Theology in America: Christian Thought from the Age of the Puritans to the Civil War

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 640 pages
• Published by: Yale University Press March 11, 2005
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 030010765X
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0300107654
• Book Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.5 inches
• Weighs: 1.9 pounds

From Publishers Weekly
In this majestic achievement, Holifield (Emory University) provides a first-rate, richly evocative and unrivaled history of theology in America. With graceful prose and measured historical analysis, he traces the development of American theology from the 17th century to 1865, looking at the major themes that emerged during these crucial years. He looks at early American theology's grounding in Calvinism, emphasis on practicality and ethics, denominational setting, ongoing conversation with European theology, and division between academic and populist strands. Holifield contends that the defining mark of theologians in early America was their shared interest in the reasonableness of Christianity. Carefully attentive to the theological movements of these times, he observes the ways that the interest in a rational theology derived from a variety of sources, including English natural philosophy, deism and Scottish Common Sense Realism. In particular, Holifield sketches the disposition toward rational theology from the Puritans through the various denominational movements of the 18th century and on to the resistance to reasonableness in 19th-century theologians such as Orestes Brownson. Throughout this marvelous study, Holifield provides accounts of major and minor theologians, ranging from Cotton Mather and Jonathan Edwards to the Quaker Elias Hicks and the African-American preacher Jupiter Hammon. The sketches of Edwards and Horace Bushnell are alone worth the price of the book. This masterfully narrated, splendid book will become the definitive study of the development of American theology.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Publishers Weekly
. . . . [A] marvelous study. . . . This masterfully narrated, splendid book will become the definitive study of the development of American theology. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Reader Reviews
This review is from: Theology in America: Christian Thought from the Age of the Puritans to the Civil War (Hardcover) This text is monumental for many reasons. First, it is the most comprehensive text of its kind. 'Of its kind' merely means that there is no other text-at least that I am aware of-that covers, in as much detail the theological trends, movements, and groups, and individual thinkers/theologians in American historical theology. Second, the text is very well written, well documented, researched, and structured. This makes it easy for the reader to glean information and facts from its content. Another excellent feature of this text is its examination of not only Protestant movements, groups, and thinkers, but Catholic movements, groups and thinkers as well. Holifield begins his work with Calvinistic origins (focusing on Jonathan Edwards, and then moves into other groups such as Unitarians, Diests, Methodists, Baptists, Episcopal, and even Black theology. From here, Holifield discusses Lutherans, Catholics, Transcendentalists, several individual thinkers such as Horace Bushnell, and Isaac Hecker (transcendental Catholics). Scattered throughout the text, Holifield describes how certain thinkers such as Kant and Hume, for example, had an impact on certain other thinkers and religious movements or groups. These 'tid bits' of extra history are very helpful for the reader to gain a better grasp of what was going on historically during certain movements, etc. As an added bonus, Holifield devotes an entire chapter to the affects of slavery in American religious history. Overall, this is a great text for the person who wishes to gain greater insight into historical theology, Church history, and/or theological movements. Comment | | (Report this)