a deist, an agnostic, an atheist, or a Christian.’ What, then, was he? Gary Scott Smith, an authority on religion and American presidents, here turns his discerning eye to the role that faith played in the life, work, and character of one of the most monumental political figures of the twentieth century. The result is a model of critical investigation and nuanced judgment. Religion is too important to overlook in political analysis—and too easy to exaggerate or get wrong. This volume shows how to do it right.”
— James D. Bratt
coauthor of A Christian and a Democrat: A Religious Biography of Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Gary Scott Smith, with detail and good research, tackles the complicated relationship between religion and politics in Churchill’s thought. We learn that Churchill was a believer in a faith—which was at the heart of his appeal in the Second World War—but not necessarily a practitioner. His book confirms Churchill’s quip that he accumulated in youth ‘so fine a surplus in the Bank of Observance that I have been drawing confidently upon it ever since, [never making] enquiries about the state of my account. It might well even be that I should find an overdraft.’”
— Richard M. Langworth
senior fellow, Hillsdale College Churchill Project

“So much of Winston Churchill’s life and character defies simple classification, and his religion is no exception. In this meticulously researched and authoritative study, Gary Scott Smith goes beyond the public rhetoric—steeped, as he shows, in biblical and liturgical allusions—to discern the elements of the private faith which underpinned much of Churchill’s life. He argues persuasively that while Churchill was neither the unbeliever nor the orthodox Christian that different writers have claimed, his faith, although in many ways an enigma, was nonetheless real and important. It is indeed, as the author says, a ‘complex, colorful, and compelling’ story.”
— Andrew Connell
Cardiff University

The Living Church
“This is all we ever look for in a biography: the truth in all its strange appearances. Smith’s book helps us know Churchill better than ever, and we do not love the great man any less for the revelations.”

Catholic World Report
“Kudos to Gary Scott Smith for giving us something far more measured and thoughtful about the person of Winston Churchill than the narrow caricature being framed by today’s cultural revolutionaries.”

Law & Liberty
“Gary Scott Smith should be commended for making available all the crucial evidence regarding Churchill, religion, and the life of the soul. I think he is right that the great Churchill was, in the end, neither an atheist nor an orthodox Christian.”

CHOICE
“A detailed chronological treatment of expressions of religious belief or sentiment from Churchill’s school days to the end of his momentous life. . . . Recommended.”

About the Author

Gary Scott Smith is professor of history emeritus at Grove City College, where he taught from 1978 to 2017. In 2001, he was named Pennsylvania Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. He is the author or editor of eighteen books, including Duty and Destiny: The Life and Faith of Winston Churchill and Religion in the Oval Office: The Religious Lives of American Presidents.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Eerdmans (January 19, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 255 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0802877001
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0802877000
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.14 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #933,347 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #52 in U.K. Prime Minister Biographies
- #2,022 in History of Religions
- #5,426 in Religious Leader Biographies

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Gary Scott Smith

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Gary Scott Smith chairs the History Department and coordinates the Humanities Core at Grove City College where he has taught since 1978. He received Grove City College’s inaugural Professor of the Year award in 2000, and the next year he was named Pennsylvania Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. He is the author or editor of eleven books including and Faith and the Presidency: From George Washington to George W. Bush (Oxford University Press, 2006; paperback, 2009), Heaven in the American Imagination (Oxford University Press, 2011), Religion in the Oval Office: The Religious Lives of American Presidents (Oxford University Press, 2015), and Suffer the Children: What We Can Do to Improve the Lives of the World’s Impoverished Children (Cascade Books, 2017). Smith is also an ordained minister in the PCUSA and served five congregations as an interim or stated supply pastor.

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4.6 out of 5

16 global ratings

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Elizabeth Bohbrink

An in-depth analysis of Churchill’s faith and its use in his governing style

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 22, 2021

Verified Purchase

Great analysis of Churchill’s faith and spiritual basis for his governing! A must read for fans of Churchill and a love of getting the most complete view on his governing style, along with his interactions with world leaders. I loved it! 5 stars! John Bohbrink

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Dave1

Was Churchill a man of faith or just pretending to be?

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 22, 2021

Verified Purchase

There have been many books written on Churchill. Smith's "faith perspective" is an interesting lens with which to learn about Churchill and his life. If you are a student of history, it is a good read.

2 people found this helpful

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Tregonsee

A complicated life reviewed

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 11, 2021

An interesting look at a very complicated individual's life and beliefs. In general, this historical recounting does about as good a job as possible in condensing a life which normally requires multiple volumes into a relatively short 185 pages. A few errors crept in, such as attributing something which other sources attribute to Clementine saying, to Churchill himself, and the inexplicable mistake of referring to Hap Arnold as a British General. Perhaps the greatest strength of the book is the extensive documentation which will allow the interested reader to look into individual issues more deeply. As with any specialized biography such as this, it helps to have read at least one of the standard general biographiess first.

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Margie

The Story of the Great Man of the Twentieth Century - Well Told

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 17, 2021

Well researched and written by Gary Scott Smith and narrated by Richard Turner, this book used a unique perspective through which to look at a fascinating life. Duty and Destiny: The Life and Faith of Winston Churchill brings new insight into this man - his complicated faith and the nature of his values. I really enjoyed this book!

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