Jerusalem: The Biography

by Simon Sebag Montefiore

“I warn you against shedding blood, indulging in it and making a habit of it, for blood never sleeps.”

The early Americans, inheriting the Hebraist fervour of the English Puritans, had enjoyed a Great Awakening of religious joy. Now, in the first half of the nineteenth century, a Second Awakening was driven by the evangelical energy of the frontier. In 1776, some 10 percent of Americans were churchgoers; by 1815, it was a quarter; by 1914, it was half. Their passionate Protestantism was American in character—gritty, exuberant and swashbuckling. At its heart was the belief that a person could save himself and accelerate the Second Coming by righteous action and heartfelt joy. America was itself a mission disguised as a nation, blessed by God,