Designed to encourage critical thinking about history, the Major Problems in American History series introduces students to both primary sources and analytical essays on important topics in U.S. history. Each volume presents a carefully selected group of readings in a formal that asks students to evaluate primary sources, test the interpretations of distinguished historians and others, and draw their own conclusions.
The essays collected in this book deal with the question how, throughout the history of Christianity, Christian communities have tried to construct their identity by anchoring their views in authoritative and normative sources. The main focus is upon the problem of historical foundation through textual traditions but other authoritative sources ( role of religious leaders; ritual traditions) are taken into consideration as well. The book takes as its point of departure the fact that with the rise of modernity the former dependence of western church and society on authoritative sources was called into question. Ever since, appeal to such sources is no longer self-evident; at times it is even regarded as problematic. Based on this radical change brought about by modernity, the book is divided in two main parts. The first part deals with the question how Christian churches and confessions ( Roman-Catholic and Protestant) confronted modernity and which role was played by authoritative sources in the tradition to the modern era. Special attention will be paid to the way in which Judaism reacted to many of the same impulses, both societal and religious ones. The second part deals with the premodern period, from early Christianity to the post-Reformation era, and focuses on the role authoritative traditions, textual or otherwise, have played in providing various Christian communities with a relative stable identity. The aim of the book is to elucidate processes resulting in the formation of authoritative traditions as well as the effects of these traditions on the identity of Christian and Jewish communities. In addition, the book attempts to clarify the various ways in which Christian and Jewish communities have reacted to the growing suspicion authoritative traditions aroused in the western world since the rise of modernity.
This second edition of American Culture includes contemporary events and provides an introduction to American civilization. Extracts are taken from diverse sources such as political addresses, articles, interviews, oral histories and advertisements. Edited by academics who are highly experienced in the study and teaching of American Studies across a wide range of institutions, this book provides: texts that introduce aspects of American society in a historical perspective primary sources and images that can be used as the basis for illustration, analysis and discussion linking text which stresses themes rather than offering a simple chronological survey. American Culture brings together primary texts from 1600 to the present day to present a comprehensive overview of, and introduction to, American culture.
Designed to encourage critical thinking about history, this book introduces students to both primary sources and analytical essays on important topics in US history. It contains primary documents, secondary sources, chapter introductions, separate introductions to documents and essays in every chapter, bibliographies, and documentation of sources.
This fascinating study examines America's complex and confusing history of arguing with itself over religion and secularism, God and politics, church and state. Hundreds of books are devoted to the ever-timely subject of the separation of church and state in America, but none does exactly what Christian Nation?: The United States in Popular Perception and Historical Reality does. Unlike other studies, this intriguing examination asks the right questions, defines the terms of the debate, explores the widely diverging points of view with equal respect for all sides, and provides insightful commentary and factual conclusions that cut through the clutter. The book begins with several questions: Is the United States a "Christian Nation?" Has it ever been? Was it ever meant to be? What did the Founding Fathers say? How has this issue been interpreted by various individuals and factions over the centuries? The author then surveys the vast literature on this topic, including the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence and the competing and/or complimentary views of various Founding Fathers to arrive at the answers—and, at long last, the truth.
Caitlin Carenen chronicles the American Christian relationship with Israel, tracing first mainline Protestant and then evangelical support for Zionism.
A beautiful commemorative edition of Dr. Martin Luther King's essay "Letter from Birmingham Jail," part of Dr. King's archives published exclusively by HarperCollins. With an afterword by Reginald Dwayne Betts On April 16, 1923, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., responded to an open letter written and published by eight white clergyman admonishing the civil rights demonstrations happening in Birmingham, Alabama. Dr. King drafted his seminal response on scraps of paper smuggled into jail. King criticizes his detractors for caring more about order than justice, defends nonviolent protests, and argues for the moral responsibility to obey just laws while disobeying unjust ones. "Letter from Birmingham Jail" proclaims a message - confronting any injustice is an acceptable and righteous reason for civil disobedience. This beautifully designed edition presents Dr. King's speech in its entirety, paying tribute to this extraordinary leader and his immeasurable contribution, and inspiring a new generation of activists dedicated to carrying on the fight for justice and equality.
The clash of modernity and an Amish buggy might be the first image that comes to one’s mind when imagining Lancaster, Pennsylvania, today. But in the early to mid-eighteenth century, Lancaster stood apart as an active and religiously diverse, ethnically complex, and bustling city. On the eve of the American Revolution, Lancaster’s population had risen to nearly three thousand inhabitants; it stood as a center of commerce, industry, and trade. While the German-speaking population—Anabaptists as well as German Lutherans, Moravians, and German Calvinists—made up the majority, about one-third were English-speaking Anglicans, Catholics, Presbyterians, Quakers, Calvinists, and other Christian groups. A small group of Jewish families also lived in Lancaster, though they had no synagogue. Carefully mining historical records and documents, from tax records to church membership rolls, Mark Häberlein confirms that religion in Lancaster was neither on the decline nor rapidly changing; rather, steady and deliberate growth marked a diverse religious population.
