Millennial Dreams and Apocalyptic Nightmares: The Cold War Origins of Political Evangelicalism
"Angela Lahr's readable, well-researched book traces the emergence of evangelicals as a potent and problematic force in Cold War America.  Fueled by apocalyptic visions of an approaching end, and mobilizing techniques ranging from prayer breakfasts to a global missionary enterprise, evangelicals surged from the margins to the center of American life, offering a fearful nation their confident interpretations of history's larger meaning.  Anyone interested in the ideological underpinnings of contemporary U.S. culture, politics, and foreign policy should read this book." --Paul Boyer, author ofWhen Time Shall Be No More: Prophecy Belief in Modern American Culture"InMillennial Dreams and Apocalyptic Nightmares, Angela Lahr shows how evangelicals, who had felt marginalized by American culture, drew upon their belief in the Second Coming and the Millennium to find common cause with Americans who did not share their theology but who also feared a "soon-coming end," albeit from nuclear war. She then demonstrates how millennial beliefs influenced evangelical interpretations of world events, repeatedly energized evangelical efforts, and helped evangelicals view themselves and be viewed by others as a vital and legitimate segment of American culture. The scholarship is excellent, the analysis original, and the writing clean and readable. This book makes a valuable contribution to the understanding of the modern evangelical movement." --William Martin, Rice University"For anyone struggling with the central paradox of American evangelicalism -- its otherworldly message and its this-worldly devotion --Millennial Dreams and Apocalyptic Nightmaresis a good place to turn.  Lahr highlights an important factor in recent evangelicals' this-worldliness, namely, how millennial hopes and Cold War anxieties converged to politicize born-again Protestantism.  Her deft weaving of political and religious history is intelligent and convincing."  --D. G. Hart, author ofThe Lost Soul of American Protestantism"A thoughtful and thought-provoking analysis ... Lahr's meticulous scholarship and carefully constructed arguments convincingly show how conservative evangelicals were able to move from a tangential to a central subculture." --Church History"Lahr's book is significant and persuasive contribution to our understanding of the origins of political evangelicalism in teh twentieth century, and it should receive a wide readership." --American Historical Review