Making the Bible Safe for Democracy: American Methodists and the First World War
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Cindy Wesley
Abstract
The article examines the depiction of the First World War in literature published by the Methodist Episcopal Church for Sunday Schools, mission societies, young people’s organizations and a general church readership. Methodist Episcopal Church authors highlighted the biblical themes of righteousness, Christ-like self-sacrifice, and the Kingdom of God as they justified American involvement in the Great War.
Works Cited
Abrams, Ray. 1933. Preacher’s Present Arms: A Study of the War-time Attitudes and Activities of the Churches and the Clergy in the United States 1914–1918. New York: Round Table Press.Search in Google Scholar
Epworth League. Zion’s Herald, November 6, 1918: 1438.Search in Google Scholar
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©2017 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- The Bible in America and Britain at War
- Making the Bible Safe for Democracy: American Methodists and the First World War
- “The Bible is the Word of God.… What does it Tell us About War?”
- Bishops, Baby-Killers and Broken Teeth: Psalm 58 and the Air War
- “All War is Contrary to the Mind of Christ:” The Bible and the Fellowship of Reconciliation
- The Bible and the British and American Armed Forces in Two World Wars
- “The Merchants of Tarshish, with all the Young Lions Thereof.” The British Empire, Scripture Prophecy, and the War of Armageddon, 1914–1918
- Ecclesiasticus, War Graves, and the Secularization of British Values
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- The Bible in America and Britain at War
- Making the Bible Safe for Democracy: American Methodists and the First World War
- “The Bible is the Word of God.… What does it Tell us About War?”
- Bishops, Baby-Killers and Broken Teeth: Psalm 58 and the Air War
- “All War is Contrary to the Mind of Christ:” The Bible and the Fellowship of Reconciliation
- The Bible and the British and American Armed Forces in Two World Wars
- “The Merchants of Tarshish, with all the Young Lions Thereof.” The British Empire, Scripture Prophecy, and the War of Armageddon, 1914–1918
- Ecclesiasticus, War Graves, and the Secularization of British Values
