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skitch41's review
3.0
Over the course of the first half of the twentieth century, America began a meteoric ascent to world power that was not sought or desired by many Americans (or so goes the typical historical narrative). At the same time rapid industrialization created new societal problems and fascism & communism became existential threats to America’s way of life. As Americans tried to grapple with all of these sudden changes, Reinhold Niebuhr, a well-educated Christian minister, came on the scene to advocate for the working man’s needs and the moral necessity for America’s world leadership based on his Christian principles. This fine edition from the Library of America collects Mr. Niebuhr’s major works, including “The Children of Light and the Children of Darkness” and “The Irony of American History”, as well as a collection of his sermons, lectures, and prayers.
The first half of this book is made up of Mr. Niebuhr’s major books. These are perhaps the toughest sections to get through as Niebuhr’s education and vocabulary can sometimes be impenetrable. I found myself scratching my head quite a few times as I was reading through this book. Fortunately, one can learn from my mistake and frequent the chronology in the back of the book for greater context behind Mr. Niebuhr’s writings, though a lack of a preface from the editor means that one might struggle to fully understand Mr. Niebuhr’s thoughts unless one is already familiar with his life and work.
This book does become easier to read as it moves along though. As Mr. Niebuhr becomes more popular, his books, lectures, and sermons start to become friendly to the average reader. On top of that, though Mr. Niebuhr’s writings make his criticisms of fascism and communism quite clear, he was never chest-thumping cheerleader of American democracy. His earlier writings in particular show a willingness to critique American politics and culture for leaving the workers high and dry or believing too much in America’s superiority to its fascist and communist antagonists. Mr. Niebuhr maintains throughout that, while better than fascism and communism, democracy is not completely above reproach.
Ultimately, this book is for those who already have at least a decent knowledge of Mr. Niebuhr’s life and work. As I jumped into this edition blind, I feel I will have to reread this book at a later date once I have learned more about his life and the greater context of his work. That said, if you are looking for a definitive and accessible edition of Reinhold Niebuhr’s work, look no further than this.
The first half of this book is made up of Mr. Niebuhr’s major books. These are perhaps the toughest sections to get through as Niebuhr’s education and vocabulary can sometimes be impenetrable. I found myself scratching my head quite a few times as I was reading through this book. Fortunately, one can learn from my mistake and frequent the chronology in the back of the book for greater context behind Mr. Niebuhr’s writings, though a lack of a preface from the editor means that one might struggle to fully understand Mr. Niebuhr’s thoughts unless one is already familiar with his life and work.
This book does become easier to read as it moves along though. As Mr. Niebuhr becomes more popular, his books, lectures, and sermons start to become friendly to the average reader. On top of that, though Mr. Niebuhr’s writings make his criticisms of fascism and communism quite clear, he was never chest-thumping cheerleader of American democracy. His earlier writings in particular show a willingness to critique American politics and culture for leaving the workers high and dry or believing too much in America’s superiority to its fascist and communist antagonists. Mr. Niebuhr maintains throughout that, while better than fascism and communism, democracy is not completely above reproach.
Ultimately, this book is for those who already have at least a decent knowledge of Mr. Niebuhr’s life and work. As I jumped into this edition blind, I feel I will have to reread this book at a later date once I have learned more about his life and the greater context of his work. That said, if you are looking for a definitive and accessible edition of Reinhold Niebuhr’s work, look no further than this.
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