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A review by woofwoofwoof
The Religion of American Greatness by Paul D. Miller
3.0
The Religion of American Greatness is great for people trying to see things from the perspective of American conservatives, particularly that of American Christian Nationalists. It helped me realize the importance of history and religion to White Christians in America, and how these can easily be twisted into nationalism and racism.
It would have been a much better read had the writer not made his biases so overt. As someone who repeatedly mentions the need to not just acknowledge the past mistakes of their nation, but to also celebrate the good that it has done throughout history, he hardly mentions all the other social accomplishments of America aside from racial equality (which somehow feels like low-hanging fruit), and never gives any due credit to the importance of progressivism in the achievement of said accomplishments. That, as well as his constant need to inject his partisanship in ways that almost feel off-topic, his reliance on the bible in matters of ethics and morality—not to mention his condescension towards virtually everyone—tarnishes his credibility in spite of his scholarly background.
3 stars. The Religion of American Greatness should be a good book to help Christian Republicans from straying too far to the right by appealing to their Christian values and their patriotism; unfortunately, Miller writes this glorified dissertation in a way that may be too wordy and convoluted for those who actually need to hear his message.
For others who, like me, are simply trying to understand why many Americans are drawn to Trump, a better book would be [b:Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right|28695425|Strangers in Their Own Land Anger and Mourning on the American Right|Arlie Russell Hochschild|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1470283600l/28695425._SY75_.jpg|48893201].
It would have been a much better read had the writer not made his biases so overt. As someone who repeatedly mentions the need to not just acknowledge the past mistakes of their nation, but to also celebrate the good that it has done throughout history, he hardly mentions all the other social accomplishments of America aside from racial equality (which somehow feels like low-hanging fruit), and never gives any due credit to the importance of progressivism in the achievement of said accomplishments. That, as well as his constant need to inject his partisanship in ways that almost feel off-topic, his reliance on the bible in matters of ethics and morality—not to mention his condescension towards virtually everyone—tarnishes his credibility in spite of his scholarly background.
3 stars. The Religion of American Greatness should be a good book to help Christian Republicans from straying too far to the right by appealing to their Christian values and their patriotism; unfortunately, Miller writes this glorified dissertation in a way that may be too wordy and convoluted for those who actually need to hear his message.
For others who, like me, are simply trying to understand why many Americans are drawn to Trump, a better book would be [b:Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right|28695425|Strangers in Their Own Land Anger and Mourning on the American Right|Arlie Russell Hochschild|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1470283600l/28695425._SY75_.jpg|48893201].