Description
Book SynopsisExamines Unitarianism's position as an influential religious movement in the early history of the Antebellum South. By looking at, among other things, benevolent societies, lay meetings, professional activity, intellectual forums, business partnerships, and literary correspondence, Macaulay sees a much greater Unitarian presence than has been previously recognized.
Trade Review“Macaulay does an excellent job of showing how much northern and southern Unitarianism diverged in the antebellum period. His argument that southern Unitarianism should be considered an independent denominational and intellectual movement is a convincing contribution to southern religion history.” —
Journal of Southern History“Trained in both theology and history, John Macaulay has provided in this work strong correctives to the commonly held views that southern Unitarianism was merely a New England offshoot and that southern religion was generally only of the heart, not the head. His book clearly demonstrates the errors in these overly simplistic, conventional views.” —
Georgia Historical Quarterly“Macaulay's book deserves attention for its clear delineation of the intellectual and scriptural foundations of Unitarianism and, especially, for its common sense arguments on the ways social relationships made the few Unitarians a force in southern urban culture and benevolence.” —
Florida Historical Quarterly""John Macaulay sculpts the southern face of antebellum American Unitarianism with clarity, empathy, and discernment. Macaulay's almost startling portrait resurrects one of the South's most elusive, itriguing spiritual groups even as it illustrates Unitarainism's unexpected adaptability in the South and the region's intriguing spiritual diverisity. This is a subtle, superbly researched, engagingly written book that rejuvenates a fascinating chapter of pre-Civil War southern history."" — Jon Butler, Yale University
