false 686207 3 A landmark examination of Christianity's place in American life across the broad sweep of this country's history, from the Puritans to the presidential administration of George W. Bush. <br/><br/> The struggle within American Christianity, Garry Wills argues, now and throughout our country's history, is between the head and the heart: between reason and emotion, Enlightenment and Evangelism. Why has this been so? How has the tension between the two poles played out, and with what consequences, over the past 400 years? How "Christian" is America, after all? Garry Wills brings a lifetime's worth of thought about these questions to bear on a magnificent historical reckoning that offers much needed perspective on some of the most contentious issues of our time. <br/><br/> A religious revolution occurred in America in the 18th century, one that saw the emergence of an Enlightenment religious culture whose hallmarks were tolerance for other faiths and a belief that religion was a matter best divorced from political institutions-the proverbial "separation of church and state." Wills shows us just how incredibly radical a departure this separation was: there was simply no precedent for it. To put this leap in perspective, Wills provides a grounding in the pre-Enlightenment religion that preceded it, beginning with the early Puritans. He then provides a thrillingly clear unpacking of the steps, particularly Madison's and Jefferson's, by which church-state separation was enshrined in the Constitution, and reveals the great irony of the efforts of today's Religious Right to blur the lines between the two. In fact, it is precisely that separation that has allowed religion in America to flourish since the disestablishment of religion created a free market, as it were, and competition for souls led to the profusion of denominations across the length and breadth of the land. <br/><br/> As Wills examines the key movements and personalities that have transformed America's religious landscape, we see again and again the same pattern emerge: a cooling of popular religious fervor followed by a grassroots explosion in evangelical activity, generally at a time of great social transformation and anxiety. But such forces inevitably go too far, provoking a backlash as is happening right now with the forces of Creationism and the anti-abortion fundamentalists. <br/><br/> Garry Wills closes with a penetrating dissection of the Religious Right's current machinations and the threat they pose to the enlightened religion that has proved to be such a fertile and enduring force throughout American history. But in the end, Wills's abiding message is to be vigilant against the triumph of emotions over reason, but to know that the tension between the two is in fact necessary, inevitable, and unending. 672573 4 10 2007 Head and Heart: American Christianities total:40|5:6|4:18|3:14|2:1|1:2| 40 144 104 18 3 0 false false Tue Jan 27 09:27:04 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 09:27:04 -0800 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 22 10:04:52 -0700 2008 Mon Dec 01 12:35:47 -0800 2008
Update: This was a very thought-provoking book. The "conventional wisdom" that Am...more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Aug 27 13:29:12 -0700 2008 Wed Aug 27 13:32:36 -0700 2008 What Jesus Meant. Wills traces the two fundamental styles of Protestant Christianity through American history. I loved his examination of the Enlightenment religious culture that was prevelant during the writing of the Constitution and led to the disestablishment of churches in th...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jan 07 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Dec 27 10:16:12 -0800 2007 Thu Jan 08 13:48:29 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Nov 18 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 14:23:17 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 14:31:13 -0800 2009 "great white men," but at least wills picked different men to follow. there were founding fathers in here, and people who opposed religious revivals. it made for a fun read. ]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Jul 17 17:34:30 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 17 17:40:36 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 09 13:05:48 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 09 13:07:07 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Dec 28 05:24:20 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 28 05:25:05 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Sun Sep 27 20:02:48 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 28 18:00:13 -0700 2008 Sun Sep 27 20:02:48 -0700 2009 My other issue with this book is that Wills does a reasonable job of maintaining a hold on his bias throughout most of the book (i...more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Nov 11 06:29:47 -0800 2007 Sun Nov 11 06:32:49 -0800 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 04 13:37:16 -0800 2007 Sun Jan 13 14:42:30 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Nov 26 10:13:53 -0800 2008 Sun Oct 26 17:43:53 -0700 2008 Wed Nov 26 10:13:53 -0800 2008 1 1 0 false false Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 05 15:35:33 -0700 2008 Sun Apr 13 12:55:42 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 01 18:17:14 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 30 09:04:29 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Sun Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Wed Jun 27 07:38:45 -0700 2007 Wed Jun 27 08:51:00 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Wed Feb 27 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Feb 19 09:07:10 -0800 2008 Wed Feb 27 12:54:12 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Mar 19 12:40:26 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 19 12:41:42 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Fri Jan 25 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Dec 13 15:20:34 -0800 2007 Mon Feb 04 13:18:38 -0800 2008 5 0 false false Tue Oct 27 19:14:40 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 27 19:14:40 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Oct 05 11:36:08 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 05 11:36:08 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=686207