The Evangelicals

The Evangelicals by Frances FitzGerald offers an in-depth and illuminating examination of the evangelical movement, spanning over three centuries of American history. Starting from the fervent revivals of the Great Awakenings in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the narrative explores how a populist uprising against traditional church authorities ultimately became a dominant force in America's religious landscape.

The book delves into the splits that occurred among white evangelicals during the nineteenth century—divisions marked by geographic lines (North versus South) and theological differences (modernists versus fundamentalists). Post-World War II, the charismatic preacher Billy Graham attempted to unify these factions under a broad Protestant banner, drawing vast crowds and significant attention.

However, the civil rights movement and the cultural upheavals of the 1960s splintered these efforts once more. By the 1980s, influential figures like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson had established the Christian Right, rallying against issues such as abortion and gay rights and leading the South to align with the Republican Party. For decades, their voices dominated the evangelical discourse on a national level.

As evangelicalism evolved, a younger generation pushed for a more expansive agenda, including topics like climate change, gender equality, and immigration reform. Despite comprising twenty-five percent of the American population, evangelicals are no longer a monolithic political force; their views now span from staunch Tea Party conservatism to progressive social reform.

FitzGerald questions the future of evangelical churches amidst the broader decline of religious faith in America. She suggests that embracing ethnic minorities will be crucial for their survival. Her work is praised as “a well-written, thought-provoking, and deeply researched history that is impressive for its scope and level of detail” (The Wall Street Journal). Similarly praised by The American Scholar, the book is heralded as “brilliant, timely, well-researched, well-written, and necessary.”