Divinity for All Persuasions - Almanacs and Early American Religious Life

A Divinity for All Persuasions uncovers the religious signifiance of early America's most ubiquitous popular genre. Other than a Bible and perhaps a few schoolbooks and sermons, almanacs were the only printed items most Americans owned before 1820. Purchased annually, the almanac was a calendar and astrologically-based medical handbook surrounded by poetry, essays, anecdotes, and a variety of practical information. Employing a wealth of archival material, T.J. Tomlin analyzes the pan-Protestant sensibility distributed through the almanac's pages between 1730 and 1820. By disseminating a collection of Protestant concepts regarding God's existence, divine revelation, the human condition, and the afterlife, almanacs played an unparalleled role in early American religious life. Influenced by readers' opinions and printers' pragmatism, the religious content of everyday print supports an innovative interpretation of early American cultural and religious history. In sharp contrast to a historiography centered on intra-Protestant competition, Tomlin shows that most early Americans relied on a handful of Protestant "essentials" rather than denominational specifics to define and organize their religious lives.

Produktdetails

• Autoren: T. J. Tomlin, T.J. Tomlin, T.J. (Assistant Professor of History Tomlin
• Verlag: Oxford University Press
• Sprache: Englisch
• Produktform: Fester Einband
• Erschienen: 23.10.2014
• EAN: 9780199373659
• ISBN: 978-0-19-937365-9
• Seiten: 234
• Serie: Religion in America
• Themen: Geisteswissenschaften, Kunst, Musik > Religion/Theologie > Christentum; Sachbuch > Geschichte > Sonstiges; Schule und Lernen > Erwachsenenbildung/Volkshochschule > Selbstlernmaterialien allgemein; USA, Modern history to 20th century: c 1700 to c 1900, RELIGION / Christianity / History, RELIGION / Christianity / General, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Industries / Media & Communications, HISTORY / United States / 19th Century, c 1800 to c 1900, 19th century, c 1800 to c 1899, Christianity, History of Religion, 18th century, c 1700 to c 1799, United States of America, USA, Church history, History of the Americas, C 1700 To C 1800, Publishing industry & book trade, Publishing and book trade