ebooks Getting Religion: Faith; Culture; and Politics from the Age of Eisenhower to the Era of Obama by Kenneth L. Woodward in History

Review

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful. Religion in all stripesBy Sheep23Getting Religion: Faith; Culture and Politics from the Age of Eisenhower to the Era of Obama by Kenneth L. WoodwardA book spanning faith; culture and politics from a noted Newsweek Religion reporter for many years is bound to stir up the pot. And yet; Kenneth Woodward’s new book; Getting Religion; is as much about understanding how far we’ve come in unlearning overly dogmatic things and relearning what it means to bring faith to the public square. However overwhelming the task may be to cover such a broad swath of themes in a lengthy numbers of years; this book is really a good synthesis of the last 50 or so years.One of the key movements that took place that affected faith and culture in the past century was Vatican II. Woodward remarks that his interest was mainly in the foundation of the reforms that were past; especially the books and thinkers that helped shaped the changes (Rahner and others). One thing that Woodward pointed out was that; “I was deeply impressed by the mutual respect; camaraderie even; between the Catholic and Protestant veterans of the Council (75).” Even an outsider and Evangelical stalwart such as David F. Wells contends after the council that; “It also has placed on Protestants an obligation to revise their thinking about Rome (76).” No longer heeding to the call of Pope Pius XII that only the church of Rome is the people of God; the Council sought to bring together the worldwide church and its various members.Much of the changing landscape of religion in our times is due to the posture we have towards certain religious documents; most notably the Bible. Woodward draws us into some key movements that took the Bible seriously but also took issues relating to women seriously too. Woodward writes; “Written; edited; and translated solely by men; the Bible could be read – and dismissed – as the religion of patriarchy…The most influential feminist scholars – were determined to reclaim the Bible as a user-friendly text for women’s liberation (240).” Reuther and Fiorenza to name two; devoted their life to making the Bible match their concern for the oppression of women; and looked at their liberation. Their ‘hermeneutic of suspicion’ was very much in line with the modern historical-critical method but their bent was toward the major texts that prized women and eschewed the one’s that hinted at male dominance.Overall; Woodward does an excellent job at painting the religious landscape of the past decades. You won’t want to miss this book.Thanks to Blogging for Books for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.7 of 7 people found the following review helpful. A Roman Catholic Remembers 60 Years of ReligionBy C. C. I. Fenn'Getting Religion' by Kenneth Woodward was not at all what I expected. By the title and subtitle ('Faith; Culture; and Politics from the Age of Eisenhower to the Era of Obama'); I assumed that this would be a history of religion in America from the 1950s through today. But this isn't history per se. This is more of a memoir - a memoir laced with the history of religion in America - but a memoir none the less. Woodward's bias as a Roman Catholic also comes out in a number of chapters; planting it even more firmly in memoir territory.Woodward divides the book up into topical chapters: one on evangelicalism; one on the liberation theology movement; etc. In each; he examines different religious movements that have characterized the past six decades. Though in examining the movements; he's only able to discuss a handful of people per movement.In the fifth chapter; Woodward takes on evangelicalism; a movement he describes as "essentially an entrepreneurial religion." I would largely agree with his assessment regarding evangelicalism's strengths and weaknesses. However; I was disappointed that he limited his discussion to Billy Graham and Bill Bright. Obviously; these men are important when discussing this topic. But they aren't the movement. Francis Schaeffer gets a sentence or two as does Rick Warren but overall; Woodward's discussion of evangelicalism over the past fifty years is frail. And that's the drawback in every chapter. The history of religion for the past fifty years would require volumes to cover even the most major ideas; individuals; and movements. As a result; this book is a mile wide and an inch deep.I also felt like Woodward misunderstood certain aspects of evangelicalism (and perhaps some of the other movements; although I'm not as familiar with them so I can't make a judgment there). For example; he makes the statement that "Some Evangelicals took to calling themselves simply 'Christians;' as if only they could claim that title." I think this is a gross misreading of what's going on when someone refuses a denominational (or other) label. They aren't making a statement about what others are or are not. They're simply declaring their own allegiances. They see themselves as belonging wholly to Christ. They aren't (usually) declaring all others 'not-Christian.' They just don't want to be associated with any reformer or otherwise human leader.The only other complaint I had was the inclusion of a peculiar paragraph that seemed (to me at least) to invite suspicion that Jerry Falwell had a financial advisor murdered. According to Woodward; he "had died in a mysterious accident: he was hacked to pieces; apparently after falling into the blades of his own thrasher." Woodward mentions this briefly and doesn't expand on it at all. He doesn't even include a footnote to a news article so I could find out more about it. It was; to put it bluntly; strange.With all of that said; I really did enjoy this book. It's well written and includes a lot of anecdotes about leaders across the political and religious spectrum that Woodward had the opportunity to interview through the years. You might not walk away from it with a deep understanding of the religious movements that have defined the last 60 years; but you will at least be exposed to them. And that's a great first step.9 of 10 people found the following review helpful. Insightful book on the religious landscape from the 1950's till nowBy Chris LandIf you have followed the news; you would notice religion seems to be a topic that many talk about whether negative or positive. The landscape of religion in America has changed as well. In the 1950's; church attendance was looked on as a positive aspect about your character where today; in some circles; it is considered very negatively. Religion has always been in the history of America whether it is acknowledged or not. Religion has also shaped America in every generation. Kenneth L Woodward is the former Religion Editor for Newsweek and has written a book that highlights the changes in the American culture and how religion has influenced it from the 1950's to today. The book is titled; Getting Religion. Woodward highlighted that many Americans attended church in the 1950's where today many don't have a religious affiliation. He goes through the times of the civil rights movement; anti-Vietnam war protests; and the rise of religious cults. He does all this to being about how religion is view in the 21st century and how it has played a role in politics and the current cultural climate. He even looks at each president from Eisenhower to Obama on how religion has influenced them. Woodward has done a lot of research in this book and has carefully communicated the history of the second half of the 20th century up to this point on how religion has played a role in the current American culture. There is a lot of information to process. This book will be a good tool for pastors and theologians to use in understanding more of the current religious climate in America today.