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Do All the Good You Can: How Faith Shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton’s Politics
Methodism in the public and private lives of the politician After more than forty contentious years in the public eye, Hillary Rodham Clinton is one of the best-known political figures in the nation. Yet many of her admirers would be surprised to hear Clinton state that her Methodist outlook has “been a huge part of who I am and how I have seen the world, and what I believe in, and what I have tried to do in my life.” Gary Scott Smith examines the role of Clinton’s faith in her life and work. Clinton’s lifelong Methodism shaped a missionary zeal that, combined with her impressive personal talents, fueled many of her high-profile political endeavors while helping her cope with the prominent travails brought on by never-ending conservative rancor and her husband’s infidelity. Smith places Clinton’s faith within the context of projects ranging from healthcare reform to a “Hillary doctrine” of foreign policy focused on her longtime goal of providing basic human rights for children and women. The result is an enlightening reconsideration of an extraordinary political figure who has defied private doubts and public controversy to live the Methodist dictum that one must “do all the good you can.”
- GenresPoliticsNonfiction
306 pages, Hardcover
Published October 10, 2023
About the author
Gary Scott Smith
28 books6 followersGary Scott Smith chaired the History Department and coordinated the Humanities Core at Grove City College where he taught from 1978 to 2017. His specialty is American religious history, and he is an avid sports fan. In 2001, 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 nineteen books. His books include Faith and the Presidency: From George Washington to George W. Bush (Oxford University Press, 2006), Heaven in the American Imagination (Oxford University Press, 2011), Religion in the Oval Office: The Religious Lives of American Presidents (Oxford University Press, 2015), Suffer the Children: What We Can Do to Improve the Lives of the World’s Impoverished Children (Cascade Books, 2017), and religious biographies of Winston Churchill, Mark Twain, Jackie Robinson, and Hillary Clinton. His most recent book is The Greatest of All-Time: Fifteen Fantastic Athletes. Smith is also an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA). He served five congregations as an interim or stated supply pastor and is currently a parish associate at Saint Andrews-Covenant Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, North Carolina.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 5, 2024
Do All the Good You Can is an exhaustively researched account of Hillary Clinton's faith and the impact it has had on her public service and policies. As other reviewers mention, occasionally the depth of research causes the book to be repetitive. Nevertheless, it documents well Clinton's grounding in the United Methodist Church. The author argues persuasively that Clinton is the most devout Christian to have earned the Democratic nomination for president since Jimmy Carter. Yet, he continually brings up spurious charges from the right that suggest her faith is not genuine. This happens enough times to at least frustrate this reader. I would have preferred the author to more clearly provide his point of view on this matter, rather than repeatedly bring up these well-known criticisms which do not strengthen his argument. That said, it is a very well-balanced account of Secretary Clinton's faith.
January 24, 2024
Few public figures have been more polarizing than Hillary Rodham Clinton. Philanthropist, First Lady of the United States, Senator from New York, Secretary of State under President Obama, and two-time presidential candidate, Clinton has been labelled as a demon-worshipping fiend with no religious feelings, a radicalizing political opportunist, and as the country’s most significant female politician. Gary Scott Smith, Emeritus Professor of History at Grove City College in Pennsylvania, has written about Clinton in his political biography “Do All the Good You Can: How Faith Shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton’s Politics.” In it, he argues that Clinton is a prime example of devout Methodism, committed to following John Wesley’s creed of “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” [p5]
Grove has previously written biographies of other public figures’ religious leanings, including Winston Churchill, George Washington, and Mark Twain, as well as several texts on the intersection of faith and politics. In “Do All the Good You Can” Grove tells the history of Hillary Clinton’s religious faith, from her childhood in Illinois, through her college experience, Yale Law School, her involvement in politics, and as the wife of Arkansas governor and 42nd US President Bill Clinton In her own right, she forged her own political career as a US senator, Secretary of State, and presidential candidate. The result is a highly detailed analysis of her faith, its impact on her political life, the personal impact of that faith in dealing with her husband’s very public marital infidelities, and two demanding and mean-spirited presidential campaigns.
What emerges is a multifaceted account of how a highly intelligent and ambitious public figure navigates the challenging, and at times tortuous path of reconciling one’s personal faith with one’s highly visible public actions. Did Hillary try to live up to Wesley’s admonition? Did she lie? Did she truly care about the welfare of others, especially those least able to advocate for themselves? Was she at times self-serving in her actions? Was her forgiveness of husband Bill’s public admissions of an affair with an intern while serving in the White House sincere? Grove has supplied substantial evidence for these and other questions but leaves the final judgment to the reader.
The greatest value of such a study of religious faith is to allow the reader to examine their own lives and vicariously live through the experiences of another. “Do All the Good You Can” serves as an interesting complement to this reviewer’s recent reading of “Romney: A Reckoning” in which Mitt Romney’s business and political career was examined in light of his Mormon faith. Romney is in many ways the antithesis of Clinton, his conservatism opposed to her progressive liberalism, his privileged upbringing compared to her middle class childhood. Both were strongly influenced by their religious traditions and experiences as children and young adults. Strikingly, both view public service as an extension of their respective faiths. Both have had to handle highly public setbacks and embarrassments, and both have relied on their core religious beliefs to confront the challenges their public lives have brought them.
