GOVT123C CM - Evangelicals & American Politics

Once at the center of political and cultural life, evangelicals were objects of ridicule by the 1920s. Many responded by withdrawing into something like a religious ghetto. Today, however, evangelicals are once again at the very center of American political and cultural life. This course will explore these developments and the sometimes contentious relationship between evangelicals and the wider society. It will especially scrutinize the ways in which evangelicals have both contributed to and reacted against the cultural and social upheavals of the 1960s. We will further ask whether these developments have contributed to the health of American democracy. Have American evangelicals, for example, contributed to a democratic culture that depends on thoughtful deliberation over the good society or have they undermined common democratic values by seeking a theocratic republic? More generally, what should be the proper relationship between religion and democracy?

Prerequisite: GOVT 020 CM

Offered: Every other year

Credit: 1

Course Number: GOVT123C CM