Under God, Indivisible, 1941-60 (v. 3) (Modern American Religion) - Hardcover

In this third volume of faith in 20th-century America, Martin E. Marty presents an authoritative account of American religious culture from the United States' entry into World War II through the Eisenhower years. This is the story of the years 1941 through 1960, when, as Marty shows, agents of conflict during the contentious 20s and 30s turned their energies to the creation of continuity and common life. Marty explains how religious organizations attempted to supply much of the need for national unity during World War II, as they later did common symbols and energies during the Cold War. In addition, throughout the 1950s, with the suburbanization of so much of white America and other cultural changes, many citizens, Marty argues, embraced the rhetoric of ecumenism and consensus. With an eye always on the degree to which these trends masked counterforces of dissent, Marty follows the currents of national and religious cohesion from the struggle to overcome religious pacifism following Pearl Harbor to the revival of interest in civic religion during the Eisenhower years. The book systematically addresses religion and the roles it played in shaping the social and political life of mid-century America.