Description
Book SynopsisWhile spreading the gospel around the world through his signature crusades, internationally renowned evangelist Billy Graham maintained a visible and controversial presence in his native South, a region that underwent substantial political and economic change in the latter half of the twentieth century. In this period Graham was alternately a desegregating crusader in Alabama, Sunbelt booster in Atlanta, regional apologist in the national press, and southern strategist in the Nixon administration.
Billy Graham and the Rise of the Republican South considers the critical but underappreciated role of the noted evangelist in the creation of the modern American South. The region experienced two significant related shifts away from its status as what observers and critics called the Solid South: the end of legalized Jim Crow and the end of Democratic Party dominance. Author Steven P. Miller treats Graham as a serious actor and a powerful symbol in this transition—an evan
Trade Review
"Billy Graham and the Rise of the Republican South, a study of the evangelist's relationship to the cause of civil rights on the one hand and the cause of conservatism on the other, does justice to the tensions and complexities involved-for Graham, for the South and for the country." * Ross Douthat, New York Times *
"With this book, Steven P. Miller emerges as a significant new voice in the history of evangelical Christianity. . . . The book opens new territory for modern American religious and political history, and for this reason it should be considered essential reading." * Donald T. Critchlow, Reviews in American History *
"Wonderfully readable, engrossing . . . . A captivating history and a profound work of scholarship. Miller ably shows how evangelicalism aided the new conservatism long before the Christian Right exploded onto the scene." * Randall J. Stephens, Journal of American History *
"Beautifully written, well argued and carefully researched . . . . Thanks to Miller's engaging and provocative book, Billy Graham and modern conservatism will never look the same." * Social History *
"Fascinating . . . Miller is a valuable and sophisticated guide to how Graham-a man interested in both saving souls and playing golf with presidents-helped shape today's South." * Raleigh News and Observer *
"A political biography that shines fresh light on Graham's political machinations, navigation of the civil rights movement and boosting of the Sunbelt South." * Christian Century *
"Miller demonstrates a keen eye for the telling phrases in conversations or letters and incorporates them in a swiftly flowing narrative that pulls the reader along." * Journal of Church and State *
"Billy Graham, prominent evangelist, is reintroduced here for the important role he played in creating the latter-day American South. Miller studies Graham's behavior and rhetoric within the overlapping themes of religion, politics, and race during the decades since 1950 and Graham's part in the story of the post-civil rights South." * Library Journal *
Table of Contents
Introduction. Billy Graham's New South
Chapter one. ''No Segregation at the Altar''
Chapter two. Evangelical Universalism in the Post-Brown South
Chapter three. The Politics of Decency
Chapter four. ''Another Kind of March''
Chapter five. Billy Graham's Southern Strategy
Chapter six. Crusading for the Sunbelt South
Chapter seven. ''Before the Water Gate''
Epilogue. Billy Graham and American Conservatism
