This volume considers three issues in the Presbyterian Church that have proved to be perplexing to the witness of faith: outreach, ecumenism, and pluralism. The first four essays illustrate that troubling questions about the church's witness arose in this century and divided Presbyterian opinion in the midst of American social problems. Thus, verbal and physical outreach became competing priorities. The final five essays examine racial/ethnic Presbyterian experiences. Examples of the interlocking and sometimes interfering interplay of outreach, ecumenism, and pluralism in the quest for distinctive Presbyterian discipleship are discussed. Through its examination of American Presbyterianism, thePresbyterian Presenceseries illuminates patterns of change in mainstream Protestantism and American religious and cultural life in the twentieth century.

A history of mainline Protestant responses to immigrants and refugees during the twentieth century Open Hearts, Closed Doors uncovers the largely overlooked role that liberal Protestants played in fostering cultural diversity in America and pushing for new immigration laws during the forty years following the passage of the restrictive Immigration Act of 1924. These efforts resulted in the complete reshaping of the US cultural and religious landscape. During this period, mainline Protestants contributed to the national debate over immigration policy and joined the charge for immigration reform, advocating for a more diverse pool of newcomers. They were successful in their efforts, and in 1965 the quota system based on race and national origin was abolished. But their activism had unintended consequences, because the liberal immigration policies they supported helped to end over three centuries of white Protestant dominance in American society. Yet, Pruitt argues, in losing their cultural supremacy, mainline Protestants were able to reassess their mission. They rolled back more strident forms of xenophobia, substantively altering the face of mainline Protestantism and laying foundations for their responses to today’s immigration debates. More than just a historical portrait, this volume is a timely reminder of the power of religious influence in political matters.

Presbyterian Worship in America is the first fully documented historical survey of its theme in the United States. Its value is to be found in a combination of broad painting of the major trends with delightfully detailed vignettes of city and country congregations at worship. Horton Davies Melton exposes the tension between freedom and order which has always existed among American Presbyterians.... This concise, well-researched and well-written book will be valuable for students of American religious history as well as for pastors and laymen responsible for guiding the worship of their congregations. James H. Smylie Dr. Melton...surveys discussions of [worship] in the church press and in books, arranged loosely according to New School evangelism and Old School formalism. Particularly valuable are the sketches of such colorful individuals as Charles Baird, Charles Shields, Levi Ward, Benjamin Comegys, and Henry van Dyke. James H. Nichols

As American soldiers fought overseas in Vietnam, American churchmen debated the legitimacy and impact of the war at home. While the justness of the war was the primary issue, they also argued over conscientious objection, the legitimacy of protests, the weapons of war, and other related topics. Divided into three primary groups—mainline, conservative evangelical, and African American—and including fourteen denominations, this book uses the churchmen’s publications and proceedings to better understand how American religion responded to and was impacted by the Vietnam War. In the various debates, churchmen brought their theological convictions and reading of the Bible to bear on their political perspectives. Convictions about sin, the nature of man, the fate of the world, violence and benevolence had direct impact upon the foreign policy perspectives of these churches. Rather than result in static political positions, these convictions adapted as the nature of the war and the likelihood of American success changed over time. The positions taken by American denominations brought about attitudes of support, opposition, and ambivalence toward the war, but also impacted the vibrancy of many churches. Some groups were rent asunder by the fractious, debilitating debate. Other churches, due to their greater ideological clarity and unanimity, saw the war provide an impetus for growth. Regardless of the individual consequences, the debate over the Vietnam War provides a concrete study of the intersection of religion and politics.

Pittsburgh Theological Monograph - New Series General Editor - Dikran Y. Hadidian