Description
Book SynopsisFocusing on the contribution of preacher and politician Paul Peter Waldenström, this is an examination of the role of the Swedish Church in the emergence of political pluralism and social democracy in 19th and early 20th century Sweden.
Trade Review"Plurality - of perspectives, principles, and persons - is a fact, not an option. So is the intense religiosity of millions amidst a 'secular age.' Safstrom's measured and finely written study of Waldenström not only vindicates a largely forgotten thinker, preacher, and politician, but makes one of the best cases I have read for pluralism as an ethic fit for the facts of plurality, and Christianity as a basis for democracy." Ned O'Gorman, Conrad Humanities Professorial Scholar, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign In the nineteenth century, Sweden went through a fundamental social and economic transformation and by the mid-twentieth century, it had emerged as an influential model of social progress. In this fresh and insightful book, Safstrom highlights the interrelations between religion and politics for these processes." Dag Blanck, Swedish Institute for North American Studies, Department of English at Uppsala University
Table of ContentsList of Figures and Tables Acknowledgments Introduction Part I: Crafting a Strategy of Pluralism Chapter 1: Locating 'The Middle Way' in Waldenström's Discourse Chapter 2: Modeling Pluralism through Allegory - Squire Adamsson Part II: Separating Church and State Chapter 3: Pietism as the Re-Emergence of Religious Pluralism in Sweden Chapter 4: Print Media and the Mobilization of Reform Chapter 5: Religion in Public: 'Private Matter' or 'Matter of Conscience'? Chapter 6: On Conscience and the Rights of Dissenters Chapter 7: The Limits of Democracy in the Kingdom of Christ Part III: Brokering Confrontation and Exchange: Pietism and Socialism Chapter 8: Pluralism as Productive Tension Chapter 9: Branting v. Waldenström: The Debate to Define Absolutism and Moralism Chapter 10: The Impact of the Free-Church Vote Chapter 11: Majoritarianism v. Proportionalism: Making Space for Dissent Chapter 12: An Exchange of Words: A Re-Socialized Christian Vocabulary and a Democratized Socialist One Part IV: Tempering the Politics of Temperance Chapter 13: Defining Moderate v. Absolutist Abstinence Politics Chapter 14: Pragmatism and Experimentation with Best Practices Chapter 15: A Preference for Education over Legislation Conclusion Endnotes Bibliography