Grove has mostly succeeded in his effort to highlight Clinton’s faith journey through public life. The text is readable, never condescending, and not burdened with overly academic vocabulary. The documentation is substantial, leaning heavily on Clinton’s writings, speeches, newspaper and magazine articles, and the recollections and observations of friends, journalists, and staff members. One notable anecdote is from Yale Law classmate Robert Reich, who served as Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. In the Yale class that included Reich, Hillary, Bill Clinton, and future Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Grove writes how the four interacted in a civil liberties class:
“…every time the professor asked a question, Rodham’s hand went up first, and whenever she was called upon, she answered correctly. Reich often volunteered answers, which were right about half the time. Thomas never said a word, and [Bill] Clinton spent much more time doing political work than attending class.” [p36]
Clinton, according to Grove, never abandoned her efforts to do good personally andwas often trying to use whatever influence and power she had to organize and mobilize others to share in those efforts. However, after a grueling first two years in the White House, where her efforts to promote initiatives to provide universal health care failed, coupled with pushback from some of her more public professions of faith, Clinton admitted at a National Prayer Luncheon that she was “…hesitant to discuss religious ideas again. She was astonished to realize that many people thought spirituality should…not [be] brought out into the public arena.” [p61]
As a result, Clinton’s public professions of faith grew fewer, even as her influence and power grew as a Senator from New York and President Obama’s Secretary of State. That did not stop her private exercise of faith. Grove shows how Clinton continued to act in accordance with her religious feelings, and interacted with various other faith groups, including Catholics, Mormons, Muslims, Jews, and evangelicals.
This reviewer did on occasion find Grove’s comprehensive detailing of Clinton’s religiosity redundant. At notable points in Clinton’s public life, Grove writes of the many times Clinton’s faith was referenced, observed, and commented upon, a practice that sometimes felt redundant. There is also the issue of the documentation of a speech on the role of religious faith in the public arena that Clinton made 1993 to an audience of 14,000 at the University of Texas at Austin. Well received by some, and sharply criticized by others, this address seemed to loom significantly in her subsequent career. As cited in the notes, her address is referenced exclusively from news reports and articles. No citation or link is listed to the actual text of the speech. For an event that is claimed to have been a watershed moment, as Grove asserts, it would have been useful to include a direct citation or link to the full text, or to state that such a transcript could not be found. Instead, we are left to only read the reactions of others, and to have no opportunity to make our own analysis.
Despite these occasional shortcomings, Grove’s “Do All the Good You Can” works as intended as a useful addition to the ongoing debate over the role of religion in public life, and the personal religiosity or lack thereof of our public figures. With outward manifestations of religious faith in the public arena in decline, such a personal examination of a political leader’s faith is increasingly rare, yet arguably all the more important. “Do All the Good You Can” can be a reassuring nod to the continued presence, however private, of religious faith in the United States.
Grove has previously written biographies of other public figures’ religious leanings, including Winston Churchill, George Washington, and Mark Twain, as well as several texts on the intersection of faith and politics. In “Do All the Good You Can” Grove tells the history of Hillary Clinton’s religious faith, from her childhood in Illinois, through her college experience, Yale Law School, her involvement in politics, and as the wife of Arkansas governor and 42nd US President Bill Clinton In her own right, she forged her own political career as a US senator, Secretary of State, and presidential candidate. The result is a highly detailed analysis of her faith, its impact on her political life, the personal impact of that faith in dealing with her husband’s very public marital infidelities, and two demanding and mean-spirited presidential campaigns.
What emerges is a multifaceted account of how a highly intelligent and ambitious public figure navigates the challenging, and at times tortuous path of reconciling one’s personal faith with one’s highly visible public actions. Did Hillary try to live up to Wesley’s admonition? Did she lie? Did she truly care about the welfare of others, especially those least able to advocate for themselves? Was she at times self-serving in her actions? Was her forgiveness of husband Bill’s public admissions of an affair with an intern while serving in the White House sincere? Grove has supplied substantial evidence for these and other questions but leaves the final judgment to the reader.
The greatest value of such a study of religious faith is to allow the reader to examine their own lives and vicariously live through the experiences of another. “Do All the Good You Can” serves as an interesting complement to this reviewer’s recent reading of “Romney: A Reckoning” in which Mitt Romney’s business and political career was examined in light of his Mormon faith. Romney is in many ways the antithesis of Clinton, his conservatism opposed to her progressive liberalism, his privileged upbringing compared to her middle class childhood. Both were strongly influenced by their religious traditions and experiences as children and young adults. Strikingly, both view public service as an extension of their respective faiths. Both have had to handle highly public setbacks and embarrassments, and both have relied on their core religious beliefs to confront the challenges their public lives have brought them.
