Reviews
| This reviewer must admit to having
been skeptical about the very title of this book, but
Moore has produced an extraordinary study of prayer in
the political, cultural, social, and military history
of the United States… He skillfully weaves hymns, patriotic
anthems, arts, and literature into a history of America
that shows the introspection, vision and devotion of key
individuals and their reliance on prayer… profound… Highly
recommended |
| Booklists |
| "*STAR* News flash: George W.
Bush is neither the first nor the only American public
figure to pray. If Moore's hefty volume doesn't make that
abundantly clear, you're not reading it. He traces prayer
patterns from the earliest inhabitants on this continent
to the later hordes of European immigrants and form the
mountains and plains of the West to the Atlantic shores
and boundaries north and south, revealing that the U.S.
rivals any other country on earth in the number of public
figures who have called upon, thanked and petitioned a
higher being or beings. Separation of church and state
notwithstanding, just about every president, with or without
formal religious affiliation, has either prayed or sanctioned
public prayer of one sort or another. Here Moore draws
an important line in the church-state sand; to wit, "Prayer
is not the exclusive preserve of any one faith."
Indeed, he asserts that while religion and religious tenets
must be learned, "the human brain is 'hardwired'
for prayer." And while he details the lives and prayer
habits of people from all walks of public, private, industrial,
religious, and military life, he allows that the debate
over public prayer will likely not reach any conclusion
soon. In the meantime, it's safe to stay he has made his
point." |
| Library Journal |
| This reviewer must admit to having
been skeptical about the very title of this book, but
Moore (Georgetown Univ.), former secretary of commerce
under president Reagan, has produced an extraordinary
study of prayer in the political, cultural, social, and
military history of the united States. He offers key figures
from the founding colonists to the present day, citing
events in U.S. history in which prayer has played an essential
role, and points to a common denominator of prayer that
has reached such diverse figures as Benjamin Franklin,
Tupac Shakur, and many corporate tycoons. He skillfully
weaves hymns, patriotic anthems, arts, and literature
that shows the introspection, vision, and devotion of
key individuals and their reliance on prayer. There is
also a profound retelling of the meeting between President
Roosevelt and Prime Minster Churchill when the United
States entered World War II in 1939 and of a prayer service
aboard the HMS Prince of Wales, where politicians and
servicemen sang hymns and prayed together. Highly recommended." |
| Catholic News Service |
One Nation Under God is an elegantly
written survey of prayer in America that captures the
spiritual imagination from the very first page.
James P. Moore Jr., a professor at Georgetown University’s
McDonough School of Business, begins with the death of
his father and his resulting quest for solace in the nation’s
prayer practices. These practices are as diverse as they
are plentiful. There are prayers — in connection with
the land, music, preaching, literature, sports, politics
— for nearly every occasion and taste. Subtitled The History
of Prayer in America, this soul-stirring book is one of
the few recent histories of its kind and it promises to
hold pride of place in writing on American culture.
Moore shows how prayer connects to the momentous events
of U.S. history, such as the encounter of two cultures
with the arrival of Columbus, the Revolution, the early
days of the government, the Civil War, the Depression,
the world wars and beyond. He looks at nearly every presidency
to determine the impact prayer had on policy and policymakers.
For instance, just as President George W. Bush recently
called upon the nation to engage in a day of fasting and
prayer for the victims of Hurricane Katrina, numerous
other presidents have asked for God’s aid on the country’s
behalf. Moore sifts many of the presidential papers to
find instances where they invoked God’s assistance in
carrying out the duties of office or beseeched God to
bless the nation.
The real strength of the work lies in the personalities
that Moore says have contributed to a national ethos of
prayer. Moore leaves the future of prayer in the capable
hands of today’s youth who, he says, send their prayers
as genuinely and devoutly as those of America’s forebears.
While reading Moore’s book, I found myself listening more
for prayer within our culture and especially in the lives
of the students I teach. It is there in great numbers
— sometimes silent but always active — adapting and reinventing
its forms as the times demand. |
| Publishers Weekly |
| The simple contention of this fascinating
study is that prayer has always been intertwined with
America's cultural life. Moore, who teaches at McDonough
School of Business at Georgetown University, casts a broad
net, beginning with Native American prayers before European
colonization and culminating with the prayers of Americans
after 9/11. He attends not only to prayers said around
tables and in houses of worship but also to the way that
the arts contribute to prayer: in the 19th century, artists
like Thomas Cole penned prayers in art journals, and 20th-century
Jewish composer Leonard Bernstein wrote a symphony that
meditated on the Jewish kaddish. Indeed, Moore has really
written a history of religion in America told through
the lens of prayer; for example, his discussion of Shaker
prayer is embedded in a discussion of Shakers' place in
America's 19th-century religious landscape. Moore also
addresses American policy about prayer, charting Supreme
Court decisions about prayer in school. There are moments
when the author, who has also written a biography of President
Ford, allows his own political and cultural predilections
to show through; his enthusiasm for President Bush can
be distracting. However, this is a minor flaw in an otherwise
terrifically engaging book |
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