Lewis Issues a Forceful Warning to Industry, 1936 5. GM Managers Work Behind Closed Doors on a Collective Bargaining Policy, 1936 6. Magazine of Wall Street Assesses Corporate Performance for Investors, 1929-1938 7. St. Louis Banker Heads the Defense Plant Corporation, 1940-1944 8. Life Celebrates Henry J. Kaiser and the U.S. Wartime Shipbuilding Program, 1942 9. Mill and Factory Explains How the Aircraft Industry Recruits Women, 1942 ESSAYS Michael A. Bernstein, Why the Great Depression Was Great Howell John Harris, GM, Chrysler, and Unionization Joel Davidson, World War II and the Birth of the Military-Industrial Complex 12. Postwar Challenges and Opportunities: The Culture of Affluence and the Cold War, 1945-1980 DOCUMENTS 1. National Association of Manufacturers Outlines a Plan for Postwar Prosperity, 1944 2. Real Estate Developers Lure Business to the Suburbs, 1948 3.A Concerned Consumer Asks a Big Businessman about the Price of a Nylon Shirt, 1950 4.U.S. News and World Report Explains What the Baby Boom Means to the Economy, 1957 5. Fortune Credits Federal Policies for the Explosion of Motels, 1959 6. Senator Hubert H. Humphrey Compares R & D Expenditures at Home and Abroad, 1962 7. Vietnam War Raises Business Hackles, 1971 ESSAYS Lizabeth Cohen, From Town Center to Shopping Center: The Reconfiguration of Marketplaces in Postwar America Bruce J. Schulman, Fortress Dixie: Defense Spending and the Rise of the Sunbelt 13. Business and the Public Interest: Corporate Responsibility for Environment, Health, and Safety, 1945-2005 DOCUMENTS 1.A Prominent Zoologist Speaks about the Threat of the Modern Economy, 1949 2. Weyerhauser Explains the Forest Industry's Practices, 1949 3. Ralph Nader Blames Detroit Carmakers for Automotive Accidents, 1965 4. Alcoa CEO Explains the Public Responsibility of Private Enterprise, 1967 5. Economist Milton Friedman Urges Business to Focus on Profits, 1970 6. Sun Oil Executives Outlines the Nation's Energy Dilemmas, 1973 7.A Lawmaker Explains the Necessity for Superfund, 1981 8. CIGNA Doctor Critiques Tobacco Advertising, 1987 9. Hawaiians Debate Airport Expansion on Maui, 1996 ESSAYS David B. Sicilia, The Corporation Under Siege Mansel G. Blackford, The Controversy over the Kahului Airport 14. The Great Transition from Manufacturing to Services, 1945-2005 DOCUMENTS 1. Economist Victor R. Fuchs Highlights the Growth of Services, 1965 2. Investment Bankers Association Predicts a Computer Boom, 1963 3. Bill Veeck Assesses Baseball's Marketing, 1963 4. Ray Kroc Explains How He Built the McDonald's Empire, 1968 5. Journalists Probe Transportation Workers' Lives in the Wake of Deregulation, 1992 6. Sam Walton, Ten Rules That Worked for Me, 1992 7.A Congressman Explores Wal-Mart's Labor Practices in the United States and Asia, 2004 ESSAYS Thomas S. Dicke, We Deliver: Domino's Pizza and the Franchising Method Richard H.K. Vietor, American Airlines Competes after Deregulation Simon Head, Inside Wal-Mart 15. American Business in the World, 1945-2005 DOCUMENTS 1, Fortune Urges Business to Export Capitalism and Democracy, 1947 2. High Labor Costs and Foreign Competition Confound Steelmakers, 1968 3. National Industrial Conference Board Assesses the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), 1969 4. Pharmaceutical Giant Bristol-Myers Encounters Cultural Differences in Japan and the USSR in the 1970s 5, Time Documents the Agricultural Surplus, 1986 6. Journalist Thomas L. Friedman Describes McDonald's Global Expansion, 1996 7. Washington Think Tank Calculates NAFTA's Impact on Jobs, 2001 (table and maps) 8. USDA Reports NAFTA's Benefits to Agricultural Exports, 2001 ESSAYS Geoffrey Jones, Multinationals and Globalization Martin N. Baily and Diana Farrell, Exploding the Myths about Offshoring.