Grove has mostly succeeded in his effort to highlight Clinton’s faith journey through public life. The text is readable, never condescending, and not burdened with overly academic vocabulary. The documentation is substantial, leaning heavily on Clinton’s writings, speeches, newspaper and magazine articles, and the recollections and observations of friends, journalists, and staff members. One notable anecdote is from Yale Law classmate Robert Reich, who served as Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. In the Yale class that included Reich, Hillary, Bill Clinton, and future Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Grove writes how the four interacted in a civil liberties class:
“…every time the professor asked a question, Rodham’s hand went up first, and whenever she was called upon, she answered correctly. Reich often volunteered answers, which were right about half the time. Thomas never said a word, and [Bill] Clinton spent much more time doing political work than attending class.” [p36]
Clinton, according to Grove, never abandoned her efforts to do good personally andwas often trying to use whatever influence and power she had to organize and mobilize others to share in those efforts. However, after a grueling first two years in the White House, where her efforts to promote initiatives to provide universal health care failed, coupled with pushback from some of her more public professions of faith, Clinton admitted at a National Prayer Luncheon that she was “…hesitant to discuss religious ideas again. She was astonished to realize that many people thought spirituality should…not [be] brought out into the public arena.” [p61]
As a result, Clinton’s public professions of faith grew fewer, even as her influence and power grew as a Senator from New York and President Obama’s Secretary of State. That did not stop her private exercise of faith. Grove shows how Clinton continued to act in accordance with her religious feelings, and interacted with various other faith groups, including Catholics, Mormons, Muslims, Jews, and evangelicals.
This reviewer did on occasion find Grove’s comprehensive detailing of Clinton’s religiosity redundant. At notable points in Clinton’s public life, Grove writes of the many times Clinton’s faith was referenced, observed, and commented upon, a practice that sometimes felt redundant. There is also the issue of the documentation of a speech on the role of religious faith in the public arena that Clinton made 1993 to an audience of 14,000 at the University of Texas at Austin. Well received by some, and sharply criticized by others, this address seemed to loom significantly in her subsequent career. As cited in the notes, her address is referenced exclusively from news reports and articles. No citation or link is listed to the actual text of the speech. For an event that is claimed to have been a watershed moment, as Grove asserts, it would have been useful to include a direct citation or link to the full text, or to state that such a transcript could not be found. Instead, we are left to only read the reactions of others, and to have no opportunity to make our own analysis.
Despite these occasional shortcomings, Grove’s “Do All the Good You Can” works as intended as a useful addition to the ongoing debate over the role of religion in public life, and the personal religiosity or lack thereof of our public figures. With outward manifestations of religious faith in the public arena in decline, such a personal examination of a political leader’s faith is increasingly rare, yet arguably all the more important. “Do All the Good You Can” can be a reassuring nod to the continued presence, however private, of religious faith in the United States.
August 28, 2023
Hillary Rodham Clinton is one of the most admired and most vilified American politicians. When she was First Lady, a woman I knew said she didn’t like her cheeks! As Secretary of State, people didn’t like her pant suits. As a candidate for the presidency, people didn’t like that she didn’t stand up to Trump while others thought she was too abrasive and they didn’t like her voice. We all saw the memes circulating across social media that spewed hate without a stated reason. Some of my social media and personal friends supported Hillary and admired her. Others were Never Trumpers who backed her as the lesser of two evils.
Although I married into the United Methodist Church (UMC) and was a pastor’s wife for most of my adulthood, I didn’t know much about Clinton’s faith and the impact of the UMC in her life.
The very title of this book is basic Methodism: Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can. The author shows that this teaching is central to Clinton’s faith and the motivation for her work and political aspirations.
Methodism’s founder John Wesley had been disturbed that the Church of England lacked a spiritual foundation and became involved with a group decried as “Methodists” for their methodical faith life which included weekly prayer, confession, and communion. He was decried for preaching outside of the church’s walls, going to the common working people. He taught the importance of works of charity and reaching out to the suffering and imprisoned as a central response to recognizing God’s gift of grace to all. Over its history, Methodism supported public education, prohibition, worker’s rights, and social justice. The church attacked social ills including alcohol, gambling, racism, and sexism. During most of the twentieth century, this social gospel aspect of the UMC prevailed.
When Clinton left home she was exposed to new ideas, reading Kierkegaard, Bonhoeffer, Paul Tillich, Reinhardt Niebuhr, and Karl Barth. (When my husband was a seminary student, I audited classes and read them all. I was particularly impacted by Niebuhr, the class taught by a man who had been involved with the Civil Rights movement.) Clinton drifted from her Republican upbringing to a McGovern Democrat. From the start, she was drawn to working for the social good.
Throughout the book, details of Clinton’s life and career are supported by deep research. The author shares both the criticism she faced and the support she was given, her successes and her failures, her strengths and her weaknesses, evaluations of what she did right and where she went wrong.
