Theologians of a New World Order: Rheinhold Niebuhr and the Christian Realists, 1920-1948

by Heather A. Warren

Overview

This book tells how a group of Protestant theologians forged a theology of international engagement for America in the 1930s and 40s, and how in doing so they informed the public rationale for the United States' participation in World War II and stimulated American leadership in establishing both secular and international organizations for the promotion of world order. This remarkable group included Henry P. Van Dusen, Reinhold Niebuhr, John Bennett, Francis P. Miller, Georgia Harkness, and Samual McCrea Cavert. Warren show how, in creating a coherent, theologically-derived position and bringing it to bear on contemporary international issues, this group combined ideas with public action in a way that set the standard for American theologians' social activism in the years to come.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195114386
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	09/25/1997
Series:	Religion in America
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

University of Virginia

Table of Contents

	Introduction	3
1	High Tide of American Protestantism, 1880-1920	8
2	The Found Generation, 1890-1924	19
3	Age of Negativism, 1925-1933	35
4	European Upheaval, Theological Ferment, 1933-1937	56
5	Proclamation and Organization, 1937-1939	76
6	Making a New International Order in the War Years, 1939-1945	94
7	From the Center to the Margins, 1945-1948	116
	Conclusion	129
	Notes	133
	Bibliography	167
	Index	193

Editorial Reviews

"The book is a welcome reminder of the extraordinary accomplishments of Henry P van Dusen in churchmanship toward social responsibility and his theological contribution to world order....The book is recommended for those engaged in research in ecumenical theology 1920-1948 and for library collections in seminaries and universities."—Theology Today

"The present work evidences both a mastery of sources and analytic acuity in tracing the complex connections between the world of ideas and the direction of public affairs...A well-written and valuable study."—First Things

"For those interested in probing the contemporary forms of Protestant social activism, moreover, this book may serve as a historically informative case study."—The Journal of American History

"For those interested in probing the contemporary forms of Protestant social activism, moreover, this book may serve as a historically informative case study."—The Journal of American History

"An intriguing treatment of Christian Realists who forged a theology of international engagement for the US in the 1930s and 1940s....Recommended for advanced undergraduate and graduate historical and theological study."—Religious Studies Review

From the Publisher