The Religious History of America: The Heart of the American Story from Colonial Times to Today
Since the first edition was published in 1966, this work has remained a standard text for American religious history. The 2002 revision, by Gaustad (history, emeritus, Univ. of California, Riverside) and Schmidt (religion, Princeton Univ.), retains the core material with a revised chapter structure, updated bibliographies, and some text revisions. In some cases, the revisions are simply rearrangements of chapter sections, while in others there is a shift in terminology e.g., using "African American" for "black" and replacing "American religion" with the more clearly designated "American Protestantism." While such changes are subtle, they do alter the tone of the work, bringing it more in line with current approaches to the study of religion and American culture. In the case of the last three chapters, the authors have done considerable revision and brought the history up to the turn of the century. The overall result is a well-balanced enhancement of an excellent work. Recommended for all libraries. Jan Blodgett, Davidson Coll. Lib., NCCopyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.