The overall picture is of a woman of strength, faith, motivation, and intellect, an imperfect Christian and flawed politician, a victim of sexism and libel and her own fatal flaws. Clinton’s support of controversial topics has overshadowed her life-long work to support the needs of women and children.
Some evangelical Trump supporters contended that flawed and sinful people can still do God’s work, and yes, the Bible is filled with such examples. Those same voices accused Clinton of being Satan.
The failure of the Democratic party and Clinton’s political campaign had, as we know, a huge impact. The book delves into the way each candidates reached, or failed to reach, voters of faith.
Reading this book I was again made aware of how religion has infiltrated politics and the law, and how American society, while leaving organized religion, still hold religious ideals that they believe should be a part of politics. The author quotes James Madison’s Federalist No. 10, warning against the human tendency of dividing into factions that would rather fight than cooperate for the common good.
This book gave me a lot to think about.
Thanks to the publisher for a free book.
Although I married into the United Methodist Church (UMC) and was a pastor’s wife for most of my adulthood, I didn’t know much about Clinton’s faith and the impact of the UMC in her life.
The very title of this book is basic Methodism: Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can. The author shows that this teaching is central to Clinton’s faith and the motivation for her work and political aspirations.
Methodism’s founder John Wesley had been disturbed that the Church of England lacked a spiritual foundation and became involved with a group decried as “Methodists” for their methodical faith life which included weekly prayer, confession, and communion. He was decried for preaching outside of the church’s walls, going to the common working people. He taught the importance of works of charity and reaching out to the suffering and imprisoned as a central response to recognizing God’s gift of grace to all. Over its history, Methodism supported public education, prohibition, worker’s rights, and social justice. The church attacked social ills including alcohol, gambling, racism, and sexism. During most of the twentieth century, this social gospel aspect of the UMC prevailed.
When Clinton left home she was exposed to new ideas, reading Kierkegaard, Bonhoeffer, Paul Tillich, Reinhardt Niebuhr, and Karl Barth. (When my husband was a seminary student, I audited classes and read them all. I was particularly impacted by Niebuhr, the class taught by a man who had been involved with the Civil Rights movement.) Clinton drifted from her Republican upbringing to a McGovern Democrat. From the start, she was drawn to working for the social good.
Throughout the book, details of Clinton’s life and career are supported by deep research. The author shares both the criticism she faced and the support she was given, her successes and her failures, her strengths and her weaknesses, evaluations of what she did right and where she went wrong.
The overall picture is of a woman of strength, faith, motivation, and intellect, an imperfect Christian and flawed politician, a victim of sexism and libel and her own fatal flaws. Clinton’s support of controversial topics has overshadowed her life-long work to support the needs of women and children.
Some evangelical Trump supporters contended that flawed and sinful people can still do God’s work, and yes, the Bible is filled with such examples. Those same voices accused Clinton of being Satan.
The failure of the Democratic party and Clinton’s political campaign had, as we know, a huge impact. The book delves into the way each candidates reached, or failed to reach, voters of faith.
Reading this book I was again made aware of how religion has infiltrated politics and the law, and how American society, while leaving organized religion, still hold religious ideals that they believe should be a part of politics. The author quotes James Madison’s Federalist No. 10, warning against the human tendency of dividing into factions that would rather fight than cooperate for the common good.
This book gave me a lot to think about.
Thanks to the publisher for a free book.
October 25, 2023
Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.
Gary Scott Smith provides a rather different perspective on Hillary Rodham Clinton, or so it seems to me. My response may not be significant, after all, I am not an American political commentator, voter, or resident. However, I was strongly interested in the 2016 American election, and of all the many aspects of Hillary Rodham Clinton that became apparent throughout that period, advertisements, speeches, commentary and the debates, religion and Clinton’s commitment were not some. Scott Smith writes movingly of the role of religion in Hillary’s life and suggests that, if her campaign had addressed her commitment, it is possible that the 2016 run for President might have had a different result. Although I am not always impressed with his case for this, the discussion of religion in Clinton’s life makes valuable reading, showing as it does, the role of religion in American politics which is so different from that in Australian politics, and as Scott Smith demonstrates, from many other countries.
The book makes thorough use of quotes from Hillary Rodham Clinton’s speeches, the bible, and religious sources admired and referred to by Clinton. The chapter headings follow this pattern, with titles such as “Stay in Love with God”; “I Felt My Heart Strangely Warmed”: Clinton’s Spiritual Roots; “Let your Light Shine to All”: From Wellesley to the White House; “Be Rigorous in Judging Ourselves and Gracious in Judging Others”: New York Senator and 2008 Presidential Candidate; “I look Upon All the World as My Parish”: Secretary of State and Seeking the Oval office; “Be Not Weary of Well Doing”: The 2016 Presidential Campaign; and “God Grant That I May Never Live to Be Useless!”.
