Christianity's American Fate

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This work traces the rise of evangelicalism and the decline of mainline Protestantism in American religious and cultural life. It explores how American Christianity became synonymous with conservative white evangelicalism. The author, a leading historian, examines the evangelical movement's ascent and the diminishing influence of mainline Protestantism. Following 1960, mainline Protestantism lost members to both conservative evangelicalism and progressive secular activism. A Protestant evangelicalism comfortable with patriarchy and white supremacy emerged as the dominant cultural force. The origins of what the author describes as Protestantism's "two-party system" are linked to America's religious culture of dissent, established by seventeenth-century colonists who diverged from European traditions, the constitutional separation of church and state fostering religious diversity, and the influx of immigrants finding community in churches. The narrative argues that the U.S. became overwhelmingly Protestant, but with a unique intensity. By the 1960s, the nation had diversified ethnically and religiously, with Jews and other non-Christians contributing to more inclusive community notions. However, as ecumenical Protestants embraced modernity, they inadvertently set the stage for evangelicalism's reactionary stance.