A history of Christianity in America, from the arrival of the first Europeans to the political triumphs of evangelicalism, showing the powerful role the faith has always played in American public life.
Ambitious ... Striking ... Follows the interlacing history of the burgeoning sects that sprang from Christianity ... Though he celebrates the unassailable vitality of American Christianity, to his credit he never hesitates to point out how religious dissidents and minorities have been harassed, outlawed, hounded or pushed to the margins of American society.
An important new book ... Argues convincingly that the quest for Christian America is a perennial national obsession, ... Sutton offers copious evidence ... Illustrates why mainstream U.S. historians have finally begun to take the political significance of American Christianity more seriously ... Doesn’t flinch from the worse ... Sutton’s book could spur such reflection, even though it does not offer easy answers about what comes next ... Sutton stops short of making predictions. He closes the book, instead, with a stirring reminder: What happens next is up to us.
Quietly brilliant ... A narrative that never feels rushed or cramped, never condescends to its reader, and virtually never slackens in its pace ... Amazingly comprehensive.