Scott Smith’s addition of the quotes to the basic information about the progress of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s life through childhood, Wellesley, First Lady, Senator, Presidential Candidate 2008 and Secretary of State, and during the 2016 Presidential Campaign and its aftermath highlight the flavour of this biography. It is aimed at being markedly different from others in giving Clinton’s religious commitment an enduring and empowering role. Scott Smith argues comprehensively for a woman known for a host of other virtues (and shortcomings) to be known for her sincerity and commitment to her religion, and its essential role in her life. In taking up the cudgels for the possibility that a greater public commitment to religious thought and teachings by Clinton during the 2016 Presidential Campaign may have achieved a different result he also moves into different ground.
The great strength of Scott Smith’s approach to Hillary Rodham Clinton and her motivation, beliefs, campaigns and life is his detailed and warm recognition of everything that makes her the woman who has weathered adversity with such panache. To my knowledge, the central nature of Rodham Clinton’s religious belief, summed up so well in the chapter titles as well as permeating every aspect of Scott Smith’s analysis, has not been given such a thorough analysis in previous biographies. His work provides a marvellous insight that gives her religious outlook the place it deserves. Where I think Scott Smith may be on less strong ground is his assertion that had Hillary Rodham Clinton’s religious belief played a larger part in her presidential campaign it may have made a difference to the result. That, I think, needs much more analysis of what went wrong, as well as acknowledgement that she won the popular vote by such an immense majority. That proviso has not spoilt the book for me, I thoroughly enjoyed knowing more about Hillary rodham Clinton, but the environment in which she sought the presidency. A really worthwhile read.
Gary Scott Smith provides a rather different perspective on Hillary Rodham Clinton, or so it seems to me. My response may not be significant, after all, I am not an American political commentator, voter, or resident. However, I was strongly interested in the 2016 American election, and of all the many aspects of Hillary Rodham Clinton that became apparent throughout that period, advertisements, speeches, commentary and the debates, religion and Clinton’s commitment were not some. Scott Smith writes movingly of the role of religion in Hillary’s life and suggests that, if her campaign had addressed her commitment, it is possible that the 2016 run for President might have had a different result. Although I am not always impressed with his case for this, the discussion of religion in Clinton’s life makes valuable reading, showing as it does, the role of religion in American politics which is so different from that in Australian politics, and as Scott Smith demonstrates, from many other countries.
The book makes thorough use of quotes from Hillary Rodham Clinton’s speeches, the bible, and religious sources admired and referred to by Clinton. The chapter headings follow this pattern, with titles such as “Stay in Love with God”; “I Felt My Heart Strangely Warmed”: Clinton’s Spiritual Roots; “Let your Light Shine to All”: From Wellesley to the White House; “Be Rigorous in Judging Ourselves and Gracious in Judging Others”: New York Senator and 2008 Presidential Candidate; “I look Upon All the World as My Parish”: Secretary of State and Seeking the Oval office; “Be Not Weary of Well Doing”: The 2016 Presidential Campaign; and “God Grant That I May Never Live to Be Useless!”.
Scott Smith’s addition of the quotes to the basic information about the progress of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s life through childhood, Wellesley, First Lady, Senator, Presidential Candidate 2008 and Secretary of State, and during the 2016 Presidential Campaign and its aftermath highlight the flavour of this biography. It is aimed at being markedly different from others in giving Clinton’s religious commitment an enduring and empowering role. Scott Smith argues comprehensively for a woman known for a host of other virtues (and shortcomings) to be known for her sincerity and commitment to her religion, and its essential role in her life. In taking up the cudgels for the possibility that a greater public commitment to religious thought and teachings by Clinton during the 2016 Presidential Campaign may have achieved a different result he also moves into different ground.
The great strength of Scott Smith’s approach to Hillary Rodham Clinton and her motivation, beliefs, campaigns and life is his detailed and warm recognition of everything that makes her the woman who has weathered adversity with such panache. To my knowledge, the central nature of Rodham Clinton’s religious belief, summed up so well in the chapter titles as well as permeating every aspect of Scott Smith’s analysis, has not been given such a thorough analysis in previous biographies. His work provides a marvellous insight that gives her religious outlook the place it deserves. Where I think Scott Smith may be on less strong ground is his assertion that had Hillary Rodham Clinton’s religious belief played a larger part in her presidential campaign it may have made a difference to the result. That, I think, needs much more analysis of what went wrong, as well as acknowledgement that she won the popular vote by such an immense majority. That proviso has not spoilt the book for me, I thoroughly enjoyed knowing more about Hillary rodham Clinton, but the environment in which she sought the presidency. A really worthwhile read.
May 22, 2023
To even say the name Hillary Rodham Clinton on social media is to expect a passionate reaction either passionately for or against one of the best known politicians in our contemporary era and, arguably, one of the most successful female political leaders in the history of the United States.
With "Do All the Good You Can: How Faith Shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton's Politics," Gary Scott Smith examines the role of Clinton's faith in her life and work. Clinton's lifelong Methodism, frequently acknowledged yet seldom fully understood, helped to shape a missionary zeal that, combined with her impressive talents and skills, fueled many of her high-profile political endeavors and helped her cope with the relentless rancor of skeptics and supporters alike along with the undeniable challenges brought on by her husband's infidelity and messy legacy.
