Books to Read for America's 250th Anniversary
History, Politics, and Being a Christian in America
America turns 250 this year, a milestone worth marking and reflecting on. This reading list brings together books that take the American story seriously, covering democracy, religious liberty, race, justice, abolition, civil rights, settler colonialism, Christian nationalism, and what it means to be a faithful citizen.
Disarming Leviathan
Pastor Caleb Campbell has watched as Christian nationalism has taken over large swaths of the United States. And he's suffered the relational fallout of standing against it, both in his community and his church. Campbell argues that while it's possible to be both a Christian and hold Christian nationalist ideas, Christian nationalism itself is an un-Christian worldview, rooted in ideas about power, race, and property that are irreconcilable with Christian faith. This book prepares you to confront it with compassion and hospitality, and with the truth of the good news of Jesus.
Don't Let Nobody Turn You Around
It's possible to be faithful in the public square without joining the culture war. In fact, there's a model. The Black church's social action tradition has long rejected the idea that overcoming polarization means moral compromise. AND Campaign co-founder and president Justin Giboney explores a compelling vision of how the Black Church’s social action tradition can inspire hope and healing in the face of today’s polarized culture wars.
How to be a Patriotic Christian
Some Christians see loyalty to America as central to our faith and identity. Other Christians are skeptical that our nation warrants such devotion or attachment. But Richard Mouw encourages Christians to have a healthy sense of national peoplehood that promotes civic kinship and responsible citizenship. He navigates between Christian nationalism on one hand and cynicism about country on the other to avoid the perils of both idolatry and disengagement.
We the Fallen People
We the Fallen People presents a close look at the ideas of human nature to be found in the history of American democratic thought, from the nation's Founders through the Jacksonian Era and Alexis de Tocqueville. Focusing on the careful reasoning of the Founders, the seismic shifts of the Jacksonian Era, and the often misunderstood but still piercing analysis of Tocqueville's Democracy in America, McKenzie guides us in a conversation with the past that can help us see the present—and ourselves—with new insight.
Twelve Lies That Hold America Captive
Jonathan Walton exposes the cultural myths and misconceptions about America's identity. Focusing on its manipulation of Scripture and the person of Jesus, he redirects us to the true promises found in the gospel. Walton identifies how American ideology and way of life has become a false religion and shows that orienting our lives around American nationalism is idolatry. This book invites you to see how the kingdom of God offers true freedom and justice for all.
Every Somewhere Sacred
Drawing on social science research and their experiences across American landscapes and the Middle East, Ben Norquist and Brian Miller show how Christians in the US can develop a redemptive imagination for place. Many people have uncritically accepted American cultural assumptions about land, property, home ownership, and the good life. Yet our identity as followers of Jesus should transform how we live in the physical world, even as we recognize how places shape their inhabitants. If you want to dive deeper into a theology of place, Every Somewhere Sacred will help you connect to your own "somewhere" and offer guidance for becoming a steward of God's vision where you are.
Last Call for Liberty
Os Guinness argues that we face a fundamental crisis of freedom, as America's genius for freedom has become her Achilles' heel. Our society's conflicts are rooted in two rival views of freedom, one embodied in "1776" and the ideals of the American Revolution, and the other in "1789" and the ideals of the French Revolution. He calls for a national conversation on the nature of freedom, and poses key questions for concerned citizens to consider as we face a critical chapter in the American story.
Swing Low
In this groundbreaking two-volume work, Walter R. Strickland II presents a theological-intellectual history of the African American church in the United States, highlighting the ways theology has formed and motivated Black Christianity across the centuries. He identifies five theological anchors grounding African Americans in Christian orthodoxy. Volume one covers narrative history from the 1600s to present day while volume two provides primary source documents allowing readers to listen to Black Christianity in its own words.
Threads of Freedom
Great for readers young and old alike, this book written and illustrated by textile artist Sandra Scott-Revelle transforms historical accounts into vivid, accessible stories that help readers ages eight through twelve understand the complex realities of enslavement, survival, and the Underground Railroad. Working with personal accounts from the Works Progress Administration and William Still's The Underground Railroad, Scott-Revelle shows the bravery and sacrifices of people who fought for freedom—not only for themselves but for others as well.
Demanding Liberty
Historian Brandon O'Brien unveils an untold story of how religious liberty came to be. Baptist pastor Isaac Backus worked to secure religious liberty and freedom of conscience for all Americans, not just for one particular denomination or religious tradition. Backus's ideas give us insight into how people of faith navigate political debates and work for the common good. The past speaks into the present as we continue to demand liberty and justice for all.
Undoing Manifest Destiny
In Undoing Manifest Destiny, L. Daniel Hawk exposes the belief systems and practices that settlers developed to justify the displacement, destruction, and cultural erasure of Indigenous peoples, beginning in the early American colonial period and extending to the present day. Writing as the descendant of White settlers and as a biblical scholar, he challenges settler Christians to uncover what the settler narrative denies and to work toward addressing historic injustices.
Awakening to Justice
Through considering connections between the revivalist, holiness, and abolitionist movements; the experiences of enslaved and freed people; abolitionists' spiritual practices; various tactics used by abolitionists; and other themes, the authors offer insight and hope for Christians concerned about racial justice. They highlight how Christians associated with Charles Finney's style of revivalism formed intentional, countercultural communities such as Oberlin College to be exemplars of interracial cooperation and equality. Hearing the prophetic witness of revivalist social justice efforts in the nineteenth century can provide a fresh approach to today's conversations about race and faith in the church.
Embrace the Tension
In Embrace the Tension, pastor and trusted ministry voice Tommy Nixon offers a pathway for those feeling untethered in today's divisive landscape. Nixon guides you on the "Radical Middle" pathway, a fresh framework with Jesus as the foundation for navigating complexity not with fear or nostalgia but with courage.