Smith views Clinton's faith through the lens of a variety of projects ranging from healthcare reform to a "Hillary doctrine" of foreign policy that targeted providing basic human rights to children and women.
Smith's work here, stunning in its detail, research, and insight, results in a unique and necessary view of an extraordinary political figure who defied political, professional, and personal challenges to lean heavily into the Methodist dictum to "do all the good you can."
"Do All the Good You Can" is, at times, an exhausting book precisely because of the relentlessness of Smith's research and detail. An upcoming release from University of Illinois Press, "Do All the Good You Can" reads as if someone's academic life depends upon it - perhaps, one might guess, because Smith himself recognizes that nearly anything involving Hillary Rodham Clinton comes under tremendous scrutiny.
Smith explores how Clinton's progressive Christianity - deeply rooted in a commitment to the Methodism in which she grew up - stayed central to her political journey. He further examines the challenges of this, from evangelicals who dismiss the more progressive branch of Christianity to Clinton herself who had difficulty, especially during her presidential campaign against Donald Trump, communicating with transparency and clarity how it impacted her as a human being and leader. In some ways, I felt like this same deficit exists within the book itself - Smith takes a deep dive into Clinton's faith yet never really delves into the denomination itself that has long struggled to come to terms with its conservative and progressive branches.
It becomes clear by book's end that virtually every aspect of Clinton's life has been impacted by her faith including her political successes, shortcomings, and decisions along the way. Smith taps into a greater understanding of religion's undervalued role in shaping political left, a massively underexamined truth, and sheds light in multiple ways on how the political left continues to struggle to define itself in theological terms to a left that can be both passionately for and passionately against organized religion.
A necessary read for those who consider themselves supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton and likely to be appreciated by those who seek a greater understanding of the continued role of religion in shaping the American political scene, "Do All The Good You Can" is an incredibly well researched, insightful, and perceptive exploration of how faith shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton and impacted the changing role of American First Ladies and an increasingly fractured religious landscape.
With "Do All the Good You Can: How Faith Shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton's Politics," Gary Scott Smith examines the role of Clinton's faith in her life and work. Clinton's lifelong Methodism, frequently acknowledged yet seldom fully understood, helped to shape a missionary zeal that, combined with her impressive talents and skills, fueled many of her high-profile political endeavors and helped her cope with the relentless rancor of skeptics and supporters alike along with the undeniable challenges brought on by her husband's infidelity and messy legacy.
Smith views Clinton's faith through the lens of a variety of projects ranging from healthcare reform to a "Hillary doctrine" of foreign policy that targeted providing basic human rights to children and women.
Smith's work here, stunning in its detail, research, and insight, results in a unique and necessary view of an extraordinary political figure who defied political, professional, and personal challenges to lean heavily into the Methodist dictum to "do all the good you can."
"Do All the Good You Can" is, at times, an exhausting book precisely because of the relentlessness of Smith's research and detail. An upcoming release from University of Illinois Press, "Do All the Good You Can" reads as if someone's academic life depends upon it - perhaps, one might guess, because Smith himself recognizes that nearly anything involving Hillary Rodham Clinton comes under tremendous scrutiny.
Smith explores how Clinton's progressive Christianity - deeply rooted in a commitment to the Methodism in which she grew up - stayed central to her political journey. He further examines the challenges of this, from evangelicals who dismiss the more progressive branch of Christianity to Clinton herself who had difficulty, especially during her presidential campaign against Donald Trump, communicating with transparency and clarity how it impacted her as a human being and leader. In some ways, I felt like this same deficit exists within the book itself - Smith takes a deep dive into Clinton's faith yet never really delves into the denomination itself that has long struggled to come to terms with its conservative and progressive branches.
It becomes clear by book's end that virtually every aspect of Clinton's life has been impacted by her faith including her political successes, shortcomings, and decisions along the way. Smith taps into a greater understanding of religion's undervalued role in shaping political left, a massively underexamined truth, and sheds light in multiple ways on how the political left continues to struggle to define itself in theological terms to a left that can be both passionately for and passionately against organized religion.
A necessary read for those who consider themselves supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton and likely to be appreciated by those who seek a greater understanding of the continued role of religion in shaping the American political scene, "Do All The Good You Can" is an incredibly well researched, insightful, and perceptive exploration of how faith shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton and impacted the changing role of American First Ladies and an increasingly fractured religious landscape.
October 1, 2023
Do All the Good You Can: How Faith Shaped Hillary Rodham Clinton's Politics is written by Gary Scott Smith. This is a lengthy, intensive and often times repetitive deep dive into how faith molded the views and beliefs of Hilary Clinton.
Hillary Rodham Clinton is one of the most admired and most vilified American politicians. But most people would find it hard to believe that her faith is very important to her and helped to guide her. It is not surprising that her faith is a result of her belonging to the Methodist Church. Most people's faith is rooted in their experiences with religion beginning as a child.
“Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can, At all the times you can, To all the people you can, As long as ever you can.” John Wesley
Hilary Clinton would come to embrace the teachings and the quote above by John Wesley which would resonate with her by wanting to good for others. She would take up the mantle for women and children's issues throughout her young adulthood and into her political life.
The trouble Hilary encountered, was no one wanted to believe her. It was easier to attack and lie about her than it was to get to know her. And therein lies the problem, it is easier to believe the horrible things that politicians are able to get away with saying than it is to do your own research. If you say it loud enough and often enough it will be believed even if it is not true. More and more we have the left side and the right side. Not the truth side. Unfortunately, we have the news that is made in order to get ratings instead of reporting the facts. Facts are boring and scandal is entertaining.
I can honestly say that I was unaware how much I didn't know about Hilary and many of my impressions about her were based on the media spin. This book delves deeply into how important her faith is to her, something I did not know. We as a society are jaded, and we often think or believe that our politicians are pandering to get the vote. Oftentimes we are proven right as we see again and again how self-interest drives many politicians.
Hilary is a strong, intelligent woman. She is faithful to her church's teachings. She believes that she should to the right thing, but she also realizes that when she makes mistakes and fails, she can learn to better the next time if given the opportunity. She is also a woman who believes in her husband even when he fails her. Much is talked about why she stayed after Bill's public humiliation while in office. It was her faith that helped her to see that forgiveness frees the heart from pain and grudges are consuming.
After reading this I am more aware than ever that people rarely know the truth about the people we elect. Hilary wanted to help advance rights for women and children in order to give them a voice that she believed was lacking. It is easier to tear down someone than to admire them for their efforts to change for the better.
The author quotes James Madison’s Federalist No. 10, warning against the human tendency of dividing into factions that would rather fight than cooperate for the common good. I think that this is what we have been experiencing for quite a while.
This is a thought-provoking book that will leave the reader wondering and hopefully challenge them to question what we are being fed by those who think we are too stupid to see what is going on and do not have anyone's best interests at heart other than own.
I received an ARC from NetGalley for an unbiased review.
Hillary Rodham Clinton is one of the most admired and most vilified American politicians. But most people would find it hard to believe that her faith is very important to her and helped to guide her. It is not surprising that her faith is a result of her belonging to the Methodist Church. Most people's faith is rooted in their experiences with religion beginning as a child.
“Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can, At all the times you can, To all the people you can, As long as ever you can.” John Wesley
Hilary Clinton would come to embrace the teachings and the quote above by John Wesley which would resonate with her by wanting to good for others. She would take up the mantle for women and children's issues throughout her young adulthood and into her political life.
The trouble Hilary encountered, was no one wanted to believe her. It was easier to attack and lie about her than it was to get to know her. And therein lies the problem, it is easier to believe the horrible things that politicians are able to get away with saying than it is to do your own research. If you say it loud enough and often enough it will be believed even if it is not true. More and more we have the left side and the right side. Not the truth side. Unfortunately, we have the news that is made in order to get ratings instead of reporting the facts. Facts are boring and scandal is entertaining.
I can honestly say that I was unaware how much I didn't know about Hilary and many of my impressions about her were based on the media spin. This book delves deeply into how important her faith is to her, something I did not know. We as a society are jaded, and we often think or believe that our politicians are pandering to get the vote. Oftentimes we are proven right as we see again and again how self-interest drives many politicians.
Hilary is a strong, intelligent woman. She is faithful to her church's teachings. She believes that she should to the right thing, but she also realizes that when she makes mistakes and fails, she can learn to better the next time if given the opportunity. She is also a woman who believes in her husband even when he fails her. Much is talked about why she stayed after Bill's public humiliation while in office. It was her faith that helped her to see that forgiveness frees the heart from pain and grudges are consuming.
After reading this I am more aware than ever that people rarely know the truth about the people we elect. Hilary wanted to help advance rights for women and children in order to give them a voice that she believed was lacking. It is easier to tear down someone than to admire them for their efforts to change for the better.
The author quotes James Madison’s Federalist No. 10, warning against the human tendency of dividing into factions that would rather fight than cooperate for the common good. I think that this is what we have been experiencing for quite a while.
This is a thought-provoking book that will leave the reader wondering and hopefully challenge them to question what we are being fed by those who think we are too stupid to see what is going on and do not have anyone's best interests at heart other than own.
I received an ARC from NetGalley for an unbiased review.
May 28, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.
After reading and really appreciating Kristin du Mez’ book, “Jesus and John Wayne,” earlier this year, I was excited to find this book at NetGalley. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with “Do All the Good You Can.” This book felt like an extensive — and frequently repetitive— literature review on the topic of Hilary Clinton’s religion throughout her life in the public sphere. I missed an analytical framework with which I could understand all of the anecdotes, statements, and third-party assessments of Hillary R. Clinton’s actions in the context of her religion. To be fair, the author did an amazing amount of research. But, without analysis and conclusions, I’m left with only a loose timeline and a lot of data. I don’t believe that the choice of a chronological timeline served the author well — I believe a topical structure (feminism, gender roles, women and children’s rights, race, global policy, public personae and the media) could have provided a better foundation for the analysis.
Perhaps this is a book for a discussion group to take up the reins and answer my many lingering questions — why does her religion matter? Why doesn’t her faith matter enough? What are the lessons for future candidates? Were her beliefs a help or hindrance to her personal life? professional life? public ambitions?
In the end, while the topic was interesting, I felt I encountered a book of facts and quotes rather than a political or philosophical analysis.
After reading and really appreciating Kristin du Mez’ book, “Jesus and John Wayne,” earlier this year, I was excited to find this book at NetGalley. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with “Do All the Good You Can.” This book felt like an extensive — and frequently repetitive— literature review on the topic of Hilary Clinton’s religion throughout her life in the public sphere. I missed an analytical framework with which I could understand all of the anecdotes, statements, and third-party assessments of Hillary R. Clinton’s actions in the context of her religion. To be fair, the author did an amazing amount of research. But, without analysis and conclusions, I’m left with only a loose timeline and a lot of data. I don’t believe that the choice of a chronological timeline served the author well — I believe a topical structure (feminism, gender roles, women and children’s rights, race, global policy, public personae and the media) could have provided a better foundation for the analysis.
Perhaps this is a book for a discussion group to take up the reins and answer my many lingering questions — why does her religion matter? Why doesn’t her faith matter enough? What are the lessons for future candidates? Were her beliefs a help or hindrance to her personal life? professional life? public ambitions?
In the end, while the topic was interesting, I felt I encountered a book of facts and quotes rather than a political or philosophical analysis.
December 4, 2023
This book starts out with the horrible lies that were told about Hilary Clinton, and they were truly monstrous. The reader might be discouraged from reading further, but once past that, we find that Hilary Clinton's Methodist faith is what carried her through some of the worst events that could happen to a woman including her husband's infidelity. The author Gary Scott Smith then goes into the history of her family, then the history of Hillary Clinton's upbringing, and even the teachings of the United Methodist Church, and how Mrs. Clinton became immersed in the Methodist Christian faith to the point that it became the bedrock of all the decisions and actions that she took during her long career. The title of the book says it all: "Do All the Good You Can" and this became her mantra. Because she didn't flaunt her faith in words, many books and articles were written about her that barely mention it or don't mention it at all. This book is essential reading to get a clearer picture of the most important women of our time, one who was more prepared to be president of the United States than any who had gone before. Did you know that she got more votes than Trump and lost anyway? What a different world we'd be living in if she had become president!
October 23, 2025
Do All the Good You Can shines a much-needed light on Hillary Clinton’s deep Methodist faith, which quietly but profoundly shaped her life and political career. It’s especially striking to contrast her genuine, steady faith with Donald Trump’s more performative relationship with religion, given Trump’s strong support from evangelical groups. Gary Scott Smith delves into her family background, upbringing, and how her faith became the foundation for her resilience through personal and political hardships. Guided by a strong moral and religious compass, Clinton’s faith prepared her to be an exceptionally capable and thoughtful president: something this book makes clear. The book also addresses how little her faith has been acknowledged in media coverage, offering a fuller, more nuanced portrait of a complex and often misunderstood woman. While the author didn’t interview Hillary directly, his thorough research of her speeches and writings creates a balanced narrative that explores the intersections of faith, gender, media, and culture. If you’re interested in how faith influences leadership and public perception, this is an insightful and eye-opening read.
A huge thanks to NetGalley, the author & the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced copy.
A huge thanks to NetGalley, the author & the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced copy.
January 6, 2024
“Do All the Good You Can” is an in-depth look at how Hillary Clinton’s faith shaped her and her political views. I was disappointed that the author did not actually interview her for the book. Instead, he deeply researched all of her interviews, speeches, & books for direct quotes. That is my only negative comment for this book. The author did a wonderful job researching so much of what was said about Hillary Clinton on news, talk shows, social media, and in political campaigns. Taking all of that research, he was able to present a coherent balanced picture of a complicated woman who remained steadfast throughout vitriolic personal attacks, personal ridicule, public shame, and great personal/political disappointment. This book sheds an interesting light on our political system, and the roles that media and gender bias may play in our society. If you are interested in the interaction of politics, culture and faith you will enjoy this book. #DoAllTheGoodYouCan #netgalley
never-finished
February 5, 2024I was unable to finish this book, not due to content or writing style, but solely because of the style/layout and size of print chosen by the publisher (University of Illinois Press)...it was just too difficult to read the least bit comfortably...
July 15, 2024
I am a Hillary Clinton fan, but I am not a fan of this book. It was very repetitious and not well written. I expected much more. I found myself falling asleep as I tried to read it.
September 2, 2024
I read this book for a Sunday school class presentation. The book is full of details. I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the second half.